tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5694632682903217662024-03-13T08:44:56.719-07:00Travel ExperiencesTravels around the world. Useful information & tips from experienced travelers.arrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04113594731614514487noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-569463268290321766.post-79462778509040108212011-03-14T16:33:00.000-07:002011-03-14T16:33:00.947-07:00Traveling England - London<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong>8/28/2010</strong></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Arrived in London – We went directly to the “Tube” Station(Subway) and tried to buy tickets at one of the electronic Kiosks but found that they couldn’t read our credit cards. Apparently most bank cards in the UK have chips in them so the card readers don’t recognize the magnetic strips. We found a booth in the rail station that books hotels & hostels and they set us up with a Bed & Breakfast called the Wellington that isn’t far from the Victoria Tube station. It is fairly centrally located and you can walk to most everything but, it is still quite a bit of walking. The room was nothing special but fairly comfortable. We took a quick nap and then headed into the city to see some of the sites. We headed over to The Tower of London, which is a fortress built by William the Conqueror, and walked around it and made our way down to the banks of the Thames river where we walked along the well-kept boardwalk until we reached the Tower Bridge. The Tower Bridge is very colorful & worth seeing, we happened to arrive around sunset, so we got to see it in the daylight & by the time we had crossed over the sun had set and we were able to see it at night with all of the lights on. We then walked along the opposite side of the banks of the river and stumbled on a street performance of a play but only stopped briefly to catch a glimpse. It was free and we watched it for a few minutes but, we arrived late & didn’t know what the play was about, so we continued on to the London Bridge that was also lit up. Walking along the banks we ended up going down quite a few streets that had an old typical London feel to them with the street lights, cobblestone roads, and of course plenty of pubs. We kept walking until we got to the Waterloo Tube Station where we boarded and went to the Westminster Tube Station, so that we could check out the London Eye, the largest Ferris wheel, which was lit up with bright lights and we were also able to check out Big Ben and Parliament at night when they were lit up. After that we headed back into the Westminster Tube Station and caught it back to the Victoria Tube Station where we walked back to the Bed & Breakfast to get some sleep.</span></div><br />
<strong>8/29/2010</strong><br />
<br />
Day two in London started out by eating fiber granola bars because we missed breakfast. We headed to the tube station to head over to parliament and big ben to see it in the day. The parliament building was a lot bigger than expected when walking around it during the day. On the east side there were protestors camping out protesting the war in Iraq and Tony Blair which I thought was a bit unusual as it seemed a little late in the game for that, unless they started when the war started and are just very diligent. Across from parliament is Westminster Abby, which dates back to the 600’s and is an incredible large cathedral. It is very impressive from the outside and we didn’t go inside because it is Sunday and closed to the tourist. We will probably head back Monday morning to check it out inside. After walking around a bit we jumped on the tube and headed over to St. Paul’s cathedral over by the Tower of London. It was pretty big, but not near the size of Westminster Abby. After not being able to find a donor kebab stand for lunch, we settled for McDonald’s. After it rained pretty hard for about half an hour (we took an internet break in Starbucks) we headed back to the other side of town to check out Hyde Park. This park is impressive by its size and also very nice to take a walk and enjoy the good weather. It reminds me a lot of Central Park in New York because it is so big and a lot of people go there to get away from the city, even though its still right in the middle of the city. While walking a lot the waterfront seeing people feed the pigeons, ducks and swans, we saw a kid about 10 years old trucking along talking on a cell phone. He had a bright blue shirt with big yellow letters that read “I’d do me”. It was comical. After enjoying Hyde Park for a bit we kept moving and went to the front of Buckingham Palace. We saw the guards that don’t move an eyebrow and it was bit, but not all that impressive, at least from the angle that we were at. On our way back we stopped at a few souvenir shops and looked at a few things. We also found a kebab stand which we returned to later in the evening to eat. It was good at first, but overall I think everyone was disappointed when comparing them to the kebabs we had a couple years ago in Australia.<br />
<br />
<strong>8/30/10</strong><br />
<br />
We checked out our hotel in London and headed to the Victoria Tube/Train Station where we could use the internet to check out a few things we wanted to see during the day and look for the next nights accommodation. We then walked to the Hertz rental car station near the Victoria station and picked up our rental car. After a few minutes to get familiar with the manual gear shifter on the left hand side and the driver seat on the right hand side we were ready to head out. We started out heading to Windsor Castle, which is about 1 hour outside of London. It is a nice little town with a lot of shops and restaurants to eat at. We paid 16GBP to get into the Windsor Castle grounds and walk around. The size of the Castle is fairly impressive and we spent a good hour just walking around the grounds. Also on the inside there is the St. George Cathedral that we were able to go in and look around. It also was fairly impressive with all of its ornate detail and stone carvings. We also watched several times as the typical British Guard with black hat & pants, red uniform, and gun did his march up & down the courtyard. We then headed out of Windsor and made our way to Stonehenge. It took us about another hour to get there from Windsor. It was a nice drive and as you approach you can look out over green rolling hills with pastures where sheep are grazing. Right up on the hill are the formations of rocks and it is fairly easy to see Stonehenge sticking up on the hill. We walked around for a few moments and then headed out towards Devon & Cornwall which are providences where it is supposed to have some great views. We drove to Exeter and stopped at a gas station where we decided to keep going out towards the coast. We drove until about 9pm & then found a hotel to stay at in Truro.<br />
