17 Days: 9 Flights, 7 Countries, Lost Luggage, A Birthday and a Cold.
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Can so appreciate the arriving in Heathrow with no bags problem. I've been there, late at night, tired, waiting while everyone else collects their luggage and the belt stops rolling. I had an insane itinerary, flying out of Gatwick the next morning, night in Dublin and then onto Chicago, and I had visions of my bags chasing me around the world and never quite catching up. Instead of sightseeing in Dublin, I was shopping for clothes in malls. My bags caught up just before boarding the Chicago flight, but ever since then I've made sure that I have some basic toiletries and a few changes of undies and socks in my carryon. And a light jacket.
That night in London was one of the worst of my life. I took the bus to my capsule hotel through roadworks and drizzle - and of course my printed booking for the bus trip was somewhere in Singapore, so just getting a seat was a struggle - and felt so bloody depressed. I don't care too much if my bags don't show up with me on the homeward leg, but when I'm in a strange city with not much time or local knowledge and hanging off the scarce internet for messages about bags, and my socks are beginning to fight back, well it kind of takes the glamour out of travel.
Enjoying the TR, and yes, those short rows right at the back of a 744 are the Y seats I choose if I have to fly Y.
That night in London was one of the worst of my life. I took the bus to my capsule hotel through roadworks and drizzle - and of course my printed booking for the bus trip was somewhere in Singapore, so just getting a seat was a struggle - and felt so bloody depressed. I don't care too much if my bags don't show up with me on the homeward leg, but when I'm in a strange city with not much time or local knowledge and hanging off the scarce internet for messages about bags, and my socks are beginning to fight back, well it kind of takes the glamour out of travel.
Enjoying the TR, and yes, those short rows right at the back of a 744 are the Y seats I choose if I have to fly Y.
mella2007
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We arrived in to Milan Garibaldi Station at 2:30pm. We could have changed trains to get to Central Station but got out and caught a taxi to the Hilton Milan instead.
Hilton Milan is situated a block from the massive Central Railway Station, built by Mussolini (or something to that effect as told by the Taxi driver). It is in the business district and nothing in the area to do.
Nice hotel, rooms a little dated, but was given a room on the Executive floor with a balcony overlooking the city as well as lounge access (nice selection of food during dinner time and plenty of drinks)
It was terribly hot, probably one of the hottest days we have experienced during the trip, with temperature still at around 36 degrees at 9pm.
We spent the afternoon visiting the Ferrari shop, a designer mall, walking around the Duomo area and having a nice dinner overlooking the magnificent sight that is the Duomo.
We could have walked to the train station to catch the train to the area, however chose to get a taxi, as we were well over walking by this stage in the heat.
As similar to the main attractions in Rome, there are many annoying touts trying to sell African friendships bands (they literally throw them on your wrist and have to throw them back at them to leave you alone), as well as many beggars trying to get money from you. These types of things really do take away the enjoyment of being in such a special area, and makes you want to get out of there as fast as possible. The Duomo is truly stunning and so glad that we went, I would have liked to have seen The Last Supper also, however they only do small tours of 12 people at a time which need to be booked way in advance.
I didn't love Milan like a lot of my friends do. (Perhaps they were blinded by the designer labels?)....whether you are in Paris or NYC, designer clothes are all the same.
As we had a very early wake up call for our next flight, we went back to the hotel to try and cool down. By this stage of the trip, I had broken out in a terrible heat rash and my legs resembled something similar to the elephant man. Trying different types of creams and medication would do nothing to alleviate the pain and I was in agony for a good week.
Every hotel up to this stage offered only 2 channels in English on TV...CNN and BBC. So we sat back and watched the lead up to the Opening Ceremony flicking between both channels until the ceremony itself started on BBC (CNN was covering anything but the Olympics!)
Interesting to see the angle another station showed towards the event with it of course being UK focused on their athletes, however saw Ian Thorpe as a special guest at one point, which goes to show how big he is in the Olympics world still.
After cringing at the Ceremony (apart from James Bond and Mr Bean) we waited until the Aussie team had come out before we got about 3 hours sleep.
A $100 taxi ride at 5am is not the most enjoyable of experiences (the cost of the fare and one tired girl equals grumpy) and we arrived at Milan Malpensa at around 6am. If you ever need to get a taxi from Milan to an airport for a domestic connection, do try and take it from Milan Linate if you can (which is only 8km from the city as opposed to the 1 hour to Malpensa)
EasyJet have their own terminal at Malpensa..and what an attractive sight it is....NOT
Loads of people at 6am. Who in their right mind catches a 7am flight somewhere? Oh yeah....us
Destinations people were flying to included Bari, Sardinia, some other island and our flight to Santorini.
After a delightful snake weave trying to go through security, Mr Mella got pulled aside with his carry on. And to top of my delightful morning mood, he had forgotten to take out the duty free alcohol from London and we had to give it all to the security guy (Special Olympic edition bottle of Bombay Sapphire and Vodka). Bye Bye cheap alcohol.
Interesting that in Scheagen regions, you are allowed 10 litres per person of alcohol when travelling. How on earth anyone person could carry that much is beyond me!
MXP to JTR
Flight: EasyJet 2959
Aircraft: Some Plane
Scheduled Time: 7am
Actual Time: Was asleep not sure
Flight Time: Oh, are we here? (arrived 15mins early)
Do yourself a favour if ever flying EasyJet. Do purchase speedy boarding. Why? Because if not, you will be pushed and shoved trying to get onto the plane in favour of seats together with your travelling party, or end up in between someone you don't like.
