After Bulgaria we headed down to Greece. The drive from Plovdiv to Thessaloniki was very enjoyable. First off, the scenery was beautiful! We drove through the Eastern edge of the Rhodope mountains following along the banks of the Varbitza river. This region is part of the Kardzali province which is dotted with villages populated by Bulgarian Turks who still live in very traditional way, including wearing traditional clothes like the salvar pants. This region is also known for several archeological ruins dating back from Thracian era (as old as 5000 B.C.). Unfortunately we could not detour to visit these ruins because we anticipated, correctly, a long wait at the border crossing (while Greece and Bulgaria are in the EU, most Eastern European countries are not in the Schengen Area, so you still have to wait at the borders and it is such a pain!) Second, majority of our drive in Greece was on the recently completed Egnatia Odos highway, aptly named after an ancient Roman road Via Egnatia that roughly followed the same route. Speed limit was about 80 miles per hour and the road was basically empty. And it was glorious.
We arrived to Thessaloniki on August 15th. This is the day of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary which is apparently a huge holiday in Greece. When I say huge, I mean comparable to Christmas. Everything closes and people leave the cities in masses to go back to their villages and islands and celebrate with family. They say that during these times big cities like Thessaloniki and Athens empty out completely, leaving only a few tourists (some probably extremely confused as to why everything is empty and closed). We, however, thought that this would be pretty cool to experience. And it was. It felt like we had Thessaloniki all to ourselves. Unfortunately for me I got a pretty nasty stomach bug which greatly weakened me and limited the amount of exploring we could do. It is sad actually that both times I’ve visited Greece (first time for our honeymoon) I’ve gotten really sick.
Thessaloniki reminded me a lot of Athens with its architecture (mainly mid rise buildings with large terraces and balconies, flat roofs, painted white). Just like Athens, Thessaloniki is full of history. While it may lack in the ancient Greek monuments there are still layers upon layers of history ranging from Byzantine churches and Roman walls to Ottoman mosques and hamams. But my favorite thing in Thessaloniki was the beautiful promenade that runs for about five miles along the Aegean sea. While it would be very interesting to go back and walk the promenade when it is hustling and bustling with all the locals, I must say I really enjoyed that we had it almost all to ourselves. We also had all the museums to ourselves! Who gets excited about that? Me!
While in Thessaloniki we visited the Zeitenlik military cemetery. This is one of the largest Allied Forces cemeteries from WWI as well as a WWI memorial. Over 8,000 French, 7,500 Serbian, 3,000 Italian, and 2,000 British soldiers are buried here. I feel like I have had the opportunity to honor many victims of WWII through these travels and wanted to take an opportunity to honor those who fought in WWI as well. I also got to learn a lot more about why this cemetery is in Thessaloniki.
Long story short WWI started after Austria-Hungary declared war on the country of Serbia after Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb, killed the Archduke Ferdinand in Sarajevo (in the country of Bosnia & Herzegovina which was, after the fall of Ottoman empire, handed over to the Habsburgs). Austro-Hungarian forces attacked Serbia in 1914 but Serbs put up quite a resistance in the Battle of Kolubara. Embarrassed by this Austro-Hungarians attacked again in 1915 this time reinforced by Germans as well as Bulgarians (who sided with Germany both in WWI and WWII, actually, in hopes of regaining lands lost to the Serbs and the Greeks in previous Balkan wars). Despite repeated promises, the French and the British did not send reinforcements to the Serbs in time (under the excuse that they did not want to weaken the Western front but likely because they were hoping that they would get Bulgaria to join the Allies in secret negotiations) and the two divisions arrived to the port of Thessaloniki way too late. Serbia fell to the Axis powers and the Serbian soldiers, greatly diminished in numbers, retreated from Serbia across Albanian mountains to the Albanian coast, where they were transported to safety to the island of Corfu.
Almost instantaneously, as if by master plan, the railroad linking Berlin and Istanbul was opened, tracks leading across Serbia (tracks which Serbia was not willing to cede to Austra-Hungry prior to the war). The railroad, which later went on to connect to Baghdad, is by many historians considered to be the true reason behind the start of WWI, as it would have given Germany direct access to the Persian Gulf and oil, threatening Britain and Russia (funny how war always seems to be due to economic reasons disguised under nationalistic reasons). Bulgaria was forbidden by the Germany to enter Greece (which was neutral at the time) in fear that this would provoke Greece into war. So Thessaloniki served as a safe place for the Serbian and the newly joined Allied forces to regroup and establish a front along the Serbia Greek border known as the Salonika or Macedonian front. Greece did eventually join the Allies and after several attacks in 1916 and 1917, Serbian and French forces finally broke through the Bulgarian lines, causing Bulgarian retreat and armistice to be signed. But thousands upon thousands of men died as witness by the thousands upon thousands of marble crosses spreading across the landscape at Zeitenlik. And this is only a portion of the men. You’d think we’d learn from history.
