Merry Xmas 2015

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays.

Where ever you are today, hope that you are surrounded my Friends and Family! Wishing you all lots of presents and lots of lots of foood!

ATP - World Tour Finals - London

Location: The 02 Arena, London, England
Date: November 2015

I love watching tennis so when I acquired tickets for the ATP tennis at the O2, I was really excited to see who would be playing at our session.  The ATP is a little bit like the lottery, once tickets are purchased the draw for your day is usually picked the day before, so you never know who will be playing in your session until the night before. Tickets can still be purchased online http://www.theo2.co.uk/events, however they will be quite pricey.

My friend Shai and I decided to make a day of it and started by having "breakfast" at Square Pie we had a jacket potato and a sweet potato and spinach pie, both tasted great! Then when we went into the arena, we had tickets for an afternoon session, which starts at 12pm and finished at 4. So you get to see 2 matches. Our tickets were for the top tier, but unbelievably, we managed to upgrade our tickets and had some of the best seats in the house, 5 rows from the court. SCORE!!

For our first match we were lucky enough to see the Wimbledon doubles champions J. Rojer and H. Tecau vs M. Matkowski and N. Zimonjic. It was a good game but you could see from the start that the latter were in trouble. The champs were faster around the court and both had great forehands and volleys. Keeping Matkowski and Zimonjic on their toes. They took the first set 6 - 2. The second set looked like Matkowski and Zimonjic may be in the running to take the second set, however The champions brought it back and beat them  6- 4.

We were even luckier with our next draw, it was Andy Murray vs David Ferrer. This was a very enjoyable match. To begin with it seemed like Andy was not in control. Ferrer had him running all over the court. But half way through the first set Andy started to pick up and the game was quite evenly matched. Long rally's and some great Aces. There were a lot of close calls and each player challenged several of the line calls. It was a very intense match but Murray still managed to come out on top winning in two sets 6-4 6-4.

After the matches my friend and I decided to have dinner, we went to Las Iguanas and decided to spoil ourselves. We did the 2 courses for £16.99. We shared a starter of empenadas, two main courses, the moqueca; an exquisite coconut fish and prawn curry, which we both thoroughly and we also had an enchilada. For dessert of cheesecake and a 2-4-1 cocktail which also tasted devine. We both were so full by the time we left and our stomach was definitely happy.

There there is a fan zone where Barclay card customers can win prizes, tennis balls, bags, tennis racquets and also have free access to a small lounge area. We won tennis balls and tennis player Pat Cash was also there doing a meet and greet.


All in all was a fun day, I would definitely recommend coming to the ATP as you never know who you will get to see and it is a great day out. It will be running till the 22nd November 2015 if you are interested in coming this year.





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Vintage Cafe Tour around East London

Location: East London, England
Date: October 2015

My friend Shannon and I decided to embark on a tour of vintage cafes around East London. The original inspiration for this is tour is because Shannon is moving back home to New Zealand and is planning on opening her own Vintage inspired cafe in a small seaside town in the Coromandel.

The Exmouth Cafe near Aldgate East tube station, The front of the cafe had no name but inside you could find the name on stickers that held customers drawings in place on the wall. The feel of the cafe was bright and airy. Behind the serving counter on the walls were rustic wooden boards displaying the menu. It was something different and original and not your usual sandwich board. The food at the counter looked amazing and healthy with fresh ingredients. They were  all displayed on slate boards fitting with the theme of raw natural materials.

As this was out first stop we decided to just have coffee and a pot of tea. The foam artwork on the coffee was halloween themed, which was a nice touch. It was loose breakfast tea and was quite strong. They were served in a red tea pot and a black cup, which contrasted nicely with each other.

A unique feature was an old fashioned coffee bean dispenser with authentic coffee burlap sacks on display.  

Our next stop was the Vintage Bean Cafe and  Bar just off Bricklane. It was a small cosy cafe with a downstairs area and a unique feature of the secret garden out the back.  The owner was very nice and whilst indulging in peanut butter and chocolate cookies, that were very delicious, she gave Shannon a lot of advice about opening her own cafe. Inside were an assortment of vintage and upscaled items. Some of the cushions on the chairs were made of coffee burlap sacks which were surprisingly comfortable. The cakes and cookies were all homemade by the owner, and displayed in old fashioned boxes and cake stands.