We were 2 of 8 people that had it, so got to board the special bus (wow, I'm special) and be on the plane a whole 5 mins before the crowds erupted.
Mr Mella and I chose 2A and 2C in the hope that no one would be silly to sit in between us (right up until the last 30 seconds we thought we were in the clear, until some annoying Italian princess sook complained to the FA that she wanted to sit next to her boyfriend).
I was annoyed...no more than annoyed. There were other seats free for them, but no..she wanted the aisle where Mr Mella was, so he had to move next to me in 2B, so Princess Sook could be across the aisle from Mr Muscles. As probably the only English speaking people on board (even better than the FA's)...the FA told Mr Mella to move across. I said...if she wanted speedy boarding and choice of seat she should have paid for it DYKWIA????!!! No one really understood what I was saying so I glared the death stare to Princess Sook and she smirked back. Cow.
So I drowned myself in an orange juice and a packet of Pringles and kept giving the stare to Princess Sook who by this stage was almost sitting on Mr Muscle's lap, as she couldn't possibly be apart from him for too long.
2 Hours later I woke up and we had arrived in Santorini. Or Heaven on earth as it is now known to me.
Nice to see the Greek airport staff being so pro active on the job. Oh wait...there were no staff. No customs, no one in security...Nudda.
Waited for our driver (who was probably off having a Souvlaki) for about 20 mins, before he decided to turn up and scare us with his driving skills on any side of the road he chose to drive on before we arrived at our hotel...Absolute Bliss. Yes it was Absolute Bliss....except for the 120 steps up and down to our room from the road.
As we unpacked our bags out of the car, who should walk pass but Princess Sook and Mr Muscle. Both with big smiles for me.
"Hello" they said and smiled.
I pretended not to understand English, nodded and walked down the 120 steps. I almost thought for a minute they would be sharing a room with us, but alas...they were in the hotel up the road.
Next Up. Me the dare devil on an ATV, I get sick, Mr Mella gets heatstroke and the frozen calamari.
Hilton Milan is situated a block from the massive Central Railway Station, built by Mussolini (or something to that effect as told by the Taxi driver). It is in the business district and nothing in the area to do.
Nice hotel, rooms a little dated, but was given a room on the Executive floor with a balcony overlooking the city as well as lounge access (nice selection of food during dinner time and plenty of drinks)
It was terribly hot, probably one of the hottest days we have experienced during the trip, with temperature still at around 36 degrees at 9pm.
We spent the afternoon visiting the Ferrari shop, a designer mall, walking around the Duomo area and having a nice dinner overlooking the magnificent sight that is the Duomo.
We could have walked to the train station to catch the train to the area, however chose to get a taxi, as we were well over walking by this stage in the heat.
As similar to the main attractions in Rome, there are many annoying touts trying to sell African friendships bands (they literally throw them on your wrist and have to throw them back at them to leave you alone), as well as many beggars trying to get money from you. These types of things really do take away the enjoyment of being in such a special area, and makes you want to get out of there as fast as possible. The Duomo is truly stunning and so glad that we went, I would have liked to have seen The Last Supper also, however they only do small tours of 12 people at a time which need to be booked way in advance.
I didn't love Milan like a lot of my friends do. (Perhaps they were blinded by the designer labels?)....whether you are in Paris or NYC, designer clothes are all the same.
As we had a very early wake up call for our next flight, we went back to the hotel to try and cool down. By this stage of the trip, I had broken out in a terrible heat rash and my legs resembled something similar to the elephant man. Trying different types of creams and medication would do nothing to alleviate the pain and I was in agony for a good week.
Every hotel up to this stage offered only 2 channels in English on TV...CNN and BBC. So we sat back and watched the lead up to the Opening Ceremony flicking between both channels until the ceremony itself started on BBC (CNN was covering anything but the Olympics!)
Interesting to see the angle another station showed towards the event with it of course being UK focused on their athletes, however saw Ian Thorpe as a special guest at one point, which goes to show how big he is in the Olympics world still.
After cringing at the Ceremony (apart from James Bond and Mr Bean) we waited until the Aussie team had come out before we got about 3 hours sleep.
A $100 taxi ride at 5am is not the most enjoyable of experiences (the cost of the fare and one tired girl equals grumpy) and we arrived at Milan Malpensa at around 6am. If you ever need to get a taxi from Milan to an airport for a domestic connection, do try and take it from Milan Linate if you can (which is only 8km from the city as opposed to the 1 hour to Malpensa)
EasyJet have their own terminal at Malpensa..and what an attractive sight it is....NOT
Loads of people at 6am. Who in their right mind catches a 7am flight somewhere? Oh yeah....us
Destinations people were flying to included Bari, Sardinia, some other island and our flight to Santorini.
After a delightful snake weave trying to go through security, Mr Mella got pulled aside with his carry on. And to top of my delightful morning mood, he had forgotten to take out the duty free alcohol from London and we had to give it all to the security guy (Special Olympic edition bottle of Bombay Sapphire and Vodka). Bye Bye cheap alcohol.
Interesting that in Scheagen regions, you are allowed 10 litres per person of alcohol when travelling. How on earth anyone person could carry that much is beyond me!
MXP to JTR
Flight: EasyJet 2959
Aircraft: Some Plane
Scheduled Time: 7am
Actual Time: Was asleep not sure
Flight Time: Oh, are we here? (arrived 15mins early)
Do yourself a favour if ever flying EasyJet. Do purchase speedy boarding. Why? Because if not, you will be pushed and shoved trying to get onto the plane in favour of seats together with your travelling party, or end up in between someone you don't like.
We were 2 of 8 people that had it, so got to board the special bus (wow, I'm special) and be on the plane a whole 5 mins before the crowds erupted.