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</div>arrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04113594731614514487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-569463268290321766.post-64085606054345125672010-07-20T20:04:00.001-07:002022-12-06T19:37:29.502-08:00Traveling Bolivia - La Paz, Oruro, CopaCobana, Lake Titicaca<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><em><strong>La Paz</strong></em></span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium;">03/07/2010-03/10/2010 - I was fortunate enough to be able to participate in a work service project that involved teaching 4th and 5th grade teachers how to use computers as learning tools in the classroom and then work with the students to teach them how to use the computers.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium;">I arrived in La Paz at 6:30am with some other co-workers, and even though we were tired from the red eye flight we were excited at the opportunity to explore the city of La Paz a little bit. The first thing that I noticed is that just by walking a block or 2 I was short of breath and already a little light headed. The altitude sickness is a valid concern for many travelers because La Paz varies in elevation from 9,840 ft to 13,450 ft. They suggest that you pick up some Acetazolamide (Diamox) which has been used increasingly as a preventive medicine to decrease the symptoms of altitude sickness. Also, upon arrival several hotels will offer Coca Tea which is basically boiled Coca leaves in water which the locals suggest to help acclimatize yourself and helps with the sickness. I didn't have any severe symptoms other than shortness of breath but, several of my co-workers developed headaches and sickness. After a couple of hours of admiring the towering triple-peaked Illimani mountain, which is always snow-covered and can be seen from several spots of the city, and getting something to eat we decided to make our way out to Valle de la Luna (Valley of the Moon). This is just a short drive of about 30 minutes(10km) from the center of La Paz to the southern part of La Paz. Valle de la Luna is basically where the mountain has been eroded to create some interesting stalagmite type structures that are unique.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" gu="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq4mBA67Rz4is9utYB8l4ne9S3dOZ1UFpBqin7rtQGqqEKIi_i7c5q0tPv97DVwxX1tvrFQjwGX4lzeQrCPpiVBPn-AUkNv0lAOtfBTdgkmDfyCNzvP8H4bg_EyG6BpLDJAZ_0c5OC2JG9/s200/DSC06035.JPG" width="200" /> <img border="0" gu="true" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ_XPA9ilm4u5vfV04lXBBOZtJUbVZiwf-NZ3v_8mECPOdc2dQkD3ZVRNEWSTCVe-YE6LBtjgBqXTYDq4hZrExvmB11wIzqgrUuz4rScFo-PR-hLaTV-kKT_W0D7RWRyTdnZWtQ7V7NSGd/s200/IMG_0354.JPG" width="200" /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZTZz1OlT2uaMBq4ig4ZBBhSTqosFmGkHuON4jjaElWy3hQCFi2Kq8p3cizpSFWIu4MRn_Ao5CYhc-TRJmRrDxEbhoS68N5rcep75tgA-A7ROlhyphenhyphenwCwGlbRGbfuHMg8ddANc55iZ7JA8Co/s1600/IMG_0392.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gu="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZTZz1OlT2uaMBq4ig4ZBBhSTqosFmGkHuON4jjaElWy3hQCFi2Kq8p3cizpSFWIu4MRn_Ao5CYhc-TRJmRrDxEbhoS68N5rcep75tgA-A7ROlhyphenhyphenwCwGlbRGbfuHMg8ddANc55iZ7JA8Co/s200/IMG_0392.JPG" width="150" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;">We then had the taxi driver drop us off at the Plaza San Francisco which is kind of the center of La Paz. There is the San Francisco Church and around the plaza there are plenty of places to buy some of the local handicrafts. If you follow the streets up the sides of the church and behind it you will find all kinds of souvenirs. Also downtown and around La Paz at various cross walks you will notice people dressed up in Zebra suits directing traffic. A local told me that the logic behind it was that there were no stripes on the streets of where cars should stop, so they have people in striped Zebra suits instead to direct traffic.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;">We met with several 4th grade students and teachers over the next couple of days but, I won't elaborate much on the service project because my blog is more focused on the places I have traveled and about them. </div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><strong><em>Oruro</em></strong></span></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;">3/10/2010-3/13/2010 -After several days in La Paz we headed to Oruro, which is about 3-4 hours south of La Paz depending on the transportation that you take. We opted to rent a small SUV with a driver, which was a little more expensive but, it fit our time schedule better and we didn't have to share a bus with others. The trip was fairly flat once you get up out of the city to the "Altiplano". Along the way you can see the various beautiful mountains with their peaks covered with snow. If you are lucky while driving you can see a similar species to the Llama which is the Vicuña. There are some wild Vicuña up in the Altiplano and they look similar to Llamas but have a smaller head and thinner neck. </div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;">Once we reached Oruro we found that there are several unique statues upon entering the city and the city its self is fairly plain. You will hear great stories about how big Carnival is in Oruro and that it is the best place to be for Carnival and from all the pictures that I have seen it looks amazing during Carnival. I am assuming that is probably one of the only times the city is really lively and since we weren't there during that time the city seemed pretty plain, tame, and a little boring. There isn't a ton to see there and you won't find too many nice hotels. We stayed in the Hotel Sucre which was supposedly one of the best ones in the city and you can expect to pay about $45 a room per night and they are small and really nothing special. The funny thing about this hotel was they had plastic flowers in a planter that they watered every day & I had really never seen anyone water fake flowers? After our short stay for a couple of days which was plenty we were back off towards La Paz.