After a solid night’s sleep, and some strong coffee to fight the jet lag (I made friends with the hotel’s cappuccino machine!), we started off on a full day of exploring the city!

We had an idea of what we wanted to see, but mostly set out with our bus passes, good appetites, the curiosity and desire to see everything we could, and plans to take in an evening canal boat ride.  We walked about 9 miles during the day, and really enjoyed every step.

A few words of wisdom for those who set off to explore Amsterdam:

• As per our research, the weather really does change throughout the day… we started with a drizzly rainy, cloudy day, had some great periods of blue skies and perfect breeze, and ended with a cool and drizzly night. Definitely dress in layers, prepared to take it all on!
• Be aware of the bicycles! No kidding, there really are over 100,000 bikes in the city, and they definitely have the right of way. Both Rabbit and I had our near-misses, and we heard a few tourists yelp as they had theirs. The bike lanes are much more intimidating than the car lanes, with motorbikes and bicycles sharing the lanes and moving in many directions. Look in every direction before attempting to cross!

We knew that we wanted to at least see the Rembrandt and Van Gogh museums while we were in town, but the weather changed from rain to bright and sunny, so we snagged advance tickets for Van Gogh, and took advantage of the sunshine by walking the city.

Amsterdam is a very clean and beautiful city (other than the red-light district, perhaps), filled with friendly locals and tourists – most, if not all, of whom speak English- making it very enjoyable and easy to navigate and enjoy everything Amsterdam has to offer.

We passed through a canal-side street of market stalls selling tulips, souvenirs, and local wares, and a row of old shops, including the Amsterdam Cheese Store (a must stop!! try the coconut cheese – it is amazing!).  It was at one market stand that we got to taste our first stroopwaffel… WOW! Freshly made thin, tender, cinnamon infused waffles brought together with a wonderfully gooey layer of caramel… one of my new favorite foods!

We strolled through an open market in a beautiful town square, and perused through a local bookstore – and a few other local shops, letting us get a real taste of the city.  The buildings of the city are so beautiful and inviting- it was difficult to resist the temptation to walk into every building, take photos of every archway and facade, and explore every corner. It helped that there was an unexpected power outage in the city, which closed about half of the city’s shops and restaurants.

After our adventures we found a perfect spot for lunch, enjoying the outdoor deck of a cafe, overlooking a gorgeous view of a canals and an amazing row of crooked canal homes.  The menu was full of delicious things to try, including the long-awaited bitterballen!

Bitterballen are deliciously bad-for-you, fried balls of diced meat (beef and/or veal), swimming in a rich, comfort-food worthy, delicious mac-and-cheese like roux. Served with coarse mustard, and REALLY hot inside, they are an incredibly decadent must-try Amsterdam bite. (…now my mouth is watering and I’m wondering how I can make them at home).

Bitterballen – let them cool first!

Rabbit staying warm

After enjoying the sights and tastes of our lunch, and attempting to warm up under the cozy fleece blankets on the patio, we set off to explore again, this time headed towards the Rembrandt museum.  The museum, which is housed within Rembrandt’s actual home, includes rooms of artifacts the artist and his students, pieces of his original furniture and belongings, and a chance to interact with his studio.  Moving through the space alongside the audio tour provided a great chance to learn some history, enjoy the surroundings and be immersed into the artists’ home.

Next, we headed back towards the Centraal Station, and the ticket counters for the canal boat tours.  Due to the research I did in advance, and their prime location, we decided to go with Stromma tours.  As luck would have it, the rain started to drizzle as the sun was setting, and our (dry, warm, enclosed) boat pulled away from the dock! The tour guide provided a great narrative of the city’s history and descriptions of the buildings, as we coasted through the waters, taking in the beautiful city illuminated by the white lights on the canal’s bridges, and streetlights.  It was a perfect, romantic, relaxing way to finish our day’s tour of Amsterdam.

After grabbing some dinner at one of the Argentinian steakhouses in town, we headed back to the hotel to relax and prepare for our day-trip to Brussels – coming on day 2!

Our second full day in Athens began at a leisurely pace.  Having had a very busy day of sightseeing, and a late night (thanks to some delayed sleep phase and odd jet lag finally catching up with us), we didn’t really start our day until about noon.

Our only two real goals for the day were to visit the Olympic stadium, and complete the widely recommended sunset hike up Mount Lycabettus. Thankfully, the two aren’t very far apart, and we were able to navigate somewhat easily from one to the other by foot… we initially had planned on grabbing an Uber to take us through town, but after an unexpected road closure, some kind of police activity, and being dumped by our Uber driver, we decided to just go for it.

Deciding to wing it despite our tired feet from the previous day, was one of the best things we did. The neighborhood around Mount Lycabettus was very different from where we had been spending our time, and we had the opportunity to duck into a mini-mart for some much needed snacks (and “souvenir” Greek chocolate bars for later).