Mr Mella and I chose 2A and 2C in the hope that no one would be silly to sit in between us (right up until the last 30 seconds we thought we were in the clear, until some annoying Italian princess sook complained to the FA that she wanted to sit next to her boyfriend).
I was annoyed...no more than annoyed. There were other seats free for them, but no..she wanted the aisle where Mr Mella was, so he had to move next to me in 2B, so Princess Sook could be across the aisle from Mr Muscles. As probably the only English speaking people on board (even better than the FA's)...the FA told Mr Mella to move across. I said...if she wanted speedy boarding and choice of seat she should have paid for it DYKWIA????!!! No one really understood what I was saying so I glared the death stare to Princess Sook and she smirked back. Cow.
So I drowned myself in an orange juice and a packet of Pringles and kept giving the stare to Princess Sook who by this stage was almost sitting on Mr Muscle's lap, as she couldn't possibly be apart from him for too long.
2 Hours later I woke up and we had arrived in Santorini. Or Heaven on earth as it is now known to me.
Nice to see the Greek airport staff being so pro active on the job. Oh wait...there were no staff. No customs, no one in security...Nudda.
Waited for our driver (who was probably off having a Souvlaki) for about 20 mins, before he decided to turn up and scare us with his driving skills on any side of the road he chose to drive on before we arrived at our hotel...Absolute Bliss. Yes it was Absolute Bliss....except for the 120 steps up and down to our room from the road.
As we unpacked our bags out of the car, who should walk pass but Princess Sook and Mr Muscle. Both with big smiles for me.
"Hello" they said and smiled.
I pretended not to understand English, nodded and walked down the 120 steps. I almost thought for a minute they would be sharing a room with us, but alas...they were in the hotel up the road.
Next Up. Me the dare devil on an ATV, I get sick, Mr Mella gets heatstroke and the frozen calamari.
anat0l
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This is turning out to be quite some holiday you had!
I know it's cruel to say great reading even though you're actually nutting out things which are pretty painful (forgetting to pack significant LAGs, getting a heat rash, getting the run around by other fools, taxi drivers that arrive late and drive like the vehicle was stolen.... let alone what is coming up next...), but this is good reading!
Santorini looks really nice. I should probably add it to my bucket list. Needless to say, though, like you I do like the cooler weather more.
I know it's cruel to say great reading even though you're actually nutting out things which are pretty painful (forgetting to pack significant LAGs, getting a heat rash, getting the run around by other fools, taxi drivers that arrive late and drive like the vehicle was stolen.... let alone what is coming up next...), but this is good reading!
Santorini looks really nice. I should probably add it to my bucket list. Needless to say, though, like you I do like the cooler weather more.
mella2007
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Santorini is definitely one you should put at the top of your bucket list! I will post more pics in the next installment. It really is a fantastic place, however the 1st day was over run with Contiki tours which is always a laugh to pick out the drunk aussies (not hard!)
TonyHancock
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As I sit here wide awake at 4:11 AM, in Blighty, I'm truly grateful for you trip report. Thoroughly enjoying it, and it helping me wile away the small hours as my jet lag takes over. Took me back a few years too, I visited Ventmiglia back in the 80's - some fine, inexpensive leather goods if I remember.
I was in Milan back in 2006 and loved the Duomo. Stunning.
Looking forward to more.
I was in Milan back in 2006 and loved the Duomo. Stunning.
Looking forward to more.
mella2007
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As I sit here wide awake at 4:11 AM, in Blighty, I'm truly grateful for you trip report. Thoroughly enjoying it, and it helping me wile away the small hours as my jet lag takes over. Took me back a few years too, I visited Ventmiglia back in the 80's - some fine, inexpensive leather goods if I remember.
I was in Milan back in 2006 and loved the Duomo. Stunning.
Looking forward to more.
Glad I can help
I'm still not feeling too great myself after being back for 4 days.You are correct re the leather goods in Ventimiglia....still have heaps of them everywhere.
also enjoying.
glad you had a fantastic time in Ventimiglia. spent 2.5 hours at the train station recently, and nothing for Coeliacs at the station cafe or the other cafe's in the next street. one person was pickpocketed getting off the train there too. our original 2 trains from Nice had been cancelled, so what was a 6.5 hour train ride from Nice to Lugano ended up being 13.5 hours. our 1st class train seats of course didn't exist anymore because the Italian train drivers went on strike, so had to re-purchase at Ventigimlia to Milan.............then from Milan to repurchase to Lugano.
it was bad enough that the French train drivers had been on strike, and only half the trains too and from Nice-Monaco (for the F1 too) the whole time the race was on. god knows how some of the people got home. between train drivers in Nice/Italy and the pickpockets, i will die a happy woman if i never see those stations again. note to self. F1 Monaco, stay in Monaco. cost a hell of a lot more money, but worth it for less stress.
keep the TR coming. am enjoying it immensely
glad you had a fantastic time in Ventimiglia. spent 2.5 hours at the train station recently, and nothing for Coeliacs at the station cafe or the other cafe's in the next street. one person was pickpocketed getting off the train there too. our original 2 trains from Nice had been cancelled, so what was a 6.5 hour train ride from Nice to Lugano ended up being 13.5 hours. our 1st class train seats of course didn't exist anymore because the Italian train drivers went on strike, so had to re-purchase at Ventigimlia to Milan.............then from Milan to repurchase to Lugano.
it was bad enough that the French train drivers had been on strike, and only half the trains too and from Nice-Monaco (for the F1 too) the whole time the race was on. god knows how some of the people got home. between train drivers in Nice/Italy and the pickpockets, i will die a happy woman if i never see those stations again. note to self. F1 Monaco, stay in Monaco. cost a hell of a lot more money, but worth it for less stress.
keep the TR coming. am enjoying it immensely
mella2007
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mella2007
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So we went down to reception and met the delightful owner of the hotel, while staring in awe of the magical view of the Caldera. Picturesque blue sky, blue water and those little white buildings you see in photos.Our room wasn't ready, but she asked if we'd like a drink. The staff at the hotel were incredible...carrying our luggage up and down those 120 steps like they were iron men!
