Rough Traveling

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Getting from Dubrovnik, Croatia to Greece sounds easy enough, right? They both lie on the coast with just 2 small countries lying in between—Montenegro and Albania. We were wrong. We found out that there are no buses or trains that run that route, and we’re traveling way too cheap to fly. Apparently, the typical route is through Bari, Italy, which doesn’t seem to make much sense when you look at a map. This route involves taking a ferry from Croatia to Italy and from Italy to Greece. We didn’t really know what we were getting ourselves into when we headed to the ferry terminal in Dubrovnik at 9pm in the evening. We weren’t expecting several ferry and bus rides that would completely wear us out.

Our first ferry took us across the Adriatic Sea to Italy overnight (9 hours). The ferries have private rooms with beds for normal people, but we got the cheapest “deck seats” which meant scouting for a place to sleep during the voyage. The long benches had armrests between each seat, as if purposely placed there to prevent us from laying across. We luckily snatched the last round booth with a table in the lounge area, and to extend the seat, we pulled up two chairs for our heads. We slept with our feet touching in a semi-circle, towel for a blanket, jacket bunched up for a pillow. I really regret not taking a photo of our sleeping arrangement. My back, neck, and hips were aching too much to think of such things. We got to Italy at 8am and found out that the next ferry to Italy didn’t leave until 8pm. This meant we had an entire day to burn in Italy. Although I wanted to get the travel over with, I was relieved because it meant we could go to town and find some food. I was dying to stay and explore Italy for a month, but we decided we would rather save Italy for another trip in the future when the weather is warmer and we have more money. I felt very lucky to experience a little taste of Italy, because it wasn’t in our plan at all.

We made sure to grab some food to go before we dragged our feet back onto a ferry that evening. Once again deck seats. Brushing our teeth in the public bathroom. Sleeping in jeans. This second ferry boat was much newer and nicer. We even paid a few euros to get some internet, but it turned out to be painfully slow. This ferry had an area with “air seats” which were like oversized rows of airplane seats set in a dimmed room. It was very empty, so we were able to put the arm rests down on a row of seats so we could lay across to get some shut eye overnight. So much better than sleeping in a semicircle all night! The next morning we landed in Patras, Greece where we boarded a bus for 4 hours to Athens, where hundreds of ferries depart to the Greek islands. I expected Athens to be a very nice city, especially having held a couple Olympic games. We were disappointed with the ghetto bus station, the jammed highway, insane drivers, crumbling sidewalks, graffiti. I’m sure there is a nice part of town, but we didn’t stay long enough to discover it. We took another short city bus ride to the ferry terminal in Piraeus, then walked a mile with our luggage, barely making it in time to get on our ferry. This next ferry left in the evening and got us to Santorini, our final destination at 1am. 52 hours, 3 ferries, 2 bus rides later, we anchored in Santorini, Greece, beyond exhausted, sore in all the weird places, in need of a shower, and elated to be there.


Later today or tomorrow (internet is not on our side), we will share a little about our day stay in Italy, with photos, of course. And then, Greece! 

* Julia

19 comments :

  1. A couple days like that is a rite of passage when it comes to traveling I think :)

    But did you at least get to try some delicious Italian food?

    ReplyDelete
  2. lovely photos! sounds like quite the adventure you two had there...! these will all make for some amazing stories you can tell your grandchildren some day : )

    ReplyDelete
  3. Wow, I want to wish you lots of fun and cool pictures during your travels!
    Just come over from "oh hello fiend..."!
    Love your photos!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I've just read from the beginning - now anxiously awaiting your next post. You've inspired me! And your photos are absolutely stunning. Can't wait for the next installment!

    ReplyDelete
  5. it's the crazy days of hectic travel and overcoming the odds and insane sleeping arrangements that you will remember years from now, and the stories you will very most love retelling! what a beautiful adventure!

    ReplyDelete
  6. oh julia! i have to admit i laughed out loud on this one. it just reminded me too much of my travels with the torturous bus and train rides! i hope it gets better from here!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Aw! I can totally relate! Sometimes there just isn't an easy way to get somewhere, especially on a budget. You guys made it! I can't even imagine how close you are becoming on all these adventures. I am endlessly envious, even of your 52 hour travels :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. I just came across your blog and I wanted to say that I hope you're indeed having the time of your lives. My husband and I have been married for 4 years and are expecting our first baby in April. We did a lot of traveling the last few years, and it has strengthened our relationship to new levels. So happy to see that you two are doing something so exciting and adventurous this early on in your marriage.
    Best of luck on your travels!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Just joyfully discovered your blog through Oh, Hello Friend and I'm so grateful to know about it. Looking forward to traveling with you and hearing about all your wonderful adventures. Having been married two and a half years and loving every part of it (even the low points) I can only imagine how blessed you guys are to have one another during this rare and unbelievable opportunity. You're a beautiful couple and the photos are incredible! Seattle will be fortunate to have you back whenever your journey finishes.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Sounds like an adventure! At least you get to do it together. Those are the best adventures you can laugh about in the future. :) Love seeing your posts and photo's!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Wow, what a mission! So happy you're all safe in Santorini though (:

    ReplyDelete
  12. hello! i am visiting from oh, hello friend! i think it's great that you guys are doing so much traveling and taking all of these beautiful photos!!! i LOVE both of those things so i knew i'd love your blog!! consider me a new follower! :)

    ReplyDelete
  13. Bodrum is amazing! If you have time, there's a cool underwater archaeology museum there that you should check out. If you have time to go farther south Antalya, Kas, and the sunken city of Kekova are cool places to go (and it should still be warm enough to swim!). If not, there are some cool historical sites to see on the way up to Istanbul. Didima, Miletus and Priene are all worth seeing, but I'm a history geek so it might not be so interesting in reality. I loved Ephesus and can't wait to see your photos of it. If you don't already have a place to stay lined up, I would suggest the ANZ guesthouse. We had reservations at another hostel but when we showed up no one was there. So we called ANZ and they sent someone out to pick us up plus they were super friendly. Good luck with your trip, I hope you absolutely love Turkey. I also can't wait for your photos of Greece!

    ReplyDelete
  14. You guys are so right.. this will probably be one of our fave stories to tell at the end of it all. And we'll probably make it way more dramatic the more times we retell it. :)

    Thanks for the encouragement.

    ReplyDelete
  15. hello i didnt know how to contact you guys so i am writing in the comment section.me and julie just want to wish you yuriy a 25th happy birthday. God bless you and may all your wishes come true and you guys stay safe.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Oh that mile long walk with all the luggage, some things have not changed in 12 years!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Joli- YES, we're not the only ones! Makes us feel better about it. (really 12 yrs?!)

    Just peeked at your blog... your story is so daring and sweet.

    ReplyDelete
  18. I've just read from the beginning - now anxiously awaiting your next post. You've inspired me! And your photos are absolutely stunning. Can't wait for the next installment!
    holidays to tuscany

    ReplyDelete