On the wall were old black and white photos from many years past of the street that the coffee house is now on. These were displayed on a string with wooden pegs.



Did we mention that this little gem also serves alcohol? Crates were remodelled to create shelving for the wine and spirits.

The garden would be the perfect hideaway from the London hustle and bustle in summer time. It is framed with various plants and flowers including a blueberry vine. The chairs were made of wooden pallets and the tables were fashioned from old doors. The garden has a rustic charm as all the furniture has been painted in bright colours.






The Full Stop Bar on Bricklane was our final destination on this day. The front was quite bright, but walking further into the cafe area the atmosphere became more cosy.  Displayed on the back shelves at the front of the store were orange and brown teapots, the bold colour choice made them really stand out.

There was a small fireplace in the corner that had an assortment of vintage books, cups and decanters. Near the bar was a vintage vending cart that was stocked with glass bottles. On the bar were glass jars filled with olives and nuts. Our only purchase there was cocktails as we'd reached our caffeine limit for the day. We had The Classic Old Fashioned  which was a whiskey based cocktail as we were feeling up to "the challenge"!




Day two took us to The Waiting Room in Deptford. This one was small but had a lot of character. It is renowned for it's coffee, and after having a latte Shannon said it lived up to that reputation. With your hot drinks you also get a complimentary biscuit.  You're lucky if you get seating in this place, inside there is an L shaped bar with retro bar stools and two small tables. Decor includes a large map of the area on the wall, postcards from around the world, various books and an old barrel. Even though it was an eclectic mix they all complimented each other nicely.  The food is amazing and a bargain, Shannon highly recommends the bagels.

In Greenwich, The Red Door was our final destination. This is Shannon's favourite haunt and was the original  inspiration for her own cafe. The best part of this place is the music which comes from a record player in the corner alongside a bookshelf full of records. This place is full of character, you get missed matched cups and saucers and you share your milk jug with the next table. The owner is Scottish so I made sure to have a Scottish  scone with clotted cream and jam. It tasted amazing.


There were fairy lights hanging over the china display and in the windows you will glass cake stands filled with delicious homemade cake, including gluten free for those who want it. Above the serving counter was a chandelier with various different coloured lights. They chairs and tables were all different and there is a ladder leading to a storage loft.



All in all we enjoyed our little tour of vintage cafe's, our highest recommendations are for the  Red Door and The Vintage Bean Cafe so be sure to check them out if you are in the area!



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Edinburgh, Scotland

Location: Edinburgh, Scotland
Date: October 2015

Edinburgh in a day and on a budget! Great place to visit! My friend Anna and I took a flight from London City Airport to Edinburgh.  The flight took about 1 hr and cost about £90 each, surprisingly the cost at the time of booking was about the same price as the train. Anna had never visited Scotland before and as this was a short trip we wanted to make the most of it. When we touched down, we made our way to the airport bus. We paid £4.50 each for the single journey. We did not realise that there is now a tram that runs from the Airport and The city centre, this costs £5.

The weather was a typically Scottish rainy grey day, but we didn't let that dampen our spirits. We decided to have lunch first as I knew we had a day of wandering around hilly Edinburgh. We got off on George Street and met with my sister. Anna is vegetarian so my sister took us to a restaurant just off George Street called Hendersons; a vegetarian and vegan restaurant and there was a great selection of food. The servers were friendly and since we were in Scotland we made Anna try the vegetarian haggis. I also had the vegetarian haggis and it was served with mashed potatoes and a choice of two salads. It tasted good and was very filling but I would not say that it tasted that much like haggis. My sister had a vegetarian pizza with a side salad. Each meal was about £7.  As we left we took a side street and we transported back in time. Edinburgh turned into a film set that was supposed to be London back in the early 19th Century. Extras were dressed up and hiding away from the rain. We said our goodbyes to my sister and set off to see the rest of Edinburgh. It was a little chilly so our first stop was grabbing a hot chocolate from Hotel Cholcolat (about £3).