Pella and Vergina
For the rest of the time in Thessaloniki I slept, threw up, and popped Imodium like candy! After I rested up we decided to head over to a village of Litochoro, at the foot of Mt. Olympus but we detoured through towns of Pella and Vergina. Pella is an ancient city which is considered to be the birthplace of Alexander the Great and was the capital of Macedon during this time. While the town is landlocked right now, at that time the bay came up to the city and made it a great port. But after it silted, the capital was moved to Thessaoloniki during the Roman times. There was also an earthquake that leveled the city, which probably helped preserve some artifacts under the rubble.
The archeological museum at Pella was actually very well-organized, had a lot of relics (my favorite were the rare and distinctive phallus shaped vases which were used to store oils which were probably of an erotic or medicinal nature), and has the marble head of Alexander the Great (2nd century A.D), the one with the missing nose.
Vergina is the place where the tomb of Philip II, Alexander’s father, was excavated. We were able to go in and see the tomb as well as his armor and crown, but were not allowed to take pictures. But it was basically a big mound that you enter and all the tombs are built out and dug underground. It was pretty grand and spectacular (even though the entrance fee was quite costly).
Driving between Pella to Vergina we drove through miles and miles of nectarine orchards. And it was harvest time. Meaning that you can stop by the road and buy a kilo of nectarines, literally just picked from the tree, for less than a euro. And they were so juicy and delicious and refreshing! But it wasn’t just the nectarines, it was also the figs. They were in season! There is nothing more heavenly on earth then picking and eating a fresh, ripe fig right off the tree. They are the reason I regained my appetite after that nasty stomach bug.
As you can imagine, I was extremely worried that my stomach bug would prevent me from enjoying Greek food. I love Greek food. We patron a lot of Greek restaurants in Houston and we used to frequently go to Tarpon Springs, Florida. But nothing beats Greek food in Greece. My heart skips a beat when that slab of feta cheese approaches my table. On this trip we learned that eating food in Greece is a leisurely activity. At first we found it very unusual that our waiters did not pick up our plates and give us our bill the moment we put the last bite in our mouth. But we soon learned that in Greece it is impolite if the waiter gives you the check before you ask for it (that would mean that they are signaling for the guest to leave and that is not polite). If you don’t know this you may think that the waiters are rude for ignoring you or you may spend hours waiting for your check!
The other thing we learned, and LOVED, was that after they bring you your bill they also bring you a little complimentary dessert. It is usually fruit or baklava but can be little homemade ice cream (like we got below). How can you not love eating in a country where they give you complimentary dessert after you finish your meal! Especially when you are on a budget! TK was a happy happy man.
Litochoro and Mt. Olympus
We wanted to squeeze in a little hike while in Greece and decided to attempt and conquer Mt. Olympus. The original Mt. Olympus (as we have already conquered the one in Salt Lake City, Utah). So we based ourselves in the village of Litochoro. Unfortunately, the hike is very strenuous and typically divided in two days, and my body was extremely weak secondary to my illness that I just could not do it. So we decided to only hike up to the first refuge, Spilios Agapitos. I am not going to lie, hiking while recovering from an illness is a bad idea. I was miserable. After about one mile in my body felt like I hiked ten miles. The hike itself was also pretty steep as you gain some 1,000 meters in elevation in approximately eight km. I should have given up. But I had an extreme fear of missing out and I did not want to quit and I pushed and pulled and complained and moped all the way up to the refuge. But the views all around us were breathtaking!
While I am sad we did not reach the peak of Mt. Olympus, I put in a good effort. It gave me an excuse to lounge around in the shade and eat grapes the whole next day. Me and my lazy cat buddy.
Besides, the view of the sun setting over Mt. Olympus was pretty majestic in itself when viewed from the beach. And getting to the beach required no exertion. The village of Litochoro could not be in a better location. It is positioned right in between Mt. Olympus and the Aegean sea. The water was this pale blue color, almost translucent, and blended right into the sky. It is one of those places that is easy to reach both from Athens or Thessaloniki, but feels remote. It is the perfect place for another vacation in the future, especially since we have to go back and reach the peak!
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