General about Greece (Hellas)

• Learn the mapping between Greek letter and English letters, though most signs have both letters (Euro bank notes have both Greek and English letters for the word "EURO").  See: http://langintro.com/greek/alphabet/index.htm.   English is fine.  Most people speak some English, even better than Switzerland.   Restaurants menus and public facilities are usually bilingual.  (Some traditional restaurants do not have menus. You select your food from the canteen-like food bar...)   Services are generally honest and friendly.
• If you have a lot of time, you may wish to enter/exit Greece from/to Turkey.
• The toilets are fine and usually with toilet paper at many tourist spots and restaurants.  Those traveler's guide are not update.  The price are not update either - it is generally more expensive after the Euro adoption.
• House wine (red, white and perhaps also Retsina) are cheap is most restaurants and can be ordered in 1/4 liter (or kilogram), can be as low as E5-10 per kilo.   Small bottles of wine (375ml or 500ml) are often available.
• In summer, the sun sets at 9pm and it gets dark at around 10.  Most restaurants operate till midnight or even beyond.   But a lot of shops close in the afternoon and opens again at around 5pm till late evening.
• Fruits are generally cheap.  Melons are good.  Avoid buying strawberries from hawkers as the fruits are broken, though cherries and peaches are fine.   Supermarkets may vary largely in price.
• Bring along water or juice as it is dry, hot (36C or more early July) and very sunny in summer.  However, you will not feel hot once not directly under the sun as the air is fresh and it is often windy.  Wear a cap, long sleeves and/or use sun-oil.
• Students should prepare and bring along their "International Student Card" in order to enjoy discount on transportation and tourist spots.
• I booked my trip for  the Greek Islands through a small traveling agent Academic Travel (5 Yperidou St, Syntagma, academy@travelling.gr).  That costs E665 for 10 nights of hotel, all the ferry tickets (including a night in cabin on board) and  transportations between all hotels and ports (including from my hotel in Athens to port Piraeus).
• The price is around the sum of all hotel walk-in prices plus the transportation costs.  They definitely make quite a bit of money from me (mainly the hotel commissions or discounts), but still it is fair.  You may try to buy all ferry tickets from a travel agent and then try to select hotel offers upon arrival at each island's port, where the hotel people swarm at the ferry quay (can be as low as E25-30 for small single rooms, but almost all rooms are double rooms in Greece).  Remember to insist on hydrofoils and catamaran otherwise they will offer you big (slow) ships.  Booking advance via  the Internet for these island hotels are general only available for expensive hotels and therefore cannot save money.

• English is fine.  Most people speak some English, even better than Switzerland.   However, restaurants menus and public facilities are often not bilingual and you need to ask.
• It is very expensive is the Netherlands, much more expensive after the Euro adoption.  A coke can be E1.5 from hawkers in public squares.
• Train and bus/tram services are good and frequent. You may buy bus tickets (and day tickets) in trams.  
• Buy an Amsterdam pass if you stay 2 or 3 days in Amsterdam.  It includes a city map, day passes for city public transportations, free museum entries and a free boat tour, etc.  There are also Rotterdam passes for Rotterdam.

• I choose KLM (http://www.klm.com.hk/ around $10K as this is high season) instead of Emirates (around $6.5K http://www.emirates.com) because
• connection of Emirates at strange times and unnecessary stopovers
• hesitation about the airline (but other travelers say it's also good...)
• I don't want to stopover in Dubai for a side holiday (instead of Amsterdam) as it is over 40C
• I need the mileage for a air-ticket to Japan...
• Claiming mileage awards from Northeast Airline (NWA) from their web interface save 1,000 miles (http://www.nwa.com/hk). See other promotion items there.  I have claimed a ticket to Japan for 20,000 miles to Japan, but unfortunate before the launching of this service.
• Note the new arrangement in passport control. We need to have our passport checked at the point of arrival in EU (e.g., Amsterdam) before the connection flight to final EU destination (Athens).  This implies time concern between connection flight (though Amsterdam is very efficient).