I am a bit ashamed to admit that when planning the trip, the Panathenaic Stadium hadn’t even been on my radar… it wasn’t until the end of our first full day in Athens when Rabbit suggested it as a must-do, that I had an “a-ha” moment and added it to the list.

I am so glad that we made it!! Especially in an Olympic year (though this year is the winter games), it was incredible to be where it all began.  Rabbit took to the stairs of the stadium as a personal challenge- which are far bigger than what I think we would normally think of for stadium seats- but you could see that there was something invigorating about doing it there.  We also took turns running short sprints on the track in the middle – we didn’t win any medals, but it was a very memorable experience!!

After a few bumps in transportation, and our little side-trip for snacks, we made it to Mount Lycabettus!! Unlike my planning for the stadium, this hike was one of my must-do’s from the minute I began planning.  All of the blogs and stories I read in preparation, along with the guidebook I purchased, simply stated the sunset hike as something that had to be done, and I was in.

The entrance to the trail doesn’t have much marking, but thankfully, Google Maps had saved the day and brought us right to one of the paths. Faced with the choice of dirt/rock trail vs. stairs, we opted for the trail initially… don’t be fooled! This isn’t the leisurely, romantic stroll you may have been thinking- though it truly was one of the best things we did during our trip!! (There is a lift on the opposite side of the hill for those who aren’t able to hike, or if you’re not on the kind of date that it’s ok to break a sweat).

Several times along the way, we had to stop and look around… the views from the trail seemed somewhat even more remarkable than those from the Acropolis, and just got more and more beautiful as the sun got lower in the sky.

At the top of the mountain, there is a small bell tower, a chapel, and a restaurant (near the lift entrance). After catching the beginning of the sunset, we grabbed a table at the restaurant for a late-lunch/early dinner (the Greek salad was delicious!!) and continued enjoyment of one of the most incredible sunsets I’ve ever seen.

As the sun was going down, we started our descent, and ended up finding a different side-trail than the one we came up on, which took us through some different streets in Kolonaki. The neighborhood was very pretty, had a younger crowd, and had some very good-looking restaurants… however, we both agreed that it seemed too much like a neighborhood we could stumble upon in New York or Philadelphia (near home), and found our way back to the area around Parliament and Monastiraki.

Here, we checked another to-do list item off our lists, and grabbed a souvlaki from one of the small cafes that opened into the street. We were able to sit outside and share our second dinner and enjoy more people watching! The souvlaki was delicious, and it was a great way to wind down the evening.

We called it a night pretty early in preparation for our early morning flight, and busy day planned the next day in Istanbul!

– Gabby

Day’s Agenda: See all of the historical ruins and sites that we can.

What we saw: Temple of Olympian Zeus; Hadrian’s Arch; Acropolis – including the Theater of Dionysus, Odeon of Herodes Atticus, Temple of Athena Nike, and Parthenon; Ancient Agora … and all of the streets along the way!

Inspired by one of the “Best of” walks outlined in the guide book I had picked up, we set out on a mission to see as much of ancient Athens as we could see. Though the walk outlined in the book was logged as being 2.4km in total- we logged over 11 miles in walking for the day (including our walks to and from the hotel, etc.).  Walkers be aware: the winding streets can be a bit disorienting sometimes! We found that Google maps worked well to help us navigate …. even with the occasional re-calibration!

Our first stop (after the Bread Factory) was the Temple of Olympian Zeus. It was an amazing sight to see, and very humbling to imagine that it was made by human hands long before cranes and power tools. With the Acropolis in the background (see photo above), it was a very inspiring way to start the day.

Next, we snuck a quick peek at Hadrian’s arch as we found our way to the Acropolis.

The view of the Acropolis throughout the city is breathtaking, and awe-inspiring… the view from the top is completely unforgettable and one of the best moments of our visit. The climb to the top can be a bit intense at times- please note that there are no handrails, fences, or other security-blankets for use on the way up. (Which was a little intimidating at moments, but really helped to ensure that the view and the experience of the site was as pure and un-touched as possible). On our way up we got to enjoy the Theater and Odeon before getting to the top. Again, it was incredible to remember that all of it was built by man.  We chose to skip the Acropolis museum in favor of spending more time in the sunshine, and more sightseeing.

After our descent from the Acropolis, we found our way to a small site which housed the Fethiye Mosque- which is now restored and repurposed as a museum.

Next, we had lunch at a great sidewalk cafe overlooking the ruins, with the Acropolis as a backdrop.  It was the most picturesque place I’ve ever eaten- the food was delicious also! One of my favorite things to eat during the trip was tzatziki with bread or pita- unlike the tzatziki I have had at home, the authentic versions are creamier and are served as a delicious and fresh dip – there were slight variations between the restaurants we sampled, but each one was delicious!!

