Budapest, Bratislava & Vienna (Xmas!)

Budapest, Bratislava, Vienna - it was indeed the most wonderful time of the year!

Left: At Budapest Christmas markets
Right top: Presidential Palace at Bratislava
Right bottom: Ambling around Vienna

When some wise old person said make hay when the sun shines! Ha ha! Words have never been truer in the cold cold days in Eastern Europe, where the few hours of sunshine were more than welcome. 

Moving back to a mundane evening in September and in a complete rush of madness we planned a week in Eastern Europe and were to fly out just 20 days after returning from a 15 days long trip in Chile. The main hope was to see the famous Christmas markets. And with that I found myself stuffing our four carry-on bags with thick socks, sweaters and all the warm clothes I could find to combat the freezing temperatures coming up. 

Day 0 - Rain rain go away (like really)!

It was the day we drove from San Diego to Los Angeles for our flight and boy did it rain or what. It was like the skies were weeping, moping, everything at the same time. In all the madness we drove our rental over and soon were at the American Airlines kiosk for confirming our details. 

Jolly at Jolly Apartment!😀

Day 1 - Merry Christmas! 

To optimize ticket costs, we flew out on Christmas eve and for my two ‘nice’ kids, Santa made his reindeer dash up in the air while the kids slept on the flight from LA to London (honestly, I think it was an easier delivery - sky to sky)!! :) Amongst whoops of glee and joy, we transited through Heathrow, London and soon were on our flight to Budapest.

Fun fact - Budapest is actually made of two cities, Buda and Pest each flung on two sides on the pretty river Danube. 

It was early evening when we reached Budapest, but it was already dark outside and we took a Bolt Taxi to our Airbnb, Jolly apartment (a one room apartment which sleeps four with a kitchen) - our abode for the next few days to come. The apartment being very well located in the Jaszai Meri ter area, a stone's throw from tram & bus lines, and a walking distance from the Parliament and the Liberty Bridge. 

Information - best to avoid hailing a cab from the curb. Uber works or the local app is Bolt is preferred and works really well. Bolt has plenty of taxis plying both in Buda and Pest. 

Thrill in our bones, we turned our necks around to soak in the beauty of Budapest as we crossed a beautifully lit Christmas market and the giant ferris wheel there. We had flown in on Christmas day and anticipating that we won't find much open, we had carried some instant noodles which made a warm welcoming dinner on our first night in Budapest. With that we picked 'our sides of the bed' and were slumbering before long. Of course, jetlag played it little games, but long long ago we had learnt to combat it (see Greece blog). 

Day 2: Ho-ho-hop to Christmas Markets

Boxing day and my beloved DH thought like in the States, life (restaurants, cafes) would all be open and functional. Quite a shock when we walked a fair few blocks around to find everything closed. Luckily a small grocery store was open, and we picked some nicknacks, paired those with the pancake mix we'd carried from home and finally brunched at our Airbnb. 

Truly a 'merry' Christmas

Bellies full and souls happier now, we set out again to visit St. Stephen Basilica in Buda. And lo and behold, in front of it dotted the square the prettiest of all Christmas market, something DH had been going gaga about. Each shop was like a picture postcard selling wares of all kinds - quills, music boxes, soaps, handmade choclates and cheese, Christmas ornaments of all kinds and what nots. Aromas of mulled wine, eggnog with whiskey, hot chocolate mixed with wafts of sausages and Hungarian specialty Langoshes (pizza like, just the base is fried) made our noses twitch! 😂

Information - Christmas markets do tend to be rather expensive. Also, paying in cash might get you an occasional discount.

We each let our inner shopper loose as we trotted from shop to shop and pocketed stamps with ornate letters, a music box, pencils, magnets and a Christmas ornament version of a saint. Hungry or not, the aromas around got the better of us and before long we were all munching pork with potatoes and a mile long hotdog with Hungarian sausage, washing it all down with mulled wine.  

Left: Bird's eye view of Budapest
Right: On top of the Basilica

Being a special day the Basilica was closed to the public until 1:00 p.m. and so a little after 1, we made our way back up the steps with the crowds to visit the Hall of the Basilica. Being a special day, it was free for all to enter. A wonder of history, this basilica was built about a 1000 years ago after the first King of Hungary, King Stephen; though this site was first reserved for animals fights but over the years and with public fund-raising today's church came into being. And as promised, it was majestic with a very high ceiling with every inch covered with scenes from the Bible, marble pillars and a calm quietness. We sat down as crowds around moved in every direction marveling.   

Left: St. Stephen Basilica
Right: Manger with dolls

Back outside, we made our way to the ticket office (next to the Starbucks on the next street) as we planned to go to the top of the dome as well. Choosing the elevator over the winding stairs up, we got off at the first elevator stop and walked onto a display of all kinds of interpretations of the manger/birth of Jesus. Dolls, buttons, woodwork, ornate paintings, Christmas ornaments - each depiction as unique as the next. 

With that we went up a crazy number of metallic stairs which took us finally to the very top and to the thin balcony around the top on the dome. A bird's eye view welcomed us as the beautiful city of Budapest spread around us in all directions. And what a view it was - Christmas markets, leading to the streets of Buda, leading to the Danube with its bridges and finally Pest beyond. It was lovely! While coming down we chose the winding stairs which twirled and twirled all the way back. 

Chain Bridge

Next, we walked across to the Szechenyi Chain Bridge - one of the eight bridges connecting Buda to Pest. It was fairly cold (around -1C) by the time we got there and all balaclavas, gloves deployed we walked all the way across to Pest and back. Despite the freezing temperatures, the bridge was milling with people - bless the brave humankind! 😆 We strolled a little along the Danube itself before making it back to the Yellow Tram Line 2 and rode all the way back to the final stop, Jaszai Meri ter and walked back the 2 minutes to our apartment. Dinner was from a local Turkish eatery - Felafel Plate and chicken and rice. Budapest (and I believe most parts of Europe) are dotted with these Doner Kebab places and offer cheaper, yummy and quick solution for meals. With that we called it a night to a very happy day!

