Athens, Greece

Haven’t felt much like writing lately. Haven’t really taken any photos in the last few days, either. Quick summary: Spent a few days flaking on the beach and kayaking around in the sea in Paleokastritsa, Corfu, Greece. There’s not much to do there, and the constant rumble of tourist buses unloading Brits on package tours is a real drawback. Still, the calming sea was a great place to process the news of my friend’s death, and the best place to get away from everyone in a town that basically consists of one main drag of hotels, restaurants and tourist kiosks. Said goodbye to the Aussie gang, who took great care of me and were fun friends. Spent rainy day on Sunday wandering around Corfu Town, alone again, waiting for overnight bus. Forgot it was Sunday and all was closed, even the internet cafe. Broke down and finally bought a backpack at one of the touristy (open) shops. I couldn’t look more like a typical tourist now if I tried, with my tattered maps, cheap rain poncho, lost expression, and now – backpack. Anyway my hands and forearms thank me. That fake Burberry bag was a touch more stylish, but much less practical. Note on Corfu town: Prince Phillip was born here! Who knew. Overnight bus to Athens was full and bizarre. 12:30 am stop at a 24-hour souvlaki joint? mmmm…no thanks. Basically we just stopped a few times through the night so the smokers wouldn’t fly into a rage (yay! no smoking on the bus!) and we could stretch our legs. No sleep at all. Arrived in Athens at 5 am and set about the task of trying to find my way to the suburb of Kessariani on the public transit system (really wanted to avoid the cab fare if possible). It was possible alright. Three buses, two subways, 900 questions and 90 minutes later, I arrived in the neighbourhood. But it only cost me 0,80 euro! What a deal. Unfortunately the street name and family name I had been given were written in English, and everything here is written in Greek. Eventually, after wandering around in the dark and freezing cold for a couple of hours, Sophia came to rescue me (I called and woke her up) and I settled in to my apartment. I have nothing to report on Athens at this point. It’s big, busy, pushy, and crazy. I haven’t even been up to see the Parthenon yet. I do wish I’d done a bit more research on Greece – at least on Athens (I’m lost) and on some of the islands I hope to visit. Guess I’ll just keep winging it. Sorry for poor quality of writing. Just don’t have it in me right now. Haven’t taken a single photo of Athens yet, either.