It has been so long since I last blogged.
I have been working, travelling, & celebrating life.
Well, I am back today, & will be blogging about my surprise birthday/proposal trip to Greece. It’s pretty impossible for me to squeeze everything into one blog post.
Hence, I will be separating it into 4 blog posts:
1. Surprise Trip to Athens.
2. Hello, Tzia.
4. Where Earth Rises to Heaven – Meteora & Delphi.
5. I said YES, in Santorini.
Surprise Trip to Athens.
Throwback to few weeks before my birthday, Shengyi told me he will grant my beach trip wish & bring me to Thailand. He said, we’ll be doing a 10 days island hopping. I was excited, packed everything ready for a sunny beach trip.
“You deserve a break, we will also go to Bangkok, have some good massage & just chill.”
No, I suspect nothing; because a chill trip is what I needed.
Then… at the airport, he asked me to guess where are we going.
I was confused.. “not Thailand?”
He cheeky laughed, and the guy at the check in counter asked…
“Miss, you’re heading to Athens?”
WHATTTTTT.
MANNNN, it’s already the my 3rd birthday celebrating together with him, and yet he never failed to surprise me. Thank you, for spoiling me with your consistency. I love you, and I love you. xx.
你讓我燃上了這壞習慣,你大概一輩子都得這樣寵著我了。
**Words just can’t justify how surprised I was, and how much love it is in the entire surprise. Thankfully, everything is captured in the video, scroll down to watch.
So yea… GEIA, Elláda.
Greece, a beautiful country located at the southeastern Europe. Greece is now famous for its sunny islands like Santorini & Mykonos, also for the great history of the cities. It is safe to say, Greece is no longer a stranger to us.
We are in Greece for 10 days:
1. Athens – 3 days
2. Tzia Island – 1 day
3. Meteora & Delphi – 2 days
4. Santorini – 4 days
I will start the part #1 of my Greece’s post with ATHENS.
Athens, we spent 3 days exploring this ancient city.
& if you ask, if Athens worth visiting, I would say YES.
5 reasons to visit Athens:
1. Locals are friendly.
2. UNESCO world heritage.
3. Orgasmic traditional Greek food.
4. Hot weather in Athens.
5. The vibrant night life.
How to get to Athens from KL (Malaysia).
We took MAS to Singapore, and then SCOOT direct to Athens.
Where to stay in Athens.
We stayed in Athens Tiare Hotel for a total of 3 nights.
It is about RM1000++ per night for an Executive Suite, with breakfast.
The executive suite is a corner room – comfortable, spacious with a lot of natural lights in the morning.
The bed was comfy, bathroom is clean, all is good.
The location is good as well!
Almost everywhere is about 15mins away by feet, else, it’s just 2 steps away from the Omonia square metro station which is able to bring you directly to the airport within 35mins.
Day 1:
We went to Santorini first, spent 4 days there, then took Sky Express from Santorini to Athens.
Arrived at Athens in the evening.
Decided to not have any itinerary for the first night, just wandering around the city & get a feel for navigating the city.
We shopped. Downtown Athens is a shopper’s paradise. We went to the Syntagma Square, the centre of centre, & the Ermou Street (about 10mins away from our hotel).
We went the super huge branch stores of sone of the most popular chain stores like Zara, Berskha, Nike, etc. You will also get to visit some big Greek Store and local craftsmen.
We ate dinner at this Chinese restaurant name DaPanda nearby just to get our Asian food cravings fix. It wasn’t too bad, but nothing much to shoutout about.
We end our night soaking into the vibrant night life in Athens for the very first time. Sipping wine by the street, at the restaurant Bar called Kotili at the Adranou Street; people watching while enjoying the live Greek folk music.
Day 2:
We did not sign up for any walking tour in Athens. Because, we wants to explore the city on our own pace (also knowing that we will spend quite some time taking photos, haha). We depends solely on google for explanation, and google maps for direction.
On day 2, we spent our day exploring the 2500 year-old archaeological site.
The Ancient Agora of Athens and the Museum of the Ancient Agora
Our first stop, to save the hassle of queueing up each time to pay a separate entrance fees for each ticketed archaeological sites in central Athens, we get our FULL COMBINED PASS here for 30 euro.
The Athens combined ticket for archaeological sites includes entrance to:
– The Acropolis of Athens
– The Ancient Agora of Athens and the Museum of the Ancient Agora
– Kerameikos and the Archaeological Museum of Kerameikos
– The Temple of Olympian Zeus (Olympieio)
– The Roman Agora of Athens and the Tower of the Winds
– Hadrian’s Library
– Aristotle’s Lyceum (Archaeological site of Lykeion)
The Agora was a place provided for the ancient Athens to meet and bond. It was a dynamic place, which gathered the great thinkers like Socrates, also a place for the ordinary citizen to raise their concerns. It represents the sense of freedom, equality & justice.
A lot of parts in this ruins has been beautifully restored, and you will get to find more info about it in the museum.
Operating hours:
1st April to 30 Sept: 8AM-8PM
1st October to 31st March: 8AM-4PM
Acropolis Museum
The entrance ticket for the museum is NOT included in the combined pass.