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><strong><em>CopaCobana - Lake Titicaca</em></strong></span></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;">3/13/2010-3/14/2010 - We decided to go straight to Lake Titicaca to a town called CopaCobana for the weekend before returning to La Paz for the following week. The drive from La Paz to CopaCabana which is a city that lies right on the shores of Lake Titicaca took about 3 hours. It is a windy road that half way through you have to put the car/bus on a ferry to cross a small piece of the lake to get to the other side. Copa Cabana is a small little city with quite a few things to see. We decided to go for a cruise on the lake and see a floating community. The cruise was great but the community was pretty lame. This one was just a small put together demonstration for tourists. If you want to go to the real ones they are up north more and on the Peru side I heard. Supposedly the authentic ones are quite impressive where they actually have communities that live on the water and they have almost like a small island that floats on the lake which is supported by soda bottles. Other than that there are plenty of shops to see and buy souvenirs. There was also a church in the town center that we stopped in and checked out. Nothing too special but, it was your typical Catholic church. That night after dinner we headed down to the lake to catch a beautiful sunset. The next day we decided to take a boat over to the Isla Del Sol. This is a small island with hiking paths on it and great views. There are even some small ruins that you can walk through and check out. Overall it was a relaxing day on a boat to and from the island. The hike we did was basically steps up a steep slope and then we traversed the side of the island with great views of Lake Titicaca and the other islands. It was great activity for the day. </div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;"><img border="0" height="150" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx7utU0Pr7RZums3OR9_h4-aswZLPYDsCTpMKi29m08M-wkyhVKWhF6mEjZBLjJeRQF0IDh13oROX1MGBhR6MjlC8JIMIEgzze1PXdbcqGiuV4HKlmDUUPoF6zi5PRMzVtu7yDuki14owj/s200/Bolivia+123.JPG" width="200" /> <img border="0" height="150" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgiMmfMm8BY74e85CrisV6itEjrvJYSwxTacT8NIu9lSsQ-KKOxIlYX_nNyKJhlE-s6zPLnxXEvueEzsha66NUSmrQ1-s3QWI0ns_xkx6hOhPuAoZVznqLjYUO9m0aroKnoUH4jdze7uvJ/s200/Bolivia+150.JPG" width="200" /> <img border="0" height="150" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_9XiPhaXr9oBcKZkFALHU3TPVW7Mu7KEJWYgMSkpMZpkU4SBvlZxD-0eYXK46mV29m-lBt3TZLmj1-g1Eu_0WvUA7rolS8R2mvV3IyiWQdBO9VB5HFW2Fj_Q3RkL1QRKj93luyQqgXACO/s200/Bolivia+168.JPG" width="200" /></div><img border="0" height="150" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd9xT4iwNv6vkUZR9CtNyAGIeXrnud9kQWmZjhoduWUVIApvYrkV7AAfvWywjblA2RV_nJN_l7F_0wwojKrZVYBBRqmrNkG6a2VxfLz3UL1CBOKwPg8e3x45DaASac7_NMpO6KVBbC7Obf/s200/Bolivia+194.JPG" width="200" /> <img border="0" height="150" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRMbX0B4UpfnQM7iE-5xZSLvtGjLkmKeWMm4vfOB5VxWD1ax_9fIZnx7xQNGzUWbUy1xoAuQim7ToSKUZzsZ713QyvNviaKPj5jpjsrrdMEmfLscGjN08dIm2zXkJDodrn8BGaN0oGOFaD/s200/Bolivia+219.JPG" width="200" /> <img border="0" height="150" hw="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGRateZggPPh5YnmPPBaXDvoC1r3OL13d5ihwh9b2LPQFEEVHb8FaGqLTMGN9yXaofRUdZahkYPYI8p8zH6DXb_AG3TwtnV3wTaShDL4fZRkITVxhyphenhyphen9UfKlnGsJKFFxigkKg4Pp8scY4I2/s200/Bolivia+222.JPG" width="200" /><br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><strong><em>La Paz</em></strong></span></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-color: initial; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-style: none; border-top: medium none; border-width: medium; clear: both; text-align: left;">3/14/2010-3/22/2010 - One of the activities that we did was riding mountain bikes on what is called "The Death Road", which is an old highway that is barely wide enough for 1 car and goes from 14,000ft to around 2,000 ft in a fairly short distance carved on the side of mountains & with periodic waterfalls. The scenery is beautiful but, one side of the road is a ledge that plunges down hundreds of ft at different points, and hence the road gets it's name due to the periodic car going off one of the ledges.</div>arrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04113594731614514487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-569463268290321766.post-62888324537361113212009-12-28T14:46:00.000-08:002010-06-03T11:50:47.415-07:00Traveling Turkey - From Kusadasi to Selçuk(Ephesus) to Istanbul<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><strong><em><u>Kusadasi</u></em></strong></span><br />
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10/01/2009 - We caught an early ferry from Vathy to Kusadasi. Getting off the ferry the ferry collected some kind of entrance tax that was $10 Euros, which seemed kind of sketchy but, every one else was paying it so we weren't sure if it was legitimate or not. We then entered the Turkish customs and they charged us another $20 Euros to get a visa for the country. Apparently you need a visa if you are from the US but they freely issue them at the border. We then walked out of the port only to be bombarded by people asking what they could do for us, if we had a place to stay, and offering tours to Ephesus. One guy that spoke really good English and pointed us in the right direction kept talking to us and followed us for a while. He seemed a little sketchy at first with is snake skin cowboy boots, button down shirt, and multiple piercings. Come to find out he lived in Australia for a while and had traveled quite a bit. He offered to get us to Selçuk, leave our things in his shop, take us to Ephesus and then pick us up after a couple of hours at Ephesus and take us back to his shop. All this for about the same price as a bus and all he wanted was us to buy something at his shop. After we talked to him we felt that he was fairly trustworthy and decided to go with it because it would save us alot of hassle. So we waited about 10 minutes and he had a car out front for us with a driver named Ali Baba. We jumped in with Ali Baba and were off to Selçuk. While driving the 45 minutes we were able talk to Ali Baba about the country and he was a hard working man that was very sincere with good intentions.<br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><strong><em><u>Selçuk</u></em></strong></span><br />
