We quickly unpacked, walked through the nearby park, and got a drink and an early dinner in St. George Square which was right around the corner from our apartment. We had chosen the neighbourhood of Kypseli, which we’d read about, and it definitely delivered in terms of feeling like a true neighbourhood, full of families and couples strolling and locals selling produce and little cafes. We loved it and we’d highly recommend it if you are wanting something slightly less touristy (and more affordable!) than the Plaka / Acropolis neighbourhood.

We adored St. George Square for our week in Athens. It was a two-minute walk around the corner, and full of a central fountain ringed with benches where people would gather at all hours, playing, chatting, sitting and enjoying the sun, and having a rest before continuing on with their day. The central fountain area was ringed by a roundabout and on the other side of that, each building’s main floor was chock full of restaurants, bakeries, ice cream shops, cafes and small grocers. The sidewalks were lined with tables and chairs from each establishment and it was just such a hive of community, all the time. We LOVED it.

Our first full day was spent exploring the Plaki and Acropolis areas. Kypseli is about a 25-minute walk from the Acropolis, so it was a good little walk each time we headed into the centre. We chose to explore the Acropolis a slightly different way than most… we signed up for a “Cats of the Acropolis” tour, as Grace has become absolutely enamoured with cats on this trip. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it was actually quite lovely! We saw, and learned, things we likely wouldn’t have seen just doing the Parthenon, so it was a unique way to learn about a place.

Some other highlights of Athens included:

• A solo trip to a hammam-inspired spa for me, including a full body scrub and short massage
• Morning walks through the neighbourhood park with Sean, connecting about life and what we want when we return home from this trip
• A trip to the Kypseli Municipal Market (full of incredible artisans and creators; a real community hub) followed by delicious brunch at Flake
• Bringing out my cross-stitching, and Kieran wanting to learn how to do it
• A gorgeous stroll through the National Gardens (including giant geese in the duck pond and a very steep slide in the playground which had the kids shrieking with glee)
• Happening upon the Changing of the Guard at Syntagma Square – a very interesting experience and a cool place to see, thanks to my role at our province’s Legislative Assembly!
• Playing pass with a soccer ball in the Panathenaic Stadium – the only stadium in the whole world to be built entirely of marble and the venue of many historic Olympic sports

We had the absolute pleasure of staying in Kardamyli for a few weeks in early May. I’d read about some of the small towns of Mani (the middle “finger” of the Peloponnesian Peninsula) and Kardamyli had been highly recommended by a few bloggers. They were not wrong – we ended up falling in love with this quaint, elegant little seaside place. 

The drive to Kardamyli from Athens was just over three hours and we fuelled up with coffee and cookies from Let It Bee (our neighbourhood coffee haunt in Kypseli, Athens) and lunch in Tripoli. Driving into Kardamyli from the winding mountain roads above, we knew it was going to be special. Azure blue waters, fluorescent pink bougainvillea, chic seaside restaurants and cobbled streets abounded. Our gorgeous apartment was a block away from the shore and surrounded by cafes, and taking our first of many evening strolls, we realized how much we had missed being near the sea!

One of our first days in Kardamyli was spent driving just out of town to Foneas Beach, which was a stunning but bracing swim spot a short walk down from the windy, mountainside, side-of-the-road parking situation. There was a cave there you could swim through, much to Grace’s delight, and many rocks great for climbing. Another day, we drove to Glyfada Beach, one of the rare sandy beaches around and one which featured the cool, rusty old shipwreck ‘Dimitrios’. The scenery all around Mani – mountains, wild roses and herbs, deep caverns and the stunning aqua and royal blue waters against white pebbles – was stunning and we very much enjoyed visiting towns and beaches all around Kardamyli (except Grace, who did not love the narrow, twisting roads climbing up and down the hillsides). 

We took a road trip to Sparta, where we had lunch at a very smoky café, saw a huge sculpture of King Leonidas, visited his tomb, and then drove on to the ancient fortification of Mystras on nearby Mount Taygetus. Sadly, the site itself was closed the day we visited, but we were still able to walk some of the grounds and see how precariously some of the ruins were perched on the steep mountainside. While exploring, we felt certain we heard a rattlesnake in the nearby brush, but some later internet sleuthing quelled my fears – no rattlesnakes on the Peloponnese!

Two last road trips of note: one to the nearby town of Stoupa, and one to Areopoli. Stoupa was a cute little town with a sandier beach than those in Kardamyli, so we spent an afternoon swimming and lounging there after a nice lunch at Stoupa Restaurant. While the sea in the quaint bay was lovely, the real standout from our day in Stoupa was the giant clay amphora in the restaurant which housed a litter of four kittens and their mom. While mom could jump in and out, we weren’t quite sure how she might have done so heavily pregnant with the four of them, nor how they would get out in a few short weeks when they were ready for a bit more exploration. Our trip to Areopoli and the Caves of Diros was another highlight. Because I cannot put the magic of boating through the partially-submerged caves into words, please allow the website’s description to paint a picture for you: “Under the sparse Mani landscape, nature has patiently and artistically sculpted a miracle beyond imagination – white stalactites and stalagmites, impressive waterfalls and glittering crystals adorn every corner, creating an incomparable spectacle that takes your breath away!” They aren’t lying. 

