Nea Karvali – Edessa – Kókkinon Nerón
Teaching old dog’s new tricks
After leaving Bulgaria, we decided it was time to slow things down a bit and just take our time riding motorcycles in Greece. The plan was always to have as little plans as possible to give us the flexibility of stopping longer at places we enjoyed or even just changing direction should the opportunity present itself. As two former Operations Managers, this is something that we have had to teach ourselves and get used to. After a month on the road, I’m happy to announce that we have just about cracked it. We have gone from booking accommodations a week in advance to finding places to stay the night before we travel. You have no idea how much additional freedom this gives you when it comes to travelling. You become more open to opportunities as far as finding a place to see or checking out local points of interest (POI).
On first entering Greece and I do mean first entering, we were greeted by a pack of stray dogs at the border who took great interest in Molly on the back of my bike. Why only Molly and not Ricky I hear you ask? Well, that’s because one dog sleeps all the time and the other one is off her nut every time you stop and start the bike. For those of you that have ever been through a border crossing, think back to how many times you stopped and moved forward and then imagine an air raid siren going off in your ear each time. But that’s not enough, oh no, add a dog whistle to that siren and hey presto, every stray dog in the neighbourhood has your GPS coordinates in real time! Welcome to my world!
Accommodation scoring: 0 = Worst 3 = Average 5 = Best
Nea Karvali (distance from previous location – 212km )
Studio Apartment in Nea Karvali
- Roads (Scenic, Surface, Twisties, Police Presence) – 2
- Accommodation (Clean, Comfort, Space, Room Access, Shower) – 4
- WIFI (Download, Upload, Reliable) – 4
- Parking (Secure, Level Ground, Covered, Distance with luggage) – 2
- In the area (Shopping, Restaurants, POI) – 1
The route we took from the border to Nea Karvali was mainly highway all the way, so it was pretty much uneventful apart from the stray dogs that seem to be present wherever we stop. The theme in Greece for us would seem to be: we stop, Molly barks, stray dogs appear and the strangest street race begins. This theme has continued throughout Greece.
Something that has surprised us throughout Greece, is the amount of Toll roads we seem to hit. We are used to the kind of toll roads in Europe where you pay on either entering or exiting a toll road, not the type where you potentially pay twice without having exited. There is also no standard price to the cost, as this seems to vary from road to road. It did take me a moment to set my GPS to avoid toll roads as this setting is not in the avoidance section in the settings but actually has its own menu item.
We were aiming for Kavala but opted to stay in Nea Karvali which is about 5 mins just outside and a lot quieter. There seems to be an abundance of coffee shops here and a couple of small grocery stores but unfortunately, not much else. The Studio Apartment (this is its name on Booking.com) was very nice and in a quiet area. Not really any secure parking but the bikes were right outside the front door in a nice area, which was really handy for unloading luggage.
Aside from secure parking, there was only one other downside about our accommodation and that was the lack of kitchen pots and pans. There was one saucepan and an oven and I was still able to produce a full English breakfast, of which, the cooking process was similar to spinning plates in an effort to present everything warm at the same time.
Although there was not much in the local area, Kavala has everything you need and is only a short ride away. On the second day we had a ride up to a view point for a picture of the city and stopped off for a coffee next to the sea on the way back. Whenever we park anywhere, cameras and phones seem to appear and conversations are struck up and this place was no different. I don’t know if it’s a good thing or a bad thing but when you ride with 2 giant minions strapped to the back of your bikes, questions will no doubt be asked.
Pros: Quiet area, nice studio apartment, friendly people
Cons: Nothing in the immediate area, no supermarkets, only 1 pot in the kitchen
Edessa (distance from previous location – 249km )
- Roads (Scenic, Surface, Twisties, Police Presence) – 3
- Accommodation (Clean, Comfort, Space, Room Access, Shower) – 4
- WIFI (Download, Upload, Reliable) – 4
- Parking (Secure, Level Ground, Covered, Distance with luggage) – 4
- In the area (Shopping, Restaurants, POI) – 4
A couple of days later, we set off from Nea Karvali to head to Edessa, a place higher up in the mountains with waterfalls that were originally created by earthquakes. As we approached Edessa, we could see it’s outskirts high up on the edge of an escarpment and we weren’t really sure what to expect once we got there. My first thoughts were ‘In a place known for earthquakes, I think I would prefer a house a little further in the middle of the town!’ But once we reached our destination, it was love at first sight.
The Hagiati Guesthouse looked like an old English coach inn had been plucked from the past and placed into the present. A stream ran through the front of the property and there were tables and chairs outside that made you want to spend the evening just sitting outside there. Kiki, the girl who worked on the front desk was incredibly friendly and had opened a gate at the back of the guesthouse for us to store our bikes securely. Top tip; when on uneven ground, unload the heavy luggage off the right side of your bike first. This stops the bike from falling over… just saying.
My immediate instinct once we had unloaded the bikes and had a shower, was beer and Kiki informed me that they had 4 different local beers and would I like to try them? After giving her the obvious answer, I sat at a table out front where Kiki brought me beer, water and crisps. The next beer was with trail mix and the third was crisps again. You see, it seems to be part of the service here in Greece that when you order beer, you also get snacks to make you thirsty and order more beer, the fools, I don’t need snacks to make me drink beer! But in all honesty, it is a very nice touch. It’s not so good when you are full from a great meal at dinner because you will push through the pain to eat the snacks too, I mean, free food, come on!
