Place: Ferry from Bari to Patras
Weather: Sunny and warm, 30°C
Activities: Visitation of the Bari Old Town and ferry and passage.

Special features: We had some time to inspect Bari. The bad reputation this old town has, is unfound at least concerning the Old Town.
Rudi visited the dwelling of his ancestors from the 'Hohenstaufen dynasty'.
The cathedral St.Nickolaus is impressing as well (of the 11th - 12th century). Here the mortal remains of St.Nickolaus are treasured, which were stolen by Bari fishermen. Thus this city became a famous pilgrim site. Very enterprising and at the same time they have their own patron - molto bene!!!
If you are strolling through the old town's maze of small/tiny streets you are able to look into the kitchen of 'Mama' in almost every house.
In front of the door pasta is made and on a wire-frame in front of the window they get dried.
They get their special taste through reams of vespas, which come noisy, rattling through the narrow streets.
Regardless we like that (or maybe because of that).
In the evening on to a huge ferry, including camping on board. 
A calm crossing.

Place: Kastro in GR (Peleponnes)
Weather: Sunny, a little windy and 30°C
Activities: Crossing by ferry till 13pm and then drive from Patras to Kastro about 85km

Special features: After the visitation of two campsites - one was in strict control of the 'Krauts' with cranesbill in front of the camps and exactly subdivided cabinets - the other one had such little spots that we weren't able to fit in with the 'Baby' (and did not want to anyways).
We got the hint of one of the 'sandwiched' campers that there is a 'wildcamp' very close.
And in fact there were about 10 mobile-homes (from all over europe) parked directly at a beautiful sandy beach.
Requirement is that you have a self-sustaining vehicle (water, independance of electricity and that you got your own toilet).
A site like we had dreamed of.
On a range of like 5km on the beach you could find 3 different conceptions for vacation.
In the very south a Robinson Club ('Entering only permitted by the explicit invitation of a club-member').
The residents of the club barely used the beach and hardly ever left the camp, since everything was at hand what their hearts might desire - nothing for us.
In the middle the implied campsite. Everything very german, accurate, parceled and regulated, very well organised - nothing for us.
In the north the 'wild camp'. Here we met people from all over Europe that were on the same wavelength.
A lot had a motor-bike, or a scooter with them and explored the area.
In the neighbourhood a simple, but good 'cantina' (tavern). All of them modern gypsies/vagabonds.

Place: Beach at Kastro
Weather: Sunny every day, warm (constantly 30°C) and from 3pm on a nice breeze from the ocean - every day.
Activities: Recovering from travelling

Special features: The main activities are: Laying in the shade a lot, reading, taking a swim every now and then (almost too cold for me - about 22-24°C water-temperature), going for walks and eating.
Since I am still not able to just linger around at the beach (and Rita the same), we unpacked the bikes, dismounted the scooter and drive around in the area every so often.
The small town Kastro (1000 inhabitants) is situated very pittoresque on a hill (about 5km away of our campsite) and provides everything one needs for a living.
Shops, uncountable Kafeneions, taverns, and so on.
Besides there is an imposing franconian castle of the 13th century.
Furthermore 6km away a roman sulphur bath - hot springs where the very brave still rub themselves with mud from head to toe.
We are having delicious lamb steaks for barbecue at our camp and beef tenderloin with very tasty roasted potatoes and tomatoes, that actually taste like tomato.
But the taverns as well aren't bad at all.
Although Greece all in all became an expensive tourist destination, we need about half the amount for living compared to home.
Especially the wine is inexpensive. The price is exactly the same as for beer (by same amount).

Kastro:
Is situated on a hill at the most western end of Peloponnes.
It has about 1000 inhabitants and provides everything you need: Kafeions, taverns, shops, and so on.
Not to forget, the most important, a franconian castle. Rita didn't want to leave what her ancestors left any more.
In the outback there are reams of olive groves and very good olive oil on every corner.
By now there have been some houses already bought up by 'northern' europeans.

Loutra Killini:

Roman Sulphur Bath
Not far from Kastro you find the roman bath - right at the ocean.
This antique bath is not used officially any more, but it still has some sources of sulphur mud sulphur water.
Just around the corner there is a hotel which offers sulphur-mud-baths as well - at a dear price.
Some greek (and tourists as well) still use these ancient springs.
It kind of looks like during carneval when you see the dirty figures, that are packed with mud from head to toe.
One of them told us that it would help for sure - she at least would come here for many years.
Strange - if it does help, why would you have to come over and over again? - Probably because it is so cheap.