We splurged on our Crete accommodations a bit since it was my birthday celebration and because Erin was joining us. Hence, we had a lovely pool, and a great kitchen and grill situation. We took advantage by cooking up some great meals: shrimp and mussels, “gigantes” (giant white beans slow cooked in tomato sauce), grilled chicken souvlaki with fresh grilled veggies, freshly squeezed orange juice, and even a cooking lesson (mousaka! proper tzatziki!) with the loveliest local woman, Litsa. We also enjoyed some great meals at local restaurants, including amazing fish at Irene’s Taverna, dakos and meatballs and perfect pasta at Manousakis Winery, breakfast at Carte Postale, and a whole lot of incredible meat at Mitsos BBQ.

Crete’s craggy beauty offered up some great hiking opportunities. We scaled up the side of a mountain (well… it felt like that, at least!) to get to the Lera Cave and we usually knew we were on the right track by the presence of goat droppings. No droppings = wrong path! After that very steep trek, we enjoyed grilled octopus and gorgeous Greek salad at Yiasemi in Stavros. We clambered up and down gorges and through ruins on the hike to Katholiko Bay, not to mention being stopped for a few minutes at the side of the road to let hundreds of shaggy sheep cross. After these hot hikes (or home workouts), the villa’s pool was perfect for a cooling dip!

Though we did a lot of hikes and sightseeing, we also really leaned into island life: just hanging out having sister catch-ups, playtime in the pool (with a unicorn floatie, no less) for the kids, calls with our moms on Mother’s Day, walks into the town for coffee, and ice cream afternoons. We hung out at a local beach right near our villa on the last day, lounging in the sun, drinking cups of wine from the small snack hut, and paddling about. Our one “emergency” occurred when Grace came up out of the pool too fast and knocked her front tooth on the edge of the pool. A trip to a Cretan dentist ensued and though she was a bit terrified of what he might have to do (please note, I was front-tooth-less for the majority of last year due to an issue called resorption, so I think Grace was worried they would have to pull hers out too), he was great and just had to rebuild the edge up with some dental goo… technical term.

Finally, I would be absolutely remiss to not mention Erin and I’s two blissful getaway days at the Caramel Hotel, which was her incredibly generous birthday gift to me. We checked into the fancy plant-filled lobby and were led to our upgraded room only to find it full of birthday surprises: balloons, cake, fruit, and wine! The hotel room was beautifully decorated with brightly coloured tiles and fabrics, a bath tub on the upper deck (!!!) and a view out to the sea. We lived it up with burrata salad and rosé lunches, champagne breakfasts (free with our nightly rate!) and days on lovely white loungers by the pool. It was an incredible setting in which to connect with Erin and celebrate our sistership. Sean picked us up on Thursday and took us home to enjoy a lovely outdoor dinner, face masks, and a well-needed, early bedtime.

Corfu (or Kerkyra) is known as the Garden Isle, and it was indeed very green and full of flowers. The island was under Venetian rule from the 13^th through the 18^th century, so medieval Italianate fortifications, churches and other buildings abound. We spent our first full day on a huge walk all along the waterfront: through the Garden of the People and Spianada Square, past the Old Fortress and the Douglas Obelisk, along the Garitsa Grove, to the point featuring the Anemomilos Windmill and swimming dock, and around the coast to Mon Repos Park. The lush, 260-acre estate deserves its own paragraph, so…

…As soon as we stepped under the shaded canopy of the Mon Repos ground, I likened the overgrown ruins and Neoclassical, Regency-era villa (now an archeological museum) to Great Expectations. I was half expecting the ghost of Ms. Dinsmoor to round the bend ahead of us. We learned that the villa and its grounds were the birthplace of the late Prince Philip, it having been a royal summer residence until 1967. The huge park is also home to botanical gardens, ancient temple ruins, an ancient theatre, and a gorgeous public swimming spot thanks to a long stone dock jutting out into the crystalline water. The dock was the perfect spot to take a picnic and spend the afternoon – and the perfect way to cool off after tromping through all those forested pathways!

One thing we did well in Corfu was our morning routine (something that Sean and I have found makes all the difference to a happy day on this trip). A good morning routine for us means getting up relatively early, having coffee and a quick bite to eat, and heading out the door in exercise gear before anyone loses any mojo. In some places, we’ve found a good gym and therefore sneak out without the kids for a short workout without them. However, in Corfu we found an excellent outdoor space complete with basketball court (a great surface for jump rope cardio), a playground, open grassy spaces, and outdoor exercise equipment. It also had the bonuses of being oceanfront, surrounded by cafés, and bordered by giant flowering bushes. So, our Corfiot mornings got a solid start with a brisk walk to the park, a workout (for the adults) and a play (for the kids), and a coffee / hot chocolate afterward.