In the end, this is what I managed according to the GPS!

Between the 24th of March to the 12th of April there are 20 days, 13 of these were spent more or less on the bicycle or, as my readers know, walking beside it whilst pushing it up another steep hill.

Complete stats!

These are the numbers;

Total time; 72 hours 40 minutes OR 4360 minutes.

Average time / day; 5 hours 58 minutes OR 335 minutes.

Average speed; 11,48 km/h

Top speed; 54,8 km/h

Highest elevation climb; 1070 meters

Amount of calories burned; 24877

My analysis of these numbers are that the time in the saddle is less than shown, not by more than a few hours tho and that the amount of calories burned is probably even higher due to it being judged from bicycling at whatever speed the GPS detects, so the day of Mr Mountain ( 2/4-2013 ) the amount of calories burned says 1971 but I can bet my left sock it is way, way higher than that.

Anyway it is interested reading for me at least!

The last days of my adventure, for now.

It's strange that when you reach the biggest city on your trip in the most developed country on your trip the hotel turns out to be the worst of the trip. Their website says it's renovated yet mold in the bathroom, major cracks in the paint, a door so worn it could probably been huffed and puffed down.

The good things were the front desk staff, the breakfast and the location but it doesn't make up for an unwelcoming room that smell of paint thinner.

Anyways, the town of Thessaloniki is huge and what I found weird is that there are several remains, similar to the ones in Butrint, wich all seems temporarily protected in the most odd places, just around the corner from a McDonald's you can find ruins from ancient times, the mix just doesn't stir well. It's like they just figured out last week to put up fences and/or restore these places despite both the town and the remnants have been there for hundreds of years.

I thought Thessaloniki got a major New York vibe going on, a bit dirty but with all kinds of people, restaurants and places. The only problem is it's almost always in Greek!? Go figure. The thing I will keep connected with Greece on this trip is the amount of bakeries and similar places selling pastries and all kinds of baked goods. That and the hundreds of small shops for candy, soft drinks, chips and beer. They must have quite the sweet tooth in this country!

I can imagine that going to Thessaloniki on a holiday to Greece for 3-5 days and spend the rest of, say a 14 day vacation, it at a beach resort would be a very good choice for me. Some shopping and cool stores and the rest relaxation near a pool or a ocean, a trip past Kalampaka can surely bit fitted into such a schedule.

Below are some pictures from my stay in Thessaloniki.

Great breakfast at my hotel, Hotel Atlantis.

Very long docks with beautiful sea view.

The White tower, major Thessaloniki landmark, closed though.

Dinner in hotel room, bought a burger at a place called Goody's, quite ok.

Anyone able to see where this is?

Last meal dinner in Thessaloniki at this place along the docks, was not that special,
it's menu and style of food was more interesting than the taste.

Tomorrow I go home!

These last few days in Thessaloniki has more or less been about trying to activate myself to see things, somehow it kind of feels like I've already left Greece and gone home to Sundbyberg, Sweden.

A part of me knows what will come of going home, it will roll back to routine and work. Don't get me wrong, that's not bad, I actually miss the guys and girls and my job, I miss my brother and my best friend Henrik and I miss Jennifer, my ex girlfriend who I hold very dear. But I will also miss the constant changes, when you reach a new town, the people and the spectacular sights I've seen.

You know this whole trip has reinforced my belief in two things, people and beauty.

The first part is that people are kind at heart, I despise racism and those who don't fight the easy road and judge masses of people by the actions or experiences of a few. What I have experienced on this trip is people who have walked with me for 10-20 minutes to show me the way to a hotel, people have called their english speaking relatives to come down just so I can order food, they have helped pushed the back of  bike up 200 meter long alleyway with steps just to get me where I was going. They have offered shelter for my bike in the private homes and rushed up to me to help when I've fallen over. I've had two tough looking guys express genuine concern about my well being on the Road. 

