Scientists are trying to understand why residents of the laid-back Greek island of Ikaria enjoy such longivity.
DAY 1 – Saturday, July 9, 2016
Getting up at 2:30 am wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. On the contrary, after a very good night's sleep, Alkis and I got up as soon as the alarm clock went off . After all, I had some last-minute packing to do. Our flight to Athens was due at 5:20 am, but we wanted to get to the airport before 4:00 am so that we'd have time for breakfast and shopping after check-in.
Aegean Airlines took off on time. Despite my fear of flying, I must admit that we had a very pleasant flight with no turbulence, thank God! I know planes ...shudder – to put it mildly – when they enter some turbulence. At 6:50 am, the plane landed at Eleftherios Venizelos Airport. Then we had to catch the Olympic Airways flight to Ikaria at 7:55 am. We were pleasantly surprised to see that a lady from the ground staff guided us to the gate.
The plane was .... very small. All in all, there were about 40 passengers and a kind of airstairs.... and one stewardess and .... two propellers! I was scared to death! The air hostess offered us drinks but I declined the offer. Just before landing 40 minutes later, she sat opposite me, smiling and said : "Don't worry. We'll be soon landing at Ikaria Airport." I smiled back and did my best to relax.
Upon arrival, we took the mini bus sent by Erofili Beach Hotel which drove us to the magical village of Armenistis. Although Armenistis is situated at about 45 km from the airport, it took us about 1hour 30 to get there because of the narrow, winding road. We were warmly welcomed at the hotel and offered freddo espressos at the terrace overlooking the Aegean Sea. I couldn't have enough of those breathtaking views!
Soon afterwards, we set off to explore this small paradise on earth. We had some ouzo and meze for aperitif and then lunch at Delphini Tavern . We spent the rest of the afternoon ....sleeping!
Recent Comments