Tirana – Athens – Nafplion, Greece

Wednesday, May 1

 Enea had arranged for a cab to pick us up at our hotel this morning and get us to the airport for our 10:00 flight to Athens.  Because this is May 1, Labor Day in Europe, the streets were quiet and Tirana’s typically chaotic traffic was taking a holiday, along with the citizenry.  Our flight time was just about an hour and we arrived in Greece at noon, having lost an hour because of a change of time zone.

We hit the road after picking up our rental car at the airport and before long we crossed the Corinthian Canal onto the Peloponnese Peninsula.  No surprise to anyone, we stopped en route for a photo op at the canal, which was constructed in the late 19^th century, long after the initial idea to cut through the isthmus to link the Ionian and Aegean Seas was first proposed by a ruler of Ancient Corinth in the 7^TH CENTURY BC!!!  Emperor Nero tried to kick off a canal dig in 67 AD with a golden (what else?)  pickaxe, leaving the rest of the job to 6,000 Jewish slaves, but ongoing invasions and conflicts halted that effort.  Given the fact that the walls of the canal rise about 300 feet and the modern canal covers a length of almost 4 miles through solid rock, perhaps we should be more surprised that any effort, in any era, ultimately succeeded.  Even in the 21^st century, the canal is an impressive sight, and it has undeniably changed commerce in the Mediterranean to this day.

We were close to the ruins at Ancient Corinth and the fortress looming above the site, but it was too late in the day to visit them today, so we headed to Nafplion, a major port and the first capital of an independent Greece (1833-1834).  The old town center was crowded with visitors on this holiday, and most of the shops (including the grocery stores we wanted to visit) were closed.  We were able to pick up a few essentials for dinner, breakfast, and HAPPY HOUR at a small market before heading a couple of miles outside of town to find our home for the next four nights.

And, once again, we’ve really scored on our local accommodations.  We have a spacious house, beautifully equipped, and situated with views of nearby hillsides.  We were happy to do laundry and then enjoyed those views at dinner on the patio while we plan our upcoming days in the Pelopennese.