Day 3 - 10 miles through the Quant Bratislava

Choo-Choo on Euro City

Eagerness buzzing breakfast was homemade pancakes, as we all made our way to the Nyugati Train Station in Budapest to board our 8:12 a.m. train to Bratislava. Coming from the States, it wasn't every day that we went aboard the choo-choo-train. Our tickets didn't come with reservations but lucky for us we found ourselves seated in the right section. Reading, chatting, laughing and nibbling butter toasts with ham (Abesh lived on his protein bars) we chugged along. Leafless trees and the cold Hungarian countryside waved back at us and before long we were in Slovakia where the landscape was much greener with an occasional beautiful architecture. 

Information - if your tickets don't have automatically assigned seat numbers look where the seat numbers are written and grab a seat which says e.g., 'XYZ - ABC' as those are anyway reserved for passengers to ABC (in our case, ABC was Bratislava). We learnt this from our ticket checker. Also, each country as its own ticket checker who check your tickets so be prepared to share them a few times over. 

Left: Michael's Gate
Right: Statue of Cumil

We reached Bratislava a little after 10 and with started our 10 miles walk around the city. We walked along buildings which held sad scars from the wars of the past and soon were at the gates of the Bratislava Presidential Palace. A few clicks and we continued our walk to the Old Town where a family of locals were singing with a cute kid almost screaming along while playing a small guitar. Our first halt was at the Micheal's gate, a more than 700 years old gate and the only surviving one too. Of course, it has been reconstructed and painted a fair few times over and there it stood towering above the Old Town. We ambled along the cobbled streets looking at the little stores, beautifully carved buildings from centuries ago and the whimsical statues. We stopped for a click at the Statue of Cumil, showcasing a man coming out of a manhole, demonstrating political changes and the fun temperament of the city.  

Left: Halusky (Slovak national dish)
Bottom right: Traditional bean and meat soup

Tummies rumbling and letting Rupkatha take the lead, we made our way to a restaurant called Grand Mother's to try local specials. Rupatha ordered their traditional chicken soup, I their traditional bean with smoked meat soup and DH and Abesh shared the beef goulash. DH also ordered a Halusky (gnocchi like dumplings served with sheep cheese, bacon and sauerkraut) - also the national dish of Slovakia. The latter was delicious no doubt, just lots of flour and cheese.

Left: world war scarred buildings
Right top & bottom: Bratislava Palace

Walking some more on the cobbled streets and we were once again crossing some war-scarred buildings as we made our way to the Bratislavasky Hrad, the Bratislava Castle. The building one visits today started in the 9th century A.D. as the castle stands overlooking the reiver Danube; however, the site itself has remained inhabited since 3500 B.C. with some of the ruins still there. The children played at the little park there as DH and I walked along the walls looking down at the pretty Bratislava below us. It was somewhere in the sub-zero temperatures by then and we decided to walk the 30 minutes back to the station to wait for our next train.

Dinner was Doner kebabs from a hole-in-the-wall place at the Station itself with some very interesting coffees from the Nestle vending machine. DH braved the Latte with Irish Cream, and I experimented with some alcohol flavored Cappuccino, while the kids enjoyed their hot chocolates. Soon we were all seated in our 'regional' train and made the quick hour's journey to Vienna, Austria. Our abode was the Hotel Gabrial - a decent, family friendly hotel with a big breakfast. 

Left: Votive Church
Top right: Gardens at the Schonbrunn Palace
Bottom right: Stained glass at Votive Church

Day 4 - Yet another 10-er in the Wonderful Wien 

Our day began with drinking strong cups of coffee and storming through the breakfast, before taking a bus and a metro all the way to the Schonbrunn Palace, a colossal UNESCO world heritage site with close to 1500 rooms. Unfortunately, the tickets were all sold out for the day (history loving Rupkatha almost cried) but came to our saving was the beautiful bubbling Christmas market on the Palace grounds. The kids cheered up as they went on the little Ferris Wheels a few times over and disappointments lay forgotten thereon. We walked around Palace Grounds and came across a rather interesting garden filled with huge metallic flowers - whimsical artists I must say! 

Now our day in Vienna was the coldest we faced in our trip, and it was like a -3C as we walked around. Next, we visited the Votivkirche (Votive Church). Built in the 1800s as a token of thanks for a failed assassination of the then Emperor F Joseph I, it stands in its tall grandeur, intricate carvings, ornate stained-glass paintings and perfect symmetry of the two towers. 

Top: Maria Theresa Monument
Bottom: Belvedere Palace

It was very cold, and moods a little deflated when DH had the brilliant idea of taking us all the good ol' McDonalds for comfort food and most of all a much-needed heated environment for some time. Coffees, burgers, salads wolfed down and now much more cheerful, we were once again out on the streets of Vienna. We walked around the famous Ringstrabe street crossing the Parliament building, the Burgtor (the Palace gates) and the Maria Theresa Monument. Vienna is brimming with history, and we did feel the pinch of not knowing it well or at all (and vowed to take a guided tour the next time we're here 😉).

Everywhere we looked, beautiful buildings dotted the skyline as we made our way to the final place - Belvedere Palace where we were to visit the Lower House museum. Built in the 1600s as a summer palace for the then Prince Eugene of Savoy, the palace, grand gardens and the intricate sculptures of mythological figures attract tourists from all over the world today. A cheery Christmas market adorned the grounds there as well. We lost time as thanks to the lack of signs we stood in the queue for entering the Upper House but luckily made it to the Lower House eventually. DH and the kids visited the museum and reviewed that it was just about okay and nothing extraordinary. We strolled around the Christmas market a bit, noticing that unlike the markets in Budapest which sold more of wares, the ones in Vienna had more of food and drinks stalls (can't blame them at a feel-like -4C almost).  

