Santorini And A Cancelled Workaway

What a fantastically diverse, beautiful island Santorini is, with it’s mountains, green landscape, rocky landscape, red sand beaches, black sand beaches and beautiful seaside towns. I had a brilliant time and it is a shame I only had 3 nights, however it was the low season so there was hardly anyone about. 

I managed to secure a return flight from Athens for £30, half the cost of a return ferry ticket and considerably shorter, with the flight taking 35 minutes and the ferry 8 hours. I did only take hand luggage with me on the flight, as to check in a bag would have been over double the price. Flying to the Greek Islands is definitely something to consider as you not only save time, but money as well if you can find a nice deal. However the views from the ferry I’m sure would have been fantastic.

I was staying in Kamari, a small town with a beautiful black sand beach. To get there from the airport you first have to catch a bus to the capital Thira (Fira) for €1.80, and then another bus costing the same amount to Kamari. When I say bus they are actually big comfortable coaches which make up the Santorini local bus network. The buses can get you to all the main towns on the island, however in the off season they do not run frequently at all, sometimes I was waiting for an hour and half and on Sundays only 4 buses a day run to each town. I arrived on a Sunday morning and when I eventually got the 09:00 bus from Thira to Kamari I arrived in a ghost town. The whole day I saw 7 people, the restaurants were boarded up and the hotels closed for the winter. I spoke to my hotel owner and he said in the summer it is teaming with people, but in the winter it is not worth it for a lot of the businesses to stay open.

If you want to travel around the island in the winter by bus I would definitely recommend staying in Thira. If you stay in one of the other towns you always have to transfer in Thira and wait a considerable amount of time for another bus to the next town. Alternatively you could easily rent a car and drive, the roads are in good condition and not busy at all. On my first full day I caught a couple of buses and eventually arrived in Akrotiri, the location of the beautiful Red Beach. The total travel time was 2 hours, in which 23 minutes were spent on the buses. The bus from Thira drops you a nice 10 minute walk from the Red Beach, where you have to clamber up a rocky hill and make the shingly descent to the beach. The beach itself is actually quite stony but it was nice to relax for a while watching a catamaran glide past and birds swooping through the air. There was a group of girls determined to sunbathe on the beach, making me feel silly in my jeans, jumper, trainers and scarf, whist they were laying there in bikinis. I figured they must have been from Alaska! I made my way back to the bus stop for another long wait and after 30 minutes the girls drove past on 4 quad bikes having a whale of a time, they clearly had the right idea. After my bus turned up I made my way over to the lovely beach town of Perissa before heading back to Kamari for a well earned rest.

The following day, my last full day on the Island, I decided to do the 12km walk from Thira to Oia, this meant I was finally doing some proper exercise for the first time in months and I didn’t have to wait around for the buses, well apart from the one to Thira. The walk has to be one of the nicest I have ever done. From the bus station head north until you reach the cliffs and then just basically follow the dirt track all the way. There is a couple of steep hills which are totally worth it for the views from the top, and you also stumble across some amazing hidden churches. The track takes you right alongside the cliffs and at some points you can see the sea in both directions. I didn’t see a single person on the walk, I knew it would be quiet, so I was well stocked up with snacks in case my diabetes started playing up. I took my time, stopping every now and again to take in the views and at one point stopping in a cave for a diet coke, next to a lovely hidden church.

I eventually descended into Oia, a beautiful town built what looks like into the cliffs, with crisp white buildings, blue domed churches and donkeys wandering the streets. I timed my walk well and didn’t have to wait long for the bus back to Thira, then in Thira I had an hour’s wait for my bus to Kamari. On my final night it started raining, the first time I had seen rain in over 3 months. My room actually got flooded with 2 inches of water overnight which was a shock when I got out of bed in the morning. My flight back to Athens was at 08:00 but of course the buses didn’t start early enough for me to get to the airport in time. A taxi to to the airport from Kamari costs €20.

