Chip, the All American Bus

I can't believe I've never seen this thread until this weekend!
I've read the lot.
I'm blown away
I'm jealous
What an amazing set of trips, you are living the dream!
Keep it up for all of us that wish and hope to do what you are doing.
Having seen the photos of you, I realise I met you both very very briefly at a techenders in 2014? You were with @Dicky and may have just got back from a European tour.

Fair play to you both! Edit I forgot the van, so a big kiss to the van!

 

Always love your exploits Neil. Keep them coming

 

We certainly did Paul, I remember sitting & chatting about your engine set-up.
In fact we were just planning to do the above trip & Chip was partly completed. TE was a deadline to get the bus MOT'd & Dicky hooked up our gas to test the propex.
Looking forward to the next one...& catching up again...

 

It was a wrench, but finally we had to say goodbye to Camping Mani Beach. We had made some life friendships (more on that later when we get to Athens) but time was ticking relative to what we wanted to do.

A big goodbye party with the staff...


...and it was on the road again. This time across to Skala to stock up at Lidl then off into the mountains.


Our first overnight was at Sampatiki but before we could get there we had some serious hairpins to negotiate.


But arriving at the coast we found pole position. In fact we slept with the rear hatch open enjoying the cooling breeze coming off the cove.


Onwards towards Nafplio and the road was no less spectacular.


Resulting in the inevitable. No prizes for guessing whats going on here


Nafplio offered the opportunity to take on board more supplies. It was once the capital of Greece in the 1820's and the tired but proud architecture reflects its once important status.


Our focus at this stage was getting to Epidaurus. We were here once before & it's a must see when visiting the Peloponnese. Once a healing centre dedicated to the cult of Asclepius the healer, the ampitheatre remained forgotten and overgrown until the late 19th century.
Sit in the upper rows and you can hear a coin drop on the centre stone down below. The acoustics are amazing...

 

The view from the top of the amphitheatre. There's a lot more to see here. A museum displays the best artefacts & the whole complex is huge, including an Olympia style games arena.


The old port of Epidaurus is quaint & offers a good free camping spot if you know where to look. It's hard to find the entrance to the road that leads to the beach & is a bit tight but worth it.


Alfresco dining


With a nice cold shower in the morning


Further around the coast is Methana. An old spa town built on a semi active volcano. Just below where we camped there is an outlet of thermal water into the sea. Across the road the local apartments kindly provided an outside shower.


The town now extends to 2 rows from the seafront. In its glory days the streets behind were proudly lined with art deco hotels which are now all decaying and unoccupied.


Our main reason for being here was for the inter island ferry. You can get across to Aegina from here. Aegina is a small island that sits in the bay of Athens and is a hop-scotch for getting to the capital.

The night before the ferry & a familiar pattern emerges..


But the following day brought a spectacular sunrise & the early ferry. We've been to Aegina before so knew the perfect spot for a weeks worth of free beach front camping...

 

A weeks free camping on a beach on a little Greek island.

 

We fell in love with the island quite a few years ago . It's a short hop from Athens on the Dolphin & therefore is a weekend getaway for the population. As such it's a bit off the tourist trail as it's not so pristine as some of the higher profile islands. Grubby on the north coast & the beaches are few & far between elsewhere, the best one being a hidden gem.



So the first thing we did was to see if our spot was available..


...it was, so we staked the claim...


...and the third thing we did was to hot foot it to Pita Toms for the best gyros anywhere!

 

This sums up how life should be.




As for the gyros.... Swap the meat for halloumi...... Salivating now. I love this thread. Living vicariously but itl do for now.

 

Sure does. Pipe dream at the moment for me and im guessing by the time i get the opportunity it wont be in the bay tbh.

 

You're right @MorkC68 , anything could happen!
Ask me aged 39 if this was an option or a dream & I'd have told you I was too busy to discuss such frippery! haha.

 

in 3 years i will be 40 and it could possibly happen, not quite as long a trip but a few weeks at least

 

It's got to be done. Especially with the youngsters. They'll remember it for the rest of...

 

longest we've managed was a month round Spain and Portugal as a couple which was ... idyllic!

longest with kids should have been a month but ended after 10 days or so (medical not vehicle related).

would still love to do a good long road trip with the kids but more likely to have a better outcome with just the mrs.

 

Aegina Town is a charming place catering to both the local residents and the Greek tourists. Winding backstreets tumble down to a harbour lined with fishing boats and floating vegetable vendors. It only takes about 40 minutes to drive from top to bottom of the island. The principle industry is the cultivation of pistachio nuts, so rural roads means gentle travelling.

Coffee from a terrace in Aegina Town


It was harvest time & most properties had hessian sacks laid in the driveways covered with drying pistachios


As usual there were a few interesting vehicles. Quite a few T25's are still in daily service as ambulances, builders hacks and delivery vans.


The interior of the island offers typically rugged scenery dotted with goat pens. You can see all round the Gulf of Athens across to the capital and south to the Peloponnese


The best preserved antiquity is the Temple of Aphaea. The site is thought to have had significance from 14thC BC but what remains is from 500BC. The views from the temple are awesome, across to the Acropolis in Athens and all the way down the Saronic Gulf towards Cape Sounion.

Temple car park. Our camp spot is on the coast just above the LHS solar panel...


Beautifully preserved Temple of Aphaea.


The village of Perdika on the southern tip of the island presents the best restaurants. Our favourite, Deka, had this to serve one day...


...the owner Iannis presented it beautifully

 

Ever thought of guided tours.... such amazing trip such amazing views. I think I speak for everyone when I say I wish we were there...

Have you any trips planned/thought about?