Vienna Central Station

Shopped a few nick-nacks from a store opposite the Belvedere Palace, we hopped onto the tram one last time and made it to the Vienna Central Train Station. Succumbing to inner callings we went for comfort foods and dinner was chicken noodles, tofu fired rice, sushi, curry wurst and a sandwich with the fattest ham slice I've ever seen (the last two being Vienna local grubs). All this from different outlets at the food court there! 

Information - the station (like most big stations in Europe) has many entrances. The one the tram dropped us at was just a place which led to all the platforms alright. We had to come out, turn right and walk for 2 minutes before we got to the main place with all the shops and restaurants and the food court. 

With that we boarded our train to journey the 3 hours back to Budapest. Some more reading, chatting and laughing ourselves silly over mindless card games - life was warm and beautiful on the cold evening! 

Fun fact - our seats were reserved in the Family section (of course). There was also a compartment called the silent zone with sour and forlorn looking people. Things we humans come up with! 😂

Day 5 - Some Oops, and yet Some More Miles! 

Left: Buda castle
Top right: Just Tram'ming'
Top bottom: Shoes on the Danube Bank

Poor Abesh succumbed to all the walking, cold, time change and something unknown and was completely under the weather. So of course, Abesh and I stayed in while Rupkatha and DH went out to explore Budapest some more and walked another whooping 8 miles. A gleeful Rupkatha was also awarded with her favorite Chimney cake for all her hard work and vigor. 

They hiked all the way up to the Buda Castle, the Fisherman Bastain and visited probably the saddest place in Budapest - Shoes on the Danube Bank, where 60 pairs of iron shoes represent and pay homage to those killed next to the Danube in the world war holocaust. 😔

They went up and down the Yellow Tram Line 2 that plies up and down next to the Danube. Before long they were back at our Airbnb, and I bundled Abesh up with layers after layers as we went out for our next adventure - a river cruise on Danube. 

Top: Lit Budapest from the Cruise
Bottom: Hungarian Dinner

We had chosen Danube Legenda to be our ride for the hour-long cruise. Of course, the evening and night skyline are very popular, so we chose a 4:20 p.m. to get some glimpses while light still lingered and soon gave away to a beautifully lit Budapest all around us. Sipping our welcome drinks (Dh and I chose Hungarian red wine, Rupkatha iced tea and Abesh their apple juice), we listened to their audio guide (it was mostly the kids listening really intently) as DH and I scampered about to get the best clicks of the gorgeously lit Budapest all around. 

Before long the hour had passed by, and the beautiful moments had trickled by. Seeing Abesh still coping up, we decided to brave dinner at a Hungarian restaurant DH and I had noticed while walking earlier that evening. We trailed back and were soon being seated at upper floor at Lesco and what a fantastic dinner it was. Our table groaned under the goulashes of all sorts - pork, beef, veal and even deer, yet another local specialty - chicken paprikash (chicken cooked with pepper, though it wasn't spicy at all) and Hungarian Nokeldi (little gnocchi like dumplings); all washed down with their vanilla sponge cake with sour cherries, chocolate sauce and cream. If you're in the area, find this gem and grab a bite here if you can. 

With that we called it a night and were soon home! 

Left: Grand Central Market
Right: Grave of Szent Margit

Day 6: Indoors! 

Poor Abesh fell even more sick and poor Rupkatha finally set up the white flag after 3 straight days of walking - with that it was time for the kids and mommy to stay at home the whole day. But who can keep DH in! Soon he was out exploring Budapest yet some more and got us back lunch from yet another local Turkish eatery - more doner kebab and dolmas! 😀 

He visited the Margeret bridge and the Margeret Island and did speak highly of it as it was less touristy and seemed more for the locals with soccer fields and illuminated parks. He visited the Grave of Szent Margit and ruins from the Medieval times. He also trooped to the Grand Central Market where more Christmas shops welcomed him. And that was pretty much our day 6 in Budapest! 

Day 7: Bounce Back!

After a day of complete rest, both kids bounced back. DH had won the war of standing in line at the parliament despite the freezing cold of feel-like -6C and managed to get us tickets for a 11:30 a.m. tour at the National Parliament. 

Information: We found most places to be booked out of all tours and entrances tickets some being sold out as ahead as 4 weeks. I strongly recommend planning way ahead - which is hard I know but it's needed. Additionally, the Parliament in Budapest opens at 8:00 a.m. for a few minutes to sell a few lucky tickets for the day and that was our last bleak hope and DH managed those on his second attempt. 

Left: Budapest Parliament
Top right: VR time!
Top bottom: Coffee with Wine :)

We were to check out that morning from our Airbnb and spend the last night at the hotel called, Hotel SUW Magazine (just 10 minutes from the Basilica). We dropped our suitcases at the hotel and took a Bolt taxi to the Parliament (of course you can walk or take the bus, but with one recovering kid we knew better than to push it). We were a little before time, sat at the Parliament Cafe and I absolutely must mention their coffee with wine with whipped salted buttery cream on top - it was unique, delicious and perfect for beating the cold! 

Soon we were dropping our coats at the concierge (thanks to Rupkatha for the great idea) and picking the audio guides as we joined our group to walk thru the Parliament. I don't have words to describe - it was majestic, kingly and as grand as it can get - it was art, sculpture, architecture, engineering at its very best! We walked past the stairs kept only for Presidents and kings, the Holy crown of Hungary and finally the grand room where sessions take place. Oohing and aahing we made it to the exhibition at the end! Rupkatha had noticed a VR ride at the entrance and we sported her. She was soon wearing a funny thing on her head and laughing away as the VR took her on a hot air balloon ride over the Parliament! 

At Fisherman Bastian

Lunch was at a restaurant opposite the Parliament, Pick Bistro and Langosh. Soon we were speeding through their smoked salmon Langosh, Hungarian special (bacon, sheep cheese and onion) Langosh and beef goulash soup. It was all delicious and these langoshes will remain a favorite for a long time to come. Abesh was much better after the hot meal, and so we walked over to the banks of Danube and crossed the Szechenyi Chain Bridge one more time. Not wanting to hike up, we hailed yet another Bolt Taxi and were soon at the Fisherman Bastian following Abesh's request. A part of the Buda castle, the Bastian itself is a UNESCO world heritage site and is more than 400 years old owing its interesting nomenclature to the fact that it was built for those living next to the river Danube. And it was a place from a fairytale, complete with towers and turrets where you could almost hear the neigh of knight's horse or the distant laughter of a princess. It was like traveling through time as we walked through the towers and turrets. 