Once back in Athens I headed over to Corinth as I had organized to do a Workaway on a farm for 3 weeks, 5 hours work a day for free food and accommodation. I rang my host Kostandis when I was back in Athens to tell him I was on my way, and he told me to ring him again when I was on the last of my 3 trains. I eventually got on my last train and called Kostandis who didn’t answer I then tired again with no answer so I continued trying. I didn’t know what to do, I thought my phone was playing up because I have an English number, trying to call a Greek mobile in Greece. The phone wasn’t connecting and just kept beeping every time I tired. I eventually reached Corinth Train Station and tried one last time. He answered the phone this time and said I couldn’t stay with him and do the farmwork as I rang him too much when he was trying to sleep. He’s the one who told me to call, he’s the one who didn’t answer, what did he expect me to do? I had travelled for 9 hours, over 200 miles, caught a taxi, a plane, a bus and 3 trains to get to Corinth to help him on his farm and he cancels because I did what he asked me to do.

It turns out there are no hostels in Corinth either so I had to pay €25 for a hotel for one night. This had thrown my plans up in the air. I regrouped in my hotel and tried to decide what to do next. I’d already stayed in Athens for 5 days and didn’t need to go back, all the flights out of Greece were over £100 for the next day, and I didn;t want to stay another night in Corinth. I decided to book a ferry to Italy, leaving the following day from Patras and arriving in Ancona with a travel time of 20 hours (more information on this will be in my next post). I am currently writing this from the ferry, rocking from side to side as a thunderstorm hits from all angles, it turns out I don’t miss rain after 3 months without it! 

Jaisalmer and Jaipur

From Jodhpur I caught the Delhi-Jaisalmer Express train to Jaisalmer which was due to depart Jodhpur Junction at 04:50. This was a horrendous time of morning to try and function, let alone attempt to trek across the streets of Jodhpur, so I organized a rickshaw with the hotel. They claimed that it would be more expensive as it was so early in the morning, 150 Rupees, confirming my suspicions that I was overcharged when I arrived in Jodhpur, paying the same price to get to the hotel at 18:00. I booked the rickshaw for 04:30 and settled down for a short nights sleep before the early alarm. At 04:30 I was waiting outside the hotel and, with this being India, of course there was no rickshaw. I woke up the owner who apologized profusely, made a phone call and I was eventually on my way at 04:50, the time the train was due to leave. Luckily the train was due to stop at the station for 30 minutes and it was running a little late, of course, so I made it with plenty of time to spare. The train went by very smoothly, arriving at its final destinations, Jaisalmer around an hour late. 

The fantastic thing about Jaisalmer in the incredibly impressive Golden Fort, an architectural masterpiece made from sandstone. There is still a whole community who live inside the forts walls, along with a plethora of guesthouses, rooftop restaurants and winding alleys filled with colorful shops. I had found a great deal on booking.com, 200 Rupees (£2.50) a night for a hotel situated inside the fort, with a double room and an attached bathroom. I tried to catch a rickshaw to the forts gate but ended up jumping in the back of a Jeep, owned by a pushy man outside the train station. I knew straight away the pushy man was going to try and sell me a camel safari, a room in his guesthouse or anything he could but I was armed with my hotels address and we agreed a price of 50 Rupees before we left. Of course at the end he was blabbing on about Lonely Planet, how all the guesthouses had fallen down, how his hotel was better and that he sold the best camel safari in the land. I gave him my 50 Rupee note and went on my way, ignoring his shouts and door slams and him claiming it was now 50 Rupees per person and 50 Rupees per bag…fool. 

The hotel, Hotel Temple View turned out to be quite nice and by far the cheapest I have stayed in so far. It turns out it is that price online because they try very hard to sell you a camel safari once you are there, which is the main reason people go to Jaisalmer. I decided not to do it as I wanted to explore the fort and had ridden camels before. There are options of a half day tour, a full day tour and a 1, 2 or 3 night tours where you sleep out in the dessert on a rug under the stars. In all fairness it did sound amazing.

I decided to visit the Jaisalmer Fort Palace costing 500 Rupees, plus 100 for a camera, but unfortunately this really isn’t worth the money. There’s nothing much to see inside but the included audio guide is interesting. In all honesty I would skip paying for the palace and explore the walls and fort yourself. I found a route to a thin walkway which separates the main wall from another protecting wall, given you some fantastic views and understanding on the scale of the build. Another thing I would recommend is walking the road outside the fort which loops around, again helping you really understand and get a scale for this magnificent old fort. Around a 10 minute walk outside the forts gate there is a fantastic collection of Havelis, intricately decorated carved buildings built in the 19th century to show off a families wealth. These all cost 200 Rupees to enter, but are more impressive from the outside. I was taking a photo of one of the Havelis and all of the sudden I was lifted 3ft in the air by an impatient cow, whose horn caught me directly under my bum and the top of the hamstring. I managed to wiggle off, landing with a thump and a dead leg before scampering away to safely. 

