General Notes Greece

General Notes / Comments
Other tourist - What's the problem with the Japanese - look like bee keepers in the rain. Always covering head and using umbrella, they should go to Helsinki in the winter - No Sun there.
Greece

• Friendly cab drivers (and some are honest), expensive cab rides.
• People will ask "where are you from?", tell them Chicago and they smile and say "BULLS" or "CAPONE"
• People - you can not always tell a Greek. In Turkey you could tell most the time.
• Turkish women (Young) are more beautiful than Greek women
• Land - dry and brown, so far what we have seen on the Islands and around Athens.
• Cost - Euro country of course it is more expensive (double from Turkey) but not as bad as Paris or Helsinki.
• Weather - dry and hot (for early June)
• Food - better than Turkey (for us at least)
• Streets are clean but were even cleaner in Turkey
• Cars - small cars Hyunday has the market at seems
• Scooters - Vespa and similar all over and everyone has one
• Gas - Euro 1.05 Liter
• Nescafe all over (instant) - what is the problem?
• Bread not so good.
• Smoking - will buy stock in Marlboro.
• Greek language or signs more difficult to understand than Turkish.

Athens

• Acropolis - a must to visit
• A busy city of about 3 million
• Not very clean and a lot of graffiti and many bad looking houses in the city
• Dirty looking harbor Piraeus
• Many tourist from all over Germans most then Italians and French, even Americans, many young kids
• Fenced in ruins all over town, too many to look at.
• Lots of street cafes with outside seating
• Greek are loud people even louder than Seija (always outside voice)
• It is dusty here, people don't wash cars they dust them (no water?)
• Good Subway system and Trams
• We have a good hotel in a great location, good breakfast, rooftop place to sit and great view.

Naxos

• A nice place to stay, a down to earth place.
• A few tourist but not a problem, even Greek come to vacation here, also many Germans and French.
• Some great sandy beaches.
• No cruise ships.
• Nice harbor town, good places to eat and drink and walk around.
• Explore island by car (5-6 hours) very hilly and scenic.
• Very brown and dry looking except for some valleys inland.

Rhodes

• Rhodes - half the visitors Finns the other half Germans
• Restaurant Yiannis in Rhodes Old Town - best food at a fair price. Right next to our Hotel, Domos.
• Rhodes Old Town - beautiful place, must see and walk around the old walls and buildings in the Old Town.
• Many tourist stay in the new town hotels, good beaches but stones no sand!
• Too many tourist in Rhodes (old town) and then still the cruise ships, 3 a day sometimes.
  
• Food and Hotel prices in Rhodes are OK but in the Old Town (around plazas) everything is almost double from the side streets or the new town.
• Explore the island by car, around 250 km around the island, very hilly.
• Orange trees, Olive trees and tomato's growing. Did not see much livestock.
• Island looks brown and dry.
• Very nice town, Lindos, with harbor two hours from Rhodes. No cars in town.
• Heavy traffic near and around the Old Town.

Santorini

• FIra, main city, very touristy and very hilly but also very pretty. Expensive.
• Car, 4 wheel and scooter rental everywhere and everyone is renting them.
• Oia, nice cliff town 1 hour away, must visit.
• Volcano island a good trip by boat, also hot springs on same island.
• Kamari nice town with very nice beach and board walks.