Mr Mella had worded me up before our arrival that we were hiring an ATV (quad bike). Now, I hate bikes. In fact I hate any sort of activity that could be called "Action" "Thrill seeking" "Dare Devil". Yes, I am a safety girl.
So he asked the owner to organise the ATV rental, and 5 mins later it arrived and Mr Mella went off to do the paperwork. 10mins later (which is what took me to climb those 120 steps to the top again), Mr ATV was waiting to collect me and take me to the rental office to sign off on the paperwork. Sign off? Are you nuts! I'm not signing anything let alone getting on the back of that thing! He told me to hang to him, that it was safe, and unless I wanted to walk up and down hills in Santorini for the next 3 days that I had no choice.
So I got on. And held on tight. And closed my eyes. The helmet was so big it was covering my entire face. I couldn't believe I got on the back of it. 2 mins later we were at the office and I was cursing Mr Mella for this ridiculous idea, while he smirked because he was getting his own way.
Paperwork done (90 euro for 2 day hire) and Mr Mella got on. I had no choice. Walk or the bike. So I got on and off we went into Fira (which is the main part of Santorini with the majority of restaurants, shops and lots of people)
After parking the ATV in the main street next to a drink stand, we decided to get something to eat. Now interesting thing about Greece. They don't sell Lamb Gyros....only Chicken or Pork (Lamb too expensive there for them). So a quick bite to eat, walked around a little and I wanted to have a rest (too much excitement for me so far!)
I went back to the hotel and Mr Mella wanted to go out on the bike. I said fine, but please wear sunscreen...it's the hottest part of the day now. Mr Mella confidently said he never burns and refused to put it on. He failed to realise he isn't a teenager anymore, and how his skin was in the 90's is no longer the same!
I had a quick dip in our outdoor Jacuzzi and then a nap while Mr Mella was out for 4 hours exploring the island....and came back red raw. Not slightly red.....tomato sauce red. He looked in the mirror, looked at his skin and glared at me. "Don't say a word".
Our next trip out to the shops (120 steps I hate you) saw me going to the pharmac_ for some aloe vera and Mr Mella sooked that it hurt. "Tough" I said...you should have listened to me in the first place.
That night we drove to Kamari Beach for dinner along the water/beach. We both ordered Calamari and were excited to eat some fresh seafood. It wasn't fresh...it was frozen. For anyone that eats Calamari you can tell the difference. It was terrible...rubbery, tough, chewy, just awful. When the waiter asked if we enjoyed our meal, I said yes, everything except the Calamari as I could tell it was frozen. "Oh no no no no, our seafood is fresh, here in Santorini that's how it's cooked".
Me "Yeah sure, and I'm the Queen Mother".
Disappointed.
After Mr Mella continued to drain our cash by buying many useless souvenirs, we drove down to the Old Port (Me screaming "You're going too fast, slow down" Him screaming "Shuttup I'm driving and I'm only doing 30km ph) and watched some of the ferries arrive and got a gelato. We stopped to watch the sunset go down, and trying to be romantic by putting our arms around each other while watching "Ouch my sunburn hurts, get off me"
Back up the Fira to get another gelato and for Mr Mella to buy yet more useless souvenir's for every relative he has, and it was time to sleep (Fira town kicks on till at least 4am with people everywhere).
The next morning breakfast was delivered on our balcony. I happily sipped my coffee while admiring the beautiful surrounding while Mr Mella barely moved out of bed.
Yes he was sick. With heatstroke. He resembled a tomato. Temperature, headache and burning up.
I managed to give him some Panadol "But I never get burnt" and rubbed more Aloe Vera on while he barely stirred.
So I spent most of the day on the balcony, reading, in the Jacuzzi and eating, while he who never burns slept.
At around 5pm he woke up hungry, so we rode into Fira (by this stage i had gotten so comfortable on the ATV I did away with helmet and let the breeze blow through my hair!) and had a fab dinner in town.
Some more shopping through the tiny cobblestone streets, more gelato, and finally found an open pharmac_ for me to buy yet more medication for the terrible heat rash I had on my legs (I was scared people would think I had some sort of disease they were looking that bad)
In total I spent close to $200 on anything to help my rash in Greece and Italy and nothing worked. The pain was unbearable. So between Mr Mella's sunburn and me looking like the elephant man, we were a great combination.
One thing we laughed at was a shop owner called "Nick the Greek". Everywhere we looked there seemed to be another shop owned by Nick. In total 6 jewellery stores, a clothes shop, a souvenir shop and a kiosk at the airport were all owned/named by Nick. We asked a waiter who the infamous Nick was.
"Ahhh Nick....yes very busy man, yes we like Nick"
Personally i think Nick was the Santorini mafia who probably was buying out all the stores and eventually the island will be named after him.
Another breakfast on the balcony and Mr Mella proudly calling home and telling anyone he had a tan "A tan, are you kidding me? He was a tomato!) we had to return the ATV by lunch and did some more exploring before relaxing again by the pool.
