Travelling is a passion
by Marcel Meyer
One week Athens from 7th to 14th September, this is the
Diploma travel of class07 of the TI-BFH Biel.
We started the travel on Friday 7th September at 5am. At this time we had to get on the train from Biel. Otherwise, we would be late to catch the plane in Mailand. Normally, at travels like this, always anyone will be late and miss the train. Anyway, everyone was punctual and got on the train to Brig. In Brig we changed the train (Cisalpino) to get to Mailand. Like it is with Italian trains, we arrived late at Mailand Centrale. Thus, we had to hurry to get to Malpensa, the Mailand Airport. However, we had enough time to check-in and to get on the plane. The flight to Athens took us 2h.
Arrived in Athens we took the train to the city center, after some arguments. To find the hostel was easy. Anyway, we couldn’t get in the rooms, than our reservation have been wrong noted in the hostel and the hostel was full. Thus, we had to go to a partner hostel, which is placed in the same street. But, this hostel was bad, then the rooms were small and the shower and toilets dirty.
After some minutes of accustom and the first beers we’ve been ready to get around in Athens and to find a place to eat. After some meters of walking we realized that the district where we are living is one of the scruffiest of Athens.
Then to get to Psiri, one of the outgoing areas of Athens, we passed dark and crowded streets with mysterious peoples. Athens is strange, then you can walk through these scruffy streets and just the neighbor street, can be the nicest outgoing area of Athens. The contrast here in Athens changes meter by meter. However, after passing several dark streets we found Psiri and a restaurant to eat. The restaurant was placed in a small street and we had some nice meals with Greek beer and wine. After the dinner we wanted to go out and hove some drinks in a bar. Psiri has nice small alleys with many bars, but they are always full and even expensive. Thus, without further ado Beni asked some guys on the street where a nice is to go which is more reasonable. They told us about Gazi. Though we didn’t know how to get there we followed the two guys to this place. Again we had to pass some dark and scruffy streets, few of us it became unpleasant. However, they took us to the right place where several bars are placed round a small park. There we drank some beers before most of the class went back to the hostel. Just Beni and I haven’t been tired and went out further more. We drop in to several different bars. Most of these bars were really expensive. We walked around in several districts and talked with many locals. Actually, we do not remember all the places we’ve been at this night, I guess to much beer!
Finally, we got back to the hostel. It was challenge to find the hostel then we passed a new way back to the hostel and we didn’t recognized any of the building.
The next morning started at 9am. Then we had to change the hostel again. Finally we could enter the rooms in the originally booked hostel. In this hostel the rooms are bigger and a shower in it.
After putting our stuff in the room we walked to the city center. Then there are all the Archeological such as Acropolis placed.
As a student we’ve got free entry to all the sights. That is fantastic here in Athens. We visited the Hadrian’s Library and of course all the Highlights on the Acropolis.
All these sights are very touristy. There you will walk midst of thousands other tourist. Then, in Athens there aren’t many places to visit.
Of course we found also some places to spend the after noon after this exhausting sights. Quite every day we turned in a small Tavern to drink a “Mythos”, the Greek beer, and to eat a real Greek salad with lot of Feta cheese.
We took a rest in hostel before we went on for dinner. These relaxing times we spent often with playing “Jasse”, which is a Swiss card came. For dinner we went to the “Hard Rock Café” it is placed in the city center like everything else to go here in Athens. The food was standard, but good.
Because we’ve been at the other end of the Center we went this time to Plaka instead if Psiri. Plaka is a lovely district in the center, with narrow alleys and lovely small restaurant placed in the alleys or on terraces. There and just there you can find the real and lovely Athens. Most of the city is dirty and scruffy. Thus, there is nothing to see.
Afterwards I went with Andreas to a Bar to smoke water pipe and have an overpriced beer.
The next day was already Sunday. In the lonely Planet I red about that the guards of the Parliament Building are changing every Sunday at 10.45.
We’ve been just some of the class who had been willing to stand up earlier to see this spectacle. It is really worth to stand up and see this changing. The guards are wearing these strange costumes and walking specially. For the Sunday ceremony they blockade the street in front of the parliaments building. Then, for this special changing, the guards are companied by a band.
In the afternoon we met the rest of the class, who haven’t been to the guard changing, at the Temple of Zeus. This was the biggest Temple early ages. Nowadays, there are just some columns of this immense construction.
To get a better view over the city of Athens we walked up to the Lykavittos Hill. Some of us took the cable car to get up the 200m high hill. Up there you have a great view over Athens and it is the first time you can imaging how big this city is.
For the last night we went again to Psiri for dinner. This time we took a lovely but not even cheap restaurant. However, to celebrate a farewell of Athens it was great. After we went to some different bars and had some beers and water pipe too.
For the rest of the week we booked three apartments at the beach. The beach of Vakiza is some km outside of Athens. Before we went there we took some time to shop around in Athens.
After, we went to Vakiza. To get there it was quite easy, then there are public busline which reaches Vakiza. Thus we took the Metro to the Bus station and after the bus to the Beach.
In Vakiza we had three big and nice apartments. Here we didn’t do a lot. We chilled at the beach and drank masses of Greek beer, Mythos it is called.
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The first three days we cooked by our own and played card until in the morning. These four days were really relaxing. For the last dinner we went out. But because the season was over, most of the bars have been closed. Thus, we went back to the apartment after dinner.
This week just passed by so quickly. Then it was already Friday and the day to go home. We went by bus to the Airport. Because, the timetables of the buses aren’t precise, we calculated enough time to get there. So, we had to wait for more than one hour at the Airport.
The Trip back home went fairly like we planed. Just the Cisalpino, the Italian train, was late again. Thus, we had to worry about the connection trains in Brig and Bern. Thanks to the SBB that they stopped the connection trains for us and we got at time back home.