• I arrived at Athens around 1am. The airport bus is operational 24 hours - E2.9.  Note that the ticket is also a 24-hour valid ticket for all urban transportations (bus, tram and metro). So remember this advantage for your return journey - you can valid your ticket within 24-hours before going to the airport for some extra free transportations.
• I booked Hotel Pythagorion (near Omonia) via http://www.octopustravel.com/ in Hong Kong, E45 per night.  Store (some of) your baggage at your hotel when you go for the islands (if you return usually it's free). 
• I took the E95 bus (outside the main gate of the airport, very convenient), which took around an hour and then take a taxi from Syntagma to the hotel (around E2).
• Don't ask the price when you jump on a taxi and just make sure the driver start the meter (otherwise they will usually  ask for more than the meter price).  Minimum charge of taxi is E1.5. Taxi meters run at rate 2 (double speed) after midnight.
• Going up the Acropolis is tough in summer (33C-38C).  Remember to go early (open at 8am) and same for most open-air archeological sites.  Or you may go after 4pm (close at 7pm for most sites).
• Note that the ticket for Acropolis (E12) is for a set ticket for number of other sites (such as Ancient Agora, Zeus Temple).
• The National Gardens is beautiful.  I saw orange trees bearing (small) orange fruits.
• Walk in the districts Plaka and Monastiraki and dine there.   I enjoyed a free dinner at Aleka's Taverna provided by the travel agency.

• The taxi picked me up to Piraeus port at 7am. You may go by metro too, but the problem is locating  the correct ship in a large port area...
• The slow ferry (the big ship has 8 levels and carries cars) took around 6 hours to Mykonos (but a hydrofoil needs only 3 hours).  However, it is spacious and comfortable.
• Note that there are 2 ports and the ones for fast ship and slow ship are different.  Double check before you leave the island.
• The Paradise beach of Mykonos is indeed a paradise, with nude and semi-nude men and women sun-bathing...  Note: the bus cost less than E1 and there is no need for joining tours.
• The folklore museum is free and worth a look, near the quay  to Delos.
• The agricultural museum is a just small renovated windmill. There is no need to walk up the hillside to go there.
• The small narrow medieval in the main town (Mykonos / Hora) are stylish and beautiful. There are flowers everywhere in summer.
• The wind was very strong near the windmill and near the coast of the main town.
• I stayed in Hotel Edem (http://www.mykonosmatt.com/), above the south bus stop.  The hotel has an excellent view of the main town (including the windmills and port) and a swimming pool.  The sunset there is so beautiful!
• Restaurants are very expensive on this island, but I don't find it special (among other Greek cuisines).

• The archeological site on the island Delos (around 20 minutes by boat, E6 round-trip) definitely worth visiting.  Prepare to walk up and down the hill and bring along a lot of water (the only cafe there is ultra expensive, E2.5 for a bottle of soda water).
• First ferry in summer is 9:30 daily except Monday (pls check the schedule at the quay); last ferry 3:00.
• The wave and wind is very strong, be careful...
• A good strategy to visit the island is to walk up the highest hill first then the rest of the site.  The hill is actually only 113m high, but the rest of the island environment create an illusion that it is high.

• There are direct ferry connections from Mykonos to Paros (no need to pass through Naxos).  Slow direct ferry is around 1:30 and should be fine.
• I stayed at Hotel Apollon at Livadia Beach (around 10 minute's walk from the ferry quay).   The hotel is by the road and is a bit noisy.
• The bus is still acceptable on this island, half to one hour frequency for most of the lines. Get a bus schedule at the bus stop.
• Take a bus to Naoussa, have a quick look around the small town.
• From Naoussa to Lefkes: take a bus to Prodromos and change opposite the road.
• The village of Lefkes is very beautiful and has a famous church.
• Alternatively, you may go from the main town (Parika) to Lefkes and then walk downhill to Prodromos.
• Dine  at one of the seaside restaurants and enjoy sunset while dining, much cheaper than those in Mykonos or Santorini.
• If you stay for another day, have a excursion to Antiparos, where there is a cave (close at 3pm), and then go the Petaloudes (Valley of the Butterflies).

• I stayed at Studio Panos and Hotel Posidon near Agois Georgios Beach.  Though there's no view, they are quiet, cheap and reasonable.  It is around 15 minutes' walk from the quay.
• The Agois Georgios Beach has very flat, shallow and wide seabed and is extremely nice for those who want to play in sea-water but cannot swim.
• The bus service has unacceptable low frequency on this island, so join a bus tour (around E15), which departs 10am at the main bus stop.  Get a bus schedule at the bus stop.
• The Temple of  Apollo on the Palatia Islet near the quay is the landmark of the island, excellent for view sunset.
• The Kastro (castle) is also a nice place to view sunset.  I enjoyed a sunset concert (Greek traditional music and dance) with (unlimited) wine tasting (E15) in the garden of a museum there.
• Dine at one of the seaside restaurants and enjoy sunset while dining, much cheaper than those in Mykonos or Santorini.