Now I had woken up sick. Really sick. Throat was burning, I couldn't stop sneezing or coughing and by 5pm, my nose was so red I could have been mistaken for Rudolph. Every bit of medication I had I used. Who on earth gets sick in 40 degree weather?
Me. I couldn't keep my eyes from closing, it was just terrible. Great way to spend my last day in paradise.
Santorini was paradise and we will definitely return next year. There is something for everyone of all ages and I highly recommend staying in Imerovigli where we were. Very quiet, but close enough to the main parts and some great hotel choices to suit all budgets. We paid $400 a night which included breakfast, mini bar and the two taxis to the airport.
JTR to ATH
Flight: Aegean 363
Aircraft: A321
Scheduled Time: 7:55pm
On Time
45 mins
Regional Business
I brought more things from the airline kiosk to try and stop this cold/cough I had, including some wet ones which had menthol in them and they were called "Running Nose".
Even they didn't work.
Santorini airport is a dive. Toilets were disgusting...avoid at all costs and a tiny waiting area downstairs. What people didn't realise was that there is a huge open air roof top bar with views overlooking the runway, so we watched some little planes arrive and depart before being called to take the bus the whole 20 metres to the plane.
I was really impressed with Aegean. Brand new plane, very comfortable and stylish interior, seats were terrific width and pitch and the FA's on board were very friendly. Only one row for Business with a perspex similar to Virgin here.
Very smooth take off and landing. The whole service was fantastic.
Declined all food and drink, as the cold I had was getting worse and could barely see through the slits of my eyes and we arrived into Athens after 45 mins.
Bus from the tarmac to the terminal, and a fairly short wait for our luggage. Again, not many staff on duty around the airport, and walked out to meet our driver.
Next Up: One night in Athens and the transit to AUH and HKG
Mr Mella had worded me up before our arrival that we were hiring an ATV (quad bike). Now, I hate bikes. In fact I hate any sort of activity that could be called "Action" "Thrill seeking" "Dare Devil". Yes, I am a safety girl.
So he asked the owner to organise the ATV rental, and 5 mins later it arrived and Mr Mella went off to do the paperwork. 10mins later (which is what took me to climb those 120 steps to the top again), Mr ATV was waiting to collect me and take me to the rental office to sign off on the paperwork. Sign off? Are you nuts! I'm not signing anything let alone getting on the back of that thing! He told me to hang to him, that it was safe, and unless I wanted to walk up and down hills in Santorini for the next 3 days that I had no choice.
So I got on. And held on tight. And closed my eyes. The helmet was so big it was covering my entire face. I couldn't believe I got on the back of it. 2 mins later we were at the office and I was cursing Mr Mella for this ridiculous idea, while he smirked because he was getting his own way.
Paperwork done (90 euro for 2 day hire) and Mr Mella got on. I had no choice. Walk or the bike. So I got on and off we went into Fira (which is the main part of Santorini with the majority of restaurants, shops and lots of people)
After parking the ATV in the main street next to a drink stand, we decided to get something to eat. Now interesting thing about Greece. They don't sell Lamb Gyros....only Chicken or Pork (Lamb too expensive there for them). So a quick bite to eat, walked around a little and I wanted to have a rest (too much excitement for me so far!)
I went back to the hotel and Mr Mella wanted to go out on the bike. I said fine, but please wear sunscreen...it's the hottest part of the day now. Mr Mella confidently said he never burns and refused to put it on. He failed to realise he isn't a teenager anymore, and how his skin was in the 90's is no longer the same!
I had a quick dip in our outdoor Jacuzzi and then a nap while Mr Mella was out for 4 hours exploring the island....and came back red raw. Not slightly red.....tomato sauce red. He looked in the mirror, looked at his skin and glared at me. "Don't say a word".
Our next trip out to the shops (120 steps I hate you) saw me going to the pharmac_ for some aloe vera and Mr Mella sooked that it hurt. "Tough" I said...you should have listened to me in the first place.
That night we drove to Kamari Beach for dinner along the water/beach. We both ordered Calamari and were excited to eat some fresh seafood. It wasn't fresh...it was frozen. For anyone that eats Calamari you can tell the difference. It was terrible...rubbery, tough, chewy, just awful. When the waiter asked if we enjoyed our meal, I said yes, everything except the Calamari as I could tell it was frozen. "Oh no no no no, our seafood is fresh, here in Santorini that's how it's cooked".
Me "Yeah sure, and I'm the Queen Mother".
Disappointed.
After Mr Mella continued to drain our cash by buying many useless souvenirs, we drove down to the Old Port (Me screaming "You're going too fast, slow down" Him screaming "Shuttup I'm driving and I'm only doing 30km ph) and watched some of the ferries arrive and got a gelato. We stopped to watch the sunset go down, and trying to be romantic by putting our arms around each other while watching "Ouch my sunburn hurts, get off me"
Back up the Fira to get another gelato and for Mr Mella to buy yet more useless souvenir's for every relative he has, and it was time to sleep (Fira town kicks on till at least 4am with people everywhere).
The next morning breakfast was delivered on our balcony. I happily sipped my coffee while admiring the beautiful surrounding while Mr Mella barely moved out of bed.
Yes he was sick. With heatstroke. He resembled a tomato. Temperature, headache and burning up.
I managed to give him some Panadol "But I never get burnt" and rubbed more Aloe Vera on while he barely stirred.
So I spent most of the day on the balcony, reading, in the Jacuzzi and eating, while he who never burns slept.
At around 5pm he woke up hungry, so we rode into Fira (by this stage i had gotten so comfortable on the ATV I did away with helmet and let the breeze blow through my hair!) and had a fab dinner in town.