It reinforces my love for this quote, it's from the movie American History X;

So I guess this is where I tell you what I learned - my conclusion, right? Well, my conclusion is: Hate is baggage. Life's too short to be pissed off all the time. It's just not worth it. Derek says it's always good to end a paper with a quote. He says someone else has already said it best. So if you can't top it, steal from them and go out strong. So I picked a guy I thought you'd like. 'We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory will swell when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature

What I also have loved about this trip is the amount of beautiful things in this world, it can be a shabby house in a field of green grass, a snow covered mountain, a little turtle or flowers along the road, it can be an child smiling, a green lake in the clouds or a palm tree outside my hotel window.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, if you think about it and don't let is pass you by it's everywhere, always, remember to live in the moment, not yesterday or tomorrow - that's probably the biggest thing I have experienced while on the road, that you feel awake and focused on the now, you don't dream ahead or think about things that has happened. At least I didn't do that.

Another of my favorite quotes is a fitting end to this post, I will make a summary of my days in Thessaloniki during Wednesday.

The quote is from American Beauty;

I had always heard your entire life flashes in front of your eyes the second before you die. First of all, that one second isn't a second at all, it stretches on forever, like an ocean of time... For me, it was lying on my back at Boy Scout camp, watching falling stars... And yellow leaves, from the maple trees, that lined our street... Or my grandmother's hands, and the way her skin seemed like paper... And the first time I saw my cousin Tony's brand new Firebird... And Janie... And Janie... And... Carolyn. I guess I could be pretty pissed off about what happened to me... but it's hard to stay mad, when there's so much beauty in the world. Sometimes I feel like I'm seeing it all at once, and it's too much, my heart fills up like a balloon that's about to burst... And then I remember to relax, and stop trying to hold on to it, and then it flows through me like rain and I can't feel anything but gratitude for every single moment of my stupid little life... You have no idea what I'm talking about, I'm sure. But don't worry... you will someday.

Thessaloniki, I made it. 12/4-2013

I really loved Kalampaka, it reminds me of a small town but since it is a tourist destination it has lots of restaurants, pretty white houses and the nature around it is so amazing. I thought both once and twice about staying there another night but in the end I felt I had to make sure I get to Thessaloniki with time to spare so I can get the boxes needed to pack stuff up and prepare them for my trip home.

I talked to the guys at the KTEL bus company in Kalampaka if I would be sure to get a spot on the bus, they couldn't tell so I got up early and headed to Trikala, 20 kilometers south of Kalampaka and the major bus station in the area.

On my way to Trikala.

The ride down there ( south ) were quite nice since I had a nice road all to myself next to the highway tho actually finding the bus station was a bit of a crap shoot, it was way outside of town and I had to ask for directions, despite being a guy, several times!!

Once on the bus I just relaxed and looked forward to see a new place and get back to the ocean again, my knees were killing me tho, I think it was the rock climbing adventure from the other day, the knees were just saying "Hey you dumb fuck, you aren't 15 any more stop doing those things without at least warming up first and stretching afterwards! Idiot!"

Poor women next to me had to smell my sweaty clothes for 3 hours.

Anyway, I got quite the crowd as I unloaded the bike at Thessaloniki bus station, this town is huge, it got a New York feel to it. I bicycled what will most likely be my last bit on the bike during this trip to the hotel.

What a dump my first room was, dirty, major cracks in the paint and gloomy lighting together with a view of a shabby backyard and shared bathroom almost made me feel I had been thrown into prison. It got better the next day as I got another room with a private bathroom that also had more daylight and at least somewhat more modernized. No TV though, I am gonna complain as I check out despite that I haven't used the TV hardly at all on this trip, might get a better price.

The guy in the reception was very nice, talked a lot in good English and suggested a place to eat.

Chicken wings with potatoes.

Now I got Saturday, Sunday and Monday to see the town and prepare for going home, feels weird being done with it all, you almost get sad in a way.

I will post updates on my blog for the last days of my vacation as well as once I get home, for those interested I am very much looking forward to making a movie from all my video, photos and whatnot, I will upload it on YouTube as each part gets done.

This day was split up into two in regards to the GPS, part one from Kalampaka to Trikala and part two from Thessaloniki bus station to the hotel.

Part 1; http://connect.garmin.com/player/297717150
Part 2; http://connect.garmin.com/player/297717133

GPS update!

