On our second visit to Thailand we decided to travel to Kanchanaburi, which we heard many good things about – And truth be told, we weren’t disappointed. We arrived with a private driver, Tom from Bangkok ( Tom’s website, get 5% discount for service transportation using the code : trvbox) . We went on a two-day trip with him, which included stopping at markets, rafting and more.

How do you reach the falls from Kanchanaburi?

We took a bus from the central bus station in Kanchanaburi. Map. The ride costs 50 baht and it takes about two hours to reach the falls.

The bus’s timetable:


There are buses back to Kanchanaburi, the last of which leaves at 17:00.

*I’d recommend getting to the station 15 minutes early, as the bus might be filled to maximum capacity forcing you to either sit on the floor or wait for the next one.

Entry price

Entry costs 300 baht per person. We weren’t aware of the price and hadn’t brought enough cash with us. There aren’t any ATMs in the area, so be sure to have enough money on hand for transportation, entry, food and drinks. Luckily, we met a nice Israeli couple and asked them to loan us some money, making a transfer of funds back to them later. (Part of what I love about traveling is meeting nice people on the road).

Erawan falls

The waterfall area is very large, containing seven separate waterfalls. If you wish to visit all seven, you should consider the time it takes to travel from one to the next – It is a 2 kilometer climb to the seventh fall. The climb itself isn’t too hard, but from the fifth waterfall onward it becomes steeper and more difficult.


I would recommend bringing comfortable walking shoes and not sandals (Put those in your bags). The best way, in our opinion, is to go straight to the seventh waterfall, followed by the others. That way you can beat the crowds there by arriving early, and you’ll also have more energy for the comparatively difficult climb to the seventh waterfall. Most of the walking is in the tree-shade but the difficulty comes from the high humidity and heat (We went at the end of January), so it can nonetheless be quite tiring.

Another important suggestion: Bring drinks and snacks with you or buy them at the entrance to the falls. We only bought a single large water bottle, only to later find that at the falls themselves there’s nowhere to buy food or drinks, and the climb up to the seventh waterfall left us feeling thirsty and peckish.

The first waterfall lies about a 20-minute walk from the entrance, and the walk itself is pretty much planar. The first few waterfalls are close to one another, and a few minutes later you’ll arrive at the 2nd, 3rd and 4th falls.





The waterfalls themselves are really stunning and I think it’s worth it, at the very least, to make it to the 4th and 5th falls. It was also a great deal of fun to jump in the water after walking in the heat.

Personally, I found the water to be too cold  (But I think it might have been only me, since I hadn’t noticed anyone else complaining about it 🙂 ) and the water houses many fish that eat the dry skin off your feet (Some girls were very alarmed by it, so it’s important to be aware of).

Food

The entrance area has many restaurants in which you can either sit down for lunch or buy food to take to the falls. We ate at one of the restaurants and the food was good. It’s touristic Thai food, but it’s not bad at all.


How to return from the falls to Kanchanaburi?

We took the four o’clock bus, which is one before last. We arrived at 5 minutes to four, by which time the bus had already been filled up. I found a seat and Roman sat on the floor. The ride isn’t terrible, but having a seat is better.


Conclusion of Erawan falls

They are definitely worth a visit if you’re in Kanchanaburi. The falls are beautiful. The tips I included in this post are important to pay heed to, as we weren’t aware of them at the time and it ended up hurting our experience somewhat.

Tips regarding the falls

The perfect resort for a prestigious vacation in Phuket

Phuket is known for a variety of amazing resorts, which people from all over the world travel to Thailand to visit. So, even prior to our trip to Thailand, we knew we wanted to visit Phuket and stay at incredible resort there. We looked for a sea-side resort with an interesting design that is extra pampering – That’s how we came across The Slate. It had excellent reviews and it looked beautiful. We picked it as our winner and booked an upgraded room with a private pool, hoping it will live up to our expectations.

We arrived at Phuket on a flight from Bangkok. The resort is situated about 10 minutes away from the airport by car. (If you take a cab, make sure you opt for a metered rate, as it’ll be twice as cheap as the fixed price they’ll ask for at the airport.)