Some more shopping through the tiny cobblestone streets, more gelato, and finally found an open pharmac_ for me to buy yet more medication for the terrible heat rash I had on my legs (I was scared people would think I had some sort of disease they were looking that bad)
In total I spent close to $200 on anything to help my rash in Greece and Italy and nothing worked. The pain was unbearable. So between Mr Mella's sunburn and me looking like the elephant man, we were a great combination.
One thing we laughed at was a shop owner called "Nick the Greek". Everywhere we looked there seemed to be another shop owned by Nick. In total 6 jewellery stores, a clothes shop, a souvenir shop and a kiosk at the airport were all owned/named by Nick. We asked a waiter who the infamous Nick was.
"Ahhh Nick....yes very busy man, yes we like Nick"
Personally i think Nick was the Santorini mafia who probably was buying out all the stores and eventually the island will be named after him.
Another breakfast on the balcony and Mr Mella proudly calling home and telling anyone he had a tan "A tan, are you kidding me? He was a tomato!) we had to return the ATV by lunch and did some more exploring before relaxing again by the pool.
Now I had woken up sick. Really sick. Throat was burning, I couldn't stop sneezing or coughing and by 5pm, my nose was so red I could have been mistaken for Rudolph. Every bit of medication I had I used. Who on earth gets sick in 40 degree weather?
Me. I couldn't keep my eyes from closing, it was just terrible. Great way to spend my last day in paradise.
Santorini was paradise and we will definitely return next year. There is something for everyone of all ages and I highly recommend staying in Imerovigli where we were. Very quiet, but close enough to the main parts and some great hotel choices to suit all budgets. We paid $400 a night which included breakfast, mini bar and the two taxis to the airport.
JTR to ATH
Flight: Aegean 363
Aircraft: A321
Scheduled Time: 7:55pm
On Time
45 mins
Regional Business
I brought more things from the airline kiosk to try and stop this cold/cough I had, including some wet ones which had menthol in them and they were called "Running Nose".
Even they didn't work.
Santorini airport is a dive. Toilets were disgusting...avoid at all costs and a tiny waiting area downstairs. What people didn't realise was that there is a huge open air roof top bar with views overlooking the runway, so we watched some little planes arrive and depart before being called to take the bus the whole 20 metres to the plane.
I was really impressed with Aegean. Brand new plane, very comfortable and stylish interior, seats were terrific width and pitch and the FA's on board were very friendly. Only one row for Business with a perspex similar to Virgin here.
Very smooth take off and landing. The whole service was fantastic.
Declined all food and drink, as the cold I had was getting worse and could barely see through the slits of my eyes and we arrived into Athens after 45 mins.
Bus from the tarmac to the terminal, and a fairly short wait for our luggage. Again, not many staff on duty around the airport, and walked out to meet our driver.
Next Up: One night in Athens and the transit to AUH and HKG
mella2007
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- Apr 2, 2007
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- 1,094
Driving from Athens Airport to the Hilton Athens took around 40 mins. Fantastic private driver I found on the net for 30 euro one way (cheaper than a taxi)Hilton Athens from the outside reminds me of a European Function centre with it's large columns and glass windows...huge lobby area and very nice hotel for the price.
Upgraded to the Balcony view room with a view of the Acropolis and complimentary fruit, wine and water was waiting for us.
By this stage I just wanted to crash in bed due to my cold and cough which was getting worse, but only 1 night in Athens and didn't want to waste it no matter how coughpy I felt.
Caught a taxi to the Plaka area which was very quiet for a Monday night. Fantastic open area with lots of restaurants and souvenir shops (Mr Mella was in heaven) and had possibly the best meal of the trip...Lamb and potatoes in a clay pot with feta and lemon juice. Absolutely outstanding food.
After a couple of hours (it was now midnight) we found a group of taxi drivers all standing around and asked to be taken back to the Hilton.
Well we must of screamed tourist, because the taxi driver decided to take us on a personal tour of Athens without asking us...including stopping at the Acropolis, getting out and explaining the history, and then stopping at the old Olympic stadium and doing the same thing. Meanwhile he started pulling out family photos out of the glove box and told Mr Mella his entire family history.
We must of detoured 5 mins additional to the trip time and the cost he told us at the start was a fixed 12 euro. I told Mr Mella to give him a 20 and a thank you, and he grabbed the note and said he wanted more! Mind you, we never asked for the detour and thought an extra 8 was more than appropriate. I felt around in my bag for some change and pulled out another 3 in coin and he begrudgingly took it and drove off. A drive by the acropolis and some family pics cost us an extra 11 euro!
Will return to Athens next year for more in depth, as this was only a detour due to cashing in some Velocity points for the flight.
The next morning it was get up and leave to the airport to fly to AUH with Etithad. We had a quick stop in the lounge available for Velocity Gold (terrible lounge, stale snacks and right at the other end of the gates) and lasted 5 mins before we left to go to the Gate.
First time flying Etihad and honestly Y was fine for the 4 hour trip. Seats were comfortable, good offering of entertainment and the food served (Chicken or Beef) was tasty and decent portion.
Had a sleep and rugged up well and tried to sweat it out (didn't work!)
Now, due to all the medication we had been buying and knowing the strict laws of bringing in anything to AUH we threw everything out in Athens. I had asked Etithad check in whether they could check in our bags all the way through to KUL (of which they said they couldn't, hence why I threw everything out as I thought we would have to collect, pass security and re check in at AUH for our flights with CX)
It turns out when we arrived that they could have indeed checked our bags through. The transfer desk were very helpful and organised for someone to go down to baggage and put on new tags, as well as give us our boarding passes and all lounge cards for our next stops.