Reminding of the modern day, there was a DJ (wearing a balaclava, which tickled the funny bone in Rupkatha 😀) playing loud dance music brewing the party for the 31st night. We made our way to the eating section of the Christmas market where more mulled wine and hot chocolates followed. Holding the warm cups in our hands and against our ice-cold cheeks, we let a Budapest evening enthrall once last time. 

Icing!

With that we were back at our hotel and marveled at all the lights as the taxi took us through the Pest, on the chain bridge and back to Buda. DH stepped out to visit the Christmas market at the Basilica one last time and got us back dinner of Hungarian sausages with rice and potatoes and a pistachio chimney cake. He was lucky to see light show against the Basilica as well. Just when we thought we'll call it a night, Rupkatha's wish came true and it started snowing! ❄❄ Within a few minutes the landscape was sprinkled with the softest purest whites and the kids were brimming with glee as they went out throwing snowballs at each other and touching the snowflakes with their tongues - what a wonderful end to our time here in Budapest, we literally got the white icing on the cake. 😍

Unfortunately, the hotel was a bit of disappointment - but we managed to get some sleep! 

Day 8: Curtain Fall!

We all woke up at 3:45 a.m. to be at the airport by 5:00 a.m. to catch our early morning flight. The airport was already busy with people flying back after the holidays. Breakfast was croissants and local Hungarian walnut bread DH has picked the night before. 

Of course, more than plenty remained to be explored not just in Budapest, Bratislava & Vienna but in Hungary, Slovakia and Austria too. Each with our plans to return one day, we bid adieu this time on! 

Some facts:

Currency: Euro (but prices are mostly written in Hungarian Forint, HUF)

Language: Hungarian, English 

Cash/card: it's almost 100% card (we did the entire trip cashless) but having some cash might be useful in the Christmas market bargain or at an occasional coin only paid restroom. 

Supermarket: Spar, Lidl, local grocery stores

 

 

Greece: To Beauty and History!

Why Greece if you ask me - the plain answer is that DH bagged a great deal of 6000$ round trip from LA to Athens! It was a regular weekday when I got a rather irregular call from DH full of glee & plea for a trip to Greece - and for reasons unknown I heard myself giving in to him. And so we booked our 10 days trip - a first time for DH and our kids to be in Europe. With images of the tall columns of the Acropolis, plates filled with kebabs, the blues & whites of Santorini, and hearts filled with anticipation, we packed and waited to be in Greece. Amongst many others, another first was this time it would be the five of us traveling - DH, Rupkatha, Abesh, me and Humphery. Humphery, the little hamster from Rupkatha's 3rd grade who loves to travel, eat and be clicked across globe. 😍 

The Land of History, Beauty and Cuisine - Greece!

Day 0: It's Always All About Flying 

Europe -
check mark!

We drove to Los Angeles to my friend's house on Friday afternoon. We were to spend the evening and night with them. Up early at 5 am on a Saturday morning, we were all excited to board our early morning flight to Athens via Toronto. Soon we were in out pre-booked Uber and speeding towards the airport on the otherwise full of traffic roads of Los Angeles. As an experiment, we planned to brave our 10 day international trip of 4 folks out of just 4 carry on suitcases - a step towards traveling as light as it gets 😀 (spoiler alert - yes, it was a super success). 

Day 1: Life's a Sinusoidal Curve 

We reached a sunny Athens in the morning and made our way quickly through the immigration. Soon we were walking towards the metro to board the train from the airport which took us directly to the Monastiraki Square (read at the bottom to truly learn from our sad mishap). About a 30 - 40 minutes journey, the metro sped through the landscape of sub-urban Athens filled with graffitis everywhere. Soon we arrived at the bustling & full of life, shops, restaurants and hotels, Monastiraki square and walked down the quick minute to our hotel for the next 3 days, Hotel Attalos.  Strategically located, the hotel roof comes with a bar and a perfect view of the Parthenon standing afar on a hill. We were lucky to get a room on their 6th floor with a balcony with our own personal view of the same - and even better was the brightly lit view of the Parthenon from sundown to sunrise. 

Being his first time in Europe, DH was absolutely amazed at the number of people smoking - all genders, all ages (of course legal) and every where alike. 😆 Living the fast paced Californian hustle, we were quite amazed to see people sitting in cafes enjoying their morning coffees and a smoke while life simply ticked by. 

Grub for the tummy, eyes and soul!

Lunch was at Just Pita, a local eatery right opposite the hotel. The kids and I enjoyed their pork gryo with pita and fries platter and DH devoured their pork Thrakopsomo (pork gyro sandwich in grilled pita pocket) as the grown ups relaxed over a big bottle of a local Greek beer, Mythos. Bellies full, we ambled around the Monastiraki. Bustling little alleys with cosy cafes and restaurants on one side and thousands of years old ruins dating back to some BC on the other. Tired from the journey and all the bustle and of course jet lagged we came back to our hotel early that day. With some light nibbles for the dinner & nice hot showers we called it a night. Jetlag woke Abesh, DH & I up at 11 pm beating Cinderella to coming home at midnight (read Kenya travelogue to know more 😀). We wolfed down some protein bars and were back snoring by 1 am. Rupkatha woke up at 2 and the cycle repeated. By 3 am, all four of us were back deep asleep only to wake up to another sunny morning in Athens. 

Information: This time we came prepared with ammunition, Melatonin Gummies both for kids and the parents. Snacked, played, gummy-ed and soon we were sleeping again. 