I attended Edinburgh University, however it has been many years since I have been back and got to see Edinburgh from the eyes of someone who had never been before. I became the tour guide. We started by stopping on Princes Street to take a picture of the castle. The Castle sits on top of a geographical formation known as a Crag and Tail. The Crag is difficult to climb and would have provided a great view of the oncoming enemy. The Edinburgh Castle itself does not look like one you would imagine from old fairytales. It looks more like a barracks and thats pretty much what it was used for. We entered Princess Street gardens and walked towards The Mound. Some gruesome history for you, Princes Street Gardens used to be a lake and back in the days of being accused of witch craft, they would throw the accused into the lake. If they floated they were a witch and if the drowned, their names were cleared.

The Mound, links Princes Street to the Royal Mile. It has underground heating to make sure that the cars and buses can get up the hill in the winter as it is steep and in the cold weather can get icy. We stopped to look at all the old architecture along the way. At the top of the mound we decided to start from the top of the Royal Mile and work our way down. On our way up we came across a building from 1600's; Gladstone's Land. they were raising money for it and they had birds of prey that you could take picture with for a donation of £3. Anna didn't want to miss this opportunity and got a picture with Guinevere, an eagle owl.

We cut down to one of the closes where we came across the Writers museum which is free entry. There was a cute little stair case leading up stairs and outside there were slabs on the pavement with various quotes from different writers.  We made our way back up the Royal Mile towards the castle, when a piper started to play. The views from here are amazing as you can see right across the old and the new town.

Off the Royal Mile, we went down George the IV bridge and found that one of my old haunts, Frankensteins, was still there! I was very excited as this is an old church that was turned into a bar and restaurant. At night there is a dance floor and the DJ booth was the old pulpit. There was an offer on for half price cocktails so we each had one of their signatures. Anna had THE Frankenstein and I had the Bride of Frankenstein. They were wonderfully colourful and rather sweet, but for £4.50 each I guess you couldn't go wrong.

To have a brief escape from the weather we made our way to the National Museum of Scotland which about 3 min walk from the bar and is free entry. It is a large museum, but we didn't want to spend the whole day there so we decided to have a quick look around the natural history section. On leaving the museum we made a slight detour and I showed her the statue of Greyfriars Bobby. A famous little dog whose owner passed away. He found his way to his masters funeral and followed his casket to a nearby church; Greyfriars Kirkyard. He would not leave his owners graveside, they tried to remove him a few times but he would always find his way back. The City of Edinburgh took him into their hearts and adopted him.  Taking care of him and allowing him to remain by his masters grave.

Back on the Royal Mile we went past various churches and old buildings with great architecture. Outside one of the churches on the ground is a granite heart decoration; The Heart of Midlothian. The real story is apparently about it being on the site of a prison where executions used to take place. Spitting on it, was a sign of disdain however the local myth is that .This is where they used to take criminals for the public to see before they were executed. The tradition would be to spit on them. To this day people do still spit on this stone, although today it is more for Goodluck!  There is gothic looking church on the Royal Mile which is now an information centre. You can go on various different Ghost Tours... look out for the jumper ooters.

Anna loves pubs so I decided to take her to The World's End pub. Back in William Wallace days Edinburgh used to be a walled city. Outside the pub there are markings where the gates to the city used to be, there was a toll to leave and a told to enter, therefore a lot of people didn't leave the city and why it was called the World's End. Here we decided to be traditional and have a wee dram of whiskey.  It was a quaint little pub, that was originally a bakers and some of the original features are still visible today.

We were running out of time but there was still so many places I wanted to show her, At the very end of the Royal Mile, I took Anna to see Hollyrood Palace and the Scottish Parliament. We wondered past Dynamic Earth and through the Cow Gate. This area is quite popular with ghost hunters and tours alike.

We went into the Grass Market and I told Anna the story about Burke and Hare. They were grave diggers who used to sell cadavers to the university for research. The fresher the body, the more money they received. This lead them to murder lodgers that would rent a room from them. They were discovered when they happened to kill a very well known lady of the night. When she was discovered on the operating table, their plans were rumbled.