The Slate resort

The moment we entered the hotel lobby, we knew it was the heaven we were searching for. The lobby is extremely luxurious, and we were immediately welcomed with a smile and refreshing drinks, a cold towel and a flower bracelet.

 

We arrived at 11:00 and were told the room will be ready at 14:00, so in the meantime we decided to go to a pool with a bar and indulge ourselves with a shake in the pool. Since the resort is very large, we were handed a map of the area (We spent the whole first day with it, which was enough to memorize the locations) and driven to the pool in a golf cart.

The pools

The hotel has 3 pools, two of which are for adults only.

 

As we arrived at the pool, we were brought glasses of cold water right away. We went in the pool and, before long, ordered shakes at the pool-side bar and mini-skewers to snack on. The bar offers a variety of drinks and special shakes. I chose the mango, coconut milk, cashew and spinach shake – Yummy! It was so good, I ended up ordering it every day we spent at the resort.

The water was pleasant and the atmosphere at the pool was calm and quiet. Most vacationers were reading books, and so did I at some point (After we finished having fun with the sea mattresses we brought with us).


Our room

After the pool, we went back to the lobby to check into our room. We rode the golf cart again. My first response upon entering our room was “Wow”, and honestly, I was really excited. It is undoubtedly the most beautiful room we had ever stayed in.

It had a walk-in wardrobe, bedroom with a giant and very comfortable bed, mini-bar, dresser, television and sitting area, shower room with a luxurious stall and two sinks! Outside was a bathtub, tanning bed, sitting area and pool! The room was absolutely perfect. It was meticulously designed with attention to every little detail. Moreover, the hotel produces soaps and body products – so they were all high quality and smelled great.


Room service

We ordered room service, as we decided we don’t plan on leaving the room anytime soon. We ordered an Indian chicken dish, hamburger and ravioli. It arrived within twenty minutes. The food was very tasty, especially the Indian chicken dish.

We had the pleasure of ordering room service another time during our stay at the resort, that time we had pizzas which were also delicious.

 

Not only did we not want to leave the room, we didn’t want to leave the resort area either. It has everything! Two bars, one of which is a really cool sports bar with billiard tables, a dart board, and large selection of alcohol and pleasant atmosphere.

 

The restaurants

The hotel has four restaurants – We had coffee and a nice cheese cake dessert at one of them.

Another has sandwiches per request. They have many different types of breads, cheeses, hams, sauces and more. Roman had a cheese and ham sandwich, and I picked avocado, egg and ham in mine. The chef toasted them, so they were served warm, crunchy and very well made.


There’s a barbeque place right next to the exit to the sea which we, unfortunately, didn’t get a chance to eat at. The crown jewel of the hotel’s restaurants is Black Ginger. As soon as you see it, you’ll know why that is. The entrance is one of the most impressive I’ve ever seen to any restaurant – You enter by sailing a pretty bamboo raft over a little lake, pulled along towards the restaurant by one of the employees.

We booked a reservation at the Black Ginger as soon as we arrived, as it is in high demand. We ordered lobster salad, a fish soup and curry dish with meat. We were first served an appetizer, on the house, which proved an excellent beginning to a delicious meal. The salad was refreshing with lots of quality lobster meat, the soup was subtly flavored and made with fresh fish and the curry was just as good (I’d recommend asking for the dishes to be less spicy, since even when you do ask, they’re still slightly piquant).


Breakfast

One of favorite things about hotels is breakfast, and I have to say The Slate resort had one of our best breakfasts ever. There were so many options it was hard to decide what we should have.

There’s a per-request egg station, a pancake station and a Belgian waffle station. A variety of dim sum, Thai food, imported hard cheeses, hams, many different freshly baked breads, fruit, vegetables, selection of dips, sauces and pastes, pastries and desserts. Unfortunately, we didn’t have enough room for all the different options, but the ones we did have were great.

 

 

 

The hotel also has a club for kids and a gym which of course contains a very high-quality spa.

The spa

When we arrived, we decided on getting a 90-minute thai massage and ordered it for the next day. When we arrived, we were once again welcomed with a smile, cold tea and towels. We filled out forms about our health and which areas of our bodies we would like the masseuse to focus on. We were then taken to the care area. At first, we sat outside with our feet in tubs of warm water, then they washed our feet gently with lemon water.

