Best of Europe Tour with Expat Explore - June 2013

Although I had lived in England until the age of 28 my travels to Europe had been very limited and I was viewing this trip as a sort of "Hop on Hop off bus tour" intended to give me an overview of over 14 countries. I would be able to revisit my favorites in the future and spend more time there.

I found the company "Expat Explore" via an Internet search and although it is based in England it is owned by a a South African and has a local office in Gauteng. Whereas most trips are expensive for single travellers this one offered the opportunity of sharing accommodation and was very reasonably priced and I could pay in South African rand.

The trip started from Surrey Quay south of the Thames on the 4th June at 6h30 so I planned to travel on the Jubilee Line to Canada Water. As it was an early morning start I stayed overnight with Ian and Claire in Kensington and Ian dropped me at Earl's Court before 6am.

The coach was easy to spot with its Expat Explore logo.




On the way to Dover our tour guide, Paula, introduced herself and our driver Dean and then asked each person to step to the front of the bus and introduce themselves to the rest of the group. There were four others from South Africa and they were also from Pretoria! Thailand was the best represented country with six travelers, there were four from Columbia, three Canadians, three from New Zealand, three from England, two from the Philippines, two from Malaysia, one from Singapore and one American. Twenty nine in total.

My roommate was Tammy from Ashville, North Carolina.
There was Bob from Fleetwood with his Thai wife Fon.
Hein and Madelein from Elardus Park in Pretoria
Dane Gloy and her mom Daleen.
Troy and his Thai wife Lek from Canada
Francis and Joyce originally from Mauritius now living in Toronto
Samantha, Emma and Shaun from New Zealand
Cindy from Singapore
Aom, Man, LingLin and Long from Thailand - they were all studying law in England
Ricardo, Gloria, Juglio, Mauritzio and Leanne from Colombia
Ash from Leicester and Sony from Leeds
Lin and MK from Malaysia
Lorna and Marvin from the Philippines

We were given strict instructions never to hurt Dean's feelings by referring to our coach as a bus! In fact a penalty of one beer on a driving off day was imposed!

Our trip to Paris used the ferry crossing from Dover and took most of the first day. We checked in to the Ibis Porte de la Chapelle in northern Paris, not far from the Stade de France and regrouped later for a sightseeing drive around Paris.

The coach drove south alongside Le Canal Saint Martin, passing Place de la Republique, the Bastille and crossing to the south bank of the Seine at Pont D'Austerlitz. We drove along the Seine passing Notre Dame, admiring the Pont des Arts bridge where people had placed hundreds of padlocks.



Then to the Tour Eiffel where we crossed the Seine again alighting from the coach at the Trocadero to admire the view and listen to the band playing.


Then past the Grand Palais, Petit Palais, Place de la Concorde and Place de l'Opera, to the Louvre.

Along the Champs Élysées,



three times around the Arc de Triomphe and then along Boulevard De Courcelles and Bd Des Bangnolles to be dropped off in Montmartre.

We walked up the endless steps of the Sacre Couer




and had a pleasant supper at a nearby restaurant.



Bob, Sony, Cindy and Ash

Then afterwards we walked back down towards the Metro, stopping for photos of the Moulin Rouge.


We caught the metro back to our hotel at Porte de la Chapelle and each of us planned how to spend the following free day in Paris.

As we travelled and arrived in each new city Paula used the time spent on the coach to hand out maps and to explain how to get around. In Paris the Metro lines are referred to by colours and numbers and the RER (Regional trains) by colours and letters. At some stations the two systems interlink as they do in London.

In Spain the previous year I had realized that a good thing to do when visiting a new city is to go to a high point and get a bird's eye view. This and also to take the Hop on Hop off bus. The Eiffel Tower often has long queues, not good if you only have a day, so I decided to visit Tour Montparnasse - la plus belle vue pour aimer Paris! The observatory at the top of the 210 metre office tower gives a great 360 degree view of Paris, the Seine and the Eiffel Tower.







Having agreed to meet Paula at 19h30 at the Jussieu Metro Station I had the rest of the day free and decided to catch the train to Versailles.