Finally our day was over and we made our way to Edinburgh train station. With a heavy heart we had to say goodbye to this lovely city and a walk down memory lane.

If you are on a budget Edinburgh is definitely a destination to visit if you are a fan of architecture, history, art and culture. If your lucky you will catch it on a sunny day but even if its dreich (wet and windy) there is still so much to appreciate. It will always be like a second home to me.



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Poros, Greece

Location: Poros, Greece
Date: September 2015

The only times we could book a ferry was 8 am to the island and also for the return leg. There are several ferries that run from the Athens to the islands. The public ferries to Poros cost €12 however they were only running from 1:30pm and returning at 6am and take about 2 or 3 hours to get to Poros. We decided to go on the privately owned ferries that was a Catamaran, they took 1.5 hours to get to Poros and have better times for leaving. This cost €25 per person each way.

We woke up at 6am to catch the ferry and got a taxi to the harbour. The cost of the taxi was about €6. When we got on the boat we realised why the ferries were so busy, apparently there was a wedding happening on the island and also due to the elections schools were off on the Friday and the Monday we were there.

We got onto the Catamaran and all of us fell asleep, as we were all so exhausted from the night before (see Athens blog post http://theglobeltrotter.blogspot.com/2015/10/athens-greece.html). An hour and a half later we arrived in Poros.

We took a taxi (€7) to the Panorama Apartments http://www.poros.biz/ that we rented our for 2 nights. It was for a four bedroom self service apartment, the total cost for the apartment was €96 which we split between the three of us. It was on top of a hill over looking the sea.  There was everything we needed for two days there, it was also very clean and the staff were very helpful and friendly. Highly recommend staying here.  We managed to check in early, so we dropped our stuff off at the hotel and made our way down the hill to the Panorama Cafe for breakfast, this is where we would end up have breakfast both mornings. It is not affiliated with the apartment however, as a guest of the apartment you do get 10% off your bill.  Sticking to my gluten free meals, I opted for the greek yoghurt, fruit and honey. The yoghurt was deliciously thick and the balance of fruit and honey made it just the right sweetness. The first morning I had a cold chocolate (basically hot chocolate only cold!) and the second morning I had fresh orange juice . Leila loved El Frappe (iced coffee)  and had one almost everywhere we went!  as well as a vegetarian breakfast, which was basically toast and jam.  Stef had a pastry with cheese and ham. Altogether both mornings our bill came to roughly about €20.

After breakfast we crossed the road to the beach, which offered free deck chairs and umbrellas. We went for a dip in the water. I had brought my goggles looking forward to what I might find. I found that there was fish with a black spot (Saddled Bream) on their tail and other fish with orange  and some with yellow markings. One fish had a zebra type pattern and at one point started attacking me and my friend. It was quite funny though.  I also saw a small plaice and swimming next to them were a couple of fish smaller fish. The water was very clear and easy to see to the bottom. The sea was also very calm. We spent our day sunbathing and swimming, which was very relaxing.

Lunch time and Stef and I got hungry, Leila stayed on the beach while we went in search of food. Across the street from the beach next to the Panorama Cafe was the Panorama Restaurant. Everywhere you sit down to eat, they will always serve bread and dip on the table.  I had the vegetable risotto and Stef had grilled chicken and rice, all tasted great. We got Leila some aubergine chips with mint dip. The total charge came to about €18. Back to the beach for a quick dip and a bit more sunbathing, then we headed back to the apartment. All that heat and sun made us very sleepy so we all took a nap before getting ready for out night out in the main town. 

Another short taxi ride later (€5) we were in the town. We walked down the street by the water, on the waters edge were several expensive yachts and one of them emitted a blue light into the water which attracted hundreds of tiny fish. As we walked further along the street we  came across some souvenir stores. They had you usual tourist items; fridge magnets, shot glasses, T shirts etc. There was also items that were only from Greece such as olive oil soap with all different fragrances. We took this opportunity to buy our various gifts and then we made our way up to The Platanos Taverna restaurant. 