This was already very soothing and pampering. We then went into a room, changed into the appropriate clothes and lay on the massage beds. The room held a very pleasant aroma and had calming music, many candles and the unique atmosphere of a prestigious resort spa. The massage itself was so good, I felt it was over too quickly – even after 90 minutes. I wanted it to last forever.

 

Beach Nai Yang

The hotel has two exits to the beach. The Nai Yang beach isn’t very widely known in Phuket, which is excellent, as it makes it less touristic. It’s the perfect beach for a relaxed vacation. The beach itself is just smooth sand and no stones, rocks or plants, and so is the crystal clear water – making it a perfect experience. By the beach are restaurants offering good food at rather low prices and a shake stand. We of course ordered a mango-banana shake and went in the water with it.


To sum up : The Slate resort

The service at the hotel is 5+ stars. All employees speak excellent English, are easy to communicate with and are extremely courteous and nice. The whole resort area is designed gorgeously and makes you feel like you’re at a secluded oasis. This hotel was just perfect for an amazing vacation. It went above and beyond our expectations.

The only downsides we found were: The coffee wasn’t very good, and the private pool was roofed and therefore cold and less enjoyable to be in. However, there’s no doubt that whenever we’re next in Thailand, this will be a hotel we return to. I can’t wait to go back. If you’re in the search for a hotel on a whole different level, this is the one to be at.

 

Our trip started in Rome, then on to Lucca in Toscany and lake Como and a flight back from Milano.  Throughout the trip we stayed at Airbnb apartments, where we also had our breakfasts. Our Rome apartment was at an excellent location near the Campo de Fiori market, although it wasn’t as good as the other two we booked, which we liked a lot.

Italy trip itinerary

Rome 4 days

Day 1 – Rome

Free walking tour of the city with Romes Ultimate. The guide was excellent and told stories in an interesting, humoristic fashion. The company’s tours are for small groups of up to 15 people – which is quite important, as larger tours make asking questions difficult and the guides tend to be less attentive to each individual member.

Lunch at local Italian pasta restaurant, Pasta Imperiale. We passed by this restaurant during our tour and the guide spoke of it with very high regard. He claimed it was a cheap and excellent place for pasta. We went back when the tour was done. It offers a variety of pastas and sauces to mix and match from.

Piazza Navona – Our favourite piazza in Rome.

Tasty ice-cream at Venchi. The wait in line was somewhat long, but we decided to stick it out and it was definitely worth the wait. I had caramel ice-cream in a chocolate and almond coated cone, while Roman had a strawberry-mango sorbet in his.

Local dinner through Like a Local website. A full course dinner with wine at the hostess’ house. Great local meal at a lovely home.

 

Day 2 Rome

Visit to the pantheon and a a visit in the bone church Santa Maria della Concezione dei Cappuccini church. The church holds more than 4000 bones and skulls of Cuppuccini order monks. I didn’t know what to expect, and honestly it was a bit unnerving, but also curious to see all the bones and what was done with them.

Campo de Fiori market. This market is extremely charming. It isn’t swamped with people, full of stalls of all kinds, colorful and offers many tasty treats.

Pasta Carbonara for lunch and Mercato Hostaria restaurant, near the market or pizza at Forno Campo De Fiori.

A walk through the alleys surrounding the market area

A standing café, Roscioli caffe, near the market. This is a very popular café near campo de Fiori. If you need to recharge with a quick coffee and a sweet dessert along the way, this is the place to visit. Address
Via Plauto, 33, 00193 Roma Italy.

Vatican in the evening – We booked entry tickets ahead of time online. The entrance was 16 euros, 7 euros for audio guides and an additional 4 for booking online. The Vatican is one of the must-see places in Rome, But I’d like to introduce an option you might not have known existed. From the end of April through to the end of October, every Friday, you may visit the Vatican during the evening hours instead of in the morning. We were lucky enough to be there on the first Friday available and were very pleased with this option.

Cheese and wine at Makasar bar. The waitress was very nice, and the place was quiet, with good music. The cheese and wine were excellent and the design lovely.

 

Day 3 Rome

Visit to rose garden. There are benches along the stairs overlooking both the garden and the city. You can sit and enjoy the beauty or even have a little picnic on the bench.

