My Big Fat Greek Holiday !

Here i am on a flight from Abu Dhabi to Athens surrounded by a completely noisy bunch of people who totally feel at home in the flight !

My first impression of the Greeks - more like the loud, flamboyant and fun loving Punjabis . I initially thought the entire group of about 10 people were part of the same family and later realized they were complete strangers .
People were actually standing on the aisle ; chatting , laughing and passing snacks around, this was one fun 6 hour flight , felt more like a local bus ride !

Welcome to Greece ! said the lady sitting next to me who was a 75 year old Greek woman. She said , "this is how we Greeks are, we are always loud so don't worry if you see a lot of this when you are on your holiday "....

Athens - The Cradle of Western Civilization

Athens is a very lively and relatively crowded city . Walk down the flea market -Monastiraki, if you love to shop for little trinkets and souvenirs to take back home. Put your haggling skill to good use as pretty much everything is over-priced because of the number of tourists thronging the place.

Despite being one of the largest economic centers in south eastern Europe, you will still see the rich heritage and ancient monuments around the city.

Athens is home to the UNESCO world heritage site - the Acropolis of Athens , which stands high on a hilltop above the city.
It has some very famous monuments of architectural and historical importance like Parthenon and the  Temple of Athena.
A trek up the hill will be a bit tiresome because of the uneven path leading to the acropolis. But once you are on the hill top it is so worth it. They are such magnificent structures. You just need to stand and gaze at the structures and you will feel more and more amazed as you see the intricate design and symmetry .

 Evening would be good time to take a walk through the city checking out some landmarks dating back to 18th century.

Vegetarian's Paradise

The place is scattered with tavernas - they are small Greek restaurants serving authentic Greek food. Good news to vegetarians - there are some amazing vegetarian Greek food that you must try .
You will notice that everything is served in large portions enough for 3 people by Indian standards. But it is rude to ask the restaurant to reduce the portion , some chefs actually get offended if you ask them to serve you less. And trust me as friendly as the Greeks are, you don't want to be standing in front of an annoyed Greek shouting at you !

Here is a quick look at my top 3 favorite Greek food.

Yamista

Greek Salad

Yamista - This was something i ate pretty much in every taverna. Beautifully cooked tomatoes and capsicum stuffed with flavoured rice. Always a delight to eat something with strong flavours while you are in the European countries. And this one was loaded with flavours.

The authentic Greek salad with a very generous chunk of feta cheese and a glass of good Santorini red wine ...

Tzatziki

Tzatziki - Made of Greek yoghurt  with cucumbers and olive oil. This is the exotic Greek version of the Indian cucumber raita but with some added flavour of olive oil
and vinegar.

Volkan Beer, which is a Greek beer made from local ingredients. The water for the beer is filtered through the lava rock filter which gives a very fresh and earthy after taste. Not for everybody's taste buds, but a must try .

Mikonos - Let the Party Begin !

After a day and half around the ancient city it was time to head out for some hard core partying.
There are ferries going to the island of Mikonos from Athens. It is about 5-6 hour ferry ride . Find a spot by the window and take a nice nap. You will need all the energy once you are in Mikonos !

Mikonos is a beautiful island and you will see quaint little structures painted in blue with white cobbled streets . Daytime is ideal for you to walk around the streets and just take in the pretty sight.
You will see that every house, shop, restaurant is painted in blue and white. Blue is the color that wards off evil eye and as a tradition the entire island is painted blue and white.

As the sun goes down ,the island lights up and comes alive. All the tiny structures which were closed during the day were actually clubs which now had loud techno and trans playing .
Club hopping is what you can do the entire night as most of the places are open till 3 AM in the morning. The last bus leaves from the harbor to the city at 2 AM. So you are covered with transportation back to your hotel.
Party on !

Serene Santorini ...

My personal favourite in Greece -  Santorini .

Another 3 hour ferry from Mikonos took us to Santorini . Even the cool wind that was blowing felt different from the other 2 cities.
Santorini is the largest island and what was left of the enormous volcanic eruption that caused one huge portion of the island to go under sea making it a crescent shaped island.
The city is built on the top crest of the island which steeply slopes down towards the sea.

What should you do in Santorini - Actually nothing .....
The place is so beautiful you just need to walk around the beautiful island and soak it in .

You will find the place dotted with pretty white painted houses with a lot of blue domed churches . Yes , the very famous blue domed church that you must have seen in every other Hollywood and Bollywood movie is Santorini.

Oia in Santorini has one of the most beautiful sunsets . If you are lucky enough to get a good spot along the walk way ,you will actually get a perfect view of the sun slipping down the horizon.

Santorini Caves

This is an interesting concept and i had to write about it.... 

The caves were alternate options of living used by the crew members of the ships that docked in the island. As the crew members were poorer and could not afford the houses in the island , they dug caves along the volcanic terrain and set it up as a home with basic necessities

Ironically, the poor man's cave is one of the most sought after holiday homes currently listed on airbnb !

If you are able to schedule your travel to clash with a full moon my suggestion would be to do so . Santorini on a full moon night is a sight to behold. The cherry on the cake for me was the blood moon while i was in Santorini. Couldn't have asked for perfect ending to a perfect trip !

If you are someone who loves a holiday with a good mix of culture tours , club hopping and relax with a glass of fine wine and great food - the Greek Islands should be on your list .