Suggestion: in case you do plan to chose the gummies to combat midnight waking jetlag, I would strongly recommend 1 gummy only for the kiddos and not 2 as the bottle says. 2 was a little strong and knocked them too well 😊

Day 2: Ah, But She Stands There - Acropolis!

The Original Lego
at Acropolis! 😆

Our day started with a table groaning under the weight of a scrumptious breakfast at the Hotel Attalos breakfast buffet - slices of salami, bacon, ham, Greek cheese, Greek yogurt with honey, baklavas, spanakopitas, dry fruits and breads - it was a feast! Dressed for the day, we hailed a taxi and were blessed with a good man who showed us the Statue of a runner made from glass for the Olympics and the first Olympic stadium built in 1893 as we went up the hill where stood the Parthenon. It was close to l1 30 am when we reached there and we decided to do an early lunch at the Estiatoria Zacharoplast. It comes with a within the hand's reach view of the Parthenon and the trails leading to it. Peaceful and majestic, we allowed ourselves to soak in the beauty, as we enjoyed a felafel wrap (me), a moussaka with ground meat (DH) and spaghetti with Greek cheese (of course, the kids 😄). We sampled Greek coffee for the first time and simply loved it. A close cousin of the Turkish style coffee, we later went onto having it more often than not. The restaurant was a little expensive due of the location but sometimes in life it's so worth it. 

Suggestion - add a li'l sugar to your Greek coffee coz it's strooong - recommend medium sugar.

Erechtheum!

Next was the - the Acropolis. You can buy tickets online to avoid the line, but it was like a 10 minutes line on a Monday winter morning so that was not too bad. Once inside it's a very fast ride back in time. One thing struck me was if this was the crowd on a Monday winter morning, I don't want to even imagine what a weekend summer morning would be like...phew! Our first stop was at the Dionysos's Amphitheater. Most of the walls, tiled stage and the seats still remain intact from its birth in about 500 BC - as the first site that welcomes you, it simply stuns with its hugeness and architecture. Next we walked over to the Old temple of Athena Nike (for old times sakes 😉) - the well celebrated Goddess of victory in ancient Athens. A few clicks down, we circled around the Acropolis itself - standing tall with its huge columns - 8 on wide side and 17 on the long side (I counted for no rhyme or reason 😄). Sadly today a lot of it is lost, but the timeless remains still speak of the magnanimous beauty. Built under the rulership of Pericles in the 5th century BC, it is a citadel dedicated to Athena and other heroes on ancient Greece. The name itself coins its location, where akro means highest point and polis means city. Flanked on top of a hill, it over looks the ever growing Athens blossoming around the Acropolis with the ocean dotted with ships at a distance. Lots of memories, some of clicks and even a few tears (thanks to a bickering brother and sister) we sadly bid adieu. The site also includes the Erechtheum (the building with the five ladies), Temple of Athena (another one), an Olive tree believed to have been Athena Nikes's Olive Tree and the Propylaia (which is basically the entrance).

The guard we met at the exit was quite interesting. A musician in his time, he had traveled widely in India for performances. He's spent quite some time in Banaras meeting music maestros, learning and making music with them. It's these little experiences that make your life complete. 

Information: at the Acropolis and almost at all ruins site, only water is allowed. No other drinks are allowed. Entrance fee is $20 in the summers and $10 in winters. There is also $30 pass which includes a lot of other sites, so if you plan to cover all get the pass. 

Learning History!

We walked down to the Museum of Acropolis where began the saga of headless statues 😜. It's a great museum with the floor mostly made of glass of faith looking down upon a 500 BC excavation site. The museum is filled with statues of Poseidon, Athena Nike, Hercules, Artemis, Hermes, Aphrodite, Dionysus, Nemesys. The upper floor has a 10 minute movie constantly playing switching between Greek and English which was very informative showing how the Acropolis was built with colors and carvings; and how over the years religious missionaries and plunderers broke parts of it. It was sad to see what man can do when fanatic beliefs fogs the logical thinking.

Information: it was a $10 entrance fee per person. The nice lady at the counter gave the kids a 50% discount. The $30 does not include the museum.

High on history, we decided to walk through the maze alleys of the beautiful and neoclassical locality of Plaka. With colorful homes with flowers hanging from the balconies, quaint little cafes and restaurants around - it was finding old Athens amongst the modern day buzz and race. Next we walked to the Sintagma square through the bustling streets of Athens. We walked to the Greek Parliament to see the hourly change of guards show. And a show indeed it was! (see a little video below).

Yummy at a 150
year old restaurant!

Again a walk thru the bustling streets of Athens and we made it back to the Monastiraki square. Dinner was at the 150 year old restaurant, Bairaktaris Tavern built in 1879. It's an interesting culture where the number of folks just to holler and welcome diners outnumber the people serving them. Loud and smiling, you are welcomed and seated. Dinner was lamb and potatoes in lemon stew for the grown ups and just to give comfort food, spaghetti for the kids. With that we were back in Attalos a little after 6. Showered and happy tired both parents and kids embarked on a no jetlag slumber.

Day 3: Ancient Ancient Athens!

Memories!

Once again the day began with a scrumptious spread  at the hotel Attalos. Next stop was Rupkatha's classmate's paternal grandpa's antique pictures shop at the Sintangma square, T.&D. Kamarinos - a beautiful little shop filled with pictures and prints from hundreds of years. Rupkatha was very excited and grandpa even gifted us with a exquisite 200 years old picture of the temple of Jupiter - will always remain thankful. 

Soon we were beelining together towards the site, Hadrain's library built in 132 AD. Destroyed later after 200 years, most of the buildings are now risen to the ground with some columns still standing strong. In its time this library held as many as a whopping 16,000 books from across the world. 

Information: the entrance ticket was $3 person. Also, the $30 pass includes this site.

Run run and away!

Our next stop was the Roman Agora. Beautiful and rich with history as they are, it is nonetheless sad to see so many wonderful ruins and trinkets from the past have risen to the ground. What appears from the remains is that there stood a tall rectangular building. We simply sat at the steps as different views churned around us - from ruins to the busy streets now next to it, from a fruiting Olive tree to yellow flowering trees. 