Visit to an orange garden, around a ten-minute walk from the rose garden. It’s not as impressive, but also very beautiful and offers a pretty view of the city.

Martin Gallery and café – A new, recently opened coffee house, full of brightly colored paintings. The silverware and vases are all covered in paintings as well.  Address Via dei Cerchi 55A.

Trattoria Da Enzo – Local restaurant with great Ricotta.  Address Via dei Vascellari, 29, 00153 Roma, Italy.

Colosseum and Palatine Hill – The whole area is magnificent. It’s ginormous, full of ruins and unique buildings. Even the gate by the Colosseum is one of the most impressive I’ve ever seen. Definitely worth dedicating a couple of hours to walking around in this area.

Dinner at Casa Savoia, prestigious restaurant. Roman took me to this restaurant as a birthday surprise. I fell in love with it the moment we arrived. It sports a beautiful, luxurious design.  Address Vicolo del Gallo, 14, 00186 Roma, Italy.

Jerry Thomas Speakeasy cocktail bar – The atmosphere at the bar is really cool, the waiters and bartenders are dressed in 20’s outfits, and the whole bar is vintage and uniquely stylized.  Address
Vicolo Cellini, 30, 00186 Roma, Italy.

 

Day 4 Rome and Lucca

Shopping for Cheeses, breads and more at Campo de Fiori market.

Collecting a vehicle from rental company. We rented it through Papam Papam’ website.

Drive to Lucca – An about 4.5-hour drive with a stop for a picnic and gas station coffee ?

Cheese picnic break

Arrival at Lucca in the evening, to a lovely Airbnb apartment.

Shopping at a nearby supermarket

Dinner at the apartment.

Day 5 – Lucca and the area

Drive to a vineyard for a tour and wine tastings, followed up with a drive to Monte Carlo. Stroll through town and pizza for lunch, then a visit to an impressive castle.

Post I wrote about our experience of the town and vineyard.

Return to Lucca and dinner at the excellent Ristorante Cantine Bernardini Lucca. I highly recommend this restaurant, it was one of the best we visited during our trip by a significant margin. Address  Via del Suffragio, 7, 55100 Lucca LU, Italy

 

Day 6 – Lucca

Coffee and pastry at Bottega del Caffe Dersut.

Climb up the clock tower for a vantage of the city. It takes climbing some steps to reach the top, but not too many.

Bike rental from “Tuscany ride a bike” store. Ride along the walls and in the city.

Quick pizza lunch.

Walk around the city.

Dinner at a nice restaurant, Osteria Da Rosolo Lucca. The prices were low and the dishes very tasty. Address Corte Campana, 3, 55100 Lucca LU, Italy

 

Day 7- Drive to Lake Como

Drive to lake Como – a 4-hour drive with two stops, one for coffee and one for a sandwich at gas station along the way.

Arrival at a stunning Airbnb apartment in the town of Dervio.

Dinner by the lake at Bar Ristorante Pizzeria Le vele. Address Via lungo lago degli ulivi 6, 23824 Dervio LC, Italy

Day 8 – A walking trek

A walking trek – The track starts of relatively planar with a few ups and downs, an offers a beautiful view of the lake. We passed by small villages and enjoyed the walk. At some point we began a climb and understood that’s how it was going to be the rest of the way. The track is an orderly path between forests and villages. There are markings all along it, so you can’t get lost. The trek we did was “B”.

Dinner at an amazing Restaurant, Osteria Quatro Pass. The best meal we had during our trip. Every dish was an absolute winner. Address Via XX Settembre, 20, 23829 Varenna LC

 

Day 9 – Bellagio

Detailed post about our day at Bellagio.

Drive to Varenna, a ferry to Bellagio and then a visit to Villa Meltzi and pasta lunch at Bar Caffe Rossi. I had spaghetti Bolognese and Roman had pasta with spinach and cheese. Both were really good and reasonably priced. As far as we saw, the coffee and cakes they had looked good. Address 22, Piazza Giuseppe Mazzini

Visit to lovely fishing village and a walk around town. Following a long walk, it was time for wine, cheese and fish tasting at a wine bar.

Back to the ferry to Varenna and the apartment.

