16 August 2010 10:30
Island hopping mad
Amelia Lawrence follows in her mother’s footsteps in the Greek Islands.
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When I first moved to London, my mother would bore me with long winded stories about her travels through the Greek Islands in the 1970s. She’d talk of delicious foods, uninhabited beaches, and numerous donkey rides. Heading out on my adventure 40 years later, I wondered how much things had really changed.
The trip started in Athens, tourist hub for those heading out to the islands, which still retains its own unique local flavour. Sure, my photos of the Acropolis showed a lot more tourists than the slides my mother still has, but to simply be experiencing such a famous historical site is a feeling second to none!
Not to mention the changing of the guards at the National Palace – a spectacle which must be seen to be believed, as pom-pom trimmed soldiers execute a ceremony which resembles something from Monty Python’s ‘Ministry of Silly Walks’.
From here we moved on to Paros, where you can leave some of the tourist hoards behind and enjoy the beautiful white-washed buildings as the sun sets over the Aegean Sea. The beauty of Paros is only rivalled by the choice of what to do during the day – do we sunbathe first or swim? Which souvlaki shop has the most delicious food? Which golden beach should we take a photograph of for mum first?
It was hard to move on to Mykonos, the eternal party beach, where we knew the summer tourists would be waiting. However, everyone was keen to check out Paradise Beach, especially after my mother claimed it to be a “landscape of uncompromised beauty”.
How right she was! The delicate yellow sand runs like a carpet down to the clear, turquoise water, framed by revellers from all over the world who are in town for the view as much as the nightlife. As the sun goes down the music is turned up, and we make the most of the island’s famous nightlife by partying until it rises again!
From Mykonos we move on to Santorini, and our cute family run hotel where the owner insists on changing all of our names to “real Greek girl names”, and giving us many shots of some liquid which he claims is homemade Ouzo, but tasted more like pure methylated spirits.
Red Beach, Santorini
A short walk along Santorini’s cliffs gave everyone in my group the picture postcard photo they were looking for - stunning beaches, in a rainbow of colours, framed by the emerald sea.
It is also here I finally get to relive my mother’s stories and take a donkey ride down to the water front. My donkey (named Hercules for his unrivalled strength and patience) was a good sport, keeping well clear of the edges and indulging my whims when I wanted to stop for another photo break – however donkey comfort levels do leave something to be desired!
Our final evening watching the spectacular sunset from Oia helped us all realise something – whilst our parents may have made similar journeys back in their youth, we have something extra that they never got the chance to experience. We both may have made new friends and seen some beautiful sites, but our parents were never lucky enough to have the internet to post the photos on to make all their friends jealous. And there’s nothing better than making your friends and family back home jealous of the aquamarine sea, historical monuments and sun-kissed skin that Greece seems to keep giving every traveller, whether now or 40 years ago.
Amelia Lawrence is Topdeck’s festivals and events manager. For more information about Topdeck’s range of trips to the Greek Islands, including the 10 Day Greek Island Hopper, visit www.topdeck.travel
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