Beautiful Places in Greece

The pebbly sand here is red and the backdrop is just absolutely gorgeous! LOOK AT THE WATER! *insert hearts all around*

Red Beach - The cliffs around this beach are red and the beach sand is also red. The blue sea, the red rocks and the scenery make this place worth the trip! There are very few snacks options here. I would recommend you bring your own food if you are planning to stay here for long.

A beach known for its pumice rock formations, yoghurt-like landscape, and turquoise waters. Spread your towels, sit by the shore, and gaze at the distant islands with a cocktail in hand.

A tiny secluded beach formed in an opening between two large cliffs; chances are you’ll have it all to yourselves. Swim together into one of its many hidden little caves and find a romantic spot.

We had initially decided to get off at Agrari and walk to Elia but my sea sickness got the better of me (do take a sea sickness tablet if you also suffer from this because the ride can be rocky) and we got down at Super Paradise. We were glad we got down here because this beach is gorgeous with crystal clear waters and golden sand.Loved swimming here along with the fishes (there is a school of fish very close to the shore!). One of my best swimming experiences ever (and as you can see above I don't have a single decent picture of the beach since I was too busy having fun!). It was not crowded as well since it was mid-September (and parties start only at night I guess). We did not rent any sun bed as it was quite expensive and so was the massage. For lunch we headed back to Platys Gialos beach on the water taxi. Platys Gialos beach is a pretty one with a great vibe and amazing food options.We had an absolutely fantastic meal at Avli Tou Thodori, relaxed on the sunbeds (free as we had lunch at the restaurant) and swam a bit before heading back to the hotel. The water is clean here as well but not as nice as Super Paradise for swimming.After relaxing a bit, we watched the sunset from the windmills and spent some time in the town.Our final dinner was at Captain's and I must say the best was reserved for the last. They don't take reservations so you will have to wait but it is totally worth it. Lovely ambience, right opposite the waterfront and fantastic food. The gelato place right next to it i.e. Gelarte is the best one in town (try the pineapple and capuccino flavours).The next morning we headed back to Athens on a Fast ferries ship with a bag full of memories.I really felt 2 days were not enough and I could have spent more time at Mykonos- maybe next time! But I am sure we had a pretty great time in those 48 hours!!This blog was originally published on 'My Travel Treasures'

As a part of the Volcano Tour that we had taken, they make a stop at Therasia which is an island with population of 130 people, and ate the best Moussaka for lunch ever at Capt. John's !We finished off the day by sailing to Oia ( pronounced - Ia) which is at the other end of the Santorini Island to witness sunset. A climb up 300 steps from the port to the town of Oia leaves you breathless. Alternatively one can take a ride up on a mule.The typical Greek Island - white houses, blue domes and purple and orange skies - yes that's Oia ! The haze from the Volcano lends a vibrant purple hue to the picturesque sunset that thousands of tourists gather to watch each evening.

Why not try a night diving in Mykonos and experience a different kind of nightlife.During a night dive you can discover a different side of this world and you can experience it from a completely different view.It is an unbelievable feeling to discover the mysteries held underwater when the sun goes down.The diver can experience a different underwater environment at night diving, because many marine animals are nocturnal.You’ll find that there’s nothing to worry about and that night diving is usually much more relaxing than diving during the day.

It was a beautiful day out so we took a hike up Filopappos Hill which was more like a mini mountain. At the base of the hill there was an old, charming house that had pretty flowers out on the porch. I snuck onto it to take a quick pic.The hill was no easy climb. It was pretty rough terrain and the pathways were steep and rocky. But I'm not a prissy girl so I let my sparkling white Pumas get dirty. Once again I was astonished at how Green Athens was. I have not added color to any of these photos! The grass really was THAT green. I even told E.W. that it was almost an unnatural shade of green...like something you would see in a cartoon.

