Day 12, 15/04 - Kalimera, Greece:
Our El Al flight LY543 was delayed by two hours, which was not a major issue. After our Boeing 777 touched ground at Eleftherios Venizelos Airport, we made our way to the baggage claim and the
shuttle bus stop from where it took us a bit less than an hour to the cozy little fishermen's town Lavrio (or Lavrion).
The bus stopped exactly in front of the hotel we had booked in advance. We checked in at "Nikolakakis Guest Rooms" and took a walk through the little town with its tavernas and bars. After some
dinner, we were lucky once again to find a bar opposite of the hotel. We stayed for an hour or two and then called it a night - Looking forward for picking up our rides!
This morning, we walked to the port and from the distance I could already see the flame red offroader waiting for me! Arriving at the Salamis Shipping office, Jonny's BMW was already good to be
picked up while the Jeep wasn't ready yet. Another license plate issue! :) They told me I had to wait for another 10-15 minutes until they would resolve the issue..
So, some 2 hours later (was I surprised? ..nope!), it turned out that Rosenfeld Shipping made a mistake by forwarding the wrong registration number (the original instead of the export numbers)
and I had to pay a penalty which they are responsible for. I wonder if I'll ever see that money again.. But let's worry about that later.
After refuelling our vehicles, the BMW and the Jeep went for a scenic drive along the coastline toward Piraeus. The sunny weather and the view were stunning! I was completely euphoric since it
was the first time the Jeep touched European ground and everything has worked (more or less) according to my plan! We parked near the harbour and had a last lunch together before our journeys
separated since Jonny will head to Patras and take a ferry to Venice from where he will take his bike all the way up to Stockholm. Time to say goodbye to another good friend I made throughout
this trip.
As I got closer to Athens, it started to rain during the search for my hotel in the vicinity of the Akropolis. The last time I was
here is about 25 years ago.. Will have a look the Parthenon tomorrow morning, hoping the rain will have stopped until then..
Day 13, 16/04 - Following the Trails of the Greek Gods:
Another early wake up call was rewarded with sunshine painted onto a clear blue sky!
The usual procedure: Breakfast, checkout, repack the car. Headed towards the entrance of the Acropolis and walked up to the ancient citadel which was constructed around the 5th century BC ontop
the highest elevation of Athens, being elevated at 150m above sea level. I was lucky to be there early enough before the streams of tourists would overrun the Propylaea, the Erechteion, the
Temple of Athene Nike and the famous Parthenon.. Took a couple of photos when I was approached by two overexcited Chinese ladies who were almost begging me for a picture with them. It was
probably my tall and blonde appearance rather than being mistaken for a celebrity.. ;) Anyway, of course I granted their request and after a while walked back to the Jeep and headed northwestbound initially toward the Olympus Range, according to the Greek mythology the home of the Greek
Gods. Once I left the highway with its (perceived) two million toll gates, the drive was pretty spectacular since I was the ony one on the meandering narrow roads which were seamed by green
meadows being inhabited by sheep, cows and horses.. I took the serpentines further up near the highest peak, but couldn't continue as planned since my GPS was a bit of a daredevil! The road only
made a sharp right turn leading to a dead end and I was instructed to turn left at that turn where I saw nothing but an even narrower gravel path leading along the crag! Ok, probably time to turn
back, especially since the view was also deteriorating (probably because I was already in the clouds)..
I reached the coastline again and continued another 100km towards Thessaloniki. Right before reaching the city limits, I hit the 4000km marker of my trip!
Beforehand, I found a venue featuring three live bands tonight, so I decided to book a hotel in the vicinity of what turned out to be a whole bar district near the old town!
Walked through the alleys with their unique and cozy bars and restaurants and chose one to have an "Alfa Lager" before the live
music clubs would open..
Day 14, 17/04 - Country Number 6, North Macedonia:
Getting up was not so easy today after the pub crawl last night.. I went to the "Eightball" to listen to three live bands, "Echo Cables", "Bonsai"
and "Dungaree". While I was standing at the bar, I noticed some guys talking with a familiar accent. So I met Maik from Hildesheim who plays bass guitar in the German band "Kalamata". He was on
vacation with his family and checked out the band "Bonsai" which his band will be touring with in Summer. We had a good night chatting about music and his fear of flying. Don't know if he got
more confident after talking to me though.. ;)
After the concert, Maik had to call it a night while I checked out two other places before returning back to my hotel.