Cows are everywhere in India and normally very docile animals, but they do rule the roads and apparently can’t be bothered to walk around mere humans. I have now become very wary of the almighty cow… of all the animals to be scared of. Most restaurants inside the Fort are not up to much, with their Indian food being as equally bad as their Western food. The one exception is Free Tibet which also offers fantastic views of the Golden City. Don’t get this confused with Little Tibet, which opened up just down the road with a similar name, to take away the successful restaurants custom, with a lot of success. 

After Jaisalmer I caught a train to Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan, via sleeper class. The train departed at 17:00 and arrived in Jaipur at 04:50, costing 340 Rupees (£4.00). I had booked a hotel ahead as it was such an early arrival time and organized for them to pick me up from the train station. Obviously they didn’t turn up, as its India, in all truthfulness I never really expected them to be there. I caught a rickshaw to the hotel for 50 Rupees and arrived to some padlocked gates. After ringing the doorbell a few times they let me in, apologized and paid the rickshaw driver for me, which was unexpected and I settled down for a much needed rest day! 

The following morning I decided to visit the Amer Fort, named after the town it is situated in, Amer, around 13km north of Jaipur. I contemplated catching a bus for a couple of Rupees but it would have been a 2 mile walk to the bus stop and then a fair walk up to the fort. Instead I flagged down a rickshaw and organized a return trip for 600 Rupees, with the driver waiting in the car park at the base of the fort. I decided to buy a composite ticket for 1000 Rupees, a crazy price for India, but the tourist price, which gave me entry to: The Amber Fort, Jantar Mantar, Albert Hall Museum, Nahargarh Fort, Hawa Mahal, Sisodia Rani Gardens and the Vidhiyadhar Gardens. If you pay individually for all the attractions, without the composite ticket it would cost 2000 Rupees. If you go to the 4 main attractions the entry cost would be 1200 Rupees, so even though its expensive, its worth it and you save money. The ticket is valid for 2 days but not valid for night time viewings. 

The Amer Fort was very impressive and the 10 minute walk up offers fantastic views of the surrounding area. It is constructed of red sandstone and marble, consisting of four different levels each with its own courtyard. You can tell that a lot of restoration work has taken place, which for me doesn’t make it as exciting as the other forts in Rajasthan, but it is still an impressive spectacle. I spent around an hour exploring and getting lost inside the fort, before heading back down to the rickshaw driver. I paid his 20 Rupee parking fee and enquired about stopping at the Nahargarh Fort but he asked for another 600 Rupees for this, even though it was on the way back. I decided to decline and instead got dropped at the Albert Hall Museum, near the old city. The museum was okay but didn’t offer much on Indian history, it was more about the history of other parts of the world. However it was nice to walk around the old building and some parts were interesting. 

The following day I took a walk across to the Pink City (Old City) and explored the different alleys and nooks and crannies. There are endless rows of shops selling everything from fabrics, to saris, to handicrafts, children’s toys, mobile phones and books and it is visited by people from all over India to buy in bulk and stock up on goods. I then took a trip to the Jantar Mantar, which is a collection of 19th century architectural astronomical instruments, built by Rajput Jai Singh. It includes the world’s largest sundial and many other crazy looking monuments, used to tell the time and display the positioning of planets and star formations. From here I went to the City Palace, which stupidly isn’t included in the composite ticket price. This is an extra 500 Rupees. The Indian government has cranked up the prices for every attraction in India, its almost double the price that is stated in the lonely planet book, written in early 2016. The City Palace was lovely and I really enjoyed the museum, displaying the different outfits worn by the Maharajas when they played polo, chess and billiards. Obviously you need a specific chess and billiard uniform! 

I then continued on to the Hawa Mahal, built in 1799 as a place for the royal ladies to watch the everyday life on the streets, through the 953 windows, without being seen. The women did not appear in public but were keen to follow day to day life and the Hawa Mahal gave them a sense of freedom, without them having to appear in public. Some of the walkways can get quite claustrophobic, especially when its busy and hot, but it is good fun to explore and gives you great views of the Nahargarh Fort!

Jaisalmer and Jaipur were both fantastic places, especially if you are a fan of history and especially old Indian forts. Jaipur was a great end to Rajasthan and I am now heading across to Agra, to experience the amazing Taj Mahal.