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texasdago

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Posts posted by texasdago

  1. I don't know how I've never gotten a ticket... I'll drive 2-4 weeks in Italy almost every year and I am rather, ah, aggressive.  Just have to watch for the Autovelox and avoid the ZTL.  Only ticket I ever got was forgetting to pay for parking at an Italian ski resort.  That was all on me.  

  2. 8 hours ago, Walte464 said:

    I was digging trenches in my yard to try and deflect water away from my patio and starting to move all my furniture into different parts of my house. Never seen anything like this, about 13 inches in 4.5 hours, the water missed coming into the house by 1/4 inch.

    Glad you missed it.  We once got 5 inches in an hour.  It was a freak show of rain... 11" in that night (not to mention what Harvey did) but I was feeling for y'all yesterday.

  3. On 6/24/2019 at 10:33 AM, tantric superman said:

    The whole thing was kind of funny because I'd spend the morning at the beach just hanging out, and then when I got back to town in the afternoon the family I was staying at would know exactly where I had been because all their friends were reporting on me ("I saw your friend having coffee with _________", Your short fat friend bought some bread at the bakery this morning", "Is your friend from America a religious fanatic?  I saw him at church and he stayed for the whole service.".)

    The Greeks are pretty nice people.  If I went again I might do some of the flashier islands but I would err on staying put rather than covering lots of ground. 

    When we went to a lesser known island, people were amazed we were there from Texas without having a family connection to the island.  Yes, same thing... we found out the locals were talking about the Texans.  

    Complete agreement about staying put - you get to know a place and truly enjoy and experience it.  Much less stress.

  4. We stayed in an AirBnB in koukaki - typical residential area.  For our day trip from Athens, we went to Vougliameni Beach - just wanted to get out of town and we were happy we did that.

    I couldn't stand the area around Monastiraki... just felt too touristy.  But, as you go over there, at least in June, we found both Agoras, especially closer to dusk, were quiet.  

    Pro tip: If you plan on seeing both Agoras, the Parthenon, etc., buy a ticket that allows you to see multiple sites at a discount.  Its 30 Euro per adult.  Make sure to buy a ticket at a quieter site like the Temple of Olympian Zeus.  That way you can avoid the lines at the Parthenon.  Then, visit the Parthenon around 6:30... you'll have about an hour before they kick you out but the crowds will not be as bad.

    • Like 2
  5. On 6/22/2019 at 7:56 AM, Loco said:

    I know what you mean, and I see TornACL's post about check list vacations...also agree.  But, this is the meat of it...  I'm taking my family and two young teens to the actual physical birthplace of democracy, philosophy, and the foundation of culture for all western societies.  We are going to see the Agora, Pnyx, Aeropageous hill, the Acropolis, Mycenae, Olympia... then add in that my kids are really into Greek mythology so put that in 10 days.  Yeah, 30 days would be much better, I don't have 30 days to spend.  

    There will be plenty of time to sit back an enjoy just being there.   Will I have wine in my pack and enjoy the sunset from Aeropageous hill, sure, will I shillelagh some obnoxious selfie douche with the bottle (hydroflask) perhaps...  but got damnit it's going to be glorious.

     

     

    Do yourself a favor... stay in a less touristy neighborhood.  We stayed in Koukaki and it was just outside the madness... better local restaurants, better prices, less people trying to drag you into their restaurants.

     

    On driving in Greece, it was fine on the island.  Worst drivers were a) tourists and b) taxi drivers.  I was in-between... was there long enough to drive my crappy rental car like a borderline maniac (aka fast)

    • Like 1
  6. 24 minutes ago, Loco said:

    Or download the maps onto your device so that you can use them offline.   I found a wireless hotspot for 2-3 euro a day..   So i'm going to do both.

     

    I totally agree about the 2-3 days and getting more immersed...  it's just time... for most folks that don't travel as much they want to see as much as they can...  I'm in this boat

    I used to be in this boat and found over time that the experienced felt more stressed, rushed and just overall not as pleasant.  I hear what you're saying but its kind of like Japan... when we went, we only stayed in Tokyo.  Everyone said, go to Kyoto, go to Mt Fuji... but we stayed in one place and got to know it a bit better.  This last trip taught me, screw famous sites, I'm going to go for amazing places with less people.  I enjoyed going to the beach outside of Athens (Vougliameni) and just swimming and chilling more than seeing the "you have to see it" Parthenon. 

     

     

     

  7. On 6/19/2019 at 1:57 PM, Dbeasy said:

    We like a mix of attractions. We like to visit historical sights, walk the streets, hang out drinking wine in a cafe, hike, see museums, really anything. However, we don’t like bad crowds and long lines, which is why we are going in May rather than June-Sept. I’m also a little worried about driving over there. I don’t like the hassle of not getting lost. However if that’s the only way to go west we will do it.