We arrrived at Ali Baba's shop where were offered water and were able to use the decent bathroom of his restaurant next door. We then left our backpacks in his store and were off to the ruins at Ephesus. When we arrived Ali Baba dropped us off and even offered to let us borrow a tour guide book on the ruins. Going through the ruins from one side to the next takes about 2-3 hours. Although if you really want to see every little detail you could spend probably a full day here. There are 2 entrances to Ephesus but most people opt to start at the higher elevation end and then walk down because it is an easier walk. At the bottom you can catch a bus back up the other side or just back to Selçuk. Selçuk is very close to the ruins and only about a 5 minute drive. The ruins themselves are pretty amazing and there are several theatres and buildings as you wonder down the trail. There are also an abundance of places where stones are just laying all over and they have Greek writing on them or ornate carved pictures. The stone work is amazing and the ruins are really impressive. <br />
<img border="0" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUldCctyGWF_oXQlGJfeW0P7Fv5iNDK6mFfvmJZEE78WZHa1Hla5JyU-k6xFh95bVoMjopU35Wr_ZH6My7TciKkQFKPej0OV9mzap1Nmbs996icOoJq74oF_A1HCVxFhCd_0wYczC6-OU0/s200/868.JPG" /> <img border="0" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0kWMChsIqkZRYqW-a1N6sqHKj09Zyax6tMAVLWIibXakIUW5XTO2xLaaBxbr-sttNGdjbov1AM3ndtRciF39jPQezrz61FiMB5QfpAtw5GqYJUziSs8va1SOpu7TCuumJD1j3T1HIRMxu/s200/862.JPG" /><br />
When we were done walking though the ruins and looked for out driver Ali Baba and he was no where to be found, so after waiting a few minutes we went over to one of the other drivers and asked if they knew Ali Baba and they said that Ali Baba had talked to them and that we were supposed to get a ride with him. We jumped in the van with several other passangers and they took us into town and back to Ali Baba's shop. We then hung out for a bit in the shop and one of the members from our group purchased a rug from Ali Baba. We then headed to the town to get some food and check train/bus schedules so that we could get to Izmir for our 9:30pm flight. There is a train from Selçuk to Izmir that will actually take you right to the Izmir Airport terminals but, since the times didn't work for us we decided to just catch a minibus up which leave every hour and would drop us off on the freeway by the Izmir Airport. From where they dropped us off to the terminals was about a 10 minute walk. We decided to fly to Istanbul since the just over 1 hour flight with a local airline was cheaper than an 8 hour bus ride. If you are traveling within Turkey check out <a href="http://www.izair.com.tr/En/">Izair</a>. We got our tickets for about $28.<br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><strong><em><u>Istanbul</u></em></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: black;">10/02/2009 and 10/03/2009 - We arrived in Istanbul fairly late and caught a Taxi to our Hostel called The Southern Cross Hostel that we had previously booked. The reason we chose it was because it's location in Sultanahmet. Sultanahmet is very close to all of the main attractions in Istanbul. We arrived late to the street our Hostel was on and found that the street had a very active night life of restaurants and small shops. It was fairly active with people but very quiet and a good atmosphere. The street our hostel was on was called Akbiyik Street and was just a short walk to the Blue Mosque(Sultan Ahmet Camii) and the Hagia Sophia Museum / Church (Ayasofya). I have seen the Hagia Sophia spelled multiple ways including Hagia Sophia, Aya Sofya, and Aya Sofia. I will call it the Hagia Sofia since there is a Wikipedia page on it spelled that way. :)</span><br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX0X0AwMnegNCmcv6hztCF3hgliqWnmag3voMWqma44KzX_amSAUKLqZywnVZCgPEhszBsQN_0FNjfhUxvHEoWxouaa_rEE1Oo3J9FA5Cr7jRd2tjNL67U7GUWGUzjVmaKSBK4K593goWv/s1600-h/905_nopeople.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX0X0AwMnegNCmcv6hztCF3hgliqWnmag3voMWqma44KzX_amSAUKLqZywnVZCgPEhszBsQN_0FNjfhUxvHEoWxouaa_rEE1Oo3J9FA5Cr7jRd2tjNL67U7GUWGUzjVmaKSBK4K593goWv/s200/905_nopeople.JPG" /></a>The next day we got up early to go and check out some of the sites. We basically looked at a book that had the top 10 things to see in Istanbul and tried to hit them all. We walked up from the hotel and ended up in the middle of the Blue Mosque and the Hagia Sofia. We then made our way around to the entrance of the Blue Mosque. There was a little bit of a line to get into the Blue Mosque, so we decided to check out The Hippodrome, which is a massive amphitheater built in Byzantine times. In the middle of the Hippodrome we checked out the Egyptian Obelisk, a column that was brought to Constantinople (now Istanbul) from Egypt during the Roman era, in 390 A.D. When we were done there we headed back over to the entrance of the Blue Mosque to pleasantly find that the line was gone and we were able to go right in. You are required to take off your shoes when you go in and I think if you had shorts they had to be past your knees but, I don't recall any other restrictions. The inside of the Blue Mosque was very impressive and from what we could find out the architect was commissioned to make a Mosque bigger than the Hagia Sofia and when it came down to it he wasn't able to achieve making it bigger, so it is now better know for it's symetry.<br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><img border="0" height="150" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL0KLdkXT3snNLB8MVJx_O2tbsKJYFGv3SMqO_TtJ9TtAxJ1QeejAZG45nsfRKvY3XN6y7J_k1vOSeKU19YALOP-iyNEa7IBImjSHCH2KBkcdlWF6R8qGzAY3kn1mEqnuW8XnjHEe8HaJQ/s200/896.JPG" width="200" /> <img border="0" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5pbENYRL6fJjCu97VJLapNlh7wqFSoeQgp_MN4DBVMTAfpa3-NVTu63n7xkbN-WgDq485yZNwnMWyzU59ZQlvBKpuF3rDzQBQBLj6b3oo77GkoEcw15EtmushUoJofIHDmM621Q5cSB9K/s200/916.JPG" /><br />