 

Day 10 – Bellano and flight home

Detailed post on half-day at Bellano.

Drive to Bellano, coffee by the lake and then a visit to the Orrido di Bellano gorge.

A sandwich from a deli for lunch.

Drive to Milano airport (1.5 hours), returning the rental car at the airport and flight back.

End of trip in Italy.

 

We really like cocktail bars and so, before the trip to Athens, I tried to find one that was truly special. An online search brought me across Momix bar, a molecular cocktail bar. The photos looked super cool and besides, we’ve never been to a molecular bar before.

I’ve seen very good reviews about the place and immediately added it to our Athens to-do list. The experience we had at this bar was amazing and we ended the night drunk and happy. It’s not everyday you get to experience a culinary phenomenon of high-quality alcohol combined with a fascinating molecular show.

The coolest bar ever - A molecular bar in Athens - Traveling outside the box

Momix Bar

We arrived at the early hour of 8 o’clock. We were hyped about the place’s cool design since before even entering. We sat at the bar, so we could see the action. The bartender, Fotis, gave us the box shaped menu (So we could think outside the box :)) and we decided to start the evening off with a molecular cocktail in a spoon, along with a bubbling cocktail and a gelatinous textured one in a syringe.


The cocktails

That’s when the show started – Lots of smoke, mixing of drinks and when it was done we were served our drinks. It was such a success in our minds that ten minutes later we ordered 2 more cocktails, with more to follow. Consider yourself warned, those drinks are addictive! They’re so special and of such a high-quality that you just can’t stop drinking them.


Before we came to the bar I didn’t really know what to expect, I thought it might be more about a gimmick than good cocktails, but I was proven completely wrong. They mix high-class, professional drinks. The best way to tell the quality of drinks is the following day. We had perhaps eight kinds of cocktails, if not more, and in the morning – I felt fresh as a pickle

 

At some point we got to meet the owners, Aris and Thodoris,. We complimented their establishment and Aris offered to give us a tour of the bar’s lab. That’s where he spends days and nights trying to concoct new molecular drinks. He does tons of experiments, and so they change the cocktail menu every 6 months. The lab is very impressive – They give bartending training, lectures and classes there as well.

Aris started the job some 10 years ago. Momix has 2 bars – One in Athens and another in Santorini and they enjoy great success among locals and tourists alike.

 

They also have a bar food menu we tried two items off – One chicken dish and another of dates filled with Roquefort cheese and wrapped in bacon. The food suited the bar’s atmosphere perfectly. Roman claimed the chicken was the best he’s ever had, and I must agree with him. It was succulent and even tasted more like meat than poultry. Both dishes were surprising in flavor and we really liked their concepts.

I’d consider this bar a “mandatory recommendation” for anyone looking for a cool, intoxicating experience full of new flavors – With great service and of the highest quality.

We didn’t get to go on many food tours in the past, but after our recent one in Athens – we might go on many more in the future. We booked our tour through Alternative Athens. I’ve seen several companies offering food tours, but the length (4 hours) and number of culinary stops (8 stops) seemed an extremely worthwhile deal considering this tour’s price.

The choice turned out to be an excellent one – Our guide Andreas was charming and knowledgeable; his English was very clear and his stories were a joy to listen to. We finished the tour full and very satisfied. I think any foodie who likes to try new dishes, learning about the city and its cuisine all the while, will really enjoy this one as we did.

The food tour

We were a small group of five, along with our lovely guide Andreas. We met in the morning hours at a central location and our first stop was a local café for some traditional coffee. This was already a good start, as I didn’t have the time to get coffee beforehand. To be honest, we didn’t have breakfast either since we wanted to save room for the tour – and a lucky thing we did, as the tour definitely offers an impressive amount of food.

The tour included many food stops, but a lot of walking as well – we got to see all of Athens’ central areas. Additionally, the guide had many riveting stories to tell us about the city. We got to learn of the Greek culture and of Athens in particular through the local cuisine.

 

I don’t want to go into specifics when it comes to each dish we had, so as not to spoil the surprise for you – But I will mention some things and show a few pictures so you can get a feel for the culinary experience. We got to try a plethora of local foods and Greek-made products. The food was of really high-quality. And although at one point I was already tipsy and stuffed (Yes, wine was included in the tour), I couldn’t help but try every dish.