The town centre was a hustle and bustle of people, scooters, bars and restaurants and ambient lighting flooded the streets. The smell of incredible dishes ranging from Italian cuisine to local souvlaki tempted the would-be tourists into various places with friendly staff. We were no different and opted for a place called Ousies which had been recommended to us by Kiki and we weren’t disappointed. It sits on the corner of 25is Martiou and Perdika in Edessa and the staff run across the road to set up new tables for people as they arrive. Local cats can’t help trying to approach our dogs, which makes hanging on to your beer, let alone the table a challenge, a talent we would become very adept at in the coming weeks.
During one of the evenings at Ousies, we got talking to the owner who told us about the struggles of living in this area of Greece. He told us since opening Ousies, he has gone from paying 5 taxes to 12 taxes and in another year it might be 20, no one knows. There is a hospital nearby but it has no doctors because it can’t afford to pay them. If you want a doctor, you have to travel an hour to one of the cities. He also told us about the educational system and said if you want your child to learn English, good mathematics or even a science, you have to employ a private tutor. English is taught in school but only once a week, the same with mathematics, so the only real chance you can give your kids is with private tutors. This issue has had effect on how many children families have in Greece now because more children equal higher costs. The more taxes you pay and the more children you have, the longer the hours you work and the more days you spend doing it. How sad to hear stories like this when you are sitting in such an idyllic place, chatting with such friendly people! When next on holiday and you are having a great time in the bar you call your local for the duration of your stay, just remember that behind the smiles and laughter of the locals who are doing their best to keep you entertained, there are usually some hard truths as to the reality of how life is for them in the region.
The next day, we decided to check out the waterfalls of Edessa, which was about a 7 min walk from our accommodation. The day was hot and sticky and armed with bottles of water for ourselves and the dogs, we headed off to see what all the fuss was about. Indeed, the waterfalls were beautiful and yes of course we had to walk all the way down the steps to the bottom for a picture we will never use (see picture) just to walk back up again! It was totally worth it and we rewarded ourselves with a coffee and lemonade at a very nice café at the top called Katarraktes Café GastroBar. The waterfalls had originally been created by seismic activity quite some time ago and years later like any true entrepreneur, someone thought ‘someone is going to be dopey enough to walk down there and back up again, I’ll stick a café at the top!’. We finished supping our drinks and headed back to our room for a well needed shower and rest before heading back out again for the evening.
We actually stayed an extra night here because it was so relaxed and the atmosphere was magical but when we tried to get another additional night, we were out of luck and the gods had decided it was time to move on. Next stop was going to be the west coast via Mount Olympus to have a word with those same gods to see what they were playing at!
Pros: The food, the people, the waterfalls, the atmosphere, The Hagiati Guesthouse
Cons: Stray dogs and too many cats with a death wish
Kókkinon Nerón (distance from previous location – 184km )
- Roads (Scenic, Surface, Twisties, Police Presence) – 3
- Accommodation (Clean, Comfort, Space, Room Access, Shower) – 1
- WIFI (Download, Upload, Reliable) – 0
- Parking (Secure, Level Ground, Covered, Distance with luggage) – 2
- In the area (Shopping, Restaurants, POI) – 2
This next adventure was practically biblical in a Greek sort of way, Mount Olympus no less! The road up this famous mountain was a test in concentration and trying to forget about your aching cheeks from all the smiling inside a tight-fitting helmet. The road was one long serpentine of twists and turns with shear drops in places and roads doing their best to not totally crumble away at the edges. Tarmac would suddenly become gravel and a few seconds later it would be back to tarmac again. Trees lined the 30-minute ride up the mountain and would now and again break ranks, just enough to give you a glimpse of the coastline that was now becoming smaller and smaller as we ascended further up this famous mountain.
Finally, we reached Prionia, the highest point we could get to. No surprise that the carpark was on a hill, so after a bit of manoeuvring, we parked our bikes, let the dogs out and headed for the café/restaurant which also called Prionia. We were not the only bikers there and sitting at the table next to us was a group of guys who politely asked where we were from and once we told them that we had come from Hungary, the volume immediately increased as they were all Hungarian too. After the usual bike talk, where are you going, where have you been and how fast have you done it all, the guys said their goodbyes and continued on the rest of their own adventure, heading back to Hungary. On the way back to our bikes, we were followed by a very large dog with a bell round its neck, who had taken a romantic interest in Molly and didn’t understand that no meant no! Now I understood what the bell was for and thought it was a good idea and that they should tie one round the neck of all rapists! At least you would hear the bugger creeping up behind you!
Ricky and I did our best to emphasise that his affection was not required and after what seemed like an eternity, he did finally depart in search of a new victim.
After the usual game of find my house, we eventually located our latest accommodation, Andromaxistudios in Kókkinon Nerón. Not exactly what we were expecting but it looked clean enough. It had a bit of a motel vibe to it and I think it was designed for people to sit outside their doors and chat with each other. The bathroom on the other hand was a different story as there was no bath or shower and only had a shower head fastened to the sink. If you wanted to attempt to have a shower in here, all toilet paper and anything else that wasn’t waterproof had to be removed first. There were also no sockets next to the bed (which it advertised as having) and the internet was terrible, we were not happy and we were going to be here for 2 days. There was not much to say about this place apart from the ridiculous number of stray dogs in this resort that eventually stopped us from taking our dogs in that direction. The beach was ok but not very clear waters. We did have a good pizza on the first night but the guys working there looked miserable and not someone you fancied striking up a conversation with. This could also be said for the lady that worked in the one and only store here, probably all the stray dogs and lack of wall sockets caused this contagious attitude.
Pros: Ground floor (kinda) Good pizza, kettle, Hungarian guy that took a picture of us looking for the accommodation and found me on social media
Cons: Stray dogs, bad WIFI, no shower, no secure parking, really hard to find, not enough sockets, stairs, no other shops
With nothing more to say about this place, we will head to our next location which is in a region known as Meteora, home to some amazing rock formations that are adorned with fantastic monasteries.
