Non-touristic spots in Greece

If you are looking for a small, non-touristic spot somewhere to relax and enjoy for a few weeks you can visit Paros and Naxos. It’s very easy to get to those islands as ferries run frequently and the tickets are very cheap. They are closed to many other island so if you don’t like one you can always move easily to another. You can rent car or moped and explore the islands. Paros is much smaller than Naxos but they are very similar. Santorini is different more touristic but still you can fine some places where you can relax and enjoy. Next to Santorini hour and half away is a island called Anafy. This one it’s not very popular and has hand full of people. If you decided to go there you will have the beach for yourself. On territory the island is larger than Santorini and you can get there for maximum 10 Euro with a ferryboat from Santorinan port. You can go in the morning and come back in the next day to Santorini. Another quite island is located close to Naxos. It is very small and it’s called Koufonissi. For few days there you will get to know everyone on the island. Try to go there June or September if you go there in August you will see only Greek people and it will be very noisy and hectic.

I will mention just few others small islands that I love:



• Alonissos -Sporades Island. Green and fertile, perfect for walking and nature-loving people. You can go to this island by flying to Skiathos, followed by a 75-min. ferry transfer.



• Paxos -Ionian Island. Here you can enjoy old architecture, wild flowers, wooden landscape and white pebble cover. You can go to this island by flying to Corfu, followed by a ferry transfer.




• Ithaca - home of Odyssey and visitors can discover the legendary places mentioned in Homer’s The Odyssey. It is a great place for people interested in history and archaeology. Many ancient monasteries. You can get to this island by flying to Kafalonia, followed by a ferry transfer.

Why not Aegina Island?

Arriving at Athens airport it will take you 30 min with taxi or 45 min with metro to get to Piraeus harbor. Aegina is the closes island to main land and very popular in 70s and 80s. Now it is very quite but still very beautiful, full of wonderful architecture. Aegina town is the capital and is a very busy place in the summer - mainly Greeks. They are many lovely taverns with excellent food. Seafood is always fresh and the variety is indescribable.
There are many smaller villages dotted around the island and you will need a car or a bike to get around. My favorite is Agia Marina. Small village it has a port attached to it so you can take a boat straight from Piraeus to Agia Marina. Very beautiful, great for swimming water is crystal clear and you can see crabs crowing 4-5 miters on the bottom of the sea. Have privet places for swimming and places for beach volleyball. The small taverns are very traditional you can witness the actual fishing and then order the food.


Fifteen years ago I came on holiday and met my husband in Agia Marina. There are no British Tour Operators going to Aegina anymore but I do recommend this island for newlywed. It is quite, romantic, natural and very exotic. If you do come to Athens you can come and stay in Aegina even for a day or two it is totally worth it.
There is a monastery in the center of the island there is an old abandon village just above so you can spend a whole day there exploring the ancients.

If you take the bus to Agios Marina from Aegina harbor you will see Agios Nectarios Monastery.
In 1904 at the request of several nuns, the monastery was established for them.
Now people come for pilgrimage, wandering to the patron saint, the last canonized symbol of the Greek-Orthodox Church.



Very special place to visit is Athea tample (it is a small version of Acropolis). The temple, which is quite well preserved, was built in the Doric style; some of the 22 limestone columns (5,27 m - 17,25 ft high) are monolithic. Dates from the beginning of the 5 C. BC and was dedicated to Aphaia, a local divinity.

Also you can book small excursion and visit for one day another three islands Agistri, Poros and Hydra from Saronic gulf close to Aegina. It is a very pleasant journey and even close to each other they are all very different.
Nice site that I found for Aegina click to check it. They have nice photos of the places and lot of information about the island.

Famous food that this island produces is Aegina Pistachio Nuts. Greece is famous worldwide for the "Aegina pistachios", one of the best varieties in the world.
If you are wondering where to go next try this island you can have it all for yourself.

Impression from Santorini

What is my first impression from Santorini? Strange, black, burnt island. Very little to do stay on the beach and eat in the Greek taverns. Well it wasn't like that at all. I came to visit and I end up staying for a summer then getting married and leaving here for the last 8 years. It is still a strange little island but now doesn't look bad to me. Some local people think that Atlantis was berried here close to the shore. Few years ago they even got a small submarine looking for it. There are many things that you could do in Santorini like water sports, diving, clubbing. You can get certified diver and explore the caldera site of the island which is really very unique. The food is great. You have to be very careful and watch your weight because the food is delicious. The traditional places to eat in Greece are the taverns. When in the tavern you may start with saganaki (fried cheese) usually made of "kefalotiry" but i will get in details latter. Then a tzatziki (yogurt, garlic, cucumber and dill with olive oil), continue with horiatiki (Greek salad) and barbounia (red mullet). For dessert you may have many option but my favorite is baklava (cinnamon pastry with walnuts and honey). There so many choices that it is difficult to keep in shape.

Welcome to Milena's Blog

This blog will be about people who love traveling to Greece. Come every year enjoy their holiday, feel a little “Greekanize” and as soon as they get back home they book another holiday for next year. I’ve worked for many years in the tourist industry in a different islands and I happened to meet many friends to whom I making this blog.

I am intending to connect as many of my friends as I can and remind them for the good time they had here in Greece. Many of them want to come and leave in Greece and I will be happy to help them gather the information they need for that. Even if you want to make a Greek night at home this is the right blog to be. I will try to show you not the tourist parts of Greece but the one that I see every day of my life.

This week I will contact many of my friends and put in mind that you may know the people who will write in this blog or you may make new friends for your future holiday. You will be surprise how many new things you may learn about a place that you probably go every year.