After the making our way though the Blue Mosque we headed over to the Hagia Sofia. The Hagia Sofia was constructed as a Eastern Orthodox Church and was the largest cathederal for over 1,000 years. When Constantinople(Istanbul) was conquered by the Ottoman Turks in 1453 it was converted into a Mosque. In 1935 it was converted to a Muesum as it currently functions today. It is a very impressive building and it is definitely worth taking some time to wander around and check out the architecture and view some of the beautiful mosaics.<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcZ18tYsXpyrEFpvAjJgphltBNeCP_905DIF_ttrQAcFt0It32Z8KGc3wruiE_nVBwxoTnN38-XwMVv0_ZCRF2xHKHLmSgWczpgKeGT9ohvdy91a4sNgMKhaK-ZBzpu-xJpWRQQ5awClDl/s1600-h/897.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcZ18tYsXpyrEFpvAjJgphltBNeCP_905DIF_ttrQAcFt0It32Z8KGc3wruiE_nVBwxoTnN38-XwMVv0_ZCRF2xHKHLmSgWczpgKeGT9ohvdy91a4sNgMKhaK-ZBzpu-xJpWRQQ5awClDl/s200/897.JPG" /></a><img border="0" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA_454nycAtGRwBDrBIFobklGl0Ki3BXMgL0CIGADUu_Ew8WxNAyvuizNRo5P3S21ZJ15268wYqiuf2b7dARpgb1u2oK3ETp2tfqVtNHO3IBr_KcJIn0bb0wkJbBVh1uzYI5IU93JxP6mB/s200/930.JPG" /><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">From the Hagia Sofia we grabbed some of the local food and headed over to the Grand Bazaar (Kapali Carsisi). After weaving through some streets and asking a few people here and there we were able to find our way over to the Grand Bazaar. I was actually really suprised at how nice the Grand Bazaar really was. I was expecting a normal small tent style bazaar, only to find that the structure where the Grand Bazaar was located was actually really nice and it was definitely catered towards tourists. The Grand Bazaar is huge and takes quite a while to get through if you want to see everything, although I found that after going down a couple of aisles they all seem to be similar and your will start to see shops that seem to be duplicates of stores that you have already seen. After the Bazaar we headed towards the Egyptian Spice Bazaar but were side tracked by a Bosphorus Cruise. We wanted to try and hit this around sunset and we were passing by it around 6pm and were able to just jump on one as it was leaving. It was nice to just sit down and take in some scenery. We actually saw the Dolmabahce Palace(Dolmabahce Sarayi) on the shore and it inspired us to put it on our list of things to see the next day. There are several Mosques along the river and the view is great. This body of water also seperates Eastern Europe from Asia. When we got off the cruise we headed over to the Egyptian Spice Bazaar(Misir Carsisi) and even though it was closing down we were able to wander through it and see pretty much everything. We then just headed back to the hostel after a eventful day of seeing sites.<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgihmQfUtvpvFWjV9o6aH2nJYYPYpG_JP0AnPMDWnw255YU0hx4KuD_BTpq6IZ9KlndkFLad2lQ6DU23Z5Yfwgzw6167JNI_SnD3PlTqfdukdxnICgPIcZNlc79NIyT_FppmCImO5KuTmbz/s1600-h/956.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="cssfloat: left; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgihmQfUtvpvFWjV9o6aH2nJYYPYpG_JP0AnPMDWnw255YU0hx4KuD_BTpq6IZ9KlndkFLad2lQ6DU23Z5Yfwgzw6167JNI_SnD3PlTqfdukdxnICgPIcZNlc79NIyT_FppmCImO5KuTmbz/s200/956.JPG" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyJqo_7o8t9DeUzfRmq6T8_A8lONa5MsRFQgANiuamT-jOGQXCox90xo1z1FaAAm6tl7O2bB7nDuXLPxyIh49xu97MVF2_7BlMwlsqkWAEyx8y-HLmzpEBbSG9HAhr-7Y9zRYpTaalzxvp/s1600-h/971.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyJqo_7o8t9DeUzfRmq6T8_A8lONa5MsRFQgANiuamT-jOGQXCox90xo1z1FaAAm6tl7O2bB7nDuXLPxyIh49xu97MVF2_7BlMwlsqkWAEyx8y-HLmzpEBbSG9HAhr-7Y9zRYpTaalzxvp/s200/971.JPG" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The next day we got up and headed to the Yerebatan Sarayi (Underground Cistern). Known as Yerebatan Sarayi or Sunken Palace, this giant well once held water for the city residents. Today, it is a major tourist attraction, complete with piped-in music and pulsing lights and really has a cool atmosphere. We then made our way over to the Topkapi Palace. Topkapi Palace is an amazing place to see. It is not only immense in size and structure but also full of history. The Topkapi Palace was first constructed in 1459 by Sultan Mehmet II who had conquered Istanbul in 1453. It was the main Palace that was used by the Sultan, his family and thousands of staff. There are many different areas in the complex from courtyards, to meeting rooms, harems and much more. The Palace was fairly popular and crowded, although there is a ton to see within the walls. Next we caught a subway to a station near the Dolmabahce Palace(Dolmabahce Sarayi). The Dolmabahce Palace was built in the mid 1800s to replace an earlier structure that was made of wood. The new Palace incorporated sixteen separate buildings with stables, a flour mill and a clock tower among them. We caught a tour through it and it is fairly impressive inside and after the 1hr tour we headed around to catch a tour of the Harems quarters, which was anothe 30min tour and looked alot like the 1st tour. The gounds are really well kept and are nice to wander around. <br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsVoa2jvnmBI02QFWuThc_FG2_XCSzXG3JFNO6cHPGC8nMaeujcW_fyYRo0qxcHtTWEKpIG_tlr7qOJRZHHhvj12ALg3VD2oEjKg2azdcbRarLjBChrHpUAcVV8BNWAPuSb0k_xNCumeSp/s1600-h/010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsVoa2jvnmBI02QFWuThc_FG2_XCSzXG3JFNO6cHPGC8nMaeujcW_fyYRo0qxcHtTWEKpIG_tlr7qOJRZHHhvj12ALg3VD2oEjKg2azdcbRarLjBChrHpUAcVV8BNWAPuSb0k_xNCumeSp/s200/010.JPG" /></a><img border="0" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVnJT2uS0ADZDc7IqSgJKnNmrJobHEIOTP4Lc0374TnuHjg1kGpaJZylNuek3ia5etLgsUWr76SWilKFc7L8Pk2c8sYNLP4SV143EvWwQ9km3IrFk-e6lw3i0EEBLQBgRaS7spGFlHwTyR/s200/020.JPG" /><br />
