Out of the Woods

The AWESOME Greek Islands!

For those of you who have never experienced the Greek Islands, I have the most awesome experience to share with you. For those of you who have already seen this part of the world, you know what I mean.

My Dad spent a month in Turkey and Greece in 1992. He travelled with a group while in Turkey, but then ventured off on his own to explore Greece. At the time, he was 65 years old. But this is no ordinary man. My Dad is an adventurer. He has climbed the Alps, he has floated down the Amazon - trading ball caps for necklaces, he's been to bullfights in Spain, innocently walked into some kind of an uprising in Italy, and visited the local doctor in her farmyard in Central America - back trouble. And he usually does it with a backpack and a map.

Matter of fact when he retired he wrote a list of all the things he always wanted to do, but had never had the time or the opportunity. Then he just started crossing things off. Learn to play bridge, learn to juggle, learn to ride a horse, climb the Alps, learn Spanish (he travelled to Guatamala and lived with a Spanish speaking family for a month to do this), learn to water-ski. The list goes on....but I'm sure you get the picture. At the age of 70 he entered the World Senior Games in St. George, Utah as a Novice Cyclist. He won 4 Gold Medals! He's just recently home from China, his latest adventure. He followed the Silk Route from Pakistan through Tibet and into Beijing in September, 1997.

Anyway, when he came back from Greece not only did he have some incredible stories to relate, but I sensed in him a certain 'relaxation' that touched me. He told me of going down to the ferry office, and deciding his itinerary based on what ferry was leaving that day. If the ferry was going to Mykonos, that's where he went. If it was Thursday, and he ended up on Santorini, that must have been where the ferry went on Thursday. He also related a story about sitting on a terrace overlooking the Aegean, drinking retsina, and enjoying it so much he thought he might just stay until he saw someone he knew. Half way around the world, what would be the odds of seeing someone you knew? But if he didn't, it didn't matter. As it turned out, he did see someone he knew... The tour operator from Turkey.

Last year, 4 years after Dad had gone, I made myself a goal. I had seen the movie "Shirley Valentine", and while her particular situation did not parallel my own, I admired her sense of adventure, and her destination. My dream was to see Greece!! At the time I was 45 years old, and I decided that I would start saving, and in 5 years time, would travel with my husband, Greg, to Greece. But I also thought, wouldn't it be cool to invite Mom and Dad. Dad could be our tour guide and show us some of those spectacular white terraces on the blue, blue Aegean. I asked Dad if he was interested. He said he most certainly was, but he didn't want to wait 5 years. I explained that it had always been a dream of mine to travel to Greece, and that I anticipated it taking 5 years to save the money to go. Dad said "Well, I'd like to be the one to make your dream come true. You save all you can for a year, and we'll go next year." To make a long story a little bit shorter, it ended up that my husband decided not to go, and my Mom didn't particularly think backpacking around, and hopping ferries on a whim was exactly her kind of holiday. So, it was just ME and DAD! And it was incredibly, awesome!!

What follows, is our Daily Journal - 35 days of Wonderment!

A few other Greek Travel Links

A must-see if you're travelling to Greece. Greek Travel Pages.

Check out EH's site at TheTropics/Shores/7611. He spent 5 weeks in Greece in 1996. So, see what somebody else has to say. I know you'll decide you just have to go too.

In March of 2000 my whole family travelled to Melaque, Mexico. Ever heard of it? Just click on the palm tree to take you there.
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