Line C on the RER terminates at Versailles and Viroflay Rive Gauche is the correct station for the Chateau. To get there from Montparnasse I walked to the Bienvenue station which sits on lines 4,6,12 and 13. As on any metro you need to know the end point of the line, or the direction of travel so that you catch the correct train. I needed to take line13 blue to Duroc and change to line 10 to Javel Andre Citroen in the direction of Boulogne Pont de St Cloud where I could get on line C. The cost was €3.35 each way.

At Versailles there is a fairly long walk past tourist shops and up to the palace.



The queues to enter the palace where long and it was a beautiful sunny day so I decided to spend it in the gardens which had free entry and no queues.







Unfortunately the famous fountains were being renovated but the panorama stretched to the horizon and invited me to walk down the long straight pathways to the stretches of grass alongside the water where people were enjoying boating.





Amazing "hedges"!
I lay on the grass and listened to a book on my iPod, basking in the sunshine for a couple of hours.

As I walked back I was passed by people who had hired bicycles or golf carts to explore the grounds. There were also small "trains" with guides.




I strolled back to the station and caught the RER to Gare Austerlitz from where I had caught the train to Spain in 2011.
Not far from the station is the Jardin des Plantes and I spent a couple of hours admiring the stunning roses and enjoying a giant hot dog and a croissant from a street vendor.






As the park closed I walked towards the Latin Quarter, bought an apple and waited at the metro station at Jussieu for Tammy and Paula so that we could walk to the cabaret, Paradis Latin.






The show was wonderful, we were up in the gallery looking down on the coach tours of tourists eating their 3 course suppers. Soon the five Columbians arrived and joined us.

There were topless dancers, a pickpocket, a juggler on a unicycle, singers and many other acts.

Afterwards we caught the metro back to the hotel where Tammy and I were sharing a room. The next morning it was another buffet breakfast and back onto the coach at 7h30 for a last driving tour of Paris before heading off on the A6 and A36 through fields and forests to the border between Mulhouse and Basel and our next stop in Switzerland.

Location:Days 1 and 2 - from London to Paris

Sailing and Cycling in the Greek Islands

A holiday with a difference, selected on the Internet after finding that return flights cost less to Athens than to anywhere else in Europe in 2013. Peter still hard at work with no sign of imminent retirement so I looked for a suitable group holiday to join. I had enjoyed both sailing and cycling in my distant youth and last year's Sherpa hike in the Dolomites had been well organised so I signed up with them for a new adventure......

Flew to Athens via Abu Dhabi and used booking.com to search for the cheapest accommodation in Athens for the nights before and after the sailing. Ended up using the Athens International Youth Hostel which I can highly recommend for fellow budget travelers.



Clean en suite rooms, great breakfasts and unlimited free wifi, very helpful staff with a good command of English and a short walk to the metro at the end of the street.

I had time to visit the Acropolis and admire views of Athens on Saturday morning.



In the afternoon I was picked up by taxi from the hostel and driven to the Zea Marina at Piraeus to meet up with our hundred foot yacht the glorious wooden Panagiota.



The adventure was being hosted by the German company Inselhuepfen - www.islandhopping.com.

Gradually the other travelers arrived and we met our tour guides Catharina from Germany and Piera from Switzerland. I was to share a cabin with Deb from Tamworth in New South Wales. Our bikes were ready and waiting on the quay so we went for a short ride around the harbour to get used to them.

Our first night on board was spent moored at Piraeus meeting our fellow travelers and the rest of the crew and and listening to the first of many briefings. Each post meal briefing was preceded by a ring of the dining room bell and was conducted in both German and English.

We were 19 guests, 7 guys and12 ladies:
Tony from Houston,



Michele and Steve from New Jersey



and mother and daughter Elaine and Kate from Vermont in the USA.



Rufus and Val from Cambridge in England.
Lyn from Queensland with Joy from the Gold Coast of Australia and Deb.