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We then just headed back to the Hostel and prepared for our overnight train to Sofia.arrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04113594731614514487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-569463268290321766.post-5555076581413815642009-11-03T12:54:00.000-08:002011-04-29T13:35:17.784-07:00Traveling Greece - Athens and Greek Islands (Paros, Naxos, Vahti)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><strong><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><em><u><iframe align="right" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=eyewitnesstravelbooks-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=0756660521&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: right; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe>ATHENS</u></em></span></strong><br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">09/27/2009 - We landed at the airport in Athens and from there it was pretty easy to jump on the <a href="http://www.mlahanas.de/Greece/Regions/images/AthensMetroMap.gif">Athens Metro</a> catch the <span style="color: blue;">BLUE</span> line and head to the City Center. Depending on where you want to go then you might have to switch lines to the <span style="color: red;">RED</span> line at the Syntagma Station or to the <span style="color: #6aa84f;">GREEN</span> line at Monastiraki. I actually found a pretty cool tool to plan a route on the Athens Metro which tells you which lines you need to take and the best thing about it is that it will estimate the travel time between 2 stations, so that you can plan appropriately. It is located at the <a href="http://www.amel.gr/index.php?id=53&no_cache=1&L=1">Athens Metro Website</a>. We stayed in a small hostel called Dioskouros which was nothing special, relatively cheap, and had a great location with access to most of the sites. We dumped our stuff and headed up to the Acropolis. On our way in we found out that we had come on National Historical Day or something like that, so we lucked out that all of the sites were free and so were the museums. Saved us some money which was great! We headed up to the Parthenon and there are plenty of ruins to see around the Acropolis along with the Parthenon. We were a little disappointed with the amount of scaffolding on the Parthenon which detracted a little from the beauty but, from what we were told you are pretty lucky if you hit a time when there isn't scaffolding since they are constantly renovating & restoring it. We then made our way down through Thissio Park where there were several other ruins. Then we popped out into the Monastiraki Flea Market where they were selling just about anything you could think of and there were also several restaurants along the roads where you could sit outside and enjoy a meal. We opted to find a small hole in the wall and pick up some cheap Gyros! They were great and cheap. We then made our way back to the hostel through the Plaka area and were able to see all the shops and older part of the city.</div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ6lHvZjukcw3TW0LhTY5DO9EXOFfZ2KSnJ6We3HURWkUT7cUiV7VtCK-A33lNa9YSc1V2GdtahqEJiSA85lcywnZf1KogizDxrfS2Y8D5HxoPko1z-4YhGP-PsVV5TqYnGv4mjD76-Wc0/s1600-h/442.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ6lHvZjukcw3TW0LhTY5DO9EXOFfZ2KSnJ6We3HURWkUT7cUiV7VtCK-A33lNa9YSc1V2GdtahqEJiSA85lcywnZf1KogizDxrfS2Y8D5HxoPko1z-4YhGP-PsVV5TqYnGv4mjD76-Wc0/s200/442.JPG" vr="true" /></a><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGlJ7YH9KJBAWZ289oQWDvIUINsP7otQerN4_00TXqZAsdATajo5viWmrT8EFlX0zjIXSmPjVIUc9uXnuMscRxg6XYHllE4B8QtgxXmoZHvpKJsr7aqptZjANZ5a0e-n184XY7Z2_iENjW/s200/475.JPG" vr="true" /></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: left;"><br />
For the top 10 things to do in Athens I recommend the Eyewitness Books as they have tons of great pictures and informaton.<br />
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<iframe align="right" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=eyewitnesstravelbooks-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=0756670179&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: right; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><strong><em><u>PAROS</u></em></strong></span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">09/28/2009 - We caught the <a href="http://www.mlahanas.de/Greece/Regions/images/AthensMetroMap.gif">Athens Metro</a> to the Port of Pireaus and switched to the GREEN line and it took us about 20 minutes to get to the Port. Once we arrived at the port we just went to the various Ferry lines and bought our ticket to Paros. We opted to buy one of the cheaper tickets on one of the slower ferries. The ferry was actually pretty nice and included a Cafe, Restaurant, etc. and had airline type seats in various rooms where you could sit & watch TV or just do your own thing. We hung out in the Cafe for a while which was open to the outside & gave us a view of the city of Athens. After a couple of hours outside we moved to one of the rooms with seats and took naps for the rest of the journey.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR_KN7pbkHfR3YJInhX93qXCWUznRUqyYPgblzKwj8ibgyB_vHV2r6kSJwrYRgTuW2XucdA-TfzVb_7KqSkcPL63yV9OLEzllUMgUZUIyC2rhI5NZhVhg8gT8wOzwvc4Wb1fjOj0mLK0j6/s1600/paros-map.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR_KN7pbkHfR3YJInhX93qXCWUznRUqyYPgblzKwj8ibgyB_vHV2r6kSJwrYRgTuW2XucdA-TfzVb_7KqSkcPL63yV9OLEzllUMgUZUIyC2rhI5NZhVhg8gT8wOzwvc4Wb1fjOj0mLK0j6/s200/paros-map.gif" yr="true" /></a></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Paros is a medium sized island in a group of islands called The Cyclades. I have posted a map of the all the Greek islands below to give you an idea of where Paros and the other islands are with respect to each other.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">When we arrived at the island at the Port city of Parikia we made our way over to our hostel which was only a short 10 minute walk up the coast. We stayed in a place called Ampeli Studios. It was a decent place to stay and not far from everything. We then went up the street to rent some mopeds/scooters to cruise around the island. There are plenty of places to rent them in Parikia. Although we did have one place deny us rentals because we didn't have motorcycle endorsements on our drivers licenses. There were plenty of other places that would rent to us without the endorsement though. We were able to work out a deal since it was the off season and got the mopeds for €8(Euros). We then took off around the island, which you can easily make it around in one day. We made our way up to Naoussa, which was a small town that had a quite feel to it. It was a good stop for a break and to just walk around for a little bit. It is not a very commercial town but did have people working on their fishing boats and going about their normal day activities. Here are a few pictures.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk5E4_PYDfuBd9-Glavz1A9iyt17aigynarZynNB18hbr39hEsYJxVXRSkfMvGSAzFFmOcPHeJaKO5HNjx584ffa0m6Hdqjawx4mlZsQ-kSaRrRP36axzp4nZsAy5XLTVWe8LJef72tiel/s200/494.JPG" vr="true" /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSTQijgX9h2Hv7OxCtsNZFrcNG-SZr2P_47tefYvHgpwinD1mcEiEZjT1Tle7EDiDkpn2owm4f3GZsvlNty0EDyTq5Q9meQ_nGq4z2Cit5NjfDjIzUbnuEpPlE6F1jbDwxRorfrxAc4Hpv/s1600-h/584.