• This volcanic island is totally different from other islands of the group (Cyclades).
• The port Athinios is quite far away from the main town Fira.  Make sure you have allocated enough time to meet your boat, though bus service are quite good on this island (half hour frequency for most lines).
• Take a bus for Ia (Oia) to see the sunset (E0.8 only, don't join local tours!).   Take dinner there.  House are build along and down the cliff.  Down the cliff is the small port of Ammoudi.
• Take a bus to the famous black-sand beach of Perissa.  Watch out for the correct bus stop. This is a circular bus that stops by many beaches in that region.
• I stayed in Hotel Margarita at Firostefani, which is around 10 minutes walk from Fira.  The hotel is quiet and has a swimming pool.
• There is a excellent conference center at Fira.  You may wish to, or ask your colleagues to, hold a conference there!  I meet some people from HK attending DSP2002.

• Down the cliff of Fira is the old port of Fira Skala, transportation by cable or donkey.  Walking down the path is around 15-20 minutes, but the road is full of donkey dungs...
• The 4-hour boat excursion costs around E15, starting from Fira Skala.  Buy tickets from any travel agents in Fira.
• You may swim in the (sea) hot spring of Nea Palia.  The water contains a lot of iron (brown) and you will become very dirty after swimming...
• Walking up the volcanic island of Nea Kameni is a bit tiring, but you can enjoy the excellent view around and also see the inactive craters (but not even smoke there, just a little bit of sulphur smell). The wind is very strong there...
• You may also consider a full-day boat excursion which also goes to Thirasia island and Ammoudi (of Ia).

• It takes 3 hours of slow ferry from Santorini to Iraklio, the capital city of Crete.
• The city center and the port is surrounded by a city wall.  I was in a bastion, watching a talk show in the evening - of course, I understood nothing and left soon.
• The archaeological museum is the second largest of Greece, mainly showing antiques from the Minoan people, worth visiting.  Buy a ticket set for the museum and the site of Knossos (E10, total save E2).
• Taking a bus to Knossos takes around 20 minutes.  The site is not very big and is easy to walk around.
• There is a small Venetian fortress at the harbour.
• I stayed at Hotel El Greco in the city center.  Remember to ask for an air-condition room (if you do not receive a remote-control for the air-conditioner at check-in).

• It takes 1.5 hours by bus (around E6) from Iraklio to Rethymno.
• It takes around half a day to visit this small city, usually no need to stay overnight.
• Store you baggage at the bus station.
• There is a large fortress at the north part of the city.  Inside the fortress, you can see a small mosque.
• The museums in this city are very small and probably you will skip them.

• It takes 1 hour by bus (around E6) from Rethymno to Hania.
• I stayed at Hotel Nefeli near the bus station. Fine.
• The Venetian Port of Hania is very beautiful, with a lighthouse and a very long waterbreak. Dine at one of the restaurants there and watch sunset.
• You may also wish to go for a boat excursion which departs from this harbour.
• The archaeological museum worth a visit, though they don't allow photographing a lot of antiques that they claim unpublished.
• Don't miss the navy museum and the small but nicely arranged folklore museum.
• The old and large buildings by the habour was for ship-building, now used for exhibitions and recreation
• The food market at the city center is stylish and has a lot of cheap local food (snacks, herbs, spices, wine, etc.).
• There are still some parts of the old city wall left on east and west part of the city center.
• The port Souda is around 15 minutes' taxi from Hania.  You may also take a bus.
• The night ferry takes around 10 hours to go back to Athens.  Book a (shared) cabin to have a better sleep (around E35).  The food in the ship's canteen is not expensive and pretty good.

• The Keramikos (ancient city tomb) near Thision station looks like a ruin...  Strange enough, I saw a few large tortoise walking around in the ruin.
• The National Archaeological Museum worth visiting.  To your surprise, most of the museum is not air-conditioned.   I worry those antiques more than sweating...
• The conference welcome drink was at the Exo Bar-Restaurant next to Kallimarmaro Stadium, with excellent view to Acropolis and Lykavittos Hill.

