Queen Olga Hotel Thessaloniki

... br>
Bin um kurz nach 20:00 gelandet, und um 23:50 dann mit dem Nachtzug weiter nach Sofia. 18,50Euro fuer die Strecke, habe aber noch fuer 10 Euro auf den Schlafwagen upgegraded, da der eine Waggon ziemlich voll war (und ich ausserdem doch recht muede war).

Gruss
Ralf

... galleries. Here we went to an art gallery whos exhibits which ranged from several hundred beer cans arranged in a spiral to a musical video about communism. Top fun!

We also went in to a photography gallery and a museum of cinema which was quite cool. A pretty awesome 3D film at the end as well!

This passed most of the time we needed to kill and we filled the rest with wondering the streets looking around.

... t so we got on another train. This time we were told that the train was not going to Athens and then we'd have to get off and get on a different train. >_< Finally we were on the train we needed to be on having again checked if we needed to reserve and the conductor again informed us that we didn't have tickets so would have to get off. He then phoned the station and shouted at somebody in Greek and then everything seemed to be fine. Thus we arrived in Athens...

... the lady at the ticket counter the situation and then she relayed the message. They talked for a few seconds, she asked me if Matt was “running fast”, and when I said he was sprinting, they (reluctantly) agreed to wait.

Matt showed up just two minutes after the bus was supposed to leave. Apparently the owner of the room realized what was happening and had his moped ready to go when he got back out of the hotel with the battery and charger in hand ...

... there for.

I then just sat on a bench and made it known to him that I needed to get another piece of luggage out of the "left luggage" office, and I wasn't going to do so--nor buy my ticket--until he left.

He gave me about the 5th, and 6th, or 6th and 7th "last gifts": a silk bath scrubbing mitten (I think; it's a square bag! and some mint-condition Turkish money bills from before the change from millions to ones. Then he gracefully left.

I retrieved my ...

... had a small shelter outside filled with tiny burning candles placed there by the faithful. One of these churches had a steep series of steps leading to the main entrance. At the bottom of the steps sat a rather annoyed looking man in a wheelchair. The Orthodox church obviously isn't fond of the disabled. I then came to an ancient Greek arch, truly a beautiful piece of architecture with hundreds of tiny figures carved into the stone. A bizarre ...

... and an exam this week in my classes.  It feels like we have done nothing so far and then all of a sudden these pop out of no where.   I am here again this weekend just organizing my life, studying, and trying to plan my trips for the rest of my stay here!  Danika and I are planning on conquring Mt Olympus next weekend so that should be really exciting!!  I can't wait! Hope all is well in the states!  Miss everyone lots!

... our journey to Athens, now on the main highway which is a nice change from the windy mountain roads we'd been on for a week now. We stopped just outside of Athens to grab the map (which rendered useless) and to gain our sanity before heading into the madness! We were told that the city was 4.5 million people and it's not really that big in area....here we go.....
We heading into the madness and I tried desperately to find any street signs to point us in the right direction, however ...

Thessaloniki was a fun rest stop on my way out of the country. It's quite the cosmopolitan city full of street side cafes and shopping - it's a bit surprising that I like it better than Athens. I could really blow some money here on clothes. I've always liked a city where you find groups sitting outside drinking coffee or cocktails day and night. That said, it makes it a bit hard for a filthy solo backpacker to meet people - everyone is already in ...