Kastraki

Our last adventure before leaving Greece was a trip to Meteora, located north of Athens in the center of Greece.  In our travels around Greece we had used public transportation - taxis, metro, buses and the ferry system.  We decided to visit Meteora by train.  That, in itself, was an adventure.  We wanted to get our train tickets before we began island-hopping, so the four of us took the metro station to purchase tickets for later that month.  Well, the bus station only sells tickets for the day of travel, so they suggested that we buy our tickets online, and we would get a discount as well.


That seemed reasonable, so once back at the hotel we went to their little Internet room that was all set up with computers and began the process.  We quickly found that the train website was ONLY in Greek, with no option for English!  Craig was able to use Google translate, and by going a page at a time, they figured out which buttons to push, what screen to chose itinerary, add credit card information, etc.  It seemed a bit risky, but we did it.  In the end, the computer spit out our tickets, and we had, somehow, received a 75% discount from the regular fare!  That made our round-trip tickets - 5 hours each way - 18 euros each!  Probably the bargain of the trip, although we felt guilty that we were getting such a huge discount with the country in the financial situation it is.  And, better news - the tickets actually worked!

Our train left early in the morning and the trip to Meteora was beautiful - through Athens and then into the country, into the mountainside, and finally into Kalambaka, where we got off.  We could see the rocks of Meteora from the train station.  We got a taxi to the little village of Kastraki where our accommodation was.  The Papastathi Guest House was right at the base of the rocks leading up to the Monasteries.   The guest house was wonderful and the owners were very warm and welcoming.

We walked into the little village and had lunch in a lovely taverna, under a huge grape arbor.  Then a wander around before heading back to the guest house to prepare for a day in Meteora. This place felt magical and we were very excited about exploring it.

The little road in Kastraki that leads up to the Monasteries in Meteora

Some of the little shops and accommodations in Kastraki

As you can see, the little village is nestled right under the huge rocks.  The guidebook described the rocks of Meteora as a "rock forest"  We loved the spire in between the huge rocks

Kastraki homes in the shadows of the rocks

We looked out on this view from our room.  We zoomed up on the site and decided that it must be laundry hanging out to dry - that there must be a tunnel to a Monastery.  We finally asked our hostess and she laughed and told us that once a year, in April, the residents of Kastraki climb that rock and hang out scarves and other large pieces of cloth, and that they remain there until the next April.  Apparently it's some kind of a tradition, but we never did find out why.  As we were there in May, the cloths were in good condition - I imaging they are pretty tattered at the end of the year

Well, it kind of looks like laundry, doesn't it?

Strolling around Kastraki

More of the village under the rocks