This "morning" (ok, it was noontime!), I departed Thessaloniki northwestbound to reach the Greek-North Macedonian border by 14:00. The customs
procedure was surprisingly easy, remembering my escapades in the Middle East a while ago.
After only 10 minutes at the customs office, I continued towards the capital Skopje on a highway of such a bad condition and potholes that I was
asking myself what I am actually paying for at the tousands of toll gates. Probably 1,50€ for each pothole that shook the Jeeps shock absorbers.. ;)
The scenery was very impressive though! Green hills and lakes everywhere! After passing Skopje, the drive was only another 150km to the Mavrovo
National Park where I planned to spend the night.
Found the Radika Mountain Resort beforehand and checked in at 16:30. My balcony overlooked the green hills which still had some little snow crests at
their peaks and the Lake Mavrovo, which reflected the clear blue sky. Now that's what I call a room with a view!!
Enjoying a "Skopsko Smooth", the local Macedonian beer and the clear view over the National Park from the hotel terrace and celebrating the 4343km
that I've knocked off until now..
Day 15, 18/04 - Crossing Borders:
Apparently I was only one of maximum five guests at the Radika Mountain Resort. I tested their spa, had some good dinner and an early night before I
got up this morning to depart Mavrovo at around 10:30. The next sector from here to Dubrovnik was only 408km, but the GPS predicted almost 9 hours for it! Soon I discovered why: After crossing
the first border to Albania (again - easy exit & entry procedure!), the mountain roads turned into a nightmare! I am never gonna complain about Macedonian roads again when the Albanian roads
are another 100 times worse (if it's not a highway).. Not only were there more potholes than tarmac, there were huge parts where there was no road surface at all and I felt the Jeep had to
fulfill its duty again which it was built for..
Albania has also a nice scenery and despite the horrible road conditions, I enjoyed the beautiful nature, the green mountains and colorful blossoming
trees. Some hours later I reached the border checkpoint to Montenegro. Again another unspectacular crossing, just had to pay 15€ for my border insurance since my initial one didn't cover
Montenegro. Finally, I reached the Adriatic Coast! I drove through some little towns & villages along the coastline before going on a 10 minutes ferry ride to cross the Bay of Kotor. Shortly
thereafter, I reached the third border for today: Croatia! The customs officer's face had a funny expression when he asked me about my license plates and I told him about my trip. "Ok, I have to
ask one question: How much does it cost to drive all the way from the UAE to Germany? Why did you not just put the car on a ship?" We both had to laugh after I told him that his option
wouldn't even remotely have been as much fun as this trip! ;)
From the border checkpoint to Dubrovnik, it was only another 40 minutes. The coastal scenery within the calm Adriatic Sea, all dipped into the golden
light of the sunset is another image I will never forget! Neither the view over the Old Town of Dubrovnik when I reached it..
Day 16, 19/04 - The Scenic Ride:
Okay... Dubrovnik is definitely a party place!
Went out for a drink and some live music to an Irish Pub and met two ladies from the UK, Nicky and Kess, who were already in an advanced party state, if I can define
that diplomatically.. They had to call it a night soon, so I went to the next Irish Pub around the corner and ran into a bunch of French guys who were celebrating one guy's bachelor party...
We all had a bit of a blast and went to two more places before the guys took off again..
Since it's not the weekend yet, I had to miss out the really good places like "Lazareti" or "Revelin", which are said to be legendary in this area when it comes to
nightlife! Might come back another day for that..
Anyway, as usual: Went back to the hotel to get some rest and in the (late) morning I took off towards Split initially.
Driving along the Croatian coastline is amazing! The clear blue water, the green hills, blossoming flowers, all under a clear blue sky.. I think I'm not exaggerating
when I say that this is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen!
In the early afternoon I had a quick stopover in Split for lunch and a short walk across today's market and through the old town before I continued to Rijeka. Instead of
taking the highway which was a little bit more inland, I decided to continue the scenic tour on the coastal road, adding up to a good 350km from Dubrivnik to Rijeka. Depending on the sun's
position, the colors constantly varied and nature painted a new picture on an hourly basis! The show ended with another memorable sunset being the grand finale.
If I hadn't done this part of my journey now, it would definitely be on my bucket list.. So an additional item ticked off! The drive took me another hour in the dusk and
finally darkness till I noticed the bright lights of Rijeka at the horizon, being reflected by the black and calm Adriatic Sea..
Checked in at the Grand Hotel Bonavia downtown and ending the day respectively starting the night with an Ozujsko Lager..