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSTQijgX9h2Hv7OxCtsNZFrcNG-SZr2P_47tefYvHgpwinD1mcEiEZjT1Tle7EDiDkpn2owm4f3GZsvlNty0EDyTq5Q9meQ_nGq4z2Cit5NjfDjIzUbnuEpPlE6F1jbDwxRorfrxAc4Hpv/s200/584.JPG" vr="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;"> From there we headed down the coast to a town called Piso Livadi, where we went to a beach called Pounda Beach. It was supposedly one of the most popular and happening beaches although since it was the off season, we were almost the only people on the beach. The water was warm, so we jumped in for a short swim. Here are a few pictures. The beach was sandy and there was 5-10 feet of rocks when you first get into the water but once past them it is all sand.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4w7rkBEyRfvSxMPGVFGjRPxGo96PZ1gkrTKGeEfyBhRmBSSAByEyypA0D1LvDOL-AKzEUjHkJXWI39hx1wHAlHnGhZgmVRGxRacH-wazciBzL6uHWJ2qTu16NTVmIsnrIKriSeDmCJQUQ/s1600-h/606.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4w7rkBEyRfvSxMPGVFGjRPxGo96PZ1gkrTKGeEfyBhRmBSSAByEyypA0D1LvDOL-AKzEUjHkJXWI39hx1wHAlHnGhZgmVRGxRacH-wazciBzL6uHWJ2qTu16NTVmIsnrIKriSeDmCJQUQ/s200/606.JPG" vr="true" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1VUs00sMk3_11BKXZzr7j1tSK5_tXK9toZr0qWE-UuNDUoUPkmEShOJFXAhS5YS9Y1xRqcmhC8thkTDPWVDEu9Fg9ps3_sve0HOg82-j6Iyp65XP5nEimDYLrTuPiIUH1ofAU0Sxx78T9/s1600-h/611.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1VUs00sMk3_11BKXZzr7j1tSK5_tXK9toZr0qWE-UuNDUoUPkmEShOJFXAhS5YS9Y1xRqcmhC8thkTDPWVDEu9Fg9ps3_sve0HOg82-j6Iyp65XP5nEimDYLrTuPiIUH1ofAU0Sxx78T9/s200/611.JPG" vr="true" /></a><br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">From there we continued our trek around the island on the mopeds we briefly went to Aliki which had a similar type beach and then we made our way back up to Parikia. This was plenty to do in a day and if you want to relax more there are plenty of beaches where you can just take it easy. We stayed the night & then hopped the ferry in the morning to Naxos. Had we had more time there is a short 45min ferry over to the island of Antiparos where there are some caves that are a local attraction.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><strong><em><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><u>NAXOS</u></span></em></strong><br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYCJ9xIAOrq4Bv_afHsxqlO2iayAnEUtGaj7ZnMxXt_AW-i3eGxzGAGUayoaXA63NSsB7DtKIyFvh0yQKXhaoDd1dqsLGH9_cPxzj9IS6AWMZf-6iLf6Anwr2FejVWq_RX7IeKvJQPnce4/s1600/699.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYCJ9xIAOrq4Bv_afHsxqlO2iayAnEUtGaj7ZnMxXt_AW-i3eGxzGAGUayoaXA63NSsB7DtKIyFvh0yQKXhaoDd1dqsLGH9_cPxzj9IS6AWMZf-6iLf6Anwr2FejVWq_RX7IeKvJQPnce4/s200/699.JPG" yr="true" /></a>We arrived in Naxos which as we got off we started our walk to our hotel which was called Saint George Hotel. The hotel was right on the beach of the Agios Georgios beach which is just south of the commercial part of the town of Naxos. We got checked into our rooms that were actually pretty nice considering the price and location. We then took a stroll out on the beach and then went looking for a place to rent some mopeds to cruise around the island on. We didn't have to go too far before we found a rather large rental company and once again we were able to get out mopeds for about €8(Euros) per day. We then jumped on the mopeds and headed south to check out some of the other beaches in the area. Just about 15-20 minutes south are some beautiful beaches and we ended up at the beach of Agios Prokopios. This is a great place to lay out & the water is warm with an amazing view with extremely blue water. We had lunch at one of the many local restaurants on the main street along the beach and then went for a swim. We also cruised further south on the mopeds to check out some more of the beaches and found the further south you go the more secluded the beaches get and the less clothes they wear. We found a local scuba diving shop which is harder than we thought because according to the locals there are only 2 on the island. The locals said that the reason that scuba diving is not very prominent on the islands is because it used to be prohibited until recently when they have opened it up for diving. We decided to do a dive with the <a href="http://bluefindivers.gr/">Blue Fin Divers</a>. They were great people and more than willing to help us. They are close to the beach but we did have to wear wet suits because it was a little chilly at the end of September. The only downfall was we had to put our gear on and then walk down to the beach and then get in the water and swim out to the boat. Once we got to the boat, it was a 20-30 minute boat ride out to the dive site. The dive site that we chose was full of arches and small caves that weren't too long that you could swim through. There is not alot of marine life but, we did get to see a couple of eels and an octopus. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1pX8EF16eeLeaonsLB5DQ89GAQOHtta2y6_ERogxo0zW6BRFhKYUG2hxO6OmFA8nJmVd2zvJHpuFDeHi6_55dm6uanCUs5W4ISlXvaPBesTlH0wK5gb60GtAjEIoW3kEXVLlFiamC1PdD/s1600/dive.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1pX8EF16eeLeaonsLB5DQ89GAQOHtta2y6_ERogxo0zW6BRFhKYUG2hxO6OmFA8nJmVd2zvJHpuFDeHi6_55dm6uanCUs5W4ISlXvaPBesTlH0wK5gb60GtAjEIoW3kEXVLlFiamC1PdD/s200/dive.JPG" yr="true" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">We finished the day off with a beautiful sunset and then headed back to Naxos main strip by the port to finish the night off with some Gyros and just kind of bum around the shops in town.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBwSZHGpnqxWuWrMIEUo03ex4M6wyYorqD9uk_A064M2hZLj3hWIEsiiVzlydTPei8aZQmYmuOhgzkwgnS2Qmq2C6iJuRc0sn-x3KicfMWc5hKDV0J2QVTGIPHWAauxx-RmQPCSHDA9-ub/s1600/702.