Place: Olympia
Weather: Consistent sunny and daily 30°C, slightly windy
Activities: Visitation of the antique Olympia, swimming in the pool, hiking and relaxing

Special features: Drive from Kastro to Olympia, rather boring - plain at the ocean.
Just shortly after Kastro it became interesting since we couldn't transit the railroad bridge - it only had a hight of 3,5m.
The way around lead us on to long tiny farm tracks into the dunes (zero road signs) and brought us more or less by accident back on the main road.

In Olympia it was about time again for a campsite that provided a washing machine. We found a beautiful spot on a hill above the city.
A constant slight breeze made the laundry day tolerable, before the culture-tour.
First comes work than pleasure.
Olympia used to be the most important sanctuary of ancient Greece. The games were hold in the honor of zeus.
During the olympic games, which took place every four years, there was a ceasefire all over the hellenic world - for up to 3 months.
On the compound there are descriptive tablets positioned with drawings and descriptions of the former buildings and settings.
Apart from that our imagination wouldn't have been enough to reconstruct anything pictoral out of the stones and fragments of columns that were laying around.
Some, who got infected with the olympic spirit, were running the 192 metres-distance in the blazing sun, by 35°C.
While sitting in the shade with the lack of any athletic ambition we were watching this amusing scenery. We were taking bets who would make the race. Flip-flops versus pinc high-heels (see the picture on the german version).
Better than going to the movies!!!

Place: Elea
Weather: Sunshine every day and 32°C
Activities: Lying around, walking, eating and reading. Every now and then into the next tavern by bike. We always ate at home.

Special features: The drive was very interesting because we wanted to take a short-cut again. Shortly after Olympia we turned left - although our map was way too rough for smaller roads and promptly ended up in the fields again. But the compass showed the right direction and so we drove along a bigger river. We knew that we should cross it - if the short-cut would be worth it. The first bridge was collapsed. Then came a railroad-bridge which we had to pass - looked critical in hight. A group of construction workers was busy here and Rita asked for directions.
We weren't wrong - and the hight was just enough as well. 
There just was no more bridge and so we drove along the way (on a field track). We came to the main axis in the south practically to the same spot where we would have got via expressway.
But we had a beautiful landscape and passed pretty fields and villages.
Elea got recommended to us because there should be free camping spots directly at the beach. In a pine forest we found it and managed to grab a nice and quiet parking spot in the shade.
Shortly after we had settled down the village shepherd-kid showed off a performance on his Honda 100cc right next to us.
This went on for hours. My outburst of fury didn't help either - only that Rita got scared that the whole village gang would make our life to hell.
Thank god nothing like that happened.
The next morning he came back. I started talking to him - of course he just spoke greek - and that maybe not properly as well.
In the meantime our camp-neighbours from left and right joined us - both of them greek. They gave the young gigolo such a telling off that all he did was drive off with his mouth still open and was never seen again.
THANK YOU dear neighbours.
After four nights we had enough of the lonely beach and went on our way into the mountains.

Place: Andritsena
Weather: Clear blue sky, 33°C a slight wind
Activities: Drive from Elea to Andritsena the interior of Peloponnes

Special features: The route lead from Elea first north till Kastro and then east passing Lepreo, Kato Figalia, Petralona, Linistena to Andritsena.
I described this in such detail, because this trip is really worth seeing and we can definitely recommend it.
It is a quite small tarred road but was even with our 15-ton-Volvo doable.
Very very scenic.
Andritsena is a very small town and is situated at a quite steep gradient on top of a deep canyon.
It offers everything a provincial town needs but nothing more either.
We barely could fit through the narrow road with our Baby and were spanking proud when we were through.
All the more frustrated when we saw later huge semi-trailer trucks driving on that road.
We slept over at the end of the town on a hotel parking-lot.
Although it is situated directly at a road it was very quiet.

Place: Dimitsana
Weather: Blue sky and 33°C
Activities: Drive from Andritsena to Dimitsana

