Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Welcome Back

We are back in Victoria, British Columbia. We will still be posting about the rest of our travels in Greece but figured that we would sprinkle some present-day happenings in-between.

Since we didn’t tell many people when were coming back, we expected to return to an empty home without much fanfare. What an amazing surprise to find that someone had planned the warmest welcome that we have ever received!

A streamer welcoming us in our living room
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Flowers and “Welcome Home Globetrotters” note, plus some fake spilled nail polish on the kitchen counter to get a rise out of us.
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A personalized sign welcoming each of our children awaiting them in their rooms
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And possibly the greatest gift that anyone could bestow on a weary traveller dreading the return to a house devoid of anything edible… a fridge and counter stocked with the essentials!
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In our world travels, we have met so many special people but every time we return, we are reminded how blessed we are to have such generous and thoughtful neighbours right next door. Thank you so much Laurie Anne, Richard, Reece, and Ana!

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Elafonisi, Crete

The south western tip of Crete has one of the nicest beaches in all of Greece – Elafonisi.

The drive to Elafonisi has breathtaking views. (Just take care that you don’t hit any sheep.)

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The water is crystal clear and warm. The beach is perfect for children because the water is amazingly calm like a swimming pool.

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Saturday, July 24, 2010

Chaniá, Crete

We took an overnight ferry from Athens to Chaniá, Crete. Chaniá, which is also transliterated from the Greek “Χανιά” as Hania, Xania, and Khaniá (making it confusing for tourists reading the maps and guidebooks), has a rich history that spans Minoan, Byzantine, Venetian, and Ottoman eras. During World War II, the city of Chaniá was invaded and occupied by German forces.

The ferry crossing from Athens to Chaniá takes 9 hours so we reserved a cabin in order to be able to get some rest. Sleeping in the bunk beds on the boat was a big highlight for the kids.

Map picture
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We arrived a bit groggy at 5:30am in a port with a few vending machines, telephones and public conveniences. A short walk from the terminal, we found a bus to take us into Chania’s Old Town.
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Despite being heavily bombed during World War II, Chania's Old Town is considered the most beautiful urban district on Crete, especially the Venetian harbour.

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We spent some time walking through the narrow alleyways.

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While the adults were marvelling at the beauty of the Old Town of Chania…

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The kids were looking forward to stopping for some juice and ice cream.

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Monday, July 19, 2010

The Acropolis

“Acropolis” (Greek: Ακρόπολη) means "highest city" in Greek, literally city on the extremity and is usually translated into English as “Citadel” (akros, akron, edge, extremity + polis, city, pl. acropoleis). The most famous example is the Acropolis of Athens, which, by reason of its historical associations and the several famous buildings erected upon it (most notably the Parthenon), is known without qualification as The Acropolis. (Wikipedia)

We carried three guidebooks with us in Greece – two for the adults and one for the children. The guidebook that we brought for the children provided some great details about life in Ancient Greece and before visiting the Acropolis, the kids had a general idea of the rich history which helped them to appreciate this famous site.

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Even though young children are not fond of museums in general, our kids did enjoy the Acropolis Museum; especially the glass floor that allowed them to peer below to the remains of an ancient city underneath the museum.

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For fear of the heat at the Acropolis during the day, we arrived at the top at 5:30pm when it was still hot but less suffocating.

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The kids wanted to spend some time sketching the ruins while we walked around admiring the details and the way that the colors of the ancient buildings change as the sun sets.

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The views from the Acropolis provides a sense of the size of Athens.
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We left when the Acropolis was closing for the day.

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