Hotel Jason Vólos

Up by five in the morning. Had an adventure getting to the bus station... Was in Volos by ten and on a boat an hour later.

The fatal flaw of my morning: Neglecting to put on sunscreen. On the boat, I sat in the shade for the better part of the trip. Went out into the sunshine only a few times to take in the view. While this ...

... classical concert from 9pm with soprano Carla Carretti and tenor Sergio Casalino, plus cello, violin & piano. The violinist was brilliant was worth seeing the show just to listen to him.. he did a bit of a solo and had a bit of a sense of humour a bit like Victor Borga... he played so fast the strings on his bow were coming a drift. Temp was around 19oC, warm and sunny stunning, fun packed day. Deb

I got the train to Volos from Larisa, considering it cost only 2.5 Euro and the roads being closed due to the farmers strike I decided it prudent to travel in that fashion. Upon arrival I was greeted by my CS host Kostas and his friend Nikos. We went to eat at the university cafe, for ...

... is happening back home, but when we have had rain we have certainly had it in one of its extreme manifestations. That night in came down in sheets, and the roar or thunder was continuous as it echoed round the mountains behind us. At the peak of the storm we had a lightning flash right above us, with a crack of thunder that sounded like a huge explosion. Given the Greek air force activity during the day we wondered if we ...

... slipped through the muddy grounds. There I was, recording the whole hilarious moment with my video camera when I heard one of them calling out my name for help. After pulling the poor boy out from the mud where his little foot got stuck, we skipped through rocks across the stream to get to the other side as the going was getting too tough on the side we were at.

We finally reached the waterfall after about half an hour. Despite ...

... went on for 3 to 4 times and there were some fierce, funny exchanges of Greek jokes between the unmarried women and the bride’s mother which I pretended to understand by laughing like everyone else!

It was a fun night, especially with all the breaking of the plates when the dances were going on – reminded me of the only Greek wedding I have seen before this – in the film “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”!!

... the mountain, I noticed the gradual change in the surrounding landscapes. From parts which were generally dry and yellow, we soon transcended into parts which were green and healthy. Argi explained to me that was due to the fact that one side of the mountain was not getting as much rain as the other.

You really need skills and patience to drive on Pelion, the many little shrines we found along the road served as a constant ...

... majestically on top of a hill at the end of Potistika, was Climax Café, Restaurant & Bar, a trendy bar and restaurant set amidst a lush garden with an amazing view of the ocean below. Coming to this gem of a restaurant was the idea of Argi’s brother-in-law, Georgios.

The food was delicious but the best thing I had was the Mojito, on Georgios’ recommendation, of course! He told me that the Mojito served here was one of the best in Greece ...

... and several stone huts built complete with the traditional stone roof stacked on top of one another, which is very common among the old houses around the villages. The guesthouse has a website: www.arhonthikoioannidi.gr but it is in Greek. They do have an e-mail address where you can write to make enquiries : info@arhonthikoioannidi.gr

We chose to stay in one of the stone huts instead of the rooms in the Mansion as we liked the idea of having our ...

... and hope. I think it's there to separate the atheists from the believers. I hate it more each time. It feels like Russian roulette. On Tuesday, we venture further along the coast to the next village. The road changes from a barely passable two-lane to a sort of semi-paved goat path like someone's driveway, with sudden hairpin turns up through the hills above the sea. When you meet another car, one of you (and by that I mean me) has to back up until the road becomes ...