Portugal, Sicily, Greece and the Balkans

[ellen10]

I was going to message you to make sure you had seen this TR as you were going to Catania but you're all over it (still haven't forgotten about Ortigia restaurants - will try harder to catch up)

Thanks @VPS I still have your trip report bookmarked also.

 

[ellen10]

@ellen10. A couple of suggestions for you.

. Don Pepinu for gelato. It was so good.
. Savia Cafe for cannoli and arancini. Best I’ve had so far.
. Cafe Bellini (via Garibaldi 36 - there’s a couple with similar names) for £3 aperol spritz plus other coughtails. They are quite strong but really nice. Service can be slow as they get busy but they are really nice. Also had a really good meat and cheese platter there. Easily fed two of us. There’s other places as well but we liked this one.
. Pizzeria Concept 72 Ore. amazing pizza.

Thanks @Scash All great suggestions I am taking notes! Yes I love those delicious red ripe tomatoes. I try to ask for my salad dressings on the side.
Thanks also for the walking tour information. We are big fans of walking tours to get our bearings and tour guide suggestions.
How many nights did you stay in Catania? Did you visit Taormina? or Ortigia? I have booked stays in both places. But now rethinking this.
Also thinking of going on a tour to Etna.

Loving your photos!

 

[drron]

Taormina is really worth the visit. Ruins everywhere. My BIL was a lecturer in Geology in Plymouth and did a 3 months stint in Taormina every spring supervising excavations.

 

[RooFlyer]

My BIL was a lecturer in Geology in Plymouth and did a 3 months stint in Taormina every spring supervising excavations.

Scraping away the old buildings to expose the rocks underneath?

 

[Scash]

Thanks @Scash All great suggestions I am taking notes! Yes I love those delicious red ripe tomatoes. I try to ask for my salad dressings on the side.
Thanks also for the walking tour information. We are big fans of walking tours to get our bearings and tour guide suggestions.
How many nights did you stay in Catania? Did you visit Taormina? or Ortigia? I have booked stays in both places. But now rethinking this.
Also thinking of going on a tour to Etna.

Loving your photos!

We had 4 nights but unfortunately didn’t get to other places as our days in Catania were pretty full. We did an Etna tour and thoroughly enjoyed it (will post photos later). Our tour was about 6 hours and only went to 2,000 metres but still got to see plenty. It also included local produce and wine tasting.

 

[Scash]

A day trip to Mount Etna, one of europes largest active volcanos. It is approx 3,400 metres high but we only went to 2,000 metres. As recent as a week ago it was active and spewing lava, but nothing happening when we were there.

A house destroyed by lava. There are a number of destroyed or abandoned properties and a partially built hotel due to lava flows. Not exactly a smart idea to build on the side of an active volcano .



The active craters are at the top so we only got to see extinct craters. This crater is approx 100 metres in diameter, with the largest crater about 900 metres in diameter! The wind was unbelievable and you struggled to keep your feet.





Lava cave

 

[OZDUCK]

How on earth did I post my plane spotting pictures here? My apologies to Scash and post deleted.

 

[Scash]

I did suspect it was an error @OZDUCK but all good

 

[OZDUCK]

I did suspect it was an error @OZDUCK but all good

Thanks. I hate doing 'things' on my phone. My fingers are about three times too big to use the keyboard happily.

 

[Scash]

The next part of our trip starts with a flight from Catania to Athens. We are flying with Aegean Air which is a first for us, but unfortunately the flight departs at 7:05pm so it means a late arrival, especially as we lose an hour due to time difference. The flight was uneventful except for the catering. This is supposedly a vegetable roll!



We had booked an Acropolis tour for the first morning and a walking tour for the afternoon, so it was a big first day. The Acropolis, Parthenon etc are are mind blowing and is so far one of the highlights.

Our guide was on the ball and we were first in line and made it to the top before too many others. By the time we left it was getting really busy.

The entrance path to the top. Not long afterwards this section was packed.



The Parthenon



Altar of Athena.




Olive tree which according to mythology was planted by Athena in a competition with Poseidon to decide who would control Athens.



Herod Atticus Odeon

 

[VPS]

Great photos - shame about the food.

I often look at photos of Athens and look at my coughpy photos from 1982 and wish I had nicer ones but at least I got there

 

[ellen10]

Great photos - shame about the food.