    Driving in Greece is fine.  We did it for nearly two weeks... that said, you could spot typical American drivers in a heartbeat.  Usually pulled over with their blinkers and a map or quite literally stopped in the middle of the road.  Do yourself a favor... get T-Mobile and the free data plan and you can use Google maps to your heart's delight.

     

    My continued recommendation to people - be it Italy or Greece or whatever - is don't go for 2-3 days.  Go for a week or more and get into the rhythm of the place.  If you need side trips, take side trips but have a base.  

  8. I have to say... after spending 11 days on Milos, I've decided that I'm going to keep my trap shut on great places.  Milos has changed... its now on the American tourist radar and while there still aren't many ships coming (only one a day) and the airport can only handle tiny planes, there are definitely more Americans.  That drives prices up, people can't drive worth a crap on the island (we saw people simply stopping in the middle of the road allll the time), the tipping culture starts showing up, people start partying harder, etc.  Locals tell us that in two years Pollonia went from barely any Americans to about 70%.  The island still doesn't have the infrastructure to handle a lot of tourists so, to some extent, it limits the big crowds but that will change.  Also, the roads, electrical grid, sewage, etc will all have to be upgraded to keep up.  On the plus side, its not on the Russian tourist radar.  

  9. 3 minutes ago, Bateshorn said:

    The line cutting is not unique to the Chinese.  There are plenty of cultures that do the "clueless" line cut, playing on English politeness not to object. 

    I saw a German woman literally stop a group of Indian tourists who where attempting to cut the que, hold out a hand and bark "Nein!"  It was glorious.

    She would be handy to have in some of lift lines in Val Gardena... I've seen some interesting behavior from German skiers.

  10. Talked to someone today who said that traffic between the two main towns in Santorini takes an hour.  Tourists told us they now have a funicular railway to shuttle tourists up and down and that gobs of Chinese tour groups now come to the island - heard that from around 3-4 people.  Meanwhile, we hit one beach today that peaked at about a dozen other people other than us.

    That said, I've heard many more Americans than I had expected and saw a hipster walking around with a SXSW shirt to please tell everyone this place sucks.

  11. BTW, what Greeks are telling me is that Santorini and Mykonos are a massive disappointment.  One told me, what you see in the pictures is not reality.  Mass tourism has ruined those islands.  

  12. 21 hours ago, PenelopeWitherspoon said:

    Do you recommend renting a villa via AirBnB, Homeaway, or VRBO?  Or do you recommend a hotel?  There is a small chance I might try and squeeze a week in this September.  But most likely, I will try for next September.  

     

     

    First time we went there was in September and it was great because the water was still warm but the crowds were light (not that it gets packed).  We have typically stayed in small hotels in Pollonia.  Our first stay was at the Milos Milean.  Also look into Capitan Zeppos.  Adamas is closer to more action but not quite as charming as a town like Pollonia.  Will also check with some friends who have stayed in Paleochori.  The later in September, the more the island starts to shut down so do it earlier in September.

    On Serifos, found this https://greekcitytimes.com/2018/08/05/exploring-stunning-serifos-island/ 

  13. On 5/26/2019 at 7:39 PM, Loco said:

    @Texasdago...  I tried to get the group to a non tourist island.  

    Fighting groupthink is a bitch.  Look, eveyone says we should go to X so we should all go to X.  It sucks.  That said, I'm sure you're going to see amazing places on your entire itinerary.  At some point, make it a point to head to places like Karpathos or Milos or Folegandros or Skopelos... so many amazing islands without crowds.  Karpathos has a town that we visited that is visually stunning and only got power in something like 1980.  It used to be a time capsule and is still relatively quiet compared to other places.  

  14. 2 hours ago, Hawndoh said:

    Surprise surprise, Merc is .7 seconds ahead. 

    Another 1-2 result incoming. 

    Get ready for "I really think Ferrari is going to be hard to beat in qualifying" from Lewis. That's the real "barf"

    • Like 2
  15. 3 hours ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

    Wear plenty of sunscreen....

    Just saw a picture from mid-day today.  Dumping snow!

     

    Yes yes... TTIWWP so...

     

    60908483_10161648353035332_8853285858988 

  16. 1 hour ago, Nonbryan said:

    Nope.  Plan on getting your ass up at 5am and getting out on deck!!!  It will start to rain at about 9a, they will wait 1 hr to see what is going to happen, and THEN it will be cancelled.  

    I see Austin uses the same sports methodology as Houston

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