We wanted to get off the main street so we headed up a small staircase and made our way through the tiny walk way streets, that gave us more a traditional feel. It was amazing to think that just one street up  and we were away from all the hustle and bustle of the street below. We past lots of stray cats and  even saw a gecko.  Climbing up closer towards the Clock Tower (which sat at the top of the hill and was one of the main features in the town.) 

As we got closer to The Taverna we could hear traditional greek music playing. When we arrived there were 3 musicians and one of them has a traditional instrument that looks like a guitar called the Bazuki. We sat down and ordered various dishes,  Greek salad, Hot beetroot with a strong garlic dip, Stef and I shared a seafood risotto and Leila had baked aubergine. Leila had a beer that was  500 ml and cost €3, amazingly cheap, the total cost of the meal was . They were all delicious and whilst we were eating various customers at the restaurant got up to dance to the music. When we finished we were all full and decided that we need to go for a walk to work off the food and visit a Gelato place that we had passed on the waterside for dessert.

As we walked further along the water side we passed lots of stray cats, we came across one of the stray cats staring at the water like he was on the hunt. When we looked over the side we could see shoals of tiny little fish. It was the cutest site. We passed  bars and restaurants along the way. All of them had seating inside and out. We settled down outside of that that was playing various 90's music a waitress came to take our order and we ordered some cocktails. They cost about €8 each, however they were quite weak and did not taste great. Leila's tasted like sun tan lotion!! The hours flew by as we caught up and by the time we knew it, it was around 3 am. We decided to head back and catch some sleep.  The taxi rank was nearby and as soon as we crawled into bed, lights went out till 10am!

We wanted to make the most of the sunshine so we made our way to the Cafe for breakfast. After eating we hailed a taxi to take us to a quiet cove called Love Bay. It was about a 10 min drive away and cost about €7. You could purchase sun beds and umbrellas for €2.50 each. There were also 2 hammocks that were extremely comfortable to lay in. The atmosphere was very relaxed there was only about 10 of us on the beach and love songs played the whole day. The water was not as still as its the side of the island where the boats come in so the waves ripple towards the cove, however the water was still nice, my goggles broke so I was unable to see what was around us. Leila and I hired a kayak which €5 for half an hour. I made Leila do all the work while I lounged in the back! may I add she did a very good job :).

After our jaunt in the kayak, combined with heat and the sun I ended up in the hammock having a snooze for about 15 mins. Afterwards we decided to get a snack and walked down the street taking in the view about 10 mins later we reached a corner store, purchased some snacks and sat outside to eat. We made friend whilst we were eating and he was very disappointed to see us leave in the taxi. However he turned around and went to the next group of people he came across, clearly not that sad. We headed back to the apartment to got ready for dinner and headed back down to the Panorama Restaurant for our final dinner. 

Sunrise from our balcony

The mood was somber as it was our last night but the food made up for it. For starters we had a cheesy filo pastry and courgette chips with mint dip. For mains Stef and I both has a souvlaki, however I had vegetables instead of the wrap and Leila had stuffed peppers with feta. The cheese in Greece is amazing, very difficult if you are vegan though! Leila and I shared 250ml of wine that costs €2.50. The total cost of the meal was about €37. After dinner, we headed back to the apartment to sleep. We had to be up at 6am again to catch the ferry. 



We got a taxi back down to the harbour. When we got there we could see the dark clouds in the distance. Glad we got the early taxi because there would have been a chance we would have been stranded on the island, though none of us really wanted to leave, we had a plane to catch and still had to see a bit more of Athens before then. We boarded the ferry and again fell fast asleep. 

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Athens, Greece

Location: Athens, Greece
Travel: Sept 2015

In May my friend Leila and I had decided to go and visit our friend Stef who lives in Athens. We wanted to go when it would still be hot and sunny but we wanted to avoid the peak times during school holidays and try to keep the trip as economical as possible.

Checking flights we discovered that Ryan Air had single flights from London Stanstead to Athens for £40 per person. However the return was going to be more expensive, so we shopped around for single flights from Athens back to London Heathrow and settled on British Airways Flights that were £100 (€135) per person. We booked flights leaving on the 17th September and returning on the 21st September .