Then 8 Germans: sisters Mariana from Berlin and Angelika from Stuttgart



Gunther and Sigrun from Pederborn, Jurgen and Brigitta from the Lake Constance area



and friends Manfred and Christiaan from Dusseldorf.



And me......

There were 6 crew members from Greece and Albania. The second captain wasn't aboard but we met Captain Gerasimas, the chef Nondas and his assistant Elena and the two crew Leonidas and Lorenco.

We set sail for the island of Kythnos as the sun rose on Sunday morning.


At 11h30 we dropped anchor and jumped into the sea for a swim - this was to be a daily treat and cool down, very welcome after a hard cycle ride. Unfortunately the snorkeling wasn't scenic like it had been last year in the Seychelles.



After a yummy Greek lunch on board we arrived at Kythnos.



The bicycles were stowed on a special deck and had to be lifted down each time we arrived at an island.


Six of the ladies were using e-bikes which had batteries to help with the uphills. Had I missed a trick? My cycling experience of recent years was limited to short rides through the bush at Zebula or a quick spin at the Virgin Active!

Each cycle ride was preceded by a briefing and a map of the island was handed over. One guide would be at the front and one at the back of our group as we rode. Guess who else was at the back? Often the rides included a guided tour of a village or a visit to a monastery etc.

Our first ride was also our most eventful as I became separated from the main group after Piera stayed with Gunther and Sigrun. Gunther, a smoker, was struggling on the uphills as much as I was and decided to turn back. Piera sent me on ahead to join the front group with strict instructions to stay on the main road. I diligently complied and in doing so sailed past the rest of the group who had turned off into the village for a cuppa! After about an hour of wondering why I hadn't caught the group up despite my heroic cycling efforts I began to smell a rat. Just at that moment I heard my name being called and turned to see Piera coming up the hill at about three times my speed (very demoralising) to tell me I had passed the others! Well I wasn't going back!

It was after Piera and I had stopped and bought juicy pears from a small shop that we took the wrong turn. We enjoyed a long, mostly downhill, ride of about 10 kms before she realised our mistake and pulled the map out. Instead of completing our circular route we had reached the southern tip of the island at Aghios Dimitrios. Whoops! It was already 18h00 due to get dark in a couple of hours and she was burdened by a cyclist who had to do quite a bit of walking up the hills!

Well what else was there to do but turn around and start the long trek back up to the village of Driopida. The road was dead quiet and the sun was sinking. We must have ridden for about thirty minutes before we heard the engine of a vehicle. Piera boldly flagged it down hoping for help. The angels had smiled on us. Not only a vehicle, but a minibus van with an empty back area perfect for two bikes! As we drove along we realised how far we had deviated, it would have taken us at least another couple of hours just to get back to the correct road and we would have had to find our way back to the yacht in darkness. Our new friend dropped us at Driopida, we hopped on the bikes and sailed downhill all the way back to the harbour managing to arrive only 5 minutes behind the unsuspecting group.

It was only Piera's second week on the job so we decided our little diversion should remain a secret for the duration of the trip.

We shared a variety of Greek dishes for supper at a restaurant on the beach, undaunted by the sight of two octopuses watching over us.



On Monday we sailed to Seriphos, breakfasting on the way and eagerly waiting for the day's itinerary to be chalked up on the blackboard. This was due to be a tough day with an initial steep ride to the Chora or capital of the island, Serifos village.




We had a guided walk around the village and a stop at a coffee bar where jugs of iced water were very welcome.
The views back down to the harbour were stunning and the white houses with their bright blue roofs very picturesque.




I was fascinated by the fact that the white cement of the houses seemed to merge seamlessly into the white cement of the narrow roads as if they are one unit.

We visited the monastery Taxiarchon and completed our 32 km circular route back to the harbour at Livadi where we quickly embarked and moved off to moor in a bay for a swim.

The captain had received warnings of strong winds for the Cyclades later in the week so Catharina decided to change our route so that we would not miss a visit to Mykonos.

We moored off Mykonos just before dusk and the rubber dinghy was lowered to transport us in groups of seven to the quay. Our yacht looked tiny compared to the enormous cruise ships which were visiting the island with their thousands of passengers.




