Meadering towards Meteora...or are we there yet?

Icon in the lobby Amalia Meteora

It is an unusually slow start to the day for me.

I will be free until 1.30pm when I join another group who would be going to Meteora, so I decide to just relax in the beautiful Amalia hotel where I have unexpectedly found myself.

The lobby of the Amalia Delphi is a great place to just sit and look at the beautiful view. So after an “abundant” buffet breakfast (I am selective, but still can’t entirely resist trying some Greek pastries) and a Greek coffee I can only mange a few sips of, I plug in my computer, write, and upload photos.

At times the lobby is silent except for the sound of birds, at other times, some beautiful music plays in the background and that just adds to the peaceful atmosphere. I share this lovely space (after the crowds from other tours have left) with only one older couple, a single lady travelling with them who sits and read a book and a motley crew of Australians and Americans who sat and played cards.      

I watch the older couple for a while. She seems reasonably fit, albeit a nervous type. He has a pasty unwell face, is overweight and needs sticks to walk. I noticed them at Delphi. He had struggled on and off the bus and then only managed to walk part of the way to Apollo’s temple. The rest of the time, I think they spent in the museum kiosk, waiting for the rest of us to join them.

In contrast, I met an Australian couple later in the day who had retired early. For the last 5 years they have been travelling overseas each year for nearly 3 months “with a few smaller trips in between” as well. They told me they loved travelling and were so glad they had retired early, so they could enjoy trips like this one while they were still fit.

When I get on the bus later and sit in the first row (I don’t like buses much and get a bit car sick, so have asked for a forward aisle seat when I booked) I feel a bit guilty as I watch the older man struggle to get past me. Normally I would have given up my seat, but I just smile at him encouragingly and grit my teeth through the guilt.

Although it was not my original plan to try to fit in all my travel dreams via this “mid life gap year” I am so glad now that I am doing this travel while I have lots of energy.

I have lunch at the Amalia before I leave. The simple meal I think I have ordered (cheese omelette and green salad) is enormous and I struggle to finish it (I feel…you guessed it… guilty again, and do my best, as I was taught not to leave anything on my plate due to the “starving children in Africa” but I have to surrender temporarily to the guilt as I just can’t manage it!

Stafis is our new guide and George is the driver. He counts us (39 passengers) and we set off about 1.50pm Today will be a long drive as Kalambaka is about 4 hours away over a mountain pass and across a delta, and with stops for a break and to see a memorial it will be after 6pm before we check in to our new hotel.

The thing that strikes me the most as our bus winds up and down steep roads past ancient villages, rural areas and through the thriving town of Trikala towards our destination is just how mountainous Greece is. (A few of the mountains that surround us are snow capped throughout the year and most are over 5000 feet high)

When I hear about the great battles of the Greeks against various invaders and stop at what essentially is a massive gravesite filled with the bodies of young men, I can only imagine just how physically difficult “battle” in this terrain would have been and I can’t help (perhaps naively) wondering what any warfare actually achieves in the end, even though I know all the reasons why sometimes it might be necessary. 

Truth is I found the trip a bit boring. George and Stafis chatted incessantly in Greek. Most of the passengers slept. The pit stops were excruciatingly slow. I found myself thinking “are we there yet” but the landscape was beautiful and the trip was heaven compared to the Indian bus trip I did to Goa, so I’m not complaining too much! 

Our bus driver is prudent and skilled and we arrive safely at our destination. We wait in the lobby while Stafis hands out keys and reminds us of the schedule for tomorrow. He talks of wake up calls and luggage tags and hotel drop off schedules. I ask about getting to the town or being able to walk the next morning, but it isn’t going to work and we are actually not near the town and it is at this point that I feel a bit overwhelmed. I realise that there will be little time to really experience Meteora. There is a moment of panic as I feel trapped. I breathe, and it passes and I remember that it’s one of the disadvantages of being on a tour. I try to remind myself of the many advantages as I take my keys, go obediently to my room and return for dinner at 8pm as requested.

But my mood persists, and my energy translates to the group because I find myself sitting on my own, surrounded by tables that are filling up with couples and newly made friends. As I sit there on my own, I feel like I imagine the kid who is picked last for the sports team must feel. I am tempted to leave, or bury my head in my computer or a book, but I don’t.

This too will pass…and it does

Are we there yet?

A presto

Mon x   

I could not get through this!