Information: the entrance ticket was $4 person. Also, the $30 pass includes this site.

Our next and final back in time stop was the Ancient Agora (& probably my favorite accumulation of ruins too). This site hosts the seat of the senate which is the very the birthplace of democracy. Likes of Socrates and Plato had walked those very cobbled streets, a birthplace of thinkers, of philosophy and a promising tomorrow. One of the most prominent building was the Temple of Haphaestus that still stands strong - a temple dedicated to the God of metal and craftsmanship. 

There was also a small museum with sculptures and artifacts, a Christian monastery and the famous pebbled Panathenaic way which hosted 4 yearly games all the way from 500 BC to the 3rd century AD. Imagine seeing your kids run on a path that has existed for about 2500 years now & has seen many a strong Greek athletes in its day.  

There were modern day statues of Socrates and Confucius, an imagination of two great minds coming together. 

Information: the entrance ticket was $5 person. Also, the $30 pass includes this site.

Greedy on seafood!

We stopped for a rather late lunch at a restaurant called Diodos Archaias Agoras. Overlooking the Acropolis and the Ancient Agora we were seated next to the ancient cobbled street. We ordered their homemade mousaka, the seafood platter and the traditional anise seed based vodka like drink, Ouzo. Let's say it needs to be an acquired taste 😜. Our seafood loving Abesh attacked the anchovies, shrimps, calamari and octopus..they were fresh and delicious. To make things sweeter, they served us on the house panna cotta and Krasomelo (a homemade country drink of red wine, orange, amaretto, cinnamon & honey). 

Happy and high, we ambled around the busy streets of Monastiraki and started souvenir shopping. T shirts, magnets and some trinkets down we decided to call it a day. Now I won't be able to tell you the exact cobbled alley, but, can recommend a little store called the K Mpatali Mpatali O store - their prices were reasonable and a lots of memoirs to choose from. Still full, dinner was some croissants and spanakopitas from a bakery a few hops away from the the hotel.

Day 4: When Acropolis gave way to the Aegean Sea

Driver sa'ab!

As luck may have it, it was a taxi strike on a drizzling Wednesday morning, so we braved the metro one more time back to the airport to board our 40 minutes flight from Athens to the Heraklion Airport, Crete. Now, the visit to Crete wasn't really in our plan, this was something we had booked while waiting at the Toronto airport. And we were so glad that we had made the booking. We were to visit more inland places like Meteora and Delphi, but, DH proposed and heavy rains disposed.

We arrived at the tiny Heraklion Airport at Crete a little past 10 am in the morning and soon were speeding towards the Knossos Palace ruins and frescos. We picked a rental (Avis) from the airport as rentals works far more economic and gives the flexibility rather than waiting on rare cabs. It was very less crowded on a Wednesday winter morning at the Knossos ruins. We ambled around the 3000 BC ruins and marveled at the restored frescos. The stone throne in the throne room still stands as though awaiting the king or the queen to walk in any moment.

Information: being winter and off season all restaurants opposite Knossos were closed. Traveling with kids, I would strongly recommend keeping snack/light food options. I carried croissants, cake slices and some boiled eggs. Not a square meal, but, enough to keep us going.

The entrance fee was $12 per adult and free for children under 12. 

We hired the Kia Picanto for the four of us and our carry on baggages and it was space just enough.

The Hidden Beauty!

Next we drove the 2 hours though the hills and along the cliffy coast, oohing and aahing at the pretty little villages that we crossed. Reached our hotel, Hotel Elysse and our room came with a sea facing balcony. The lit Acropolis gave way to the pristine blue Aegean sea. It was peaceful, tranquil and beautiful beyond words can possibly describe. After relaxing a little, we walked along the coast to a restaurant called, To Limani. It was past 4 and our first proper meal of the day after a day of only bakery foods as declared by little Rupkatha. 🙈 We ordered their Cretan variety appetizer (dolmas, lentil soup, spanakopitas, cheese version of spanakopitas, bread with fresh tomato salsa and cheese) - we all devoured it and an empty plate winked back within minutes. Rupkatha and I shared a local Stifado (veal stew), Abesh braved a swordfish Souvlaki & DH ordered a spinach and feta stuffed squid - & OMG that squid was quite the grandpa squid, it was so huge. We all enjoyed dinner as the sun set with beautiful colors around us. Once more we were offered on the house desserts and a local drink called Raki, a grape based brandy of Cretan origin. Happy high we stopped at the Mitsakakis Cafe for a quick Greek coffee and were soon watching the kids laugh through rounds of Uno.

Day 5: Far Away From The Maddening Crowd!

We woke up to partly cloudy morning and soon were enjoying a cozy breakfast at the hotel buffet. Dressed for the day, we walked down the marina along the tiny boats. Being early birds, we literally had the coast and the marina to ourselves without a soul in site. It was as though time had stopped just a heartbeat for us to smile, to laugh and be together. We walked along the coast back towards the little alley flanked with restaurants still waking up when we came across old stone stairs leading to an old church on the top. Every house, every step, every little thing around us was straight from a book of the prettiest dreams and postcards. Our hearts still aren't quite full of the lovely memories. 

Church of St Catherine!

We walked up the stairs to the 200 years old church. The monk and the ladies helping were very welcoming and very willing to share information and answer any questions. Dedicated to St. Catherine, it was beautiful and intricate inside. Under one of the statues, I found lots of silver and golden rectangular leafs tied with a picture of a man or a woman, and some had eyes. Upon asking we learnt that they were prayers for someone sick to get well soon. Belief goes that tying a leaf in the sick person's name aids in a faster recovery. The faith humans have brims with innocence. 

Next we visited the the old Venetian Fort, which unfortunately was closed so we couldn't see the inside. However, we did sit outside having the place to ourselves to enjoy the view. Meandered back to coastline, which was now dotted with few more people ambling down the coast and enjoying their morning coffee in the crisp sunny winter morning. 

