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  1. #1
    Thailand Expat
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    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece

    BA had a good fare to Athens so I've hopped over for a week or so.

    The flight was sorted by a friend for a favour owed. Out economy, back club. I was offered an "upgrade" at LHR for 99 quid but it seemed senseless. Economy only had 30 pax.

    i had to register with the Greek health website with flight details and proposed address in Greece. They sent, as promised on the website, the QR code ready for scanning and checking at entry.

    All but two pax were wearing masks onboard.

    i booked a couple of nights at a new hipsterish hotel off Omonia. Browns Hotel. Not great. A 60s buildingbthat's had a superficial makeover. I suspect they were targetting Asian tour groups when the place opened earlier this year. It has great reviews. I suspected that most were fake.

    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-b506bb0f-3b42-429e-8f76-fa0e4053bc3c-jpg

    ^ the lift at the Browns Hotel. I doubt its "covid secure"

    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-16378d1e-3e13-4276-ad34-ce56045d4c98-jpeg

    the view from the room. 75 euros a night.
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-b90eaddd-61c1-4e1b-aac4-033567618ca0-jpg  

  2. #2
    Thailand Expat
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    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-66d5ba0a-74de-4f33-8fef-c679f1c475bc-jpg

    students were protesting about lack of ppe in school, class sizes, lack of teachers. It can't have been much fun being in a 40C classroom this Summer.

    it seemed good natured enough. The cafe and numerous smart businesses near Syntagma closed shutters as they passed

    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-a6fb8d41-1d51-4a50-b9d0-f93d00ae5ef3-jpg

  3. #3
    Thailand Expat
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    Omonia Square has had a makeover. Now the migrants, dealers and 10 euro rent boys can do their thing with a pretty fountain as a back-drop.

    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-9c45894e-7475-4b1f-ad1b-b066c8a7b3d2-jpg

  4. #4
    Thailand Expat
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    Two days in Athens was enough. So metro to Piraeus and a short walk to the ferry stand for Aegina.

    there's a ferry every 1-2 hours. The hydrofoil is faster (c40 mind vs 1.5 hours) but noisy as F. I opted for the slow boat. Change from 10e. They haveca cafe on board or you can sit on deck.

    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-54cc8cc4-9366-469d-b6e9-54fdbd846feb-jpg

    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-a73dd949-6021-4aeb-a8ab-b417213e1783-jpg

  5. #5
    Thailand Expat
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    Car hire on Aegina was relatively expensive. 30 e a day. I stumbled across a guest house on thecwater edge at Perdika. 30 e a night. Basic but clean. There's a swim ladder into sea from the small jetty. Here's a view from outside room

    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-065e5ac7-4b80-467c-a01e-22273ff0e84e-jpg

  6. #6
    Thailand Expat
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    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-eab09761-e7dd-403a-8095-be36cfb17702-jpg

    there wsca small cafe off reception. The owner locked up after 7 pm ish. Guests could BYO in the evenings.

  7. #7
    Thailand Expat
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    Perdika was once a small fishi g village. It's now popular with cashed up Athenians. A three deck boat there plus dozens of 30-60 ft gin anchored in the bay

    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-7f451ade-0ef6-4021-8374-3d98e5bf2598-jpg

  8. #8
    Thailand Expat
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    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-90e27a9b-9b92-467d-89bb-07eb68221708-jpg

    lots of pebbly coves along coast

  9. #9
    Thailand Expat
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    BA allowed date change for return without charge. I'be jumped on a ferry to Chios and Lesvos. Lesvos should be interesting. It's popular with migrants and lesbians due to its proximity to Turkey.

  10. #10
    Thailand Expat misskit's Avatar
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    Looks lovely. Wish I was there!

  11. #11
    Hangin' Around cyrille's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Lostandfound View Post
    It's popular with migrants and lesbians due to its proximity to Turkey.
    Stands to reason really, dunnit.

  12. #12
    Thailand Expat
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    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-1d007d5e-9618-4bcc-ade5-44903d333530-jpgFed up with the UK so gone to Greece-f1b25ef5-0ac3-4972-84d0-083df39096c3-jpgFed up with the UK so gone to Greece-88cdc72c-89af-42fa-bfad-9c9cc29e6c03-jpgFed up with the UK so gone to Greece-4bd66fe2-b438-47de-8f50-e50d86e60f1a-jpgFed up with the UK so gone to Greece-34b80e99-12a4-44a3-b9df-85e532a870c7-jpgFed up with the UK so gone to Greece-1aa9df17-fc74-4a7e-8381-e096f6fe7cdf-jpgFed up with the UK so gone to Greece-1d007d5e-9618-4bcc-ade5-44903d333530-jpgFed up with the UK so gone to Greece-f1b25ef5-0ac3-4972-84d0-083df39096c3-jpgFed up with the UK so gone to Greece-88cdc72c-89af-42fa-bfad-9c9cc29e6c03-jpg

    35 e a night inc bf. NW part of Lesvos

  13. #13
    Thailand Expat
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    25C temperature

    beach not busy

    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-79ced902-80e5-4480-afbc-a6e438aa887c-jpgFed up with the UK so gone to Greece-fc7825f0-631e-4de1-bb24-82e66550a425-jpgFed up with the UK so gone to Greece-bf25625d-b70d-4ff1-8af5-448e3b3a2d27-jpg

  14. #14
    . Neverna's Avatar
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    What's the link between lesbians and Turkey?

