Greek vacation from my vacation....

Hello all, I apologize for being remiss with my blog postings. I know you were all bored without my updates;) Laurna and I have been putting in some serious beach time in Greece for the past two weeks, and I haven't had the chance to put together a post. So here we go, back on track.

First stop was Mykonos. It was a great island! We rented a small atv, which was pretty much one of those powerwheels that some may have had as kids, to get around. The beaches were amazing; blue green crystal clear water and very little crowds. Fall is definitely the best time for that island. White marble streets and white houses with blue trim filled out the downtown area.

From there we headed to Santorini. Santorini is a C shaped cliff island elevated around 500' above the sea. The c shape is due to a volcanic eruption blowing out the island center in the second century BC. Towns line the cliff; some appear to be sliding off. We spent more time relaxing on various beaches. Interesting fact was that they are all made of colored volcanic sands. There was a red, white, and a black beach. We also took a boat ride on a catamaran and swam in an area of the sea heated by the still active volcano.

Our final island stop was a small town called Paleochora on the southwest corner of Crete. I can't recommend that town, really the entire island, enough! The perimeter consists of gorgeous beaches and inland there are 7500' mountain ranges! The mountains are speckled with goats (seriously), tiny mountain communities, and terraced with grapes/olive trees. There are hiking trails and vineyards throughout. Highlight of our trip was hiking along the coastal E4 trail and discovering untouched beaches! A longer stay is definitely warranted!

Following Crete, Laurna and I headed back to Athens and spent a day checking out the sites. Unfortunately, the next morning she flew back to Denver. Now I am pushing on to visit Ljubljana, Bled, and the Julian Alps in Slovenia. But first a pit stop in Venice, Italy. Tons of canal pictures coming soon to a blog post near you.

Here is Greece in pictures:

Sunset on Mykonos .

Shot of the ruins on the island of Delos that we visited. This is the most spiritual place for Greeks.

We stayed in a little bungalow on this beach.

Famous windmills of Mykonos.

Cliffs of Santorini. Note the towns sliding down the hill;)

View of the town of Oia on Santorini.

Laurna enjoying local cuising. Yes there are french fries on that gyro, who woulda thunk it??

Black beach in Santorini.

Cool stone formations from the volcanic activity as seen from our boat ride.

Hair styled by catamaran.

Quick pit stop at the ruins of Knossos in Crete.

Whoa!! Goats all over the highway on a mountain pass heading to Paleochora!

Secret beach we hiked to.

Another cool beach with round stones.