As always, I plan my trips with Excel. Here’s the one I made for Greece, cleaned up just a bit to remove notes for our group (everybody had access to it), and fixed the formatting a little. I’ve also included a sheet with my actual travel expenses during the trip, and another sheet with these travel notes:<\/p>\n
Electrical plugs<\/strong> Changing of the guards<\/strong> We got lucky when we stood towards the right, where the soldiers were. When the replacement Evzones stepped out, we got a clear view of the change right in the gap between soldiers. The best view, I think, would be from a corner room with a balcony at the Grand Bretagne Hotel<\/a>.<\/p>\n Best place to view the Acropolis<\/strong> Ancient sites<\/strong> Acropolis Pass<\/strong> Shoes<\/strong>
\nGreece and the rest of Europe uses the Type C or Europlug<\/a>. My biggest gripe with their sockets is that it’s set lower than normal, so your plug has to be right in the middle, and it has to be round so it can fit. I don’t know how else to describe it, so just check it out this photo on Airliners.net<\/a>.
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\nTimezone<\/strong>
\nGreece is at GMT +03:00, and is five hours behind the Philippines, so when you’re posting photos of how awesome your trip is, your friends and family back home are either slogging through another hellish work day or already getting ready for bed.
\nOpening hours, siesta, Sundays \u2013 I’m not sure if it’s just because of the season, but opening hours in Greece seems to be much later than what we’re used to. We arrived in Chania at 6 am, and it was still very dark out. The sky started getting lighter around 7 am, and the Starbucks crew arrived around 8 am and promptly started cleaning and setting up shop. They opened their doors at 8:30 am. Some shops close early, and our host in Mykonos told us that some close for siesta and open again in the early evening. Most shops are closed on Sundays, but tourist attractions are open, so make sure to note that when you draft your itinerary.<\/p>\n
\nIf you’re in Athens on a Sunday, head out to the Parliament building at 10:30 to watch the ceremonial changing of the guards.<\/em><\/div>\n
\nThe Evzones that guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in front of the Parliament in Syntagma square in Athens change every hour. You can have your photo taken with them, but only one person at a time, and you can’t touch them, make funny faces, or salute. If you want the full experience though, it’s best to watch on a Sunday, but be ready to battle with the crowds of tourists. We got there around 10:25, thinking we have more than enough time, but by 10:30, the commanding officer asked all the tourists to step back as he commanded the guards to switch places. As 11:00 neared, the crowd was asked to move further back. It turns out that instead of just the replacement two guards coming it, it’d be a whole parade. So if you want to have a front row view of the parade, make sure you’re at the island right in the middle of the road by 10:45, but you’d have to be quick to run back to the opposite side to get a good view of the guards. <\/p>\n
\nWhile you can see Athens spread out from the Acropolis, you can see Athens AND the Acropolis from Lykovittos Hill. You can reach the summit by taking a funicular from Kolonaki, but if you managed to walk from Syntagma Square to the funicular station, you can probably walk all the way up. Think twice about doing it in the summer.<\/p>\n
\nYou’d have to climb lots of stairs if you’re walking up to the funicular station to go up Lykovittos Hill.<\/em><\/div>\n
\nThe ancient sites in Athens are centered around the area of the Acropolis. If they’re the main reason you’re in Greece, it’s better to spend a little more for accommodation in the Plaka area. If you’re staying in Plaka, you can easily walk to the all the ancient sites in the Acropolis area, to the restaurants in Plaka, to the shops in Syntagma and Monastiraki, and even all the way to Kolonaki, if you’re determined enough. The Palace of Knossos in Crete and the Ancient site of Delos also require a fair bit of walking within the complex (or island, in the case of Delos), but to get there, you’d have to take a bus (Knossos), or a ferry (Delos).<\/p>\n
\nWalking up to the Acropolis from the Ancient Agora<\/em><\/div>\n
\nWhen you visit the Acropolis, they will give you an Acropolis Pass, which for \u20ac12 gives you access to seven ancient sites in Athens for up to four days upon purchase. This includes the Acropolis, the Ancient Agora, the Theatre of Dionysus, and the Temple of Zeus.<\/p>\n
\nCobblestones abound in Oia in Santorini, so pick your footwear accordingly.<\/em><\/div>\n
\nIf you’re going to be walking a lot, it’s best to do it with comfortable and sturdy footwear. Yes, your cute ballet flats are very comfy, but there never seem to be a shortage of cobblestone streets in Greece, especially around the tourist areas. Going up the Acropolis meant climbing stairs, stepping on huge rocks, and sometimes loose gravel. Santorini also requires some walking up and down stairs, so bear that in mind when you’re packing your favorite footwear.<\/p>\n