Pinch me - is it a dream?

Once more we seated ourselves in the outside seating at the Mitsakakis Cafe for a quick Greek coffee, Galakrouourecoe (a pudding like dessert) and some hot chocolate. Rupkatha wolfed down an entire slice of the pudding, promptly declaring that she was done with lunch. 😅

Back in our hotel, we freshened up, packed and tucked all our things in our little car. We trailed back to the restaurant from yesterday, To Limoni and ordered their seafood pasta for two (which easily had enough to go for all four of us) - and boy oh boy, it was delicious; not to forget all the fresh mussels, calamari, octopus and shrimp that came crowing the pasta. On the house pies for dessert, we thanked the lady at the restaurant and were soon back in our cars to explore the Cretan countryside. 

We drove through the beautiful Cretan countryside with goats and sheep grazing at a distance and an occasional church or monastery standing alone dotting the hills. We drove through a pass all the way to the-far-away-from-the-maddening-crowd Toplou Monastery. Secluded and quiet, you can almost hear the silence there. The air heavy with incense, candles dimly lit the hundreds of years old walls and paintings. It was a tiny squeeze inside with high chairs I assume only are for the monks to dedicate and pray. The kind man lit the only very dim light there as we marveled at the 700 years old painting on the wall depicting lores of Moses and Jesus. It was mesmerizing in one word! Once we stepped out, we could hear the goat bells ringing in the distance and an age old windmill stood still. One could easily confuse the year they are in in this place. 

It's al ours - really!

Next we drove through the winding mountainside all the way down to the Vai Beach. Beaches, whether it was the Black Sand in Hawaii or the Blue Ocean in Zanzibar, we've always known are fairly crowded. It was our first when we had the entire beach exclusively to ourselves. Abesh went on to comment that maybe we're not supposed to be there as it was just us - bless him! 😄 Vai proudly hosts the only indigenous date palm forest in the entire of Europe and it was heaven on earth. If you're in Sitia, Crete - do not miss this one!

With that it was time to embark on our 2 hours drive back to Heraklion where we were to board the overnight ferry (almost a cruise ship sized ferry) back to Athens. It was a hotel-cum-trasnportation as DH said. It was quite a fancy ferry complete with a restaurant and fair few dinner bars on different levels. DH and Rupkatha had spanakopotas for the zillionth time and Abesh had I had their gyro sandiches and of course some Greek coffee. I just paid $20 for all of that food. Back in our room, we saw the ferry start sail from our window, a few rounds of Uno and before long we all were fast asleep on our bunk beds. 

Day 6: A Little Bit of the Greek Life!

Row row row
your boat!

We arrived in Athens early at about 7 in the morning. Even though the kids were a little sleep deprived, they were chirpy and energetic nonetheless - bless them! We called an Uber to go back to Monastiraki, where though not our abode for the night, Hotel Attalos had offered to store our luggage for the day. How kind! So back in Monastiraki, we got rid of our luggage and started walking round the square one more time. We visited the built in the 7th century Church of Panagia Pantanassa right at the square. Known to be one of the oldest churches in Athens, it is now a few feet below the current ground level (thanks to all the construction around 😕) and you have to hop down a few steps into the church. 

Next we stopped at a local breakfast place, Sisinely right opposite the Ancient Agora and with an undiluted view of the Parthenon. Also, thankfully it opened as early as 8 in the morning. We ordered our usual Greek coffee, the pink grape soda (Abesh's will) and their delicious smoked salmon sandwiches. We spent a good 1.5 hours here just chatting, laughing and observing as the city woke up from early morning joggers to tourists and office goers. 

From Museum
to Just Life!

Next we hailed a taxi to the Museum of Archeology. Filled with sculptures, Rupkatha and Abesh promptly pointed out that almost all dated back to the BC era. Once again beautifully and intricately chiseled sculptures of various Gods and Goddesses adorned the rooms and I finally found a tiny sculpture of the centaur I was looking for (for no apparent reason 🙈). There is a huge collection of gold jewelry, pottery displays and tools used from every day life to wars. After a good few hours at the Museum, we were back at the Monastiraki square to have lunch at the already tested 150 years old Bairaktaris Tavern. Lunch was their famous lamb & potato in lemon stew, kebab platter and fried egg plant with parsley. I can't tell enough of how delicious it all was! 

With that it was time bid our final byes to the city center square and set forth to our abode for the night - a little Greek home in Lepakucha. Just a stone's throw from the airport, it was a quaint little home adjoining to the owner's home complete with a living room, kitchen and bedroom. It was very different experience indeed. After hot showers, we stepped out to the shared verandah at the back and sat next to grape vines and purring cats enjoying the sunny afternoon. We stepped out to explore what regular Greek life was like - bought some tit bits at the grocery store and stopped for dinner at a local eatery, Margeti with our table groaning under their scrumptious Greek arugula & parmesan salad and plates and plates of their $3 kebab, pita and fries combo. We called it an early night as we were to catch a morning flight to Santorini the next day. 

Day 7: Where Blues means Beauty!

Everyone wants
a Lukumades 😄

We woke up to our hosting lady cooking us a huge Greek breakfast - scrambled eggs with sausage, bread, cake slices, fruit and bars of chocolates. Bless her! Her husband drove us to the airport for 15 euro (I checked Uber - it was the same) and soon we were in the gates area waiting for our flight. We tried a local dessert called Lukumades (they're like fluffy donut balls - not so sweet themselves but dipped in sweet sauces). Rupkatha got a nutella one and DH a pistachio one. It was delicious - I lapped the up the nutella one especially to a spotless cleanliness. 🙈😆 It was yet another quick 50 minutes flight to Santorini. We picked our little car (from Budget this time) - Toyota Aygo and drove the 20 minutes from the airport to Oia, where we were to stay for the next 2 nights. 

Information: it's far more economic to rent a car as there are hardly any cabs and the so called airport shuttles cost 15 euro per person from the airport to anywhere on the island. 