 

I liked that we were a small group and got to converse during the tastings. We had a couple from England with us and a guy from Sweden, who turned out to be a photographer who’s been travelling the world for the past 19 months and is planning to travel the whole globe in about 4 years. How crazy is that? Tours are a great way to meet new people from all over.

If you have an allergy or food intolerance you’re welcomed to let the organizers know ahead of time, and it will be taken into account during the tour. I recommend wearing comfortable shoes for this tour, as you do quite a bit of walking – and of course come on an empty stomach since the amount of food is staggering 🙂

The Greek food is delicious and the tour was very diverse. I felt that meticulous thought was put into the choice of dishes and the tour’s fun route. We usually take a walking tour at each new destination, but the food tour encompassed a lot of historic information about the city and took us through it’s important locations

We finished the tour satiated and extremely pleased. I think that if you’re a foodie who likes trying new things and learning about the city and the cuisine all the while, you’ll have a great time as well.

We really like drinking wine, and love learning about the wine we drink. Through wine, you can always get the feeling that you’re touring the country – which is always great fun, especially in countries known for their good wine. Before our arrival in Athens I did some research and discovered Greece has very high-quality wine.

We wanted to tour wineries, but since it was December (Early winter), I couldn’t find any tasting tours in wineries – But I did find wine tastings in a bar complete with a detailed explanation by a sommelier. It sounded to me like a great time and so I ordered them through Athens Walking Tours. Our tastings were scheduled to 18:00 and we were given the name of the bar they’ll be held at.

We arrived at a lovely bar with a modern design. We met the owner, Mike, and the sommelier, Vangelis, and both were super nice. Micky told us a bit about the bar and the wine, then we started the tastings. We sat at the bar and started off with rose wine. We followed it up with white and red wines.


At one point, we were served a plate with two kinds of cheese, sausage and breadsticks. Nothing goes better with wine than cheeses. They were really good, just the type of hard cheese I like, and the sausage was of very high quality as well.

The tastings were carried out in a calm fashion, according to our wishes. We could enjoy each served wine and I got to take many fun pictures, since we were the only ones there. Vangelis told us extensively about each wine, each one being from a different region of Greece – Vangelis even told us of the regions themselves. Mike drew us a little map of Greece, and Vangelis marked the map with each new wine served.

Vangelis’ knowledge is rich and he made us feel as if we were traveling along with him among the different wineries and tastings their wares. If you like wine, and enjoy learning more about it rather than just drinking it – This experience will suit you well.

It’s a great combination of taste and learning. We really liked the wine itself, which was of high-quality, and the staff were really charming. The combined effect of the wine tastings, the nice food plate and the explanations themselves served to turn our hangout at the bar into a fun and enriching time. Read more about the wine tastings and our experience there.

As you’ve probably gathered by now, Roman and I really like bike tours. We love the combination of physical challenge and the opportunity to see as much of our destination as possible. On a bike tour, you’ll get to see much more than by foot. Each kind of tour offers its own unique pros and cons, which is why we usually opt for both.

Before arriving in Athens, I’ve looked into interesting bike tours. Since I knew we’ll be doing a food-tour in Athens’ central areas, I focused on tours in other parts of town. That is how I came across “Athens by bike”, a company offering several bike tours, such as “Athens Riviera ride” – A tour mainly focused on the city’s shore line. A ride along the sea seemed to fit my criteria perfectly, and as it turns out, it was truly an amazing, relaxing and challenging tour.

In the morning, we arrived at the company’s bike store, which is located right next to the Acropolis metro station. As it turned out, we were the only ones to book a tour for that day, and so we got a private tour. Our guide was Dimitris, a charming and funny guy who was really patient and interesting and made the tour a huge success.

We started the ride in the city itself and Dimitris took us to a vantage point overlooking the Acropolis. It’s a lesser known spot and so without many people, yet a beautiful place to picnic with a lovely sight of the city.

We could see the opera house that’s by the beach, where Dimitris said we’ll be riding. From there we went on a bike trail leading to the opera house. I thoroughly enjoy riding long bike trails, it’s quite and calming and we could see different areas of Athens along the ride.

