The land of the Greek gods

'What, no toilet paper in the toilet allowed'. I hear Holly replying. It seems that I forgot to tell everyone about the TP policy in Greece. Apparently the sewage pipes are too narrow for such luxuries. Ahh, I remember, thats right, even in Athens, the major city, we weren't able to dispose of TP in the proper place, but had to throw the paper in a bin, next to the toilet. Don't let this minor inconvenence diswade you from visting this magnificient country.
After the initial shock subsided, we realized what a wonderful island Rhodes was. Our pension was mounted on the highest peak in the old city of Rhodes with a view from the terrace to die for. People..., its all about the views. Always seek to discover the best views in any destination and it'll be the snapshots that you remember the longest.
Our 3-night stay in the medevil, perfectly perserved walled city of Rhodes began with a ferry from Bodrum Turkey. This is where both Paul and John, resided for a short time. There are 2 main gates in/out of this city thus few cars are allowed b/c of the narrow streets and even fewer parking spots. The annoying scooters, however, had no problem squeezing in and were in abundance. I was thrilled to be here, after spending 4-nights at oceanside resorts, as this was exactly the type of city, saturated in anceint history and archetecture, that I love being in.
Our group had dramatically changed, as Paul C left our group and 2 gals, Camille & Cara joined us. Poor Rick, now accountable for 4 girls and no 'guy buddies' to share the responsibilities with. Fortunately, he's a man of many talents, so even though his patience was tested - many times over, he managed to get us all home safely and still remain friends :-)
Our next stop was the picturesque, cliffside Is. of Santorini. This is probably the most scenic of all the islands as the contrast of the volcanic earth and white washed, blue lined building are unbelieveable stunning. It one of these places you simply can't fully describe using the english language it needs to be witnessed and experienced. I had been to this island before so it was a treat to see the 'ahh, ohh, wow' expressed with my travel companions.
When we stepped into our cliffside villa, the ordeal of lugging all the suitcases down the 20 steps, became a forgotten memory. As we ran from room to room, discovering the villa's interior, (which used to be a wine cellar), the excitement was uncontainable. The view from the public terrace was worth the 'extra' cost. You did good, Rick. (as he was solely responsible for picking the accommodations...and nearly everything else)
The island is a continuously fiju film moment - good thing we have digital cameras as the amount of photos taken on this island, in the old days, would have totaled the plane ticket over here. Everyone was snapping away. It was actually a bit disappointing as there was no sense of 'discovery' here....every photo was a Conde Nast contestant and there was simply no 'grit' to contrast the beauty with. Of course we enjoyed it (and our glimmering blue lined pool, just the same)

Our last stop was Athens. I was here in the 90's and though it was a very tramatic time for me here (my polish friend who came with me was deported when we got to the airport = no visa) I remember it as a chaotic place to be. Well, I have to say this was not the 2006 Athens I witnessed those year ago. The 2004 Olympics must have done wonders to spruce up/clean up this cradle of society. Streets were cleaner and public transport, such as trams, have been added.
We stayed in the old 'Plaka' district which is where you'll find the Acropolis, narrow cobble stoned streets and over priced restaurants/shops.It seemed like every local, when not obstructed by buildings, had a glimpse of the Acropolis, which was always a treat esp. at night when it was flooded with lights. Walking up to the Acropolis was the culmination of the ultimate 'workout' for the 3 of us. Two weeks of conquering hills, (some of mountain proportion), was a proud moment for us. Sometimes I envision my donor's family calling me and asking 'how are those lungs treating me and have I been using them much'. They served me well...my legs, however, are a different story.

Our 2-night stay in Athens, ended quickly as we boarded a bus at 300am in the morning to catch our flights backs to Michigan (who booked the flights again?) It was catch a bus for $4 or pay $90 for taxis. This was the one drawback of traveling with a group of 5 - everything needs to be doubled - rooms, taxi's, etc. We did make it home and now we have plenty of memories of our warm, scenic days in Turkey & Greece to hold us over for the long Michigan winter to come.