Olympia
Our Dalmatian Coast and Greece trip is over - four countries, 11 UNESCO World Heritage sites, innumerable ancient walled cities, well over 100,000 steps (according to our pedometers), countless calories, and many fond memories. Wednesday we said good-bye to our traveling companions of the last 2 weeks. We disembarked from our boat, the Athena, and rented a car for a few days on our own.
After carefully noting the scratches, dents and other imperfections on the car, stowing our luggage, adjusting the mirrors, and figuring out how the AC worked we began our adventure to the Peloponnese (the peninsula south-west of Athens). We hadn’t gone 5 kilometers before taking a wrong turn. Fortunately the man at the next toll booth spoke enough English to get us back on track. We drove for nearly 4 hours – first on 4-lane toll roads, then on narrow, twisting mountain roads to ancient Olympia where we stayed in a tiny pension. FINALLY – real Greek food! And it’s delicious.
Charming Nafplio
| It's good to be on our own time frame. We toured the site of the original Olympics then drove to Nafplio, a small port town in eastern Peloponnese. It's picturesque and lovely. Two archeological sites are nearby – ancient Mycenae (approximately 1300 BC) and Epidavros (1000 years newer). We explored both under the heat of the mid-day sun, as we had the hottest day so far. |  The Lions Gate at Mycenae. I remember this from Art History |
 The Theater at Epidavros | Yesterday we returned our car to the Athens airport to fly to Santorini where we’ll stay for 6 nights. It’s time to do laundry and settle into the Mediterranean lifestyle for a few days. You'll probably only hear from me one time while here as I plan to RELAX! |
