Thessaloniki, Greece: The In-between

Burnt in our train compartment.

  
      Taking the metro to the train station, Becca and I said goodbye to Hashim, and bought overnight train tickets. Finding our train compartment however, proved to be more of an adventure. The entire Greek army was on our train. And they were all pushing past us, in the opposite direction. As we finally figured out what car we were in, we stumbled on the train, delirious from a sunburn and lack of sleep. It's a good thing that we aren't claustrophobic, because the foot of space allocated to sleep in was quite confining. After watching Sex and the City Two (bootlegged from Athens), we curled up in our tiny spaces, waking up occasionally to apply more aloe.

     We arrived in Thessaloniki at seven thirty am. Perfect timing. Our train from Thessaloniki was supposed to leave at eight am. And then our adventure began. While Andy had thought that the man had said eight am, he actually said eight pm. There we were in the train station, a suitcase and handbag apiece, with twelve hours for our train. Never ones to overlook a chance to explore, we locked up our suitcases and set off to explore this new city.

     While exploring, we decided to be practical as well. Internet was on our priority list, as we wanted to find a hotel in Istanbul before we arrived. Finding an internet connection, however, proved to be more difficult than we originally thought. Especially on a Sunday in Orthodox Greece. