Spring Break in GREECE

It finally came! The long-awaited day that we would leave for our trip to GREECE! The kids have been counting down the days and looking forward to seeing the Frosts for months. We left on Thursday night and had a nine hour flight from Dulles airport to Vienna, Austria. A 2-hour lay-over in the airport and then a 2-hour flight to Athens. We arrived in Athens at 1:30 pm on Friday, March 22, a bit jet-lagged, but very excited!

Here we are eating at our first TAVERNA for dinner. We loved all of the food we ate! So fresh, so flavorful--nothing processed or frozen! I am still dreaming of the Greek salads I had with the thick feta cheese! Our first taverna meal was souvlaki (meat on a stick) and fries with oregano. The kids loved the pita bread and Fanta Blu--not the color blue, but non-carbonated.

Saturday, March 23
Today we all left for a road trip. We loved driving through the country-side and through the small winding, mountain streets of the quaint villages.

First stop was Epidavros, an ancient amphitheater built in 300 BC. The kids marveled at the acoustics: if you stood in the middle of the "stage" and dropped a penny, you would hear the sound on the top row of the theater. Concerts and plays are still performed there today.

We stopped in the village of Napflio for lunch and caught our first glimpse of the blue Medditerranean Sea. Every bit as blue as we imagined!

Greek Independence Day was on Monday, so the blue and white Greek flag was flying from many houses.

                                                The kids found a new favorite treat: Gelato!

The landscape was very diverse and much greener than I expected. I was expecting it to be like Israel, but it is much, much greener. We saw olive tree orchards and vineyards. When we finally arrived at the sea, the views were stunning!

Sunday, March 24
We stayed at the gorgeous, Costa Navarino Resort for two days. The rooms, the restaurants, the pool, the views....everything was gorgeously conceived and executed. We felt like we had fallen into the lap of luxury. It was fun to experience how "the other half" live-for just a few days!

                    Each room had a sandy, play area and an infinity pool looking out to the sea.

The sea was gorgeous, but not quite warm enough to swim in. We dipped our toes in, just to say we'd done it.

Monday, March 25
The kids really wanted to do a bike ride at the resort, so we rented bikes for about an hour before we left on Monday. The bike shop manager kept trying to outfit us for 3 days or more and we tried to explain that this would be a short outing. When we returned to the shop about an hour later, he kept repeating, "Surely you aren't done already!"

                   It was a bit windy, so Dan and Shawn were happy they had golfed the day before!

Tuesday, March 26
Today we visited the Acropolis, which houses the Parthenon, the Temple of Athena and looks down onto the Ancient Temple of Zues. We learned that acropolis means "high" above "the city" and after you climbed all of the stairs to get up to the sight, you were reward with an amazing view of all of Athens.

Wednesday, March 27
Today we had quite the adventure. We set off for a road trip to see the ancient remains at Delphi and ran out of gas about an hour into the drive! This will undoubtedly be what the kids remember best about that day...Dan, Logan and Caitee walking to a gas station for gas and being given a ride back to the car by a kind, local Greek man.

Delphi was a sight that the ancient Greeks visited to receive a prophecy from one of Zues' priestesses. We saw another amphitheater, temples and a stadium where foot races and contests were held. The city was up high in the mountains and the views down into the valleys were really striking. I don't know that the photos can do it justice.

Thursday, March 28
Today we took a one-day cruise to visit three different Greek islands. It was a bit rainy when we left early that morning, but the weather improved once we arrived at the first island. The cruise was fun--you could sit in a dining room, a covered middle deck or on the top, open-air deck. At lunch time we ate a Mediterranean buffet and on the way home they had a program with Greek dancing and music. Our favorite island was Hydra, pronounced YEE-dra. We loved the pistachios on Aegina and the shopping, ice-cream and clock tower on Poros. Poor Ethan got a bit sea-sick and spent some miserable moments. After the first few "mishaps" we just walked around with a "sea-sick" bag--YUP! Looks the same as the air-plane barf bag!

                                                                   Bon voyage!

                                                             First stop: Aegina

                                               A Greek Orthodox church on Aegina.

                                                               2nd stop: Poros

                                                              Last stop: Hydra

This picturesque village has no motorized vehicles--no cars, trucks or motor bikes. The only transportation is by donkey. I would love to come back and spend 3-4 days here. You could just feel  time stand still!

Friday, March 29
We were so sad to bid the Frosts and Greece good-bye! We had such a fabulous visit and many moments that we will cherish forever.

Me and Alyson outside her house in Athens. She was such a gracious hostess and knowledgeable tour guide!

Our flight from Athens to Vienna, Austria was only 2 hours. Ethan entertained himself with my cell phone, apparently!