Category Archives: Greece
learning from our most memorable travel moments
We’ve had a lot of fun tasting chocolate here on Travel Diversions with Doreen, and enjoying the cultural and culinary adventures of the world. But this week, with the onset of September and a new season upon us, I’m feeling a bit more reflective and am asking you to dip back into your memory banks and share 2 things with us: 1) What is YOUR most memorable travel moment and … 2) What valuable lesson did you learn from it? I’ll start the ball rolling. My most memorable travel moment was back in 1996, during our week-long visit to the Greek island of Santorini. We’d taken a marathon 12-hour tour around the island on a particular day and ended up arriving by small boat to the island of Thirasia. Up above on the cliffs, we spotted the village of Manolas, and were told that there were only 2 ways to reach it. Walk up, or take a mule. We chose the mules. Now, let me explain that there are/were no groomed trails to get you up to the top of the hill. And no guard rails to ensure you didn’t fall the considerable distance down the cliff to the sea. But there I was, purse in my lap and camera hanging from my shoulder (this was during the days of the much larger and heavier old DLS film cameras), and trying to hold onto the mule as we swayed side to side, slowly climbing the rocky cliff to the village at the top, where we were told we would be treated to amazing views and a nice lunch. On arrival, Reg and I got comfortable and sat ourselves down for lunch and a couple of well-deserved beers in the late afternoon heat of the sun. We were truly exhausted, but …