Mykonos, one of the most well known of the Greek islands was a tourist mecca and not much to my taste. It is famous for its windmills which stand to the right of the harbour.



We had a quick tour as it became dark and then made our own arrangements for supper (pistachio ice cream) before being ferried back to the Panagiota.

We sailed to the uninhabited island of Delos for an archaeological tour of the remains of an ancient city.



Then in the late morning set sail again and lunched on board before arriving at the island of Tinos where we had an hour or so to walk up the wide marble streets to the Evangelistria church, destination of many pilgrimages.







The shops were selling candles, icons and all manner of religious artifacts.



Our cycle ride took us only 20 kms on a circular route via Tarambados passing many of the filigree Venetian style dove towers that the island is famous for.



We has a long evening sail to Kea, arriving well after midnight and en route were treated to an entertaining session of Greek dancing courtesy mostly of Leonidas and Elena and a handkerchief. They were celebrating their birthday and saint's name day and Catharina and Piera jad presented them with "necklaces" comprised of small mystery gifts wrapped in our bright yellow serviettes. An impromptu party followed with dancing and various "snakes" around the decks of the boat.

On Wednesday we the option of cycling uphill to the village of Iolis or along the coast to a beach at Otzias. I wasn't going to ponder over my selection! Donning my bikini and armed with snorkeling gear and sun cream I set off with about 8 of the others. We had a relaxing morning and stopped off for an iced coffee on the way back to the harbour.




In the afternoon we sailed out of the Cyclades to the small island of Poros which lies close to mainland Greece in the Argosaronic Gulf opposite the town of Galatas.

Wow, we were all thrilled to see trees. We hadn't realised how dry and bare the Cycladian islands had been.



We disembarked in groups for supper and I especially enjoyed the courgette and aubergine fritters.

Just after we boarded a strong wind blew up from nowhere and Captain Gerasimos and the crew quickly loosened our moorings so that they could turn the yacht from stern on, to lying broadside along the jetty wall. This was achieved by sailing away from the wall much to the consternation of those members of the group still sitting in the restaurants alongside the quay. But luckily our chef Nandos was close by to explain what was happening. Soon we were once again moored with the large blue nylon covered buoys acting as a buffer between the yacht and the wall. The wind had rudely interrupted a game of dominoes where I am convinced I was about to beat Leonidas.

On Thursday morning we met for our per cycle briefing after breakfast and cycled around the island of Poros via the monastery of Zoodochos Pigis where we all had to don skirts before being admitted.



Catherina and Peira told us some legends of the island and showed us our route.



We had a pleasant ride, looking down on mussel farms and stopping at a beach on the way back.






We had a swim and lunch back on board and sailed for our final island, Aegina, home to many farmers of pistachio nuts.

Thursday evening on Aegina was spent at the local restaurants and I joined Manfred and Christiaan for a pleasant supper of mussels.

On Friday we had our longest cycle ride heading along the coast to Vagia, followed by a climb up to the Aphaia Temple and Ag. Marina. My bicycle chain came off a couple of times and once again Piera had to rescue me.



We passed a large Byzantine church and made our own ways back to the bustling town of Agina.



Then it was back to our floating home alongside the very busy commuter harbour with the catamaran Flying Dolphin speeding in and out.



We were greeted by the news that the captain was going to hoist some sails and that we could go for a spin around the yacht in the dinghy to take photos.







With the sails back down and full throttle on the engines we headed back for Piraeus where we docked around 5 pm for our final night on board.

After supper we were given our pick up times for the following morning and then had a quiz. The questions varied from "how many photos did Tony take", through "where does Janice come from" and to " what food DOES Rufus like". And others in a similar vein.

We packed our cases the next morning and disembarked group by group as our taxis arrived to whisk us away, saying farewell to our new friends and our wonderful tour guides.

For me it was back to the hostel where I dropped off my luggage and spent an afternoon hopping on and off the yellow bus on its way around the sights of Athens........

Location:Aegean