 

We stopped occasionally and Dimitris told us of the places we passed along the way. When we got to the (very impressive) opera house, we locked our bikes away and went up to a vantage point off of the building itself. There’s a free ice-skating arena there and you can even sign up online for free ice-skating lessons (A great kid’s attraction).

Additionally, there’s a yoga class on the lawn next to the building every morning, which you can sign up for online as well. There are many more free activities – Here’s a link to their site.

 

We also visited the library which is very elegant and pleasant. It’s only been open for a year and the books haven’t arrived yet, so it’s currently a book-less library, but has computer stands and people come to just sit and have coffee.

 

We continued riding along the beach. The weather was an excellent 20 degrees. We then had a coffee break by the sea, which is something I absolutely adore – enjoying the little things in life


On the way back, we stopped for traditional Greek food, a type of Bourekas (Only much tastier in my opinion) that is sweet or savory and is one of the tastiest foods there are. We tried it on the food tour as well – It’s served fresh, straight out of the oven, and is really crunchy and excellent. It’s highly addictive. It was a nice stop for recharging your batteries so you can keep riding. I liked that the tour included a stop to try local cuisine, which was unexpected.

 

Since we had some time to spare, Dimitris decided to take us on a short graffiti tour, as well as to several beautiful churches in the area. He does that sometimes when there’s extra time, which is really nice.

 

The tour was about four and a half hours long, and while you don’t spend all that time riding, a certain level of physicality and ability to ride a bike for long are required. If you’re unused to riding – this tour might prove a bit long for your taste, however the company offers many more tours that are shorter. The ride itself is quite planar and Roman didn’t feel a physical challenge, but I felt drained when we were done.

This tour is definitely recommended for those who like riding a bike and are looking for another way to explore Athens – and not just it’s central areas. Additionally, after the tour Dimitris sent us a document with recommendations for many things to do in Athens and we tried a local restaurant off the list – which was really good.

We took a Segway tour with  Paphos Segway Tours company. We were a group of eight and had two super nice guides, Liam and Callum.

Segway instruction

After all the group members had arrived, we went outside for an instruction on the Segways. The guide explained how to operate it really well, after which each guide took one of the tour members personally for a test drive on the Segway, to make sure they can handle it well and to boost our confidence. When every member had gone through a personal instruction, we started the tour.


The tour itself

During the tour, we went through several interesting sites on Paphos, stopping at each one while the guide told us about the place. The stories were truly captivating. At every stop the guide also took our pictures, giving us small choreographic instructions (A few days later they uploaded the pictures to Facebook, so you can save them with no additional cost).


The tour was light, funny and the weather was great (Early November). If you take the tour during the summer, I’d suggest going on either the early or the afternoon tours. The one we took started at 11AM.

We rode along the sea a lot – it was really relaxing and I didn’t want the tour to be end. I have to mention that I went on a Segway tour before and didn’t really enjoy myself, to be honest I was quite frightened then – But this time, the two guides were really responsible and gave a feeling of security. Even if you’ve never been on a Segway tour, you have nothing to worry about and I’d even highly recommend this as your first try, that way you’ll get fun and professional instruction.



The company has longer, special tours for those already experienced with Segways. Maybe next time we’re In Paphos we’ll try one of the advanced tours.

To be sure, this is a great attraction and experience, and a wonderful way of seeing Paphos. They also have colorful Segways which are really cool 🙂

We went on a week-long trip in Athens and decided to divide our stay between two hotels in different areas, not only for variety’s sake, but so we could enjoy two different hotels as well.

The second hotel we stayed at was Athens Center Square Hotel, a central hotel in the Psiri area, adjacent to the local food market.

We arrived at the hotel with a smile on our faces, after having a lovely walk through the market and seeing the fruit and vegetables, olives, spices and more. We really like local markets and it’s one of the major reasons we picked to stay where we did.

Athens center square hotel- the hotel's rooftop

 

The entrance is very pleasant, a lobby with couches and a bar area complete with a coffee machine, as well as a couple of tables with computers for the guests’ use. You can make tea and coffee for free anywhere between 10:00 and 18:00.

 

We got an upgraded room on the 7th floor, which was spacious and clean. It had a double bed, closet, couch and bathroom with a shower and a toilet.