Our last Ancient site for the day was the Ancient Agora, which we found a bit by accident during a walk through some neighborhoods, and around Monastiraki. (We saw some great street vendors in the area around the Agora which are definitely worth seeing also!)  The Agora had a relaxing park-like atmosphere with a temple, some various ruins, and an interesting museum about the area, and all of the people and purposes the area has served.  During our leisurely walk through the Agora, we chatted about our day, and agreed that we both enjoyed the Ancient sites much more than anticipated!

After our full day of walking, we grabbed a snack and headed back to our hotel to relax for a bit.  After dinner, some evening sight-seeing and sampling of some different entertainment, we headed back to Monastiraki where we found a great place for dessert and live music… It was here that we did (what I consider) the most daring thing we did on our trip: we danced! There was such a relaxed and family-like atmosphere at every restaurant we visited… and the bouzouki was too hard for Rabbit to resist- very reluctantly, I followed… and though we had no idea what we were doing, we danced arm in arm just long enough for me to feel completely out of my element, but thrilled and happy at the same time!

I’ve shared more photos from our day below… even as I look back at them now, I can’t wrap my head around the fact that I saw them in person!! It was a really incredible and amazing experience …and that was just the first day!

It was on this day that we learned that Uber is not as reliable in Athens as it is in other cities – though the taxis may be a little more pricey, they might be worth it to rest your tired feet.

We headed back to the hotel around 1am (leaving many Athenians behind, still dancing!), in need of some sleep.

Ahead in Day Two: Olympic Stadium, a hike up Lykavittos Hill, Kolonaki, and souvlaki!

– Gabby

Wow.

Not sure how else to start!!

Rabbit and I were away exploring a new (very old) corner of the world! This was our first international trip together… and my first.

It was one of the most amazing weeks of my life, and definitely the best trip I have ever taken…. setting the bar pretty high for our next adventure.

Our itinerary was a bit ambitious, including three-ish days in Athens, and one day in Istanbul. Busy home and work schedules mean that four nights, five days is the perfect length of time for us to be away.  Thanks to Travelzoo, Rabbit’s amazing research, and some reasonable planning, we were able to see everything we had hoped to- and really get to enjoy Athens!

Our basic itinerary:

• Day 1: Flight from Newark to Athens; depart midnight, arrive 4pm
• Day 2: Full day in Athens
• Day 3: Full day in Athens
• Day 4: Flight from Athens to Istanbul, full day in Istanbul, flight back to Athens
• Day 5: Half-day in Athens; flight from Athens to Newark, land 10pm

We spent all four nights at The Stanley Hotel in Athens.  Though the location of the hotel was a bit away from where we spent the majority of our time, we were both grateful that we had the chance to see more of the city by walking the neighborhoods, and getting away from the center of things. The staff was very friendly and welcoming, and the view of the Acropolis from the rooftop was breathtaking.

From the moment we hailed the cab to the hotel, we felt welcome. Our cab driver gave us the run-down during our half-hour drive from the airport to the hotel. Unfortunately, I was a bit too awestruck to remember to try to take photos of the drive… but it was wonderful to enjoy the scenery, see the city a bit, and take it all in!

Despite what we had thought about potentially needing a nap once we were checked in on our arrival day… we were able to drop our bags, freshen up, and head out in time to catch the city as it was starting up for the night! Having an overnight flight helped us to both catch a few hours of excited sleep on the way.

Having read about the restaurants in the Plaka district and Monastiraki, we asked the doorman at the hotel which way to go… stopped at the Bread Factory on the corner (YUM!) for a snack, and set out on our way.

Our walk introduced us to the rhythm of Athens traffic, and the hidden excitement of some of the neighborhoods…. Athens is an endearing and intriguing mix of old and new, beautiful and boarded. As the taxi driver had told us though, we were safe… and despite the kidding and the dark corners, we never really felt uneasy.

After stumbling upon some delightful little streets lined with patio lights, interesting windows, narrow walkways shared with motorcycles, and Athenians who were just beginning to start their evenings… we landed in Monastiraki.

We strolled down a long street of cafes and restaurants bordering the Ancient Agora, and found the most perfect, romantic spot for sharing the most delicious cheese plate we’ve ever had.

It was here, in our new favorite place, that we first encountered the slower pace that life seems to offer in Athens. We were able to sit and enjoy each other’s company, the food, the beautiful atmosphere, the live music, and really savor every minute of it. It is definitely a meal that I will never forget.

After dinner, we meandered around a bit more to get a lay of the land and do some planning for the next couple of days before heading back on our walk to the hotel to try to get some rest for our first full day in the city.

I cannot think of a better way to start the trip!

I will share a run-down of each day’s activities, and outline a list of lessons learned/FYI’s that we think would be helpful for anyone setting out to explore Athens and/or Istanbul… but for now, I’m going to close my eyes and remember the taste of that cheese, and the sound of a bouzouki playing…

– Gabby