Greece, the encounters with people along the way are an important goal of our world tour for us. In this blog we share our experiences with the encounters we have in Greece.
The travelers
Many contacts are fleeting, meetings are short, also in Greece. As travelers we have a chat with each other and exchange our travel experiences. Then we continue on our way, with new inspiration and fresh tips for the rest of our travels.
Sometimes we meet fellow travelers with whom we click. We hike for a few days, drink a cup of coffee or a beer and spend hours talking about our lives as travelers or the other things that keep us busy. We especially experience that click with fellow overlanders, people who have made travel their life, sometimes temporarily, sometimes for a longer period of time.
Local residents
Meetings with the locals in Greece are scarce, especially in this winter season. We do notice that many Greeks in the “hospitality business” nowadays speak good English, which was different 20 years ago.
In the smaller villages, more inland, people are curious about us as travelers. Especially because there are not so many travelers in this winter season. Our car is extra noticeable and people are soon inclined to raise their hands or have a chat. It usually doesn’t get much further than a chat and that’s fine. The language barrier also plays a greater role in the interior and we often have to make do with hands and feet, or Google Translate.
The special Greek encounters
We would like to mention a number of our Greek encounters. These people have made a great contribution to our special trip through Greece, because of them we will always remember Greece.
Angelo
We meet Angelo in Olympia. It is a sunny day and few people are present at the archaeological site. An American lecturer and his assistant are recording lectures and telling the most exciting stories in his camera.
At (24) on the map below, the Phideas workshop and the Paleochristian basilica, we meet Angelo with his team of archaeologists.
Angelo talks enthusiastically about his work, in fluent English with the occasional French word in between. He is happy to be working in Greece again after years of working in Canada and France as an archaeologist.
The excavation that is currently underway aims to rebuild the Paleochristian basilica in such a way that the shape becomes more recognizable. Many elements of the basilica have been preserved, making this reconstruction quite possible.
Angelo is very passionate about his work and talks a lot about the current activities and the plans that are yet to be realized here in Olympia.
When we ask him if he has any tips for our further tour through Greece, he comes up with a whole list of various archaeological sites and other interesting, especially historical places. Angelo travels intensively with us in the following weeks and we have regular contact via whatsapp.
Martin
In the parking lot at the temple of Apollo Epicurius we meet Martin. Actually we have met each other a few times on the way to the temple. Apparently we took about the same route from Olympia.
When we arrive at the end of the day, the entrance to the temple is closed and we have just decided to spend the night here, in the foggy parking lot, when Martin arrives. He drives a converted school bus for 15 children. The installation is basic, but easy to do for him and his dog. His wife has chosen not to make this trip.
Martin invites us for a cup of coffee and tea and we exchange travel stories. He has traveled a lot by motorcycle, but now chooses to travel by camper bus. He tells us that he invariably wakes up at about 5 am and then goes out for a walk.
The next morning we say goodbye and have a good trip. Martin has already made a tour of the site, we leave after breakfast.
Carol
We signed up with WorkAway, an organization that matches travelers with local residents offering work in exchange for shelter and food.
We have found a suitable address on the Mani peninsula. A Frenchwoman offers a studio in exchange for work in the garden and on the house. We agreed to arrive at her place in mid-December, on Thursday or Friday.
Thursday morning we decide to drive to Marmari and send Carol a message: “we will arrive today”. Dring the afternoon we indeed arrive at the address. Only no Carol, the dog catches on, but Carol does not show up. After a while she does show herself, with a sleepy head and many excuses. She missed our message and thought we wouldn’t come until tomorrow.
A little later we are installed in the studio. A nice room with a bathroom and a kitchenette is our stay for the coming time.
We get to know Carol better the next day as a cheerful chatterbox. She is happy to converse with her in French. She tells about her life as an artist, especially in circus and theater. We share our adventures and have an interested listener in her.