A true promise, Santorini is indeed all white and blue right from the word go. We parked right outside our hotel, and hopped the few steps down to our abode, the Alexander's Suites. And full marks to DH for this one - we were in our cave! I mean it, a luxurious cave. All of us were in complete glee. The kids buzzed around for a little while and soon we were walking on the marble pathway with shops flanked on both sides. We stepped into a rather expensive, Thalami Restaurant for lunch and had their grilled calamari and chicken souvlaki. Bellies full, we explored the area around more and walked all the way to the old windmills, the palace ruins and just up and down the very many stairs there. We shopped souvenirs and then beelined to the castle ruins to enjoy the sunset. It was quite filled with people despite being off season and very windy. DH clicked away to glory and the kids played their double up seven game. 

Blue and White!

Not wanting to dine fancy again, we walked back in the moonlit evening to the street next to the marble walk and discovered Laokasti - local, homely and family owned. Our hearts said kebab and we ordered two portions of it - one with rice and one with fries. And huge portions they were. It was first time trying Greek rice and it was really good.  Bellies and hearts completely full, we walked back the quick few minutes to our cave and were soon sound asleep. 

Day 8: The winds, the hails and then some!

Being early birds, we woke up early to a very windy morning; so much that our cleaning lady told us that all all ferries and flights were stopped - but do we? No! Akib, our tender soon laid out our breakfast of juices, coffee, bread, cake slices, fruits, cheese, boiled eggs and more spanakopitas. Tucked in to our mouths, we all dressed warm with jackets, woolen skull caps and the kids even wore their gloves. Once again, we had the entire Santorini to ourselves as we hiked from Oia to Fira. About 20 minutes into the walk, we noticed raining clouds at a distance - and soon it was close. We luckily found a shed with no door and stepped inside as it hailed and rained and stormed outside. As thankful as we could have ever get, we decided to walk back to our hotel and simply explore the area around. 

The Cave Life!

Back on the marble path, DH picked a coffee from the Luna cafe and we decided to go up and down the 200+ stairs to the Amoudi Bay Port and back up. We didn't go the entire way and stopped just a few stairs shy of it - the climb back was fun! 😛 We saw this very strange blob of sand, thick enough to keep floating and thin enough to ripple with the waves underneath. It was nothing like anything any of us had seen before (see video below).

Lunch was exactly the same as last evening of kebabs at Laokasti, with the only addition of a handsome slice of Baklava for DH. We decided to spend the rest of our day in our cave - and doing something we usually don't - nothing! A tad weary of eating out, we kept our dinner simple with bread, butter and salami from a Carrefour (super market) outlet there. The butter was so gooooood and that we actually carried it back to Athens with us the next day. 

Day 9: More Kebabs, more Calamari and more Winds!

Cliche but Must!

The next and last day in Santorini, we did what all do in Santorini - a little blue and white photoshoot! 🙈 That check marked, we were soon back on the road to explore Fira, the capital city of Santorini. Our first halt was at downtown Fira where we had lunch at Suntorini - local and as we saw family owned. The kids continued with their kebab obsession and DH with his stuffed calamari one. 😆 Our next stop was the Akrotiri lighthouse. It was our opportunity to rock scramble but, boy oh boy it was windy and cold! Nonetheless we huddled and hung out for a while. Next we simply drove around and decided to turn on a country road to hike down to the coast line. Some locals helped us - soon we were parked and hiking down a dirt road towards the Black Sand Beach. Once again the beach was ours and it was gorgeous out there! It was tiny strip of a beach filled with black rocks and pebbles, layered rocks formed the cliffs around the blue waters! Motivated Abesh even invented a new music instrument (named it Ghosh) with an old pipe, rope and a wooden plank (see video below 😅). The hike back up was fun and a full on cardio session if you ask me. We then drove around Fira, saw their ruins from a distance and drove back to the little airport. 

Information: the car return here is unmanned and a return video is a must. 

A quick flight back to Athens, we were promptly picked up by the hotel shuttle. Just about 15 minutes away, the Aethon Airport Project hotel room was spacious and came with a bottle of local Greek wine - thoughtful and just what we needed! Thanks to the deliciousness of the butter I'd found - dinner was once again bread, butter, salami slices and of course the wine! 

Day 10: Curtain Fall

Meows and Brays!

The last always must come and so it did. 6 45 am and we were all seated in the airport shuttle being driven back to the Athens airport to board our Swiss Air flight to Los Angeles via Zurich. We wolfed down the last of the bread and butter (it was that good believe me) and soon were boarding our flight on priority thanks to the kiddos! And before I sign off must I tell you - it was all our first time flying with Swiss Air and it's a mighty good airlines. They served us 5 square meals and endless drinks on a 12 hours flight (each good) and the staff was super friendly - the traveller in me would certainly fly with them again. 

And the very last thing before I truly do sign off, all hail the gattos (cats) all over Greece. Stray and everywhere, they are all well loved and taken care off and do love posing for the passing tourist. And though we didn't ride any, we did see some trotting (and an almost runaway) donkeys going up and down the alleys and steps of Santorini - yes, just like in the movie Mamma Mia, for those who've seen it. 😀

With that was our first time in Greece and hopefully not the last!

PS: a little learning lesson from our sad mishap. Day 1, hour 1 our passports got stolen while we were existing our metro. We were about to exit when a group of men said the door was jammed and pretended to help us and in all that fiasco, nicked all our passports. The next thing to do was:

1. visit the tourist police station, report and get a copy of the report

2. call the embassy emergency line if possible to give them a heads up

3. go to the embassy immediately - if you haven't filled all the forms online, get copies of the required forms and fill them out 

4. embassies are now dealing with these crimes sadly more often and are able to give a new emergency passport within the same day 

Lesson learnt: be very careful of the extremely important things - to the extent I tucked the passport bag inside my t-shirt every time we had to be public next. Stay alert and weary of anyone who tries to help on their accord. Stay away from fiascos. It's better to miss a stop, get down at the next stop and take the train back.