We spent a full day in the main town of the area called Ioannina. It is a very nice plays that has the perfect balance of small town intimacy and big city charm. There are plenty of people living there, but it is not overwhelming. The city often goes unnoticed with people who visit Greece because it is so far away from the islands and Athens. It is also very difficult to get to. But it is well worth it due to its cultural and natural beauty. My favorite parts were the old mosques, the deserted buildings, and the lake.
During the day we spent walking around in the city, we met with a gal named Anna. I decided to ask her to go with me the next day to Zagoria because figured that the time would be best enjoyed in the company of another. She happily said yes to my invitation to her to hitch-hike with me to a small town about an hour away, and took a bus the next day to meet me on the side of the highway. That alone said a lot about her character. Whimsicality is my favorite second nature.
It took us merely 15 minutes to catch a ride to a town called Papingo. It is one of the nicest villages in the region. All of the houses are made of stone there and they are far up in the mountains. It is magical. It goes to show that Greece has much more than just white-painted houses and topless beaches. This beautiful area in the Balkans along the border of Albania is often forgotten about. It is actually my favorite. We spent a few hours sitting at a small church high above the village as we ate the sandwhiches that I prepared that morning at the bakery. We started talking music a bit, and to my surprise I found out that Joy Division is her favorite band.
Later, we hitched a ride back to her town with some people coming from Albania. They were pretty excited to meet an American. I was also jsut as pleasured to meet some Albanians. It worked out well. In the evening, she took me to a festival in a village near by her house. There was a band there to play traditional music from Creete and Epirus. It was perfect. She took me to the front to dance the traditional dances. The ones where everyone goes around in circles holding hands and kicking high like the Radio City Rockettes. It was a blast. I could not stop smiling. My favorite part was the group of old people that got very into it. They would flap their arms around like birds and do these crazy heel clicks in the air. I wish I had the camera, but it is all so fresh in the mind.
I had a great time there in the north. I has proven to be my favorite part of Greece. I am in a mad hurry to go back.
During the day we spent walking around in the city, we met with a gal named Anna. I decided to ask her to go with me the next day to Zagoria because figured that the time would be best enjoyed in the company of another. She happily said yes to my invitation to her to hitch-hike with me to a small town about an hour away, and took a bus the next day to meet me on the side of the highway. That alone said a lot about her character. Whimsicality is my favorite second nature.
It took us merely 15 minutes to catch a ride to a town called Papingo. It is one of the nicest villages in the region. All of the houses are made of stone there and they are far up in the mountains. It is magical. It goes to show that Greece has much more than just white-painted houses and topless beaches. This beautiful area in the Balkans along the border of Albania is often forgotten about. It is actually my favorite. We spent a few hours sitting at a small church high above the village as we ate the sandwhiches that I prepared that morning at the bakery. We started talking music a bit, and to my surprise I found out that Joy Division is her favorite band.
Later, we hitched a ride back to her town with some people coming from Albania. They were pretty excited to meet an American. I was also jsut as pleasured to meet some Albanians. It worked out well. In the evening, she took me to a festival in a village near by her house. There was a band there to play traditional music from Creete and Epirus. It was perfect. She took me to the front to dance the traditional dances. The ones where everyone goes around in circles holding hands and kicking high like the Radio City Rockettes. It was a blast. I could not stop smiling. My favorite part was the group of old people that got very into it. They would flap their arms around like birds and do these crazy heel clicks in the air. I wish I had the camera, but it is all so fresh in the mind.
I had a great time there in the north. I has proven to be my favorite part of Greece. I am in a mad hurry to go back.
so which is your first favorite nature?
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