By telling us your country of residence we are able to provide you with the most relevant travel insurance information.
Please note that not all content is translated or available to residents of all countries. Contact us for full details.
Shares
Vagabonding in Greece part one I didn’t have any plans, just a plane ticket. I’d never travelled by myself before. I didn’t know what to expect. I decided not to expect anything. Not to really prepare anything, either. No phone. No plans. Just my guitar, my suitcase and my wallet. I'll manage. I step off the plane around 10 Pm local time. There is a man with a neat combover wearing a tie and smiling like a million bucks. “Welcome to Athens” he says In flawless English. I love it here already. Before leaving the airport I see that there is an airport computer. How convenient. I find the address of a cheap hostel. 20 euros a night. Score. I bet I’ll be living like a Greek God here. I have no clue how to get there, but apparently it’s close to the city centre. I figure I’ll find my way once I’m there. How hard can it be? I'll manage. I board a bus and the first thing that hits me is that Athens is pretty huge. It’s dark outside and there are lights spanning all the way throughout the mountainous region and towards the city centre. I stare at the night sky with a sense of childlike wonder. I get off the bus and step into the crowded city square with my luggage bag, guitar case, and cowboy hat. I could not look more American. Street vendors and performers and restaurants galore. I’ve never been to Europe before, and the aroma of cheese and wine and cigarettes floating off the patios causes my romantic self to swoon a little. I walk up to the first kiosk that I see and I flash my biggest friendliest smile to the elderly man smoking at the counter. “Good evening sir! How do you do? I am looking for Sofokleos Street. I presume it is just within spitting distance from here, but alas, I am so foolish I thought I’d just ask to be sure. Ha-Ha! “ He looks at me like I was a alien. “Sofokleos?” I repeat. He just looks at me and says nothing. “SOOO-FOOO-KLLLLLEEEEEE-UUUUSSSS????” He motions for me to hand him the little slip of paper with the address He looks at it, face palms himself, and shakes his head. “Sofokleus” he says. He points down toward a street and then points again to the right. I gather he is saying keep going down that street and Sofokleus will eventually appear before me on the righthand side. Probably with big lights too. And a huge arrow. And some naked Greek goddess holding a big juicy vine of grapes and fanning leaves, waiting for my arrival. I’m walking down a busy cobblestone street with all my luggage. I feel the eyes of everyone upon me. Sofokleus is nowhere to be found. I’m sweating I keep walking down this endless street until everything around me looks deserted. I’m officially scared. Am I going to manage? I see a guy walking into a dark building. Something tells me he's trustworthy. Against every impulse in my body telling me not to, I ask him for help. To my relief, he speaks English. He invites me inside the building to use the telephone. I look inside and see a front desk with a concierge. It's a hostel. Turns out they're booked. But, they tell me how to get to the promise land of Sofokleus street. The promise land -cheapest hostel in all of Athens- is right outside of a fish market. I buzz into the lobby and a pretty girl at the counter receives me and asks me what possessed me not to book a room before one in the morning. I'm lucky. There is still one bunk in a co-ed room. I lug everything up two flights of stairs and taking the thin strange smelling sheet and pillow from the front desk with me I enter my dorm. There are dudes snoring away, fast asleep in all the other beds. I climb up onto the bunk and plop onto the bare mattress and sigh with relief. Just before I fall asleep, I see the smiling man at the airport counter. "Welcome to Athens"