Slightly delayed but still, here it is;

Day 11 on the bike (8/4-2013); http://connect.garmin.com/player/295500873

Day 12 on the bike (10/4-2013); http://connect.garmin.com/player/297717180

Since my dad is half blind...

...and can hardly see Mr Turtle from the other post I made I took a screenshot from the video of the other turtle eating! Love you dad!

Mrs Turtle?

The day of two turtles, neardeath, wooden crosses and Greek meatballs! 11/4-2013

Today was gonna be a great day was my plan. I got up early in order to see the monasteries of Meteora, more specifically the monastery of Metamorphosis. The region is called Meteora, it means "middle of the sky", "suspended in the air" or "in the heavens above" as they are built on the mountain tops, both the monasteries themselves and the unusual looking mountains are sights to behold. The staff at my hotel suggested to get a cab up there and walk down and I took their advice, it was a beautiful, hot day.

The monastery I visited, one of  several monasteries in this area, is the one to the right, the one on the left in the distance is the monastery of  Varlaam that was closed this day.

It's really mind boggling how they have managed to build these feats of human capability. The monasteries itself is still active and since it's a very popular tourist destination in this part of Greece it has developed into a museum of sorts, way more interesting than "just" seeing a regular church or monastery. It was filled with beautiful artifacts, among them wooden crosses that were hand carved with such intricate and exquisite craftsmanship it had a magnifying glass attached in front of it so viewers could see all details. As is customary with these kind of places photography and video recordings are strictly prohibited. Some of the allowed pictures I took are these;

There wasn't any description who these skulls were remnants of but I guess it's monks that has died. 

I walked around there in wonder over human creativity and determination, it does not require Christian beliefs to appreciate the beauty of it's creations and be moved by events of positive and negative nature during it's existence.

On my way from the monastery I bought a Börek filled with spinach and cheese and a beer, I enjoyed it at a nearby resting spot.

As I started walking home I was in a great mood, my plan was to view some of the other monasteries from the outside and just enjoy the summer heat. I checked the tourist map and decided to take a marked hiking trail down to town. I started following what looked like a trail in between three massive cliffs through small passages until I reached a dead end with a cliff too steep to get down from. I went back up and thought it has to be the crevice next to this one then.

Before things got pear shaped.. 

The town of Kalampaka, just out of reach.

Thorny bushes!

This is what it looked like in the easy parts.

This is where things started to become a bit dangerous, the way down the second canyon was very difficult, lots of sharp thorns on bushes, difficult passages through rocks and places where I had to press my back against the rock wall and use my legs to press against the opposite wall to get down, parts where I had to lie on my back and balance on my hands and feet downwards because the cliffs were very steep and with gravel here and there. I am not kidding it was a few times where I was scared that if I loose my footing here I might fall to my death.

Yes it was stupid, ok, very stupid but you sure feel alive when you manage to get past an obstacle. The really bad thing was that this too, turned out to be a dead end. I should have known but both those "trails" where actually just dried out beds where thawing snow and rain has been flowing down the mountains, it didn't really look like a hiking trail I guess I blame heat stroke or something...

So after a couple of hours of sweat, blood from getting scratched by thorns, insects enough to skip lunch, cobwebs, fear of tics, snakes and spiders AND beautiful scenery I got back to where i started only to realize I had gone of the road at the wrong place - the real hiking route was on the tourist map and I wouldn't have missed it if I had been paying attention.

When I started it I just happened to notice a small turtle sitting in the grass and eating various things in front of it, I shot some video of it and it looked really cute! Like 30 minutes later I went along the hiking trail and heard a lot of noise in the bushes near me, I was thinking it was a human rummaging around in there but after a few seconds I see the tops of grass move around near a brick wall along the trail, as I watch over the wall I spot another turtle moving along in the grass, probably the most noisy turtle ever.

Mr Turtle!

The real hiking trail.

View of the Meteora mountains, some of them at least.

 After that I slept an hour in my room and went out to have dinner.

Greek meatballs fried in olive oil and drenched in tomato sauce, eggplant stew, rice, potatoes and beer finish a wonderful day, among the best of the trip!