Carla and I took a bus tour of Athens tonight. It sounded good on paper. Guided bus tour around Athens with dinner at the foot of the Acropolis in an authentic pub.
Our tour guide was more interested in talking to the driver. He had little to say as we drove around. We stopped half-way at a “scenic spot” for pictures. It was basically a cigarette break. It was a dirty spot and the view was not great.
We went to a pub at the Plakka. It’s an old place with live entertainment. I think the same people have been doing the same signing/dancing routines for 30 years. The belly dancer had lots of belly but she was very good.
Our dinner was included in the trip. We sat down at a long table. Two women sat beside us and immediately lit up cigarettes. When the food came they continued to smoke while eating! Bite of food, puff of smoke, bite of food…
Carla asked them to please not smoke while we are eating. They didn’t understand english and one of them thought we wanted cigarettes. She offered Carla some. YUCK. Carla responded quickly and motioned with her hands. They didn’t get the message and kept smoking. Others went outside to smoke.
The food was at best cheap cafeteria food. We ate quickly and left. It ends up our hotel is very close to the Acropolis, the Plakka etc. We walked home instead of waiting for the bus.
This is definitely one tour you want to miss! We have another one tomorrow morning. Our expectations are not high.
So all the worrying about the Lufthansa strike was pretty much for nothing. The planes left pretty close to their scheduled departure times. The trip from Frankfurt to Athens was a little tense for a bit. The time to embark passed and there was no plane on the tarmac. Eventually they bused us around the airport, past the cargo planes onto the runway at the back and we boarded from there. The one good thing is that it was close to the runway so no taxiing to get going! Once in the air all was normal (except for the really, really big woman sitting next to me).
I met up with Carla in the airport in Athens. What a relief to finally be here! We hopped into a taxi and blabbled non-stop all the way to the hotel. She did very well at Rescue 2008. She won 2 golds, 3 silvers & 1 bronze medal. Way to go Carla!
We quickly changed into our swimsuits and headed to the pool area. We grabbed our 1st vacation drink – Mai Tai and celebrated. The pool water was warm. The air temperature just perfect. The pool area is done in tile and marble. It is all so beautiful.
Tonight we are heading out for a dinner tour of Athens. That should be amazing.
So far it’s been easy enough. Most people here speak English. Certainly at both airports there are English signs and all the personnel speak English. Everyone has been very friendly. I asked the bartender at the pool today if it is customary to tip in Greece. He said it was. I asked how much – 10%-15% and he replied 8%-10%. Nice of him to be honest about what they expect.
I’m still happy that I did carry-on only. I’ll probably check the luggage in on the way home but at least I had no worries about the ground crew getting behind.
I haven’t slept since I left. I’ve lost track of Ottawa time already (helps that I didn’t bring any timepieces with me). I’m hungry for dinner and it’s dinner time here so I think the jet lag missed me. I’m sure it will find me on the way home.