I often look at photos of Athens and look at my coughpy photos from 1982 and wish I had nicer ones but at least I got there

I was there in 1982 and probably have the same coughpy photos! But it was still a highlight. But soo hot in the middle of summer!

 

[Scash]

Great photos - shame about the food.

I often look at photos of Athens and look at my coughpy photos from 1982 and wish I had nicer ones but at least I got there

I know what you mean! We were sorting through some old photos (also from the 80’s) and they have deteriorated so much, plus the quality probably wasn’t that great to start with. I should have scanned and saved them a long time ago. The quality of photos you get these days just from your phone is incredible. Any coughpy shots here are due to the operator

 

[Scash]

The next day we decided to do a walking food tour and so glad we did. Our guide was English but has lived in Greece for 26 years and is an ex chef. His knowledge of local food was fantastic and we got to sample various local cuisine. He also sent us a cookbook he has written with numerous Greek recipes. Stupidly I forgot to take photos so will try and give brief descriptions .

We started with Koulouri which is bread baked in a circle and covered in sesame seeds. It’s quite light and tasty. Next up was Spanakopita which is filo pastry stuffed with feta, spinach, herbs or whatever you like. We then had a sweet version. Next was a Greek donut which really airy and light and drizzled with local honey.

This was followed by an olive tasting (Mrs Scash took this photo). This was really interesting to taste different varieties of olives and the difference in taste depending on when they were picked and how long they were brined for.



And then some local delicacies (Turkish Delight, Mastik, Pistachios, sesame and honey bar).

Last up was a cheese and meat platter along with a local spirit (Raki) and red and white wines. The platter included salt cured camel meat, salami, feta and a local sheep cheese. I did actually get a photo of the platter! The grey meat in the middle is cured beef with coughin and other spices. Tasted OK but looked terrible



Overall the Koulouri, Spanakopita and Greek donuts were my favourites

The guide really delved in to the history and origin of the food and I would thoroughly recommend it.

 

[Scash]

Oh and I forgot to mention about the bottle of wine we bought on the food tour. It was a 1.5 litre white wine in a plastic bottle for €4.50 and surprisingly not too bad! Don’t judge me .

 

[VPS]

Oh and I forgot to mention about the bottle of wine we bought on the food tour. It was a 1.5 litre white wine in a plastic bottle for €4.50 and surprisingly not too bad! Don’t judge me .

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I just paid 11 quid for a rose in the UK that went down the sink. Sadly the guy at Majestic told me on my next visit that if I had bought it back with just a glass out of it then I'd get my money back

 

[Scash]

Today starts with a 04:30 wake up to head to Athens airport for our morning flight to Milos. This flight I’d with Olympic Air on an ATR42-600 which was pretty cool. Flight time was about 35 minutes. Bags were loaded at the front and passengers boarded from the rear.



Coming in to Milos.



Milos airport!

 

[Scash]

Milos is pretty quiet as it’s early in the shoulder season. We’re staying in Adamas but plan on heading to Sarakiniko (aka moon) Beach and Plaka tomorrow. Today was just an east day wondering around.

We’ve also booked a sail boat cruise around the island for Monday (thanks for the tip @Coops1 ) with Thalassitra Sailing on a traditional wood sailing boat. We’re just doing the half day tour which is about 6 hours and covers say 3/4 of the island. Normal cost is €90 but is discounted to €80 as it’s the quiet season and then discounted further to €70 if you pay cash. Brunch, lunch and drinks included!

 

[VPS]

Milos is pretty quiet as it’s early in the shoulder season. We’re staying in Adamas but plan on heading to Sarakiniko (aka moon) Beach and Plaka tomorrow. Today was just an east day wondering around.

We’ve also booked a sail boat cruise around the island for Monday (thanks for the tip @Coops1 ) with Thalassitra Sailing on a traditional wood sailing boat. We’re just doing the half day tour which is about 6 hours and covers say 3/4 of the island. Normal cost is €90 but is discounted to €80 as it’s the quiet season and then discounted further to €70 if you pay cash. Brunch, lunch and drinks included!

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I love that first photo with the steps

 

[Scash]

Visited Sarakiniko beach today and all I can say is WOW! My photos just won’t do it justice. It was overcast so you didn’t get the brilliant whites of the rocks or blue of the sea but still magnificent. You can see why they call Moon Beach.

I apologise for the photos but as I said it was cloudy but also hazy from sand being blown in from the Sahara (a bit more on this later). Google Moon Beach and look at photos. It is spectacular