Acropolis Now (19 July-20th)

The Acropolis is a must. We missed it due to the workers' strike but despair not, we did explore this sexy structure in the end. Aegina, a €7 slow ferry ride to Piraeus, took only just an hour and a half of travelling time. Relishing the slow ride, we sat on the deck looking out to sea. We really noticed the contrast between the slow enjoyment of this ride and the bus-like stultification inside the hydrofoil we took to get to Aegina. Following the Greek mantra of 'sigha sigha' (slowly slowly) we decided slow ferries would do us. Pulling up to Piraeus it was fun talking to the ship workers in Greek and watching them prepare for the port.

Hoping to secure a ferry to Santorini, on arrival at Piraeus we marched straight into a ticket office. Slow ferries were booked up for the next few days, with the exception of an overnight journey leaving at 10pm that day to arrive at 1pm the following day. We booked that option which left us some sweet afternoon hours to kill. Only a 30 minute metro trip from Piraeus to Athens, the Acropolis beckoned.

Another random rendezvous (RR) occured at the Piraeus port occured as we wandered out of the ticket office.

Dave acting apocalyptic!

We'd overheard a guy in the the ticket office with a highly unusual New Zealandish/Pommy accent who talked in the coolest of colloquialisms. We scored a travel companion and a new vocabulary! Damo introduced himself and asked where us guys were headed. Our plans of visiting the Acropolis were met with an honest 'What's that?'. Damo thought this 'apocalypse' thing' sounded like a good way to spend the day, so he joined us.

Operators and workers had returned from strike, so the Acropolis awaited us. We dumped our bags for a steep €10 charge at Athens backpackers. The day was sweltering but the Acropolis was worth it. Reconstruction was occuring (ugly metal obscured the hot bits) but this ancient centre of city life was resplendent.

It was rushed but interesting to explore the 'apocalypse' with our temporary travel buddy Damo. Despite not knowing the history he took some awesome shots and he was a cruisy guy. We picked up some Greeklish vocabulary from Damo - 'apocalypse' for Acropolis and our personal fave - JAI ROWS for greek kebabs (gyros). We now joke about our constant craving for JAIROWS; 'aww yeah mate I could really go for them gyros you got'. We are pretty much turning into kebabs in our pursuit for the perfect gyros. Some of the best were found in Thira, Santorini.

After our Acropolian adventure we headed to Athens backpackers to pick up our bags and some beverii - beers for the boys and girl. Upstairs at Athens backpackers they have an awesomely chillaxed rooftop bar. The coloured seat cushions and funky tunes made this a mental must for our next Athens stay. We chatted to some fellow travellers including an Oxford physics scholar with an unconventional examination approach. This phD student was doing a European trip despite his exams approaching in 3 weeks. Also talked to his friend James and Dave chatted to a girl called Mola who

Rooftop Bar at Athens Backpackers!

was shattered owing to the theft of her pretty dress shoes. With little time left before our Piraeus passage I headed out for some really good authentic Atheninan jairows (kebabs) with James, Hugo, Damo and Dave.

Relaxed and refreshed we caught the metro back to the port of Piraeus. On the journey Damo had strong words with a man on the train who had tried to unzip his bag. The man didn't take being caught out well - he pressed his face up close to Damo's and evil-eyed him until his stop came up. We arrived with only minutes to spare and ended up running with our packs to the ferry. We secured comfy twin seats each which were great for relaxing but not comfy enough for quality zzzzs. It was a long ride with only 4 hours sleep. Santorini bound, we arrived eventually safe but sleepy.

Random rendezvous (RR)

We dined with a physicist our last night in Warsaw, Poland. Wandering back down Novy Swait again for dinner, our stomachs took a liking to a BierHalle offering Polish fare. Overhearing our puzzlement about the cuisine, an American lady cleared up the establishment arrangements. We asked her to join us and she obliged. A physicist, she had arrived from a long trip - America to Warsaw for a conference. Weary from her trip she was keen to avoid her fellow physicists. "If you see a whole lot of geeky people wandering the streets of Warsaw - that will be us" she quipped. Food and conversation were fit for the evening - ordered a Polish soup (zurek) and a dish of chicken breast and vegies. Great stuff.

Travelling brings a plethora of new faces. Introductions begin with a barrage of questions: Where are you from? Where are you going,? Why are you here?. Many connections will soon be lost owing to the tenuous foundations of memory. If anyone is interested, the former US poet laureate Billy Collins has a wonderful animated poem called "Forgetfulness."

Met another Erin - a random Canadian chick at the hostel Oki Doki in Warsaw. Coming back to the room one afternoon, we discovered her in a zombie state. Ran into her again at the train station bound for Krakow, so I inquired after her name. She told me it was the same as mine. When she was mid-stupor that sleepy afternoon, mum's nagging refrain of 'Erin! Erin!' muddled with her dreaming. Why is the crazy woman calling me? her brain queried. Faces flash by constantly - I was enamoured with the cute Polish girl who showed great concern for 'the Australians' coming back so late. Others include some cute Cypriot lads, and it has to be said - a whinging Pom suffering from a cold and an attitude malaise. Will update soon on my sour hostel and an overwhelming visit to Auschwitz.