Having landed in Greece, I rode the bus into Athens and caught a taxi the rest of the way. Just like that I had made it to Europe. And in the historical sense I had made it to the beginnings of Europe.

I ended up deeply enjoying Greece, but Athens never grew on me. Greece was still in the throes of the migration crisis and the streets felt tense. Many stores were shuttered and anarchists vandalized every block. Even the entire central area of Exarchia is supposedly off limits to people who don't fit in. I didn't entirely buy that, but I also didn't test it.

What Athens does well is historical sites for sure, it's their bread and butter. The Acropolis Museum is new and has a premiere location next to the Acropolis, but I preferred the more worn looking National Archaeological Museum. I didn't realize when walking in that I'd be coming across the death mask of Agamemnon, the Antikythera mechanism and an enormous ancient Egypt exhibit. I also noticed the museum is overflowing with statues, so much so they have to rotate them out of storage, but I doubt they rotate out their famous Artemision Bronze.

Traveling halfway across the world just to look at museums? Nope! I also visited some islands and spent a week on Crete. I did beach stuff, I hiked the Samaria Gorge and dodged gangs of goats. Slept on the decks of overnight ferries, caroused with rustic Quebecois and discovered the magic of Raki. It was here on Crete that I really got plugged into the backpacker community and started figuring out plans for the rest of my trip.

The next stop after Crete was a return to Athens, this time feeling a little wiser. Then I took a train into mainland Greece to see the monasteries of Meteora. I stayed in Trikala at a hostel where I was given a hand drawn map of the hiking routes to the monasteries. It was a masterful map and saved my butt. Of course before that day's hike to Kalabaka I went to a market and was pressured into buying several pounds of grapes. Not as refreshing after carrying them for several hours. It was a small effort compared to the industriousness of the monks who erected these mountaintop monasteries and frescoed the ceilings and walls with intricate orthodox art. And for that their skulls were stacked to the ceiling in one of the rooms I saw... I took a photo before I felt rather guilty.

Here as in the rest of Greece I enjoyed Gyros every day! The typical price was €1.60 for a chicken souvlaki, which came on a pita with potatoes, tomatoes and lettuce with some yellow mayo I didn't much care for... I asked for Tzatziki when I could. However a sit down meal was a different affair. A dinner was a feast with the customary Greek salad, the Greek beers, some Ouzo at the end and throughout all kinds of dishes. They also have a higher standard for feta cheese that pays off.

After saying my goodbyes to new friends I was off again, running across the town (I do mean across the entirety of Trikala) to catch the train back to Athens to leave soon after on a flight to Poland.

p.s. the strongest recommendation of Greece I can give is that I stayed there over a month and never felt bored. I did something new every day, but I would've been just as satisfied doing the same. It was a peaceful lifestyle, the nearby beach, the dinners with friends and family at midnight, the local squares crowded with all walks of life. Just dodge the scooters, even on the sidewalk, and you'll enjoy Greece too.