Athens Airport, Greece

Last Day in Greece

Yesterday was our last day in Tinos and our last full day in Greece.  We took our time with breakfast and talked with Diana and Maria about what we had done the day before and we were planning to do that day.  Later they introduced us to the owner who is a gynecologist from Athens, specializing in in-vitro and from what we later read about him on the Internet is well published in his field.  Kirk, being a doctor, could tell you more about him.  He told us how he came to build the hotel over 10 or so years, starting with the just a house for himself and his wife and three sons.  Two of his sons are now in college at BU in the states.  He also told us of his travels throughout the Aegean islands and pointed out the islands we could see from the hotel.  Somehow the topic of ruins and antiquities came up and he took us onto the balcony of his house to show us some columns, vases, and rocks he had found at the bottom of the sea somewhere (I'm not really sure exactly how he got them).  The two vases were covered in shells and other signs of life, one so much that it was almost unrecognizable.  After getting some pictures, he showed us his house, another apartment, and the little room he had built inside the dovecote.  He also showed us the chapel that they had built on the property.  For all of this he had clearly spared no expense.  The chapel had frescos done by a local artist and an alter that was just as ornate as the other orthodox churches we had seen.  He was obviously very proud of all of his work.  He hoped we would come back and have more time so that we could go out on his boat.  I hope I do get to come back someday.

Eventually we checked out, loaded the car, and left for the town of Pyrgoss on the other side of the island.  It took about 30 minutes or so to get there, not including the times we stopped to take pictures.  At one point we pulled over for some scenic views of the sea near what looked like an old abandoned building.  There were two cars rotting away outside covered in brambles, but to our surprise there was a dog fenced in the back.  We later saw that it was some sort of irrigation or pumping station and was still working; we could hear the water.  But where the dog's owner was we could not tell.  Poor little guy.  We went on and eventually made it to Pyrgoss.  Pyrgoss is the second largest town/village on the island and is situated on hills on both sides of a river.  All the buildings are white and most of the doors and trim are blue.  It was a little like Santorini but without all the tourists.  Actually there was a tour bus there, but it appeared to be mainly Greeks.  We made our way through the town, stopped to put on sunscreen, and found the Museum of Marble Arts at the end of the street on the other side of the town.  The museum was very modern and nicely laid out with signage in both Greek and English.  It showed how marble is quarried all over Greece.  I especially like the section on documentation of contracts and rights for quarrying.  There were also several exhibits of old tools so I took a picture of them for my Dad.

After going to the museum, we decided to stay in the town for lunch.  We we're going to go to another village and a restaurant the hotel owner had recommended but did not have time.  So we ate at a cafe in the center of the village where there were several others centered around an old sweet gum tree.  After lunch we walked around a bit more.  The village had a lot of narrow winding streets and a lot of flowers, especially Bougainvillea.  I think I've taken about 400 pictures on this trip.  I plan to go through them on the flight home and cull the ones I don't want.  I'm afraid the pictures will not do these towns justice.  Anyway, we eventually left and drove along the south coast of the island, stopping a few times, back to the main town of Tinos.  We returned the car, left our bags at the rental agency, and walked around one last time before we had to catch our ferry.  It was quite hot.  In fact, just about everywhere it has been very hot and I just had to accept that I was going to sweat most of the time.  In some ways all the white building made it worse, but I suspect that keeps it cooler inside.

Our ferry left at about 5pm and arrived in Rafina, a port near the Athens airport, at about 7pm.  We stayed our last night in a hotel that seems to specialize in housing folks who come in on the ferries and leave for the airport the next day.  After dinner at the hotel, we walked around, got ice cream, and stopped to sit for a while in the main plaza.  Being a Saturday night, a lot of families were out with their kids and the square was the center of activity in the town.  We enjoyed watching the kids riding not their bikes, rollerblading, eating ice cream, and having a good time.  The grown ups appeared to be enjoying it too as they sat on benches and watched.  What a lovely way to spend our last night in Greece.  And now our plane is boarding and it's time to close this last entry.  I hope you have enjoyed reading about my travels.  I hope to come back to Greece someday.  The people are friendly, there is a lot of history, and the food is great.  On top of all that, it is a good deal for the money.  So until next time.  Kalimara.