Caravel Hotel Ixia

... a few km’s and a few cooling showers, the vein on Brian’s forehead finally went down again. I did my best to cycle with limited gears and not complain (it was my own fault after all for not listening to him). Maybe this has been what I’e been working up to: cycling without first gear. Cycling was becoming easier for me, so I needed the next challenge! I have heard of people doing long trips ...

... That&#8217;s where all the good stuff from the Altis is. All of the statues, the pots, the carvings, and various other artifacts and art. Seems as though tour busses are on a strict schedule and there&#8217;s not enough time to go to the museum. Consequently, we were the only ones, and were followed around by puppy-dog-like staff members who were bored. <br><br>Hard to believe that a ...

That&#8217;s what I fell into today. <br><br>Our dreamy campsite perched on a cliff overlooking the sea turned out to be a nightmare. Posidon and Zeus were having a feud last night. While Posidon heaved up his waves, Zeus hurled down his thunderbolts, and our poor little tent was inbetween. After so long on the road, tent is starting to leak around the edges. With the sound of the thunderstorm ...

... may be an entry called &#8216;Brian&#8217;s grand I told you so&#8217; soon&#8230;<br><br>To me, that makes for more interesting adventures. To Brian, that makes for frustration. <br><br> Surprisingly the bikes held it together long enough to make it to the next camping spot - right along the water&#8217;s edge. Crashing waves will sing us to sleep tonight. A beautiful beach ...

... columns toppled like slices of sausage by an earthquake in the sixth century BCE. Finally we went to the workshop of Pheidias, the famous sculptor who created the ornamentation on the Parthenon, the giant chryselephantine sculpture of Athena Parthenos, and the Olympian Zeus statue that was so massive that if it had been able to rise from its seated position, its head would have punched through the roof of the temple. Pheidias designed ...

... roads, some of them winding and even with hair-pin curves. We saw lots of examples of "half-carting" and, in fact, Karen who was driving, got into it too. If you are going to drive in Greece, you'll have to do it like Greeks. And at high speed. There are posted speed limits but the Greeks consider them little more than suggestions. If you refuse to go that fast, then you'll have to drive on the shoulder and arrive hours later than you want to. Back to our route: we ...

... side of the stadium you can see bare, black hillsides, testament to the devastating fires that coursed through the Peloponnese earlier this summer. Miraculously (thanks to Zeus?), the fires never actually entered the site, but stopped right at the edge. The Temple of Hera is where the Olympic flame is lit from the sun and then taken by runners to light the torch wherever the games are being held, a tradition ...

... Now, I'd heard of Margaret from Cory in the Piano lounge, but not met her yet. It's something when you are at Sea and have a reputation only after 3 days. We chatted aimiably back to the parking area where the bus awaited. Margaret was/is charming, and when she mentioned she was going to buy a few postcards because she forgot her camera (which she blamed on her advanced age) I volonteered to copy our pictures onto CD for her. Instant friend. She ...

... I called to my smily-drunken-bear friend, Pavel. Blond, large-round-forehead Pavel studies automotive engineering there. And I would spend my last Czech day with him. Of course, we drank a lot of beers this day. Smily drunken bears love beers. But, they don't speak much English. So, even though I'd known Pavel four months, I didn't know much about him except that he loved beer and smiling and falling asleep in nightclubs, and that he was really ...

... ride up took some time and towards the top I had to put waterproofs on to keep warm. Although not the most impressive in size this temple is well preserved and an effort to conserve and rebuild much of it has been underway for the last 20 years. It is currently in a shelter to protect it from rain and ice damage. The internal frieze was auctioned and purchased by ...