Hi Again!
It’s Monday morning and the first week is over! My parents were right; my time here is going to fly by. We’ve finally started our blog! We have visited three beaches, multiple restaurants/lounges and the Papadiamantis museum. We’ve had our first frappes (Greek iced coffee) of the summer and MANY horiatiki salates (Greek salad).
Papadiamantis Street is very well known here in Skiathos. It’s a cobblestone street that goes on forever with shops and restaurants. If you take one turn off the main street, you automatically will get lost in the small backroads of the town, but you will find some of the most well hidden eating places and shops. We did some research on the famous Alexander Papdiamantis, who has impacted many Greeks with his beautiful writing.
Given that it's the high season for Skiathos, there are many tourists who come and go. Tori and I were sitting at a lounge near the port the other night and started talking to two couples who were from England. They had mentioned that they have been coming here for many years every summer. Many famous celebrities, including Goldie Hawn and Kate Hudson, come here every summer. It's a welcoming place, gorgeous, has over 50 beautiful beaches to explore.
On a side note, we have run into a couple of difficulties with calling family and friends back home. It is very expensive, unless you have WiFi to use Skype. WiFi seems to be available in the center of town at almost every café, restaurant or lounge. However, Tori and I are staying at an apartment that doesn’t have access to WiFi. So here was our solution... buying a USB Vodafone stick that plugs into your computer for 50 euros. The 50 euros buys you 4 GB over 30 days. When you use Skype and video chatting, those GBs are used up REALLY fast!
As for phones, I would recommend unlocking your iphones/smartphones before getting to the island. Once you are here, buy a Greek Sim card to put in your phone. Then you can load the phone with pre-paid minutes. That adds up as well, but not as quickly as the WiFi!
We will be doing a lot of research this week, so keep checking back for more updates!
Kalimera!
Stephanie
It’s Monday morning and the first week is over! My parents were right; my time here is going to fly by. We’ve finally started our blog! We have visited three beaches, multiple restaurants/lounges and the Papadiamantis museum. We’ve had our first frappes (Greek iced coffee) of the summer and MANY horiatiki salates (Greek salad).
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| Tori and I enjoying our frappes! |
Tori and I started off the week, trying to get our bearings around the island before we actually had to start working. We did not have to be asked twice! We’ve been to beaches Alchliades, Megali Amos and Koukounaries. They all had a different feel to them, but at the same time had amazing sand and warm water to swim in. The sun is beating hot during the day, so people on the island tend to go to the beach around 3pm and leave around 8pm. It’s totally different from home when we would wake up super early to get parking and then leave around 5pm.
We’ve discovered many different really good restaurants, bars and lounges. My personal favorite so far has been Mediterraneo. It is located on a balcony overlooking the port and it has the most amazing view I’ve seen yet. It has a casual feel to it and the staff there wasn’t overbearing. Here’s a picture that Tori took of me during dinner... |
| Alchliades Beach. Absolute paradise with a very good restaurant called Maniatis Garden. |
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| Koukounaries Beach. This is the place to go. It's a huge crescent beach that has water sports, restaurants and bars along the walk ways. |
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| Me at the restaurant Mediterraneo and behind me is the port where all the bars and lounges are. It's the place to be at night! |
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| Two shots that I took of Papadiamantis Street. |
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| A portrait of Alexandros Papdiamantis. |
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| Papadiamantis' bedroom. |
On a side note, we have run into a couple of difficulties with calling family and friends back home. It is very expensive, unless you have WiFi to use Skype. WiFi seems to be available in the center of town at almost every café, restaurant or lounge. However, Tori and I are staying at an apartment that doesn’t have access to WiFi. So here was our solution... buying a USB Vodafone stick that plugs into your computer for 50 euros. The 50 euros buys you 4 GB over 30 days. When you use Skype and video chatting, those GBs are used up REALLY fast!
As for phones, I would recommend unlocking your iphones/smartphones before getting to the island. Once you are here, buy a Greek Sim card to put in your phone. Then you can load the phone with pre-paid minutes. That adds up as well, but not as quickly as the WiFi!
We will be doing a lot of research this week, so keep checking back for more updates!
Kalimera!
Stephanie
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