Besides working in the garden and painting furniture, we spend a lot of time together, but we also have time for ourselves. On Sonja’s birthday, Carol cooks extensively for us and we party with music, bubbles and cheerful and profound conversation. We watch the World Cup match of France against Argentina together and we cheer together for France (which previously defeated the Netherlands). Unfortunately, France also loses to Argentina, but this does not disturb our cozy atmosphere.
All in all, we are having a great time with Carol and she gives us the assurance that we will meet more interesting people with WorkAway.
Wilma and Marcel
When we have found a spot at the campsite in Leonidio, we decide that we can stay here for a few days. It’s almost Christmas and we deserve some rest after our hard work at Carol.
On Christmas morning I find a response in MiladyLandy’s mailbox: “Fancy a Christmas drink? We are close to the beach 😇. Happy Travels Wilma & Marcel (white Mercedes Vario)“.
We look for the Mercedes bus and find Wilma and Marcel having morning tea on their terrace in the shade.
The promised drink follows later and we can’t stop talking about our common passion, traveling. Wilma and Marcel have been traveling for a long time, with different vehicles they have already been to most continents.
Marcel is a dredger and project manager and Wilma is a lawyer. They both mainly work online, a few days a week. The other days they enjoy the traveling life, especially in sunny regions.
A few drinks sessions later it’s New Year’s Eve and we celebrate the old and the new year together with my traditional oliebollen, a meal made together and a bottle of bubbles and so on.
We have a great time together and laugh a bit with the four of us.
Grigor and Laura
During, or rather just after the turn of the year, Grigor and Laura come to wish us a happy new year. They are our neighbors at the campsite in Leonidio and have come from Bulgaria to climb here for a week. They share their raki with us and we share our travel stories.
The next morning, Grigor and Sonja share some interesting places in Bulgaria. They agree to keep in touch when we travel through Bulgaria.
Miss Meli
As we drive into the mountains from Leonidio we stop in the village of Kosmas for lunch. The village is high up, above 1,000 meters, and it is fresh on the terraces. We find a tent where we can eat our sandwich with a cup of coffee/tea by the fireplace.
After lunch we go looking for yogurt and we end up in the shop of “Mrs. Meli”. She, a typical Greek woman of well over 70, runs the shop where she sells various cookies and other baked goods. We get out our best Greek, because Mrs. Meli doesn’t speak anything else and she likes to do that, speak. And in a loud voice, is she deaf? Or does she think we understand her better because she speaks loudly? We order some pastries, cookies and something with honey and she enthusiastically shows us what else she has to offer. That and that and that and of course “MELI” (honey). Loud and in a sharp tone she tries to convince us that we should also buy MELI.
For days we can laugh about Mrs. Meli and when we see honey for sale somewhere, we still remember each other, loud and sharp: MELI.
Rene
As everywhere on our travels we are followed by local Land Rover owners. The Land Rover community is very close-knit and supportive everywhere. We have been approached or approached digitally by fellow Land Rover owners several times. We always have fond memories of that.
René Konijnenberg sends us a message via Facebook when we are in Mani. He gives all kinds of tips for our stay in “De Mani” and our further journey to the north of Greece. If we take a closer look at his Facebook profile, we see that he runs his own travel company, Hellas Travel Designers. He has decades of experience in Greece and inspires us with his versatile tips. From beautiful beaches to cozy restaurants and challenging unpaved slopes, René knows where to find them all and is happy to share them with us.
On the beach of Polemarcha near Epidavros, René invites us to have a barbecue together. We have a pleasant evening, partly thanks to the campfire and the tasty snacks that we prepare together. The fire, the wine and our shared passion, traveling with the Land Rover Defender provide many stories and a rich exchange of experiences.
The next morning we meet in Ancient Epidavros on a terrace and then drive to the theater of Epidavros. René has all kinds of facts about the area and after a coffee on the terrace we drive together, on mostly unpaved roads, to the famous theater of Epidavros.