We have a few days before we catch the ferry from Patras back to Ancona and find a charming old monastery, now a beautiful hotel in a small place called Eleanos which is overlooked by the towering mountain Helmos.  The monastery is called Semanton Village.   The name Semanton comes from the acoustic object used instead of a bell in monasteries.   This monastery was built in 1840 the dwelling housed the Mega Spilaion monks.   Eleanos is a small beach town which we liked so we decide to stay three nights.  Guy takes advantage of the beautiful swimming pool set in the gardens and swims several times a day.   The holidaymakers there were all Greek and we did not hear English spoken once which is probably because unlike so many beach areas in Greece, the British tour companies have not discovered it yet.   The people are helpful and charming, the restaurants good and we had a great time there. From Ancona we drive towards France, Guy has never been to Monaco so we drive through  Monte Carlo and look at the sights. Recession? What recession? Among the Bentleys, Rolls, Ferraris, Porsches, and slumming-it Mercedes, the only thing that shows that Monaco is affected at all by global economic crisis is that the humongous yachts line the wharves—to save operating costs!?!?!!

We leave Turkey, spend a day on the island of Kos and get the overnight ferry to Piraeus. Athens is our next port of call. My first impression is that I am going to like it more than I had thought. We spend the day visiting the Acropolis and the museum. The Acropolis is overwhelming in its size and position. It just sits atop of the city and is so easy to see from many angles both day and night. It is hot but there is a blustery wind up there which is very refreshing. We continue on to the Museum which would take days to digest and we had only allocated one afternoon. We have visited many museums on this journey and I find that I have to focus on a certain theme as there is always too much to take in. In this museum I found myself focusing on the “gold”. So much gold, so many beautiful rings, necklaces and other treasures it is astonishing. All recovered from the graves of the rich who could not have imagined where they would end up….