I threw out $200 of medication for no reason...and then went to the airport pharmac_ to re buy $100 worth of stuff I needed again (Amoxyill, Cough medicine, Panadol etc etc)
We had 5 hours to wait at AUH but the time passed quickly. Due to me feeling the way I did, we chose not to leave the airport and hung out in the Business/First Lounge where I had a 15min facial treatment and a shoulder massage, Mr Mella had a snooze, and we both had something to eat. Great lounge, quite empty most of the time, and staff were attentive and helpful throughout. Duty Free not as cheap as I expected it to be though, and only brought a couple of things.
Well 1 hour after my facial my cold got worse. I should have realised it would start to release every bit of cough in me, and my whole face was red raw from sneezing and I looked like I was sunburnt (great pair we made!)
Upgraded to the Balcony view room with a view of the Acropolis and complimentary fruit, wine and water was waiting for us.
By this stage I just wanted to crash in bed due to my cold and cough which was getting worse, but only 1 night in Athens and didn't want to waste it no matter how coughpy I felt.
Caught a taxi to the Plaka area which was very quiet for a Monday night. Fantastic open area with lots of restaurants and souvenir shops (Mr Mella was in heaven) and had possibly the best meal of the trip...Lamb and potatoes in a clay pot with feta and lemon juice. Absolutely outstanding food.
After a couple of hours (it was now midnight) we found a group of taxi drivers all standing around and asked to be taken back to the Hilton.
Well we must of screamed tourist, because the taxi driver decided to take us on a personal tour of Athens without asking us...including stopping at the Acropolis, getting out and explaining the history, and then stopping at the old Olympic stadium and doing the same thing. Meanwhile he started pulling out family photos out of the glove box and told Mr Mella his entire family history.
We must of detoured 5 mins additional to the trip time and the cost he told us at the start was a fixed 12 euro. I told Mr Mella to give him a 20 and a thank you, and he grabbed the note and said he wanted more! Mind you, we never asked for the detour and thought an extra 8 was more than appropriate. I felt around in my bag for some change and pulled out another 3 in coin and he begrudgingly took it and drove off. A drive by the acropolis and some family pics cost us an extra 11 euro!
Will return to Athens next year for more in depth, as this was only a detour due to cashing in some Velocity points for the flight.
The next morning it was get up and leave to the airport to fly to AUH with Etithad. We had a quick stop in the lounge available for Velocity Gold (terrible lounge, stale snacks and right at the other end of the gates) and lasted 5 mins before we left to go to the Gate.
First time flying Etihad and honestly Y was fine for the 4 hour trip. Seats were comfortable, good offering of entertainment and the food served (Chicken or Beef) was tasty and decent portion.
Had a sleep and rugged up well and tried to sweat it out (didn't work!)
Now, due to all the medication we had been buying and knowing the strict laws of bringing in anything to AUH we threw everything out in Athens. I had asked Etithad check in whether they could check in our bags all the way through to KUL (of which they said they couldn't, hence why I threw everything out as I thought we would have to collect, pass security and re check in at AUH for our flights with CX)
It turns out when we arrived that they could have indeed checked our bags through. The transfer desk were very helpful and organised for someone to go down to baggage and put on new tags, as well as give us our boarding passes and all lounge cards for our next stops.
I threw out $200 of medication for no reason...and then went to the airport pharmac_ to re buy $100 worth of stuff I needed again (Amoxyill, Cough medicine, Panadol etc etc)
We had 5 hours to wait at AUH but the time passed quickly. Due to me feeling the way I did, we chose not to leave the airport and hung out in the Business/First Lounge where I had a 15min facial treatment and a shoulder massage, Mr Mella had a snooze, and we both had something to eat. Great lounge, quite empty most of the time, and staff were attentive and helpful throughout. Duty Free not as cheap as I expected it to be though, and only brought a couple of things.
Well 1 hour after my facial my cold got worse. I should have realised it would start to release every bit of cough in me, and my whole face was red raw from sneezing and I looked like I was sunburnt (great pair we made!)
mella2007
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- Apr 2, 2007
- Posts
- 1,094
Our CX flight to HKG was delayed for 1 hour, but eventually we got on board and got to try their Business class for the first time. It was the old Herringbone config..and I was in 12A, while Mr Mella in the middle seat. I know a lot of people are not a fan of that seat and config, but considering the way I was feeling, I was rapt to be enclosed from everyone else and found it very snug, warm and cosy which is what I was needing at the time.
FA''s were fantastic. Came around with choices of pre dinner drinks (Champagne, Kiwi Juice, Orange Juice or Water) and dinner service commenced about 15mins after we were airborne. I don't drink alcohol so I've never heard of the champagne we were served and my picture of the wine list is too blurry to post, but from what I can make out it started with B (I think, but it wasn't Bollinger)
Here is the menu. I skipped dessert and went straight to sleep, to wake up an hour before landing and had breakfast.
Arrived to HKG an hour late, and some people on our flight missed their connections. It suited us well, as we only had to wait 1 1/2 hour now instead of almost 3 for our flight to KUL.
Went to The Wing and The Pier lounges and I had a shower while Mr Mella scoffed his face with spring rolls. An American guy commented on the tshirt I was wearing, and me in my sick and grumpy state (of which he was trying to strike up conversation and be funny) said "Yeah whatever, leave me alone". I found it highly inappropriate and would have punched him had I been feeling better.
Our flight to KUL was 3 hours long and was in CX Regional Business. Seat width and pitch was excellent with a recliner and it was comfortable flight apart from my IFE not working and they had to keep trying to reset it. It still didn't work so the FA told me to pick something out of their in flight shopping book to the value of $100USD. I let Mr Mella choose something, and he picked out some makeup for me (was that a hint how bad I was looking as Rudolph?"