I confess that I love the underwater world. So I got to the Aquarium really excited. I entered smoothly from the spring light of the Cretan sun into the twilight of “Thalassocosmos” Aquarium, watching short videos with themes from the sea world of the Mediterranean. Then the good stuff came… I stared with jaws dropped on the floor by surprise, I stared behind the crystals that shined like my underwater mask, like wonderful windows at the bottom of the sea! Two huge groupers where circling their brownish wings, lobsters with nice colors were detecting their aquatic homes with their antennae, large bright red scorpions were looking silently to the surface, schools of small fish were shining in the tank and an almost a liquid light covered me through the windows of a magical world. I moved to the tank with the big predators: the steel grey amberjacks, the large imperious basses, the breams with pink bodies and purple specks, the black groupers lurking in the dark depths, the sharks always nervous, always inspecting. All behind the crystals, just some points far from our eyes … I stared for hours at the long tank with the panoramic glass. Large rosewood sea breams, silver breams, white breams, corbinas with golden wings, purple and gray breams with yellow braid and small silverjacks, were swinging in front of us like colorful birds roaming in an indescribable ballet into their artificial seabed, licking the algae, the stones, the pebbles. The design of each tank is proportional to the number of fishes it hosts, so the seabed was modeled accordingly. The seabed consists of artificial rocks built by a special artist, carved and painted to resemble the Cretan seabeds. There is a tank-like Matala seabed, another that resembles the bottom of Vai beach etc. I also saw a dark tank simulating the deep waters: three giant deep sea groupers with bulging eyes, a huge huge red bream and monstrous eels were moving slowly in the dark iced water. Time passed without realizing it. I went for my espresso at the coffee shop of “Thalassocosmos” Aquarium watching the beach of Gournia and the Mediterranean sea in the background. I never got over the obsession to watch at the sea and immediately think of what is below the water’s surface. My thoughts was always running at the bottom of the sea. “Hmm let’s finish the coffee.” I said to myself. And let’s go for another tour at the glass windows of the Cretaquarium”…

Marvel at the Magnificence of Meteora ‘Suspended in air’ the Meteora monasteries represent awe-inspiring artistic achievement and are one of the most striking sights in mainland Greece.Nestled amidst the imposing sandstone rock pillars of Meteora, lies the sleepy little village of Kalambaka, a municipality in the Trikala region of Greece with a population of about 12,000. This quaint town that lies in the immediate foothills of the great Meteora peaks attracts millions of visitors from all over the world, as it shares the glory of the solid pinnacles towering over it.In the cracks and fissures of these wind-battered are monasteries that practically hang off the sides of these cliffs, monks reside to this very day. Currently, there are six monasteries built on natural sandstone rock pillars in this UNESCO World Heritage site. Four of these are inhabited by men, while the remaining two only house women. Each monastery has fewer than ten inhabitants.Like many tourists, we decided to stay in Kalambaka, perhaps the nearest town to Meteora, as it spoils tourists for choice with its generous number of hotels, restaurants, bars, shops and cafes. Lugging our bags up a steep trail we trudged up into the mountains, to arrive at Koka Roka Taverna, our shelter for the one night we were staying in Kalambaka. Run by an incredibly hospitable Greek family this traditional five-bedroom lodging is a traveller’s delight as it located right under a massive rock and captures an authentic Greek atmosphere. As Nick, the owner whipped up a delicious meal of meat balls cooked over an open flame, potato wedges and a customary cheese salad, he was happy to give us travel tips.Fuelled by our sumptuous Greek home-style meal, our spirits high and bellies full, we decided to embark on a tad ambitious plan to hike to the nearest monastery. Inspired by Nick’s mother’s words that Meteora was to be “seen, smelled and tasted” we chose to tread unexplored territories.Winding up sharply into the silent mountains was a narrow pathway, leading us into deep lush green forests, mushrooming around these giant peaks. Halfway up, we realised with alarm that the pink skies were signaling a rapidly approaching sunset and we decided to adjourn our adventure, vowing to visit the monasteries the next day.The Meteora meaning ‘middle of the sky’, ‘suspended in the air’ or ‘in the heavens above’— etymologically related to ‘Meteorite’ is one of the largest and most important complexes of Eastern Orthodox monasteries in Greece. The manner, in which the six mystical monasteries are perched precariously atop these giant sandstone structures, seems nothing short of a miracle.In the 9th century, an ascetic group of hermit monks moved up to the ancient pinnacles of Meteora and were the first to inhabit these rocks. They lived in hollows in the rock towers. This great height, combined with the sheerness of the cliff walls, kept away the most determined visitors.As early as the 11th century AD hermit monks were believed to be living among the caves and cutouts in the rocks. Initially the hermits led a life of solitude, meeting only on Sundays to worship and pray.At the end of the 14th century, the Byzantine Empire's 800-year reign over northern Greece was being increasingly threatened by the Ottoman Turkish raiders who wanted control over the fertile plain of Thessaly, or Central Greece. The hermit monks, seeking a retreat from the expanding Turkish occupation, found the inaccessible rock pillars of Meteora to be an ideal refuge. More than 20 monasteries were built, beginning in the 14th century of which only six remain today.On day two, due to a dearth of time we took a shuttle up to the beguiling cliff-top monasteries and zeroed in on the three we would explore-Agia Triada or Holy Trinity, Varlaam monastery and the Monastery of Agios Nikolaos Anapafsas.Agia Triada was founded by the monk Dometius in the 15th century and was the monastery used for the James Bond film For Your Eyes Only. It is decorated with wall paintings from the 18th century by the brothers Antonios and Nikolaos. To get to the monastery we had to walk up 140 steps cut into the rock, past the church of Saint John the Baptis with its wall paintings from 1682. The monastery is open from 9am to 1 pm every day except Thursday.On our way back we visited the Varlaam Monastery, founded in 1517 by Theophanis and Nektarios Apsaradas from Ioanina though the first to establish a monastery here was an ascetic anchorite named Varlaam. The monastery houses an important collection of relics, intricately carved wooden crosses, icons, embroidered Epitaphio and many other treasures. It also contains frescos by the well-known post Byzantine iconographer Frangos Katelanos. The monastery is open from 9am to 1pm and then from 3:30 to 6pm and is closed on Fridays.Monastery of Agios Nikolaos Anapafsas was built in the 16th Century by Dionysious, the Metropolitan of Larissa and named after an old Patron. The Katholikon is decorated in wall paintings by the renowned Cretan iconographer Theophanis Bathas-Strelitzas. This monastery is open every day from 9am to 6 pm.Access to the monasteries was originally (and deliberately) difficult, requiring either long ladders lashed together or large nets used to haul up both goods and people. The net was used to hoist up intrepid pilgrims vertically alongside the 373 metres cliff. The Varlaam monastery dominates the valley symbolising the fragility of a traditional way of life that is threatened with extinction.In the 1920s there was an improvement in the arrangements. Steps were cut into the rock, making the complex accessible via a bridge from the nearby plateau. During World War II the site was bombed and many art treasures were stolen.Meteora and Kalambaka were the highlight of our trip. The rocks, proof of a rare geological phenomenon represented nature at its best while the building atop them were a marvel of man, making Meteora one of the most awe-inspiring places to visit in the world.

While planning for our Greece holidays, I stumbled upon a link which showed me a few pics of Meteora and from that moment I knew that I have to visit this place. Didn't take much time to convince my husband and we decided to fit in one night a Meteora. There is only 1 direct train from Athens to Meteora and it takes around 5 hours. We made our bookings in advance and were on our way. The excitement was building up and the moment I stepped out of the train at Kalambaka, I knew we have made the right choice. Our hotel was Pyrgos Adrachti and it was amazing. Away from the hustble bustle and offering amazing view of the town and mountains. We realized that 1 day is not enough at this beautiful place but greed is a habit for all travellers. So, without any time we went on to explore the monasteries. We took a taxi to reach Varlaam monastery. Most of the monasteries close by 5 PM. But we managed to see 2 monasteries and rest of the time was spent enjoying the long beautiful walk and the serene atmosphere of Meteora.

If you like peace and want a quiet place to relax and retrospect the Meteors is the place for you. People are hospitable and friendly... No one is in a rush and everyone is happy and smiling! Just like us on this short trip to Meteora... Would love to go back again and someday I will.. Till then I cherish the memories :)