A Magical Journey - the first ...

If this is your first trip to Greece, then our Magical Journey will give you some good ideas for taking in the major sites and the must-see islands.

Our trip was 18 days, but the basic structure could easily be modified to suit your timetable. Our Magical Journey visits Athens, Mycenae, Epidauarus and Nafplio, Olympia, Delphi, Naxos, Delos, Mykonos and Santorini. We hope you enjoy it!

I first fell in love with Greece when I was young, and I learned that the labyrinth in the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur, was the Palace of Knossos in Crete. From then on, the stories took on a whole new meaning and opened a world into a fabulous and mysterious past where incredibly advanced thinking was taking place. I had an image of the island that was completely shattered when I discovered that the island of Crete had not one, but two major airports. My first realization of the intrusion of modern man into this mythical world.

I'm not old enough to remember the day Kennedy was shot, but I remember where I was the day they roped off the Parthenon. Terribly distressing news. The reports talked about vandalism and graffiti, and, although having had nothing to do with the roping off, the destruction from pollution.

So you see, my impression of Greece was that the magical land was lost. People went to "Greece" on fancy island cruise packages that didn't appeal to me in the least. I looked at one brochure that sailed 12 hours to get to Crete for a four hour stop-over, giving you from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. to check out the Palace half an hour away and get back to your boat - yeah right! Not for me.

So I kind of forgot about Greece for a while, until just over a year ago when I began to plan our first real holiday in twelve years, and almost by accident Greece became our destination.

Our trip was completely planned on the internet, and it was perfect in every way and went well beyond our expectations. We had the perfect balance of discovery and relaxation, no difficult travel arrangements, breathtaking views from EVERY room we stayed in, we never rented a vehicle, and we discovered so much about Greece, and a lot about ourselves.

Yes, the Parthenon's roped off, but not much else is. Some areas of Greece have been over-developed by package tourism and unless that's what you're looking for - steer clear. Even if you do the main attraction islands as we did in our first trip, with a little planning and a little research, you can still find the real Greece, and you can still find the magic. I've become completely enthralled with this magical land, which DOES still exist.

Now without further ado, I shall turn you over to Rob, who discovered a talent for writing - and for providing a good laugh - as he documented our Magical Journey to Greece.

Much to his dismay, a little editing was necessary, mostly to protect the interesting individuals we met along the way ...