I went to these three Balkan countries with Overseas Adventure Travel in October/November. It was my fifth OAT tour (and counting; I leave on #6 in 2 weeks, and I have four scheduled for next year).
I preceded the trip with eleven days in Rome, but I'll write that trip report separately. And rather than doing a day-by-day rundown, I'm going to talk about the highlights.
The pre-trip extension started in Athens. I did enjoy wandering through Plaka (the old town) in spite of the plethora of souvenir shops. The Acropolis was impressive in spite of the crowds. The Acropolis Museum (https://www.theacropolismuseum.gr/) is a good place to see the few things that aren't in the British Museum. Sorry, I exaggerate. The collection is impressive, and the museum is laid out and presented effectively, so it didn't feel too crowded. I went to a show on my second (last) night in Athens. It was called "Medea and Other Friends I Made in Athens" and I saw signs for it all over. The audience as a whole seemed to enjoy it. I would give it two stars out of five. It could have been funny or brilliant or tragic, but it tried to be all those things and fell short of all of them.
After Athens we flew to Chania and spent four nights on Crete, two in Chania and two in Heraklion, so sticking pretty much to the north coast of the island. I really enjoyed the Botanical Gardens (https://www.botanical-park.com/). We also stopped for lunch in a ghost town called Achlada. Pretty much everyone who lived there has moved away, but there is a very nice eatery, and it was fun walking through the deserted village. There are signs that people are returning, probably scooping up the ruined structures at a bargain to turn them into vacation rentals.
Knossos was educational but I was bothered by the careless way it was restored, without much attention paid to authenticity. I guess that's a kind of approach that was more common in the late 19th and early 20th centuries than it would be today.
From there we flew to Thessaloniki. The city pretty much burned down in 1917, and what was rebuilt is pretty ugly, but there are a few pockets of delight. The waterfront walk and the upper town where the original walls are still standing are worth a short visit. The market is also fabulous, with some amazing selections of olives and traditional Greek pastries.
On our way to Meteora we stopped at Aigai to visit the Royal Tombs (https://www.aigai.gr/en/polycentric-museum-of-aigai-royal-tombs-display-of-treasures/visit). This was one of the real highlights of the entire trip. There are three tombs, only one of which was plundered, and the treasures are displayed magnificently. It was truly stunning.
We also stopped for a short hike at Mount Olympus. I didn't encounter any gods or goddesses there, but a nice dog accompanied us on our hike.
Meteora was another highlight. I read that the next edition of the RS Greece guidebook will include Meteora. I can only wonder why it's never been included before. It's a magical and spiritual place even without the monasteries.
We stopped for lunch in Metsovo on our way to our next destination. The views here are stunning, the town is pleasant, and there's a small art museum (https://www.averoffmuseum.gr/en) with a surprisingly good collection of Greek painting and sculpture, mostly from the 19th and 20th centuries. I say surprisingly because it was all artists I'd never heard of, and it's hidden away in this little town.
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