Special remarks: Visitation of the ancient site Gortis at the river Lousios and the monastery Prodromou, also in the Lousios canyon.
For the night we parked at the parking-lot of the Hotelcomplex Koustenis Village in Dimitsana.
This drive was so far the most spectacular which we have ever seen before.
Therefore here the detailled description, in case someone wants to retrace it.
A part of the road was the absolute limit for our Volvo.
From Andritsena the #76, direction to Megapoli till Karitena, here turn left and then follow the signs towards Gortis till Gortis.
From here to the abbey Prodromou and then to Dimitsana.
The route till Karitena leads partly high above the Alfios canyon with an amazing view.
Karitena is situated very picturesque on top of the Alfios canyon on a ridge.
Gortis is an ancient archaeological excarvation directly at the ice-cold river Lousios (cold in the summer with very little water).
After Gortis the deeply carved in canyon Lousios starts where you can find some monasteries.
We visited the beautifully placed monastery Prodromou. The living-area is bonded like a blister to the rock-face.
Above the abbey is the chapel directly at the sheer of the canyon (some 100 metres steep).
You can get to the monastery only via a small path.
The road from the abbey to Dimitsana is twining at a point-blank range from about 400m up to more than 1000m on to a spectacular road with a view into the canyon and the terrain - unique.
Dimitsana is a pretty little town on a mountain side.

Place: Stimfalia at the correspondent lake Stimfalia
Weather: Sunshine 33°C and the first time it didn't even cool down at night.
Activities: Drive from Dimitsana to Stimfalia passing Karkalou on to the #74 till Levidi. Here turning left from Kandila to Stimfalia.

Special remarks: This route is very scenic as well. Specially from Kandila on it leads up on to a pass of over 1300m with an amazing view, worth seeing for sure.
Only for the co-driver it is quite a thrill sitting right next to the sheer without any boundaries. (Guardrailings or even limiting walls - negative report.)
In order of saving space it leads straight down (partly vertical 100m) right next to the tar-covering without a gap.
The driver as well has to admit to get a bit of an edgy feeling.
The lake Stimfalia is a geological peculiarity (announced for World Heritage Site??). It has some feeding rivers but no stream flow.
That means it is double the size in spring than in summer.
In the end of July we barely saw any water at all though - a lot of reed.
We got the suspicion that not only the sun takes out the water, but also a lot of pumps for the vegetable fields. Therefore it wouldn't really make it for World Heritage Site.
In Stimfalia we slept over on the parking-lot of a huge tavern - not just that it was very hot this night, but also very noisy.
Generally Stimfalia has more taverns than residential buildings and one is bigger than the other.
All of them have huge barbecue-grills.
We couldn't figure out how they make a living.

Place: Oros Killini, Mountains at Ano Sinikia Trikala on 1600m altitude
Weather: Sunshine and partly some clouds, windy, 22°C (15°C at night - one benefaction!)
Activities: Drive from Stimfalia via Kaliani, Kesari, Klimenti, Velina, Panariti, Manni nach Trikala and from here up to the mountain postures, submontane of Oros Killini ( it has a hight of 2376m and during winter it is a small skiing region).
We were camping at the mountain postures at about 1600m altitude.

Special remarks: Our destination was a small mountain lake (above Ano Sinikia Trikala). A single-lane dirt road lead constantly uphill.
When a car came from the opposite direction it was literally a precision job.
On the right several hundred metres deep sheer, on  the left the mirror of the other vehicle. But the view - amazing!
Wild, cliffy mountains, in between vineyards till up to the highest reaches of the mountains. At the kerbside blooming bushes, lank cypress and shady pines.
Tiny towns that are bonded to the mountain-side like bird-nests.
Unfortunately the only road there was lead exactly through the small towns.
The cars were parking crisscross in front of the taverns. (Would be a phat source of income for german traffic wardens).
The car-owners had to leave their coffee every so often to pull out of their parking spot and clear the road.
Otherwise a passing wouldn't have been possible at all.
But this went along without anyone making a big fuss out of it or without any bitching and complaining. In good old Germany unimaginable!
However driving this nerve-wracking cross-town links were countervailed by the terrific landscape.
We curled ourselves up higher and higher and looked for the two lakes on the flat ridge.
Unfortunately without any luck, they were dried up.
We simply parked on the big empty grassland and our only neighbours were bumble-bees and a lot of flies, besides many sheep and goat.
A marvelous air and a heavenly tranquility in combination with a breath-taking mountain scenery.
We stayed for three days.
Our own personal climatic spa.
Here you can also find one of the very few ski-lifts of Peloponnes. Sadly this beautiful area gets shown the cold-shoulder by the locals, how one Greek told us.
But maybe that is for it's best. You couldn't find any piles of rubbish here!!!
A hiking-region that can be highly recommended with assigned hiking-trails!!
The Alpine Club couldn't have done any better.
One of the prettiest spots we found in Greece.

Place: Alp at Arno Siniklia Trikala
Weather: Sunshine, partly cloudy and 22°C
Activities: Search for a lake that is supposed to be existing here (by vehicle), hiking and removing dust from the vehicle (mainly of the solar panels and hatches).
Studying the life of the herdsmen.