The hotel has an open rooftop terrace with tanning beds and sets of tables and chairs. We went up to it at sunset with some coffee and enjoyed the view of the acropolis. While we were up there, some local photographers were taking pictures of the sunset off the terrace, since it’s very beautiful.


At night we went out for a stroll around town. The hotel is in a really central location and a two-minute walk will get you to a bustling area with bars, cafés, taverns and restaurants. The walk by the hotel itself at night is a little less pleasant since it’s quite desolate.

When morning came, we went to the dinning room for breakfast. Breakfast at Athens Center Square Hotel is served as a buffet, with a large variety of sausages, breads, pastries, desserts, fruit and more. There’s a gluten-free section with breads and crackers and a coffee machine.

 

 

The hotel is adjacent to the market’s fruit, vegetables, cheeses and sausages stalls. On the other side of the road are fish, meats and spices. A walking distance away is a metro station you can ride to anywhere in Athens in a few minutes. The flea market is also a few minutes away. The hotel’s location and reasonable price make it an attractive option for any who want to travel and explore Athens.

We went on a week-long trip in Athens and decided to divide our stay between two hotels in different areas, not only for variety’s sake, but so we could enjoy two different hotels as well. We started our trip in a really luxurious hotel, Coco Mat Hotel, located in the prestigious Kolonaki area. From there, it’s a 15-20 minute walk to Plaka (The central area).

I really liked this area. It’s full of modern coffee houses, boutique shops and high-class restaurants. The prices in these are slightly higher, but not by much, and it’s generally considered one of Athens’ most sought after and prestigious shopping streets. The atmosphere is magical and romantic and the hotel fits into it perfectly.

The hotel’s entrance is in fact a Coco Mat store, a chain selling high-quality beds and those same beds are in the hotel’s rooms.

Reception is one floor beneath the store and by our arrival at 12:00 our room had already been prepared. Reception is also located by the dining hall, which serves as the lobby. The design is very relaxing and creates a homey feeling.

A dreamy hotel at Athens - Traveling outside the box

The hotel room

Our luggage was immediately brought up to our rooms, and after checking in, we followed suit. As we entered the room, we instantly grew excited. The room had a clear attention to minor, unique details such as a Nespresso machine, slippers, robes and a romantic shower with transparent doors (By the way, there are rooms with showers in a separate room for you to choose).

Above all of these, is the super luxurious bed – The moment we lay down on it, we didn’t want to leave. The bed can be bought in the chain’s stores and costs 14,000 euros! So, you can imagine just how comfortable it is ?

 

The hotel also offers really high-quality pillows, and even includes a pillow menu, letting you switch to a different one if you’d like.

Room Service

We had so much fun in the room that we decided to have lunch there and ordered room service. After all, what could be more enjoyable than food service in a good hotel?

I ordered fish with a side of rice and Roman ordered tortellini in a dried-tomato sauce with bacon -accompanied, of course, by two glasses of white wine. Within about 20 minutes a knock on the door announced the waiter’s arrival, carrying the exciting tray. The food was really good and the wine turned the meal into a delight. That’s how we started our visit to Athens ?

Breakfast

In the morning we went down for breakfast and decided to bring the food up with us to the hotel’s beautiful balcony, which offers a view of the city. We prepared our plates along with coffee and orange juice and one of the employees carried it up to the balcony for us.

It was a sunny day and a perfect opportunity to make use of the balcony, which comes with a small, very well-maintained garden, adding to the hotel’s unique atmosphere – along with a wall of potted plants and wall-paintings brightening the room with their colors.


The next day we had breakfast downstairs and enjoyed the calming design there. The breakfast menu isn’t too varied, but that’s just how boutique hotels are – a smaller set of choices, but of a higher quality. What I liked were boxes filled with all sorts of goodies you could add to your muesli – chia seeds, goji berries, dried fruit, almonds and more.

There were also breads, fruit, sausages, cheeses, mini quiches and desserts.You may ask the waiter for an omelette and order drinks such as orange juice, coffee or tea.

 

If you’re looking for a romantic, boutique hotel with a perfect bed, excellent service and prestigious location, this is the one! We would definitely be happy to stay there again.