shelemm

My wife and I just got back from a 21-night vacation, and boy are we tired! Physically to be sure, but we are also dumbfounded from the parade of sights we took in. We did and saw too much.

The sole purpose of the trip was to visit Meteora in Greece. Anything else we did was going to be gravy. What I didn’t realize is that there would be many challenges and surprises on top of that. As much as it was a crowning glory, Meteora was also a jumping off point for so much more.

After Meteora, we had to decide where to go. In planning the trip, we considered all possibilities. We eventually decided that after a week in Greece we would fly to Sofia and take a big driving loop through Romania and Bulgaria. I hope you will follow along.

I’ll start off this first post with just one photo, taken from the balcony of our hotel room in Kastraki, right by the Meteora monasteries. The first day of our trip. It didn’t take long for us to come face-to-face with this scene:

progol

I know exactly where you stayed since in Kastraki I was there one month earlier! And have the same photo!

KarenWoo

shelemm, can you ask the moderators to tag your report as a Trip Report? That way more people will be sure to read it.

I am very happy to see this report. I love Greece although we haven't visited Meteora yet. And we are very interested in visiting Romania in a couple years or so. Our daughter and her husband honeymooned in Romania! Probably not a very popular honeymoon destination but they loved it.

I have always been interested in Bulgaria, too, but unfortunately my husband is not. So not sure we will make it there. But it seems like a very mysterious, interesting and not very well known place to me.

Looking forward to more!

shelemm

I am not sure how to ask a moderator to add a Trip Report... when I click on the Orange Triangle of my OP, the warning is fairly stern that it should "ONLY be used to report spam, advertising messages, and problematic (harassment, fighting, or rude) posts."

shelemm

Great mimes think alike. We stayed at Doupiani House.

progol

Great mimes - and great minds, too! Doupiani House was fabulous.

Sadly, my husband became sick when we were there and spent the entire second day in bed. I was glad we were able to get out the day we arrived and was also glad we had that gorgeous terrace room to enjoy the spectacular view. The hotel staff were so nice and helpful, too. I thought it was the perfect place to stay. Great breakfast, too.

shelemm

We stayed in Meteora for three nights and managed to see all six monasteries. I planned the trip with the idea that I am a kid at heart. I am most excited by clambering up stairs carved out of rock, spying ruins in a forest setting, traipsing around traditional architecture, and scampering around boulders. I already know that you can find unlimited photos and text all about the monasteries, so I will just add three of my photos:

KarenWoo

Love the photos of the monasteries! I hope we can make it to Meteora some day.

How would you compare and contrast the 3 countries you visited? Any favorites? any disappointments?

Progol, sorry to hear your husband was sick in Meteora.

shelemm

Among many other items, that breakfast included a spanikopita in a ring shape that blew me away. Instead of having a clump of spinach, it had airy flecks of spinach between the layers. In fact, all the pastries we had in Greece were far more buttery and golden than what I see in the states.

shelemm

Yes, I am sorry to hear that too. It was probably Progol that gave me the idea of staying at Doupiani House in the first place.

In terms of comparison, the first difference you will notice is in the economies. Greece is very comfortable and First World, Romania is poorer and Bulgaria poorer still. There will be amazing sights to visit and so much to learn, but the average village or city will be more likely ramshackle the poorer you get. Still, none are as poor as Armenia, maybe the greatest travel experience of my life. I will talk about the disappointments as I go along, because I don't want to give anyone the wrong impression in a Cliff Notes version.

progol

<<Progol, sorry to hear your husband was sick in Meteora.>>

Thank you for those kind words. Fortunately, it was at the end of the trip, and I’m glad that we managed to get to Meteora at all, though I wish we had a chance to explore more than we did. We didn’t know it at the time, but it turned out to be COVID. I ended up contracting it, too, so traveling home a few days later for both of us was no fun. And it surprised me because so much of our trip was outdoors, but who knows where it was picked up - it could’ve been from a hotel, a restaurant or in a museum, but I’ll never know. I just know covid is still around - and it found us!

I know I haven’t done a trip report - I was so exhausted when I got home that I just didn’t have the energy. And somehow, I just haven’t been up to it since. Maybe one day I’ll get to it!

shelemm

Next stop was staying a night in Delphi.

We got into Delphi at 4pm and as we drove past the ruins, we saw a huge mob of people, tour buses, and cars jockeying for position. It looked like a nightmare. Plus it was in the full scorching sun.