  15. #15
    Thailand Expat
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    You never met any Turkish men then....?

  16. #16
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    Hi L&F. Are you the one who bought/ lived on a sailboat, then sold it & bought an RV/ motorhome? If yes, may I ask if you still have the motorhome, and where is it now? Just curious - I've watched a lot of vanlife/ motorhome YT vids lately. Thanks for the pics & stories, much appreciated!

  17. #17
    In Uranus
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    Quote Originally Posted by katie23 View Post
    I've watched a lot of vanlife/ motorhome YT vids lately.
    You might enjoy these channels...

    venture4wd - YouTube

    https://www.youtube.com/c/Weretherussos/featured

  18. #18
    Thailand Expat
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    Circa 3000 miles is around 7 tanks of fuel so over £800. Tolls another £400. Ferries uk/fr and It/greece £700+

    plus a lot of driving van makes sense for several months to Greece.

    for two weeks or so it's easier to fly and rent a car

    the Cctv showing the van on the driveway in UK!
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-84ead53f-4d15-4c03-8da9-4dda15823cc4-jpeg  

  19. #19
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    ^good to know that the van is still alive & well! How about the dog?

    @snub - thanks for the vanlife recos, will check them out.

  20. #20
    Thailand Expat Backspin's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Lostandfound View Post
    Omonia Square has had a makeover. Now the migrants, dealers and 10 euro rent boys can do their thing with a pretty fountain as a back-drop.

    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-9c45894e-7475-4b1f-ad1b-b066c8a7b3d2-jpg
    What about rent ladies ?

  21. #21
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    The thread could be better enjoyed when the pictures are enlarged. Don't you know the trick to click on the picture and select the large size?

  22. #22
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    You are so lucky. I love Greece, Thank you for sharing. I hope to be there for Easter.
    More pictures please.
    I started the process in getting a Greek passport, and all that remains is for me to go there and sign some papers, but I am stuck in the US. Funny you would mention Aegina , the wife and me are looking to buy a vacation place there or in Salamina where my brother has a place. But I like Aegina more. And Aegina is more of a tourist place so if we were not using the place we can do short time rentals.
    45 min from Piraeus on the Flying Dolphin, an Hour with a car on the Ferryboat .
    Also a Greek passport will make it easier to get visa extensions in Thailand because the Greek embassy still issues income certificates. By the way a 250,000 Euro investment in real estate in Greece gets you Greek citizenship.
    Citizenship by Investment Greece
    Sales of residential properties in Aegina (Argosaronikos islands) | HomeGreekHome.com

    When we complete the process my wife will have triple citizenship. (Thai, US, Greek) LOL

    I cant wait for this Covid BS to be over,!!
    Here we are 2018 BC (before covid)
    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-img_3318-jpg
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-img_3312-jpg  
    The sooner you fall behind, the more time you have to catch up.

  23. #23
    Thailand Expat
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    The Saronic has been cleaned up in recent years and Aegina is an easy Athens commute. It's also very doable as a long weekend flying in from N Europe. The new airport is further out but a 50 e taxi ride is still not bad.

    greeks are notorious for under investing in their properties. I reckon it explains why the big brand hotels in Athens command 250-1200 e a night yet 4 star local hotels struggle to get 100e. The Indian and Chinese markets look(ed?) set to transform the Athens hotel biz. The Acropolis is on the bucket list for the Instagram generation.

    I took the ferry to Lesvos. Flights were available for c 100e but the same price got my own comfortable and clean cabin. 8pm dep 8am arrival. I tried buying the ticket on line without success. it was easy just to buy at the kiosk at port Gate E2 for Lesvos. It's wise to know this in advance, i was obliged to use the hopelessly signposted shuttle bus full of dodhy looking migrant types

    Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-67b77fc5-f628-4925-baaa-8134a02ecd66-jpg
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-0085d4d8-f769-48e0-bc48-1052a2b02f29-jpg  

  24. #24
    Thailand Expat
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    The gypsies run a scam with youngsters playing accordions and a barely visible plastic cup in front for coins

    Perfectly takung advantage of liberal guilt - tourists knock it over as they walk past and feeling guilty hand over a a few euros.

    spot the cup....
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Fed up with the UK so gone to Greece-823ff377-7cd4-483f-874c-3e623caf5999-jpeg  

  25. #25
    Thailand Expat
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    Quote Originally Posted by Backspin View Post
    What about rent ladies ?

    i enquired and was quoted 35 euros for 15 minutes from a tidy looking young Bulgarian lady. She actually looked a bit oriental, although it could just be Hep B. 35e did sound reasonable. However no mention was made of the cost of 16 or even 18 minutes if things took that long. So I made my excuses and left.

    The heroin girls are possibly cheaper. There's an alley full of them shooting up near the Hondos centre behind Omonia. Possibly 5-10e and then only if youre curious from a sociological/epidemiologic perspective.

    if you're budget concious the boys might be cheaper. Stories of 2-5 euro trysts in Pedion Aries Park - in the the New York Times no less. In an attempt to deflect from the migrants' lack of professionalism and work ethic in this regard the NGOs have coined the term "survival sex" for these lighter on the wallet transactions.

    That said, in a demand led market, expect to pay 30-40e if you're keen to close a deal and fear competitive offers.

    in any case, ask them to shower thoroughly.

    Hope that helps :-)
    Last edited by Lostandfound; 08-10-2020 at 02:44 PM.

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