Special remarks: There is a lake inscribed on the map very close in the area ( unfortunately we just had a map of 1:300.000 - so quite inprecise).
But a book discribed the lake as well. And we did find it after a 15km odyssey driving on gravel roads in the beautiful mountain area.
Though it was completely dried up.
It is just a lake during the winter, but apparently maps make more out of themselves with a lake inscribed.

Place: Alp at Arno Siniklia Trikala
Weather: Sunshine, partly cloudy and 22°C
Activities: Hiking and resting.

Special remarks: A beautiful loop road lead us along mountain pastures in 1700m altitude.
Duration of about 2-3hours. Comparatively easy and surprisingly well assigned. Although no Greek ever does a hiking-tour.

Place: Kastraki at the Meteora monasteries in Thessaly
Weather: Sunshine and always between 32°C and 24°C
Activities: Visitations, hiking-tours, reading

Special remarks: The unique scenery of the dark stalagmite-shaped rocks that are looming up to 600 metres into the sky impressed us deeply.
These huge, bizarre stone-needles, that are ascending steep at the edge of the Thessaly lowlands are indeed unforgettable.
They can definitely be counted to one of the most beautiful landscapes of europe.
This terrific panorama gets even topped by the 16 monasteries, out of the 12th century, that were built on these stone-columns.
Six out of them are still inhabited by monks and can be visited.
The monastery Agia Triada was used as setting for the James-Bond movie 'For Your Eyes Only', because of its exposed location.
We should watch that movie now by chance.
In former times getting to these monasteries was an adventure.
The monks were pulled up by a rope winch more than 100 metres sitting in a net. Some were climbing on shaky wooden ladders into their housings.
Here indeed the only help was the faith in God.
Now all of them are safely reachable via a new expanded road.
You can also get to the monasteries on trails starting at Kastraki by foot, which will more or less make you sweat.
You should just think twice about that at 35°C in the shade.
But during spring, or fall for sure a non-recurring experience.
We drove along this twisty road on our motor-bike in the early morning-hours.
This can highly be recommended.

Monasteries of Meteora

-picture gallery on the german version-

Rocks of Meteora

-pics on german site-

Place: Stavros
Weather: Sunshine 33°C
Activities: Drive from Meteora to Stavros

Special remarks: The drive on the highway from Meteora went through a mountainous terrain and was interesting.
After that more boring and drawn-out.
We wanted to make it till Kavala, but my back started complaining and so we were looking for a stay in Stavros.
Stavros is placed at the ocean and consists of a new part (harbour and city) and an old part.
This new part was built by Greek immigrants that were banished out of Turkey - after 1922.
Back then it was very poor and so a lot migrated in the 60s again (DE, USA, AU, GB and so on).
By now the tourism came to Stavros and exactly this new part got the profit out of it (the old part is situated about 1km above on the mountain side).
That's how life goes sometimes.
We grabbed a spot right in the fishing-port and were very pleased - view, fresh air, very romantic and so on.
Then we visited the small town and on our way back we saw the sign (rules of etiquette) on which it said that you shouldn't park directly in the harbour (Mole).
Bummer! - So we looked for another parking possibility (1km further, also almost right at the ocean) - not too bad either.
We had dinner in the old part on the highest spot above Stavros with a fantastic view and really very good food.

Place: Kavala
Weather: Sunshine 31°C
Activities: Drive to Kavala, tour of the city

Special remarks: We found an ideal parking spot in the harbour (9€ per 24hours) and right next to the Old Town.
We liked Kavala a lot. It has an interesting marina and fishing port and has a lively but not at all annoying city centre.
It is situated very scenic.
Specially the illumination at night is quite impressive.
Kavala has a very old christian tradition.
Since the first european got baptised in Kavala (Lydia) and that by the apostle Paulus. And after the evangelist Lukas visited this settlement it got named 'Christopolis'.

View the pics on the german site.

Place: Dadia Forest Reserve
Weather: Sunshine 30°C
Activities: Drive from Kavala to Dadia. Staying over night on the parking lot of WWF in the Dadia Centre.

Special remakrs: After the recommendation of a WWF emplioyee we drove to the Soufli Forest National Park.
A huge, hilly forest terrain where you can find the only wild living vultures and eagles out of europe (except of Spain).
Also seldom, protected reptiles and plants you can find here.
The well assigned hiking-trails and look-outs surprised us.
Despite we went for a sweaty hiking-tour the vultures kept hiding from us and we did not see a single one.
What a pity!!


Drive from Dadia Forest into Turkey/Edirne

End of Greece - View rubric Turkey