We arrived on Samos Island under a sky full of dark clouds. But as soon as we disembarked from the ferry, the clouds burned off and the sun burst out and it never left us again while we were in Greece.
And what an introduction to the Greek Islands! It’s a smaller, less busier island than many of the others, which, after an intense few days touring Turkey, was a welcome relief.
Once we made our way through a very long customs line, we booked it to our hotel to enjoy an afternoon of relaxation. It felt like the first afternoon in weeks that we could chill and do nothing by ourselves for a couple hours. I guess because it was. 😜
Catching a new food obsession
On our first night in Greece, we were on a mission to put fresh seafood in our bellies. We searched a seafood joint that was close-by and Alfa restaurant kept popping up with reviews raving about their grilled octopus. Sounded good to us!
We then found out how good grilled octopus is. Like, sooooo good! All those little grilled and crunchy tentacles… *sigh* Once the dish was placed in front of us, looking all pretty and scrumptious, I was a goner. After that first taste, we were hooked and pretty much tried to order grilled octopus every day we were in Greece.
We actually loved Alfa restaurant so much we went back for almost the exact same dinner the next evening. When you find something so good, you know going anywhere else will be a disappointment.
Good morning from Kokkari
Our hotel was situated on a hill with the most amazing view. Perfect spot to watch a glorious sunrise and the start of a sun-drenched day.
‘The Californians’
We need to talk about Becky and Paulette, or as we liked to call them, ‘The Californians’ (insert melodramatic soap opera narration from SNL here). They are two good friends who live in the Bay Area and are an absolute hoot! We first met them on the bus portion of our Turkey trip. They were the only other travellers on the bus who were also doing the ‘Greek Island Hopping’ portion of the tour. So we had plenty of time to really get to know them once we hit the islands.
The first thing we figured out together was that our hotel, while situated on a hill with a lovely view, was not really within easy walking distance to the beaches or seaside towns of Samos. So in entered the idea to share a rental car and spend the entire day exploring the island together.
To say that was a good decision is an understatement! We had a blast in Greece with The Californians. We somehow vibed really well together. And these ladies were great at always having good snacks on hand (gathered at the breakfast ‘boo-fay’) and great travel stories to either laugh-at or be amazed-by.
What a delight it was to share Greece together. “Chuck and his ladies.” ♥️
The beginning of a beautiful road trip
The island isn’t big, so getting to see most of it in a day via car is not impossible. We embarked on our drive from Kokkari and drove up the coast to Karlovasi, then turned inland and went up high in the mountains to get to the other side of the island and stop for a late lunch in Pythagoreio town.
It was an easy, pretty and relaxing drive, except when we were shouting out…
“Tiny church!”
Samos has so many tiny churches, and we definitely made the time to stop and check most of them out. They seemed to get progressively tinier as we drove. It made for a lively car-game similar to “HORSE!”
Blue skies, green pastures and vibrant Ankara
I didn’t have a clue what Samos was famous for until we drove up through the mountains and got these vast views of all the lush rolling hills full of vineyards and orchards. Turns out, the island is known for their olive groves and citrus trees, as well as for growing muscat grapes to make their famous sweet wines.
When we were getting ready for the day, both Chuck and I decided to wear our Ankara outfits (African wax prints). We had no clue we were about to look as saturated as the rest of the island. So much so, that there is a photo below of us walking in Pythagoreio town and there are people behind us doing a double-take. 🤣
The best thing about Ankara fabric is how breathable it is. A staple for us when in Nigeria. I think everyone should have an Ankara outfit or two in their wardrobes as they are perfect for those steamy days of summer. And the patterns are 🔥🔥🔥
At the honey shop with my honey
When we were at one of the highest points on our drive we spotted a quaint little honey shop. Who doesn’t stop at a quaint little honey shop on the side of a mountain? No one I want to know.
We got out of the car to stretch our legs and then peruse the honey products. The place also had an amazing view, of course, and a hammock just beckoning someone to take a rest. Chuck obliged. Swinging away in the sunshine as we left him to go taste some fresh honey inside the shop.
I joined Chuck outside a few minutes later to bask in the clean mountain-ish air with him as he swung on the hammock praising all of “nature’s beauty” around him.
There’s never a moment where I don’t feel blessed to be seeing the world with Chuck. I mean, life is never dull with him, but traveling together always has us feeding off each others excitement. Whether it’s trying something unfamiliar, seeing something amazing or learning something new.
Pythagoreio town
The road we drove down the mountain took us directly into the town of Pythagoreio. If that name seems a bit familiar, which it did to me, it’s because it’s named after the mathematician Pythagoras, who is famous for the Pythagorean Theorem and was born on Samos (580 BC). Ah ha! That’s why the name was familiar. I guess I still remember stuff from math class. (But seriously, I don’t!)
We parked the car and decided to walk the main street doing some window shopping, greeting all the cats (there’s always a cat) and grabbing a bite to eat. It was a lovely little town, but it’s definitely where most of the people are so it was nice to get back in the car and head back to the much more relaxed village of Kokkari.
Beach time!
Our road trip around the island ended back in Kokkari in the late-afternoon. We then ditched the car, grabbed our beach bags (mine is a handwoven one from the Lekki Art & Crafts Market) and moved our butts over to the palapas and loungers dotted along Kokkari Beach.
The beach’s shoreline is made up of large smooth stones instead of fine sand, which, surprisingly, was not hard to walk on with bare feet. Unfortunately, the Aegean Sea was a bit too chilly to enter and the heat of the day was starting to wane, so we pulled out our snacks and laid back on the loungers letting the journey we shared together wash gently over us like the waves lapping along the shore.
Samos was the perfect spot to rejuvenate after a busy nine days exploring Turkey.