I had never been to Greece before and did not really know what to expect, a few people had told me that it was not that great, however I didn't want that to cloud my judgement. The big day finally arrived and we were excited to be leaving for Athens. Leaving London it had been cold and when we exited the plane, you could feel the warmth on your face. The flight was 3 1/2 hours and arriving at midnight; our friend Stef was waiting to collect us. We were only spending 1.5 days in Athens so we wanted to make the most of it. The first thing you will notice, if you use the bathroom at the airport, is that you are not allowed to throw your toilet paper into the toilet in Greece, you need to use the bin provided. Their sewer system is so old that this can block the system. 

We had booked ourselves into the Atlantic hotel in the Kallithea area of Greece not too far from the harbour (http://www.atlantic-hotel.gr/).  Staff were generally friendly, the hotel was clean and this was the view from our balcony. There was free wifi, however it was slow and only available downstairs in the dinning/ sitting area. But this was not a problem as we were on holiday and didn't want to use our phones too much.

After checking in to the hotel, we decided to get some food from a place close by. The greeks have a big food culture. So even though by this time it was about 1am we still managed to find a place open to get some food nearby.  We purchased  2 vegetable souvlakis, which contained salad, potatoes and wrap,  and 3 bottles of water. This came to €7, Leila and I thought that this would be each but we were astonished when my friend said in total! Score!  There are a lot of stray dogs and cats around greece and when leaving we came across a stray dog, he looked a bit like a boxer crossed with something else. He had pale blue eyes and was extremely friendly. We waited with Stef at the bus stop and he decided to join us. After Stef left we called it a night and our little buddy followed us back to the hotel. Unfortunately we didn't see him again.

The next morning the temperature was beginning to heat up and was around 30 degrees C. We met with Stef at a place called Gregorias. This I would say is like the greek version of Gregs bakery. They sell pastries and baked goods and they are all over Athens! Here we purchased 2 Spanakotiropitas; pastry filled with spinach and feta cheese. I had a fresh orange juice and Leila had el frappe; iced coffee. Again the total came to €7.20. I try to eat gluten free as I am intolerant to wheat and I thought I would find it difficult avoiding it on my trip, every where you look there is pastry and bread.

Stef had organised our whole trip and we had a busy day ahead of us. We purchased bus tickets from a local vendor. Bus schedules in Athens are on an as and when basis. As the driver is ready (in between cigarette and coffee breaks) and when they eventually decide to show up. If you are in a hurry, bus would not be the way to go. However we had plenty of time and didn't mind the wait. We waited about half an hour for the bus we needed and then made our way to the centre of Athens.

Athens is a city steeped in history. getting off the bus  we walked less than a hundred yards when we came across some old ruins that used to be Roman Baths.

A few meteres away from the Baths was the

original Gates to the Acropolis.  The Acropolis is the hill upon which the Parthenon sits. There was also ruins of an old market place near by. We then made our way to the base of the hill.

Entrance to the Acropolis and Parthenon cost €12 and we decided to take the short route up the hill. I would recommend wearing walking shoes as there are quite a few stairs, also don't forget your water! Because of the heat and the steep climb you will definitely need it. We past ruins of an old theatre. It was amazing to see the old Athens with a backdrop of the new surrounding it. The heat was quite intense and there is not really anywhere to shelter. however on the way up there are olive trees that you can rest under if you need to escape a bit of direct sunlight.   

The Parthenon

At the top we made it to the Parthenon. On the ground leading up to it was marble dispersed around the ground, through time it has become worn away, smooth and slippery. However the colours in the marble came through as a burnt red and black. You could imagine a grand entrance leading up to it.

The Parthenon itself was a work of art you could see that there would have been colour in the stone work and even though there has been wearing away because of weather it has been sanding there for centuries. With its majestic columns, every bit of detail, statues and finishing stones was an amazing sight to behold. The amount of work and time it would take to create such delicate pieces would have been immense.

Temple of Athena

Next to the Parthenon was an old temple to Athena, which had replica statues of 5 women guarding it. The original ones can be found in the Acropolis museum along with other important pieces that have been removed in order to preserve what is left. We made our way down the hill towards the museum, where we passed small stalls with artists painting and displaying their work.