We started the travel on Friday 7th September at 5am. At this time we had to get on the train from Biel. Otherwise, we would be late to catch the plane in Mailand. Normally, at travels like this, always anyone will be late and miss the train. Anyway, everyone was punctual and got on the train to Brig. In Brig we changed the train (Cisalpino) to get to Mailand. Like it is with Italian trains, we arrived late at Mailand Centrale. Thus, we had to hurry to get to Malpensa, the Mailand Airport. However, we had enough time to check-in and to get on the plane. The flight to Athens took us 2h.
Arrived in Athens we took the train to the city center, after some arguments. To find the hostel was easy. Anyway, we couldn’t get in the rooms, than our reservation have been wrong noted in the hostel and the hostel was full. Thus, we had to go to a partner hostel, which is placed in the same street. But, this hostel was bad, then the rooms were small and the shower and toilets dirty.
After some minutes of accustom and the first beers we’ve been ready to get around in Athens and to find a place to eat. After some meters of walking we realized that the district where we are living is one of the scruffiest of Athens.
Then to get to Psiri, one of the outgoing areas of Athens, we passed dark and crowded streets with mysterious peoples. Athens is strange, then you can walk through these scruffy streets and just the neighbor street, can be the nicest outgoing area of Athens. The contrast here in Athens changes meter by meter. However, after passing several dark streets we found Psiri and a restaurant to eat. The restaurant was placed in a small street and we had some nice meals with Greek beer and wine. After the dinner we wanted to go out and hove some drinks in a bar. Psiri has nice small alleys with many bars, but they are always full and even expensive. Thus, without further ado Beni asked some guys on the street where a nice is to go which is more reasonable. They told us about Gazi. Though we didn’t know how to get there we followed the two guys to this place. Again we had to pass some dark and scruffy streets, few of us it became unpleasant. However, they took us to the right place where several bars are placed round a small park. There we drank some beers before most of the class went back to the hostel. Just Beni and I haven’t been tired and went out further more. We drop in to several different bars. Most of these bars were really expensive. We walked around in several districts and talked with many locals. Actually, we do not remember all the places we’ve been at this night, I guess to much beer!
Finally, we got back to the hostel. It was challenge to find the hostel then we passed a new way back to the hostel and we didn’t recognized any of the building.
The next morning started at 9am. Then we had to change the hostel again. Finally we could enter the rooms in the originally booked hostel. In this hostel the rooms are bigger and a shower in it.
After putting our stuff in the room we walked to the city center. Then there are all the Archeological such as Acropolis placed.
As a student we’ve got free entry to all the sights. That is fantastic here in Athens. We visited the Hadrian’s Library and of course all the Highlights on the Acropolis.
All these sights are very touristy. There you will walk midst of thousands other tourist. Then, in Athens there aren’t many places to visit.
Of course we found also some places to spend the after noon after this exhausting sights. Quite every day we turned in a small Tavern to drink a “Mythos”, the Greek beer, and to eat a real Greek salad with lot of Feta cheese.
We took a rest in hostel before we went on for dinner. These relaxing times we spent often with playing “Jasse”, which is a Swiss card came. For dinner we went to the “Hard Rock Café” it is placed in the city center like everything else to go here in Athens. The food was standard, but good.
Because we’ve been at the other end of the Center we went this time to Plaka instead if Psiri. Plaka is a lovely district in the center, with narrow alleys and lovely small restaurant placed in the alleys or on terraces. There and just there you can find the real and lovely Athens. Most of the city is dirty and scruffy. Thus, there is nothing to see.
Afterwards I went with Andreas to a Bar to smoke water pipe and have an overpriced beer.
The next day was already Sunday. In the lonely Planet I red about that the guards of the Parliament Building are changing every Sunday at 10.45.
We’ve been just some of the class who had been willing to stand up earlier to see this spectacle. It is really worth to stand up and see this changing. The guards are wearing these strange costumes and walking specially. For the Sunday ceremony they blockade the street in front of the parliaments building. Then, for this special changing, the guards are companied by a band.
In the afternoon we met the rest of the class, who haven’t been to the guard changing, at the Temple of Zeus. This was the biggest Temple early ages. Nowadays, there are just some columns of this immense construction.
To get a better view over the city of Athens we walked up to the Lykavittos Hill. Some of us took the cable car to get up the 200m high hill. Up there you have a great view over Athens and it is the first time you can imaging how big this city is.
For the last night we went again to Psiri for dinner. This time we took a lovely but not even cheap restaurant. However, to celebrate a farewell of Athens it was great. After we went to some different bars and had some beers and water pipe too.
For the rest of the week we booked three apartments at the beach. The beach of Vakiza is some km outside of Athens. Before we went there we took some time to shop around in Athens.
After, we went to Vakiza. To get there it was quite easy, then there are public busline which reaches Vakiza. Thus we took the Metro to the Bus station and after the bus to the Beach.
In Vakiza we had three big and nice apartments. Here we didn’t do a lot. We chilled at the beach and drank masses of Greek beer, Mythos it is called.
The first three days we cooked by our own and played card until in the morning. These four days were really relaxing. For the last dinner we went out. But because the season was over, most of the bars have been closed. Thus, we went back to the apartment after dinner.
This week just passed by so quickly. Then it was already Friday and the day to go home. We went by bus to the Airport. Because, the timetables of the buses aren’t precise, we calculated enough time to get there. So, we had to wait for more than one hour at the Airport.
The Trip back home went fairly like we planed. Just the Cisalpino, the Italian train, was late again. Thus, we had to worry about the connection trains in Brig and Bern. Thanks to the SBB that they stopped the connection trains for us and we got at time back home.