Fast tracked our way through KLIA (there was no one in line anyway!), got our luggage (where one suitcase had split in half and had been taped together by the baggage staff...no idea how. They are brand new, excellent brand) and our Hilton driver was waiting for us (finally!)
It had been a very long 24 hours and I was getting sicker, with the cold having now developed into a chest infection.
Got to the Hilton, made our way to the Grand Executive Suite again...which this time came with a terrace, jacuzzi, table and chairs and fantastic view of the city.
This is a fantastic hotel....staff are brilliant, food both room service and restaurants very good, and room detail excellent.
Was refreshing to watch a bit of English speaking TV for the first time in days, catch up on the Olympics news (pathetic Australia), order room service and have a good rest.
Next Up: Last Day. Market shopping in KUL, Shopping Centres and not fitting into Air Asia's Hot Bed seats.
FA''s were fantastic. Came around with choices of pre dinner drinks (Champagne, Kiwi Juice, Orange Juice or Water) and dinner service commenced about 15mins after we were airborne. I don't drink alcohol so I've never heard of the champagne we were served and my picture of the wine list is too blurry to post, but from what I can make out it started with B (I think, but it wasn't Bollinger)
Here is the menu. I skipped dessert and went straight to sleep, to wake up an hour before landing and had breakfast.
Arrived to HKG an hour late, and some people on our flight missed their connections. It suited us well, as we only had to wait 1 1/2 hour now instead of almost 3 for our flight to KUL.
Went to The Wing and The Pier lounges and I had a shower while Mr Mella scoffed his face with spring rolls. An American guy commented on the tshirt I was wearing, and me in my sick and grumpy state (of which he was trying to strike up conversation and be funny) said "Yeah whatever, leave me alone". I found it highly inappropriate and would have punched him had I been feeling better.
Our flight to KUL was 3 hours long and was in CX Regional Business. Seat width and pitch was excellent with a recliner and it was comfortable flight apart from my IFE not working and they had to keep trying to reset it. It still didn't work so the FA told me to pick something out of their in flight shopping book to the value of $100USD. I let Mr Mella choose something, and he picked out some makeup for me (was that a hint how bad I was looking as Rudolph?"
Fast tracked our way through KLIA (there was no one in line anyway!), got our luggage (where one suitcase had split in half and had been taped together by the baggage staff...no idea how. They are brand new, excellent brand) and our Hilton driver was waiting for us (finally!)
It had been a very long 24 hours and I was getting sicker, with the cold having now developed into a chest infection.
Got to the Hilton, made our way to the Grand Executive Suite again...which this time came with a terrace, jacuzzi, table and chairs and fantastic view of the city.
This is a fantastic hotel....staff are brilliant, food both room service and restaurants very good, and room detail excellent.
Was refreshing to watch a bit of English speaking TV for the first time in days, catch up on the Olympics news (pathetic Australia), order room service and have a good rest.
Next Up: Last Day. Market shopping in KUL, Shopping Centres and not fitting into Air Asia's Hot Bed seats.
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Terrific stuff! Its the pits getting sick on holiday I am amazed that you managed to keep it all together and remember all the details for a TR
Thankyou
Thankyou
anat0l
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There's a line in the sand between frozen calamari being cooked and any calamari being overcooked. The result is much the same; I assume you have an astute taste that can differentiate between either.
I have to ask: what kinds of knick-knacks did you buy?
This is from someone who rarely buys souvenirs, and has a hard time doing so when he has to (e.g. for family gifts). Since my dad is collecting sew-on patches, I usually try and pick them up, when they aren't as difficult to find as The Lost Dutchman's Mine.
I LOL'd at this (must've been a steep hill or windy road; 30 km/h?)
Also LOL'd at this too!
My friends and I, in my younger days, used to torture each other when we got sunburnt. Usually it was finding a good excuse to give someone a pat on the back
All LOLs aside, I hope Mr mella did get better rather quickly.
Heatstroke is no joke. I say that mostly only because when I worked in PER for 3 months on contract, it was during summer and our induction time and time again warned us about heatstroke risk. Considering there were quite a few days when it was 40 degC and we were in full protective regalia (boots, long sleeves and pants - the works), that definitely was not a joke. Really beat the "macho" or "put up and shut up" attitude with respect to the heat and summer sun out of a lot of us.
Easier than you think. Back in heavy built-up society, lots of air conditioning doesn't help things.
As long as you're not stuck outside, I'd rather be sick in cold weather than hot weather.
I'm not a fan of herringbone config. The main contention I have is that the elbow room is lacking. For some reason CX's is one of the most confining of all the carriers that use herringbone; add to that they don't have directional air vents...... That said, I am rather plump, so that does nothing to help myself in such seats.
The "Kiwi Juice" is a non-alcoholic Cathay Pacific signature coughtail called "Cathay Delight". Kiwi fruit, coconut juice and mint - wonderful concoction. Maybe not the best if you're sick (sugar content, not much vitamin C). But I love it.
If the champagne starts with B and it wasn't Bollinger then it may well have been Billecart-Salmon, which has been a CX Champagne mainstay for a while (and much better than their last mainstay, Deutz).
Maybe I should turn on the IFE more often. I hardly ever watch TV (often only sustaining my AV viewing to downloaded material on my iPod / phone / computer), so I hardly ever give the IFE of any airline a good workout.
Keep up the TR. Really sorry to hear that the latter part of your trip was spent whilst you were sick; hope you're both feeling infinitely better.
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