Now this trip started off with some major hiccups, one being we missed our flight to Crete. We thought our flight was at 5pm, but it actually was for 5am. Time and money later, we found another flight, but for the next day.
Once we reached Plakias, the hotel informed us that they were having "toilet issues" and that they didn't have any other rooms for us. They instead booked us at a pension called Kyriakos. We walked into town, ate a fantastic meal, drank homemade Raki and observed the massive fire on the hillside. The winds were roughly 40-50 mph.
The next day we checked into the resort, Calypso, played by the pool and still got nailed by some gnarly winds. We took it easy that night since we had to get up early - ferry to Santorini. 2 hours to Heraklion and once again, a major hiccup. The ferry was canceled to Santorini due to high winds. We then had to ferry back to Athens (7 hours), sit for 3 hours, then take another ferry to Mykonos (4 hours).
Unfortunately, we missed our 2am stop on Mykonos, we thought we had more time to get off the boat and next thing you know "last call", we started booking down the hall, but it was too late. The boat had already left Mykonos, and now we can't off the boat for another 4 hours. We were told to get off on Samos, buy new tickets and wait for the same boat to finish its route and pick us up on its way back to Athens. However, the ticket guy told us they were sold out of tickets for 3 days. We ran back to the boat, convinced them to let us back on, and made our way to the top outside deck area, since we technically no longer had seats on the ferry. It is now 6am, we have been up for 24 hours and have no clue how we are going to get to Mykonos.
We decided at this point that we were going to stay on the boat, hide out on the top deck while the crew clears all the passengers from the main decks and hope to God no one spots our little hideout. It was a really intense 45 minutes, waiting for a crew members to come around the corner and wonder why the hell we were still on the boat. But that never happened and soon the ferry started letting on new passengers, and we eventually blended in.
Jake ran into friends from home - small world! We met them later in Old Town for dinner. Old Town is magical, beautiful white and blue buildings, cobblestone roads, adorable cafes and shops. Old Town in also like a big maze. We got lost, literally, trying to make our way back to our car. The town is built is such a way to prevent intruders from invading the city. Only the locals truly know the way in and out (and wouldn't seem to help us out - almost like they enjoyed our struggle). We proceeded to get lost for about 2 hours. We lost Noah, kept going in circles, I thought I would cry when we walked by the same bar that we started at for the 5th time. Finally made our way out, found Noah by the car. Ugh, can Greece throw anything else at us?
The next day we caught the ferry back to Athens (2 hours delayed ofcourse) and met up with my friend Evie. We worked together in Santa Monica, but now she is law school at Columbia and visiting her mother in Greece for the summer.
She gave us a wonderful tour of the Acropolis Museum and took us to one of the best views of Athens! We had dinner afterwards beneath the lit up Parthenon. Kirk, myself, Noah and Evie went out for one final drink at Jokerz before heading to bed!
The next morning we headed for Rome (early flight) and went straight into a 3 hour walking tour by an archeologist (we actually went to one of her digs). We saw the Pantheon (my favorite), Trevvi fountain (yes I made a wish), the Forum, the Colosseum (2nd favorite), and many other beautiful sites.
We ate tasty granita con panna and had little pizzas, chips, olives and wine before a big dinner near the Pantheon. A nice long day in Rome led to an early nights rest, since we had to get up at 7am for our flight to Split.
We decided to skip Split and head directly to Hvar, about an hour ferry away. We were approached by dozens of folks offering up rooms - we decided to stay with Luka and his friends Lily and Sonya. His place was nice, small, simple and conveniently located in the town so we really had nothing to complain about!
First stop, Hula Hula. A popular beach spot, Hula Hula sits right on the rocks. You can rent your lounge chair and umbrellas for the day, take dips in the ocean when you are too hot, sip drinks and eat snacks at the bar, and finally stick around for the 6pm dance party!
That night we opted for the popular club Carpe Diem. Lots of techno, drinks on fire, and plenty of dancing! We stayed there for most of the night, before heading off to the bed!
We rented a boat the next day and took it around the various islands and found a little cove. Crystal clear blue water, perfect temperature for a nice dip and lounging. We found a nice spot on the rocks to have our lunch before heading back to the town.
For our last night, Luka, Lily and Sonya took us for a nice drive throughout the island. You could smell the lavender in the air and eat the figs right off the tree. Luka took us to one of his homes on the hillside, such a beautiful view.
After our excursion, we went to a family friends vineyard, sat out on a beautiful terrace and sipped on yummy wine! Next stop, cliff jumping!
To finish the night Luka took us to Zorace, the best place for skirt steak. It was covered in blue cheese, and served with frites and vegetables. We took the scariest scenic route (one lane dirt road on a cliff) back to our place, all worth it in the end!!!
Hvar is a fantastic island ! Kirk and I are already planning a long weekend back. We met some really lovely people and would love to see them again next summer!
Next stop, Korcula, the home of Marco Polo. We had one night and one full day to check this island out. Most of it was spent roaming around, watching a polo match, drinking our wine from Hvar, and going on a mini pizza crawl!
That evening we took a ferry to Dubrovnik, our last destination. We checked into our rental, a nice big place, about 30 minute walk from the Old Town. Our friend Jenn and Ryan were also in Dubrovnik so we met them for a late dinner. Dubrovnik at first feels a bit like Disney World. The main town is surrounded by huge stone walls, cars do not have access inside, and the inside is filled with shops, cafes, tourists and locals.
The next day we rented a boat with a driver (Sasha). He took us to 2 islands, the last island we went to the main beach, played Left Right Center, dipped in the water, napped, and enjoyed each others company! Good friends, good times!
On our walk back to our rental, we were lucky enough to see a stunning sunset. Worth the uphill 30 minute walk!
We were truly sad to leave Croatia, such a stunning place! We hoped that Noah, Eric and Jake left on a good note - seeing our new home! Hopefully they had a nice time biking, exploring the canals, eating bitterballen, and sipping on mint tea! Miss you guys!