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBwSZHGpnqxWuWrMIEUo03ex4M6wyYorqD9uk_A064M2hZLj3hWIEsiiVzlydTPei8aZQmYmuOhgzkwgnS2Qmq2C6iJuRc0sn-x3KicfMWc5hKDV0J2QVTGIPHWAauxx-RmQPCSHDA9-ub/s200/702.JPG" yr="true" /></a>The next day we went to see some of the sites around the island on the mopeds. We went to Melanes where we were able to hike to some different <a href="http://www.greeka.com/cyclades/naxos/naxos-excursions/naxos-kouros.htm">Kouros</a> statues and also some gardens. We saw alot of marble quarries up on the hills while driving around. We then headed to the <a href="http://www.greeka.com/cyclades/naxos/naxos-excursions/naxos-temple-demeter.htm">The Temple of Demeter</a> where we spent some time wondering around the small site. We then made our way off the beaten track to the Plaka beaches & founds ourselves riding on farm roads & dirt roads. From there we headed north back to the beach of Agios Prokopios where we spent some time lounging around and then went back and caught the sunset at the beach of Agios Georgios by our hotel & then prepared to go catch our night ferry to Vathy.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><em><u><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">VATHY</span></u></em></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">- Vathy is located on the island of Samos and is actually the capital of the island. We only spent a morning at the Port in Vathy waiting for our ferry to Kusadasi, Turkey. It was a quite little port in the morning but started to pick up some speed as we got ready to leave on our ferry. Nice little port where we were able to catch a sunrise.</div><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"> Map Of Greek Islands</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2vgvxVDQjk78LcJmI3_U5YUbYniQLAaQuEYosy6NTi0I2_MVDevMMd9okq3-Y4g7-Ov4GZOhEcqHsx2PPhLZs-nR1YiENpjpkHnWt3YXyMM2O9k_bIJkNztQkQOLLleO1k4Fgo_RvTJ_5/s640/grcolor.gif" vr="true" /><iframe align="right" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=eyewitnesstravelbooks-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=078941452X&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: right; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe><iframe align="right" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=eyewitnesstravelbooks-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=140534685X&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: right; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe></div></div>arrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04113594731614514487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-569463268290321766.post-15068388602680586932009-10-15T13:57:00.000-07:002010-02-08T17:31:44.048-08:00Island Hopping from Athens Greece to TurkeyThere are several ways that you can Island hop from Greece to Turkey. We started our journey from the port of Piraeus in Athens. This seems to be the more popular port and there is a Metro(Subway) that you can catch that drops you off right at the port which makes it fairly convinient.<br />
The 4 main crossing points are:<br />
<div><ol><li>Chios -> Çesme<br />
- This is the easiest route to get to Izmir, if you are trying to make your way up to Istanbul and is the closest to Istanbul.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPrQqs7Ud_B6aehWyU9iHcpejn9FvJgLy7SE72IYj7d0Yb8if6FDOKhv0UPe64P7Sy9kkca7ob78v-JofIw4xPTbxiL_GHlsgRfVWWRW9D0efYGS9msPMnrGWQhL72kjb2DZonDv4y7Fli/s1600-h/862.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5399764056793969506" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPrQqs7Ud_B6aehWyU9iHcpejn9FvJgLy7SE72IYj7d0Yb8if6FDOKhv0UPe64P7Sy9kkca7ob78v-JofIw4xPTbxiL_GHlsgRfVWWRW9D0efYGS9msPMnrGWQhL72kjb2DZonDv4y7Fli/s200/862.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 99px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 147px;" /></a></li>
<li>Samos -> Kusadasi<br />
- If you are planning a trip to the popular Ephesus ruins then this is a great option. Kusadasi is a short distance(~20min) from Selculk, where the ruins of Ephesus are located.</li>
<li>Kos -> Bodrum<br />
- This is further south and if you are coming from some of the southern islands of Greece or are going to some of the southern towns then it may make sense.</li>
<li>Rhodes -> Bodrum, Fethiye, or Marmaris<br />
- If you are making your way to Fethiye then this might be a good option.</li>
</ol>I found that in my searches for ferries there were plenty scheduled in the High Season, which is from June to September. When you get into the Low Season then is becomes a little more challenging with ferries only running on certain days, so if you have a time sensitive schedule during the off season then make sure that you plan ahead for the ferry times.<br />
Also, I would recommend that if you are traveling during the high season that you book your ferry tickets ahead of time to make sure that you get a ticket. I traveled during the off season and it didn't seem to be a problem booking a seat at the time of departure at the ticket offices at the ports. The only onle that I did book online was an overnight ferry that I wanted to make sure that we caught and even so, when we arrived there seemed to be quite a few vacant seats and we probably could have bought our tickets the day of.<br />
I found that the best way to plan my Island Hopping and find the schedules for the different options was to use the Fantastic Greece website & they have a link to ferries where you can put in you destinations and it will give you different options. <a href="http://www.fantasticgreece.com/ferries/search.aspx">Fantastic Greece</a>. You can also book at <a href="http://www.ferriesingreece.com/">http://www.ferriesingreece.com/</a> but, I find the Fantastic Greece site to have a better user interface.<br />
Here is a list of the main Ferry Lines:<br />
<ol><li>BLUE STAR FERRIES (Attica Group) </li>
<li>HELLENIC SEAWAYS</li>
<li>MINOAN LINES</li>
<li>AEGEAN SPEED LINES </li>
<li>KALLISTI FERRIES</li>
<li>DODEKANISOS SEAWAYS</li>
<li>SEA JET FERRIES</li>
<li>NEL LINES </li>
<li>GA FERRIES</li>
<li>ALPHA FERRIES </li>
</ol>If you are interested in more information about the different ferry lines you can visit: <a href="http://www.ferriesingreece.com/companies.htm">Ferry Line Details</a>.<br />
<br />
One other note is that if you are looking to get from Izmir to Istanbul I found that there is a local airline that can offer some pretty cheap rates. It is called <a href="http://www.izair.com.tr/En/">IzAir</a>. It would have taken me 8-10hrs by train or bus to get from Izmir to Istanbul and cost $35(US) by train or bus but, instead I got a one way ticket from IzAir for $27(US) and I was there in an hour and a half. Pretty sweet deal!</div><br />
There are some great books on the Greek Islands and as usual, I am a huge fan of the Eye Witness books.arrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04113594731614514487noreply@blogger.com0