• I presented a paper in the mBusiness 2002 conference on July 8 afternoon.  The paper was nominated to the International Journal of Electronic Commerce.  Most participants were European and from business schools.
• The conference hotel (Athenaeum Inter-Continental Hotel) is expensive and inconvenient.  So my choice of not staying in the conference hotel is correct.  But the president of Ireland chose this hotel when she stayed in Athens too (when we were  in conference).  So there were a lot of  policemen at the hotel and on every street-corner nearby...
• The conference dinner was at the Mnisikleoys Tavern in Plaka.  I enjoyed the dinner made up of many dishes of entrees and the traditional Greek music and dance.
• There was sudden heavy rain during the conference (you can have very good weather immediately before and after the rain but the rain can extremely heavy), but luckily it did not affect the dinner on the roof garden.
• After the conference, I went to the Zeus temple nearby.  That was just a few giant pillows...
• The cheapest supermarket is near the Central Market between Omonia and Monastiraki stations on the Athinas Street.

• After breakfast, a walk and shopping around Omonia, I ate a Gyro Pita and went to the airport.
• The Amsterdam Central Station is just around 15-20 minutes' train from the Schiphol airport (E2.9).   The frequency is around 10 minutes - note that the train between Amsterdam and the Hague/Rotterdam stops at the airport.
• I stayed at Hotel Vijara, which was the cheapest that I can find (single room with shower and toilet).  It still cost E60 per night, but the room was so small and noisy...  It is near to the red light district...

• The Hague is nice, tidy and beautiful city, around 45 minute fast train from Amsterdam (E8).
• The city center is small and you can finish the visit in half a day.
• From the Hague to Rotterdam is around half hour of stop-train (E5).
• Rotterdam is much larger and you need a whole day to walk around and visit the museums there.  But it seems to me that the museums are not great and I walk around the city center in another half day.
• There is only a slow train from Rotterdam to Haarlem (change at the Hague, E10, 1.5 hours)
• Not much to see in the small old town of Haarlem.  I dined there.

• I bought an 2-day Amsterdam Pass.  The tourist office (VVV) in front of the Central (Centraal in Dutch) Station is very crowded.  Buy it at the airport instead.
• I visited a lot of museums.
• Rijksmuseum is the largest museum of the city (and perhaps the country).  There exhibits a lot of (robbed?) items from Asia dated from their East Indian Company (VOC) centuries ago...  There are a lot of famous paintings by Dutch artists.  Just going through the exhibits quickly takes half a day.
• Van Gogh museum has a lot of original paintings of this famous artist.  (But the Amsterdam Pass does not cover Van Gogh museum if you have visited Rijksmuseum.  You can visit only one of them free. Tricky.)
• I cannot comprehend anything inside the Modern Art Museum next to the Van Gogh museum...
• Anne Frank's house (Anne Frankhuis) is about a girl hiding for 2 years from German Naxis in World War II, but finally caught and died.  A very sad place... (close 7pm, not included in the Amsterdam Pass)
• The Navy/Maritime Museum (Scheepvaartmuseum) also worth visiting (though not mentioned in a lot of guide books) as the Netherlands had a strong navy centuries ago.
• The Tropical Museum (Tropenmuseum) collects a lot of items from tropical countries all over the world to depict the life of the peoples there.
• The Sex Museum though small is interesting... (close 10pm, not included in Amsterdam Pass)
• I took a canal bus (boot) tour (included with the Amsterdam Pass) of around 1 hour through the canals in Amsterdam city center.  The water looked terrible there but there was no smell...
• Unfortunately, the 2 main churches are all closed during these few days for maintenance.
• Strawberries are very good, but cranberries are just too sour.
• Note short the opening hours of the museums and plan your route carefully to maximize your visits.
• I did not visit the cheese market, main flower market, etc.  May be next time...

• Visited Gassan Diamonds, a diamond factory, closely examined some diamonds under the guidance of a staff there.  They also make Royal Delft (porcelain with blue drawingson it).
• Visited the Amsterdam (City) Historical Museum and Koninklijk Paleis (Royal Palace, i.e., City Hall).
• Amsterdam has more than 800 years of history. Its name is due to the fact that the city originated from a dam across the Amstel river (now the Dam Square at city center).  The city symbol is 3 vertical "X"...