Ohrid

Flying the flag over Ohrid Castle

Thursday 23 May: We have a bedroom each with shared kitchen in the clean but somewhat rundown Apartments Costa. It's next to the lake and centrally located in the old town of  Macedonia's favourite lakeside resort, Ohrid. Hiking around the lake shore and up the hill we soon find ourselves in the enthusiastically restored, 10th century, Car Samoil Castle with great views over the lake and town.
In the evening Tony reminds me of a lighthearted quiz game of Trivial Pursuits we played some years ago while on holiday in Etretat on the Normandy coast of France. It was the boys v. the girls and the dialogue went something like this:
Girls (reading the question): "What is the second most intelligent animal to man?"
Boys (in unison): "Woman."
Girls (laughing): "No, no you are not having that! It's Dolphins."
Tony (the quickest boy to respond): "That must make women third then!"
Saturday 25: Today we take a boat trip the monastery of Sveti Naum, with it's tiny Orthodox church, on the far side of the lake close to the Albanian border. In the evening I entertain Tony by playing six-nation rugby matches on my laptop. They are all England v. Scotland Calcutta cup tests at Murryfield and I don't seem to have downloaded any that England win. This is a pity as Tony is a keen England fan educated at Rugby school in the heart of England . . . "Come on Rory!".
Sunday 26: Following a rainy day-trip to the nearby town of Bitola where the Roman ruins hide an impressive mosaic we decide to dine at Sveti Sofia restaurant where we have enjoyed good food and great house red wine previously. However, our meal is interrupted when black limousines pull-up outside and large serious-looking men in black suits jump out and invade the restaurant. All with earpieces and jackets bulging with firearms they bustle a man to the rear and then sit down at the table next to two slightly alarmed Brits, us.
When we leave Tony, somewhat bravely, asks the waiter who he is. It's Tomislav Nikolić, Head of State and President of the Republic of Serbia. Good restaurant (no photos).
Slideshow of Ohrid.

Macedonia: Skopje

All new statues and an old bridge

Monday 20 May: Handy for the railway station and the city centre I've booked a twin room in tiny Motel Le Village which has just six rooms set around a grassy courtyard garden.
Tuesday 21: Today I take the shuttle bus to the airport to meet one of my old muckers, Tony, who is joining me for a short holiday. First we head along the Vardar River to the city centre then across the old stone bridge to Kale Fortress and the Gallery of Modern Art. This city has more statues than anywhere else I can think of, mostly of Macedonia's famous son, Alexander the Great. We stop for a beer (the first alcohol I've tasted in a month) then for a good messes lunch at Stara Gradska Kuca restaurant before strolling around town for more statue and people watching (well, mostly girl's bottom watching). It's great to see Tony again, I've not enjoyed good English speaking company for a while, even if it does come with a slight Brummy twang.
Monday 27: Returning from a few days in Ohrid we lunch, once again, at the Stara Gradska Kuca. Unfortunately it's fully booked in the evening and we end up drinking far too much Alexander the Great red wine elsewhere. How Tony manages to catch the 3:00am bus to the airport I'll never know.
Tuesday 28: The old copper-domed Ottoman hammam or Turkish baths now houses the National Gallery and I have a quick look around the fantastic interior before, once again, catching the train north.
Slideshow of Skopje.

Thessaloniki

Thessaloniki's trendy promanade

Friday 17 May: Another early train northwards, this time to the modern port and transport hub of Thessaloniki.
Saturday 18: I take time to look around the White Tower before taking the 5:00pm bus northwards over the border and into another new country - the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
Slideshow of Thessaloniki.

Monasteries of Meteoria

Monk's lofty lairs atop rocky buffs

Wednesday 15 May: Still heading north, the 8:00am train from Athens' Larissa Station arrives at Kalambaka five hours later. Quickly checking in at the King Hotel I hike up to the two eastern monasteries in the chain of five that top the rocky limestone pinnacles of Meteoria, Agia Trias and Agia St Stephen
Thursday 16: Today I get the morning bus up to western Great Metoria and walk back down to Verlaam, Roussansu and St Nikolass monasteries, fantastic scenery.
Slideshow of the Monasteries of Meteoria.

Athens revisited

Silly walks Athens' guard style

Saturday 11 May: Early ferry to Pireas then the metro to Monastraki and a short walk to Soho Hotel, handy for Athens' main sights.
Sunday 12: The Acropolis Museum displays much of the decorative marble from the Acropolis except, of course, The Elgin Marbles that were purchased from Greece and remain in London. I follow a surprisingly good lunch at museum with a surprisingly entertaining spectacle - the changing of the guards. All pompoms and silly walks, the guards appear less threatening than a troupe of ballet dancers.
Monday 15: The Parthenon under repair is a little disappointing but the views from the Acropolis over the city, down to Ancient Agora and the Temple of Zeus are impressive.
Tuesday 14: The Archaeological Museum is great, statues of more Greek gods and nymphs than you can wave a siren at. A quick stroll around the Temple of Apollo and then to Cafe Fish for the best fish supper this side of Scotland.
Slideshow of Athens revisited.

Agia Anna

Waves lapping Agia Anna's beach

Wednesday 1 May: I move around the coast to Agia Anna where I've reserved a studio flat in Sophi's Pension for ten nights. Most years I undertake a ten-day detox diet: a single fruit only (watermelon then apples) for the first two days followed by a diet of raw fresh fruit and vegetables for eight days and this is the ideal place to do it.
Friday 10: After ten days free of alcohol, caffeine and other toxins I feel great. Time to move on again.
Slideshow of Agia Anna and day trips to Apollonas and, to the highest peak in the Cyclades, Mt Zeus.

Hora (Naxos town)

Fisherman's church, Hora harbour

Friday 26 April: Arriving on the newish Blue Star ferry Delos I'm soon comfortably settled in my little poolside studio in Irene Pension II and spend a few days exploring the town: hilly little old town backstreets, the boulder-topped causeway, Apollo's temple on the headland and the tiny fisherman's church set on a little island in the harbour.
Slideshow of Hora (Naxos Town).

Santorini

Oia, atop Thira's black caldera rim

Sunday 21 April: Once again aboard the aging ferry Prevalis I soon arrive in the jewel in the crown of the Greek islands . . . Santorini. A pastel and blue coloured pallet atop the hardened harsh-black and rust-red lava remains of the island's volcanic past.
Tuesday 23: The cliff-top footpath from Santorini's main town, Fira, along the caldera's steep black rim to the village of Oia is a sheer delight. So much so that, on Thursday, I take the bus to Oia and walk it back the other way. Fantastic.
Wednesday 24: Visiting the black sandy beach at Kamari on Santorini's east coast is a great but toe-roasting experience, it's bloody hot. Back in Fira I dine at Salt & Pepper, my restaurant of choice, where a starter of stuffed vine leaves, a shot of raki and a desert scoop of ice cream are complimentary. I leave a tip and on Thursday I get two stuffed vine leaves and two scoops of ice cream. Fantastic too.
Slideshow of Santorini.