Right around the bend, the site of the Thalos of Athena was deserted. So we stopped by and had the place pretty much to ourselves. There were a total of four others there.

The next morning at 8am when the ruins opened, we again had them pretty much to ourselves. I'd say there were a dozen others for the first 90 minutes in the cool of the morning before any tour groups showed up. By 10am our visit was complete. I realize everyone already knows this, but it bears repeating: Get there early before everyone else shows up!

Here are three of my photos:

shelemm

On our way to Athens we stopped at two sites I was very thrilled about.

The first was Lake Vougliameni to go swimming. The lake is fed by a freshwater spring against a backdrop of a rocky cliff. What really surprised me was the mixtue of fresh and sea water in the lake. It was slightly salty. You could taste the salt, but it was easy to swim underwater with your eyes open. Even more refreshing than I had anticipated.

The next thing that surprised me were the teeny little fishies that nibble on you (or maybe they are kissing you?) if you stand near the edge. The swimming was exhilarating, and the scenery divine. On a side note, the folks frequenting this spot have far fewer tattoos than in the US....









After Vougliameni, we continued down the Sounion Peninsula to the Temple of Poseidon at the very tip. Great drama to the setting, the ruin is far more complete than most, and it was wonderful to get so close to it. We spent a lot of time here soaking it all in:

KarenWoo

I first visited Greece in 1972, and that's when I visited Delphi and the Temple of Poseidon. In fact, that was my first international trip, and I've been hooked ever since.

Love the photos of Lake Vougliameni! Looks very refreshing and dramatic with the rocky cliff backdrop!

shelemm

Wow, your very first trip! And you've been hooked ever since.... now I know why.

TheModoc

Great shots - wow I didn't even know about Meteora and I've been to Athens and Thessaloniki. Thanks for sharing!

shelemm

Meteora is a group of six surviving monasteries (there were at least 24) perched on craggy rocks high in the air. The rock-carved staircases that lead up to them are a 'modern' convenience; visitors used to be pulled up via rope and crank in a net. there was no stabilization, so the net swayed wildly in the air. Those mechanisms are still in place.

ANUJ

Following with interest, shelemm. We've been to Greece but missed Meteora- it's been on our bucket list for a while.

shelemm

On to Athens.

But first I want to mention a bit about the food we ate.

The three great meals of our trip happened one in each of the countries we visited. And when I say 'great' I mean that these meals left us with a sense of euphoria.

Annie Fine Cooking in Athens. On our plane flight out of Athens we saw it was featured in the in-flight magazine. But we got there first! Multilayered main courses featured sophisticated flavor and use of local ingredients you couldn't source in the US. Traditional and modern. To top off the meal, the creme brulee was revelatory.

Next was Cafe & Artizanat in Viscri, Romania. Viscri is the site of a UNESCO fortified church, and the restaurant is not on the main path you go to get the to church. You have to know it's there. Very fine rendiiton of traditional food incluidng a stuffed cabbage and a rich chicken noodle soup, served with a sourdough that might be the best I've ever had and a drink from elderberry juice. This was special.

The third was in Veliko Tarnovo in Bulgaria. We were on a mission to have kebapche, and Mehana Tihiyat Kut prides themselves on their homemade kebapche. That plus their bean salad and yogurt salad made for a sublime meal. We got a dessert of sliced cantaloupe drizzled with honey and dusted with finely ground walnuts. It was heavenly.

This is not to say the food we had throughout our trip was otherwise equal. By far, most of the best things we had were in Greece.

Prettiest dish of the trip, Seafood Couscous from Mani Mani in Athens:

shelemm

I wasn't sure what to make of Athens before our trip. On ye olde internet, the ruins look like a few strewn boulders and pieces of broken column, like a child's plaything that were never cleaned up. But when we were there, I was completely smitten. It was fun, inspiring and beautiful.

When we got to the Agora, Forum, or Hadrian's Library, we wondered where all the tourists were. At 8am, the Agora was our very own playpen.

So where were the hordes? At the Acropolis. Everyone and their brother, mother, and still-to-be-born children were all at the Acropolis. We hired a private guide the day before, and it was worth it. Without the guide, I am not sure I could have appreciated the site with all the people, and we got there very early. In the thick of tourist season, you need to show up at 7:20am for an 8:00am opening to have a chance at a temporary peace there.

The Acropolis:




The Stoa in the Agora:




The Roman Forum:




Hadrian's Library:




In the Kerameikos Museum:







Kerameikos was the only site where the museum was better than the site itself. Some wonderful, evocative works on display there.