Compared to the ruins, the Acropolis Museum is a shiny brand new building with added air conditioning to escape the heat, if you so wish. It has been designed very well. The entrance has a glass walk way and beneath your feet are the remains of an old well that has been excavated. We paid €5 to go in. I was carrying a back pack and to make sure no pieces go missing from the museum they make you leave your bags at a cloak room where they give you a tag to collect when you finish, this was free.

The museum was not too busy and inside were a lot of pieces. I think it is a good idea to visit the museum after the Parthenon because it makes you appreciate the items more. Again the detail and the colours stood out on the stone designs. We got to see the statues from the temple of athena and the detail was breath taking. The way the stone was carved to make the clothing look like movement and folds in the dresses. Even the the  detail of the hair, everything meticulously done and each one was different.

Inside the museum is a restaurant and cafe which has terrace outside for those who want to soak up some more sun. Because it is more of a tourist destination it is a bit more pricey however this did not put us off. Stef and I had greek yoghurt with fruit and that was about €5 each. Leila had a dessert called Galaktoboureko, which is a sticky sweet pastry with a custard filling and it had an essence of Mastic (sap from a tree that only grows in greece) in the sauce. I had a taste and wanted more! but Leila was having none of it ;). This cost around €6.

There is so much history below you feet that even in the underground, history is all around you, there are excavations of old viaducts and statues. Trip on the underground and a

bus ride later, the rest of the day was spent catching up with Stef and her sister Kat and family. That evening we went to a travel agents and booked our tickets for the ferry to Poros. It was surprisingly busy and the only times we could get were for an 8 am ferry there and back. There are several ferries that run from the Athens to the islands. The public ferries cost €12 however they were only running from 1:30pm and returning at 6am and take about 2 or 3 hours to get to Poros. We decided to go on the privately owned ferries that was a Catamaran, they took 1.5 hours to get to Poros and have better times for leaving. This cost €25 per person each way.

It was an exhausting day, but we decided to make the most of our only night in Athens. In the evening, we went back to our hotel got dressed up and went out for food and a drink. On the corner of the street where we stayed was a restaurant called K Grill. The food was good, but the only down side is that even though smoking inside is banned in Greece, it still happens and there were people smoking on either side of us.  Coming back to the gluten free experience, I decided I was going to try and avoid wheat where possible on the trip. I had a souvlaki without the wrap and cheese stuffed peppers, we also shared a salad between us. Our total bill came to about €20.

After dinner we went for drink at a bar called Momo. It was a nice bar with a garden outside. It was decorated with fairy lights and there was even a swing chair at one of the tables. The cocktails were about €8 each. We had to be up early the next morning to catch the ferry so we decided to call it a night.

(See Poros, Greece -http://theglobeltrotter.blogspot.com/2015/10/poros-greece.html)

Our last day in Athens, we arrived off the ferry at about 9:30am. There were dark clouds rolling in and about 10 mins after arriving the winds picked up. Once you experience a thunderstorm in Athens it makes you appreciate why the ancient greeks thought the gods resided there. Everyone was scrambling to bring things in and lock things down. The wind and rain were so strong that as we walked towards the train station we were almost hit by a chair and a sandwich board! We sheltered in the train station and then got onto a train. As we pulled out of the station we could hear the loud thunder and see the lightning. We were then told that a tree had fallen onto the track and that the train would only be going to a certain station. A couple of stops later we got off the train in Kallithea. The rain was pouring. Stef told me that Athens has a tendency to flood. We waited out the storm for about an hour at another Gregorias.

doughnuts on a stick

We took the train to the new market and wondered around the stores. We also went to the Plaka (square) which is next to another ancient market place and from there headed to the Parliament, where all the protests happen and  the guards that stand outside in their traditional uniforms. A short walk from the square were some bead shops. The colours and the array available was impressive and any jewelry maker would spend hours looking around the store.

This was the last few stops before  sadly we made our way back to the airport. It was an amazing trip and fun catching up with old friends. There is still so much to see and I will definitely be visiting again. 

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