I would suggest you to get your ticket online prior your visit to skip the long queue. You can get your ticket here: https://www.theacropolismuseum.gr/etickets/ticketing.php?la=2
We got out ticket the moment we arrived at the museum (using our phone data) & skipped the about an hour or more long queue.
This museum – rated as one of the best museum in the world, is one of Shengyi’s favourite spot. Besides because it’s air conditioned (haha), also because of its’ beautiful, modern & edgy exterior and interior. The contrast of the modern design of this museum in this ancient city is just impressive.
The five Caryatids, the original maidens that once held up the roof of the southern porch of the Erechtheion, the most sacred part of the Acropolis. There’s an empty spot remain for the sixth Caryatid which went missing.
Elements featuring a lion attacking a Taurus.
The archaic gallery, well preserved items from the 7th century before BC.
Here you’ll find Apollo & Athena.
We did not make it to the last and probably the best area – The slopes of the Acropolis. We missed it. Dammmm.
Apparently it will take you Ona journey through the ages of what life was for the people who lived in the foothills of the sacred rock.
p.s. – I heard the museum by night is magical.
Operating hours:
1 April – 31 October
Monday: 8AM-4PM (last admission: 3.30PM)
Tuesday – Sunday: 8AM-8PM (last admission: 7.30PM)
Friday: 8AM-10PM (last admission: 9.30PM)
1 November – 31 March
Monday – Thursday: 9AM-5PM (last admission: 4.30PM)
Friday: 9AM-10PM (last admission: 9.30PM)
Saturday – Sunday: 9AM-8PM (last admission: 7.30PM)
Little Kook
Acropolis was closed due to the rise of heat until 5.00p.m., so we decided to take a break while waiting for it to reopen.
Shengyi brought me to Little Kook, a fairy-tale inspired cafe in Psiri. The decor changed periodically, and during my visit, it seems like Mary Poppins has arrived in Athens.
It’s a whimsical fairytale experience. The food was alright, but the decor was insanely pretty & service was great! Definitely a must-visit for fairytale fan like myself.
拍了這張照片,他看著我說 “你真的好美。”
這話 比我的甜點 還甜。
Address:
17 Karaiskaki, Psiri, Athens
Note: we went there using the BEAT app, just like GRAB. The price is reasonable, you get comfortable cars (mostly merz), and great & friendly driver who literally turn into your best tour guide while fetching you around.
Operating hours:
10AM-12AM
Acropolis of Athens
So, this is probably the highlight of our entire Athens trip. The superb ancient Greek monument, a UNESCO monument since 1987.
It was closed when we arrived at 12PM due to the increase in temperature which can danger the tourists. It reopens at 5PM.
We took a taxi ride using BEAT app also from the city centre, arrived at the entrance at 4.45PM, & entered the moment gate is open at sharp 5PM.
With that, we secured ourself a tourist-free shot.
The whole place was stunningly empty when we stepped in.
In the Acropolis, we have marble temples among the sacred rocks: the Parthenon, dedicated to Athena, the city’s patron goddess, the Erechtheion, the Propylaia and the temple of Athena Nike.
The Parthenon was once a church in the 5th century AD, then a mosque by the Turks during the occupation. Parthenon, was once colourful.
Temple of the Nike Athena. The brand NIKE, takes its name from Athena Nike, the Greek Goddess of Victory.
Edit 這張照片的時候,想說這人怎麼那麼帥?
It’s crazy how these monuments survives through the earthquakes, and wars. With minimal restoration, they are still standing strong, allowing us to reminisce the Greece’s glory past.
可不可以 一輩子 都這樣牽著我?
Operating time:
1st April to 30 Sept: 8AM-8PM
1st October to 31st March: 8AM-5PM
Note: Vary according to the weather, and can change monthly.
O’Thanasis
We skipped a few other monuments, and went straight for dinner.
Spotted this restaurant the night before, and promise to return for dinner. & here we are at the O’Thanasis (500m away from Acropolis) for their “no nonsense” classic Mixed Grill Gyros.
Simple & extremely delicious.
Best value for money, enough said.
Address:
Mitropoleos 69 Monastiraki, Athens
Operating hours:
9.30AM-12AM
A for Athens Cocktail Bar.
This place is suggested by the driver from BEAT app. She said this spot is the most relaxing drinking place in Athens, with the best view overlooking the Acropolis.
She was right, the place was happening but still chill enough. & they serve great wine with reasonable price. We love it, it ends our day perfectly.
Address:
2 – 4 Miaouli, Athens 105 54, Greece
Day 3:
Spent a few hours in Athens, after Tzia Island, before we leave Athens.
In that few hours time, we went back to O’Thanasis again for dinner.
Yes, it is that good.
Then we spent the rest of our night in a bar in Psiri.
Not the best one, we were trying to get away from the more crowded one & just have some “us-time”. We enjoyed the night, nonetheless.
有你在,哪裡都好。
That’s all for ATHENS.
& here’s a video to recap Athens (also a abit on Tzia’s).
雅典 很美。
I hope you enjoyed it as much as I do.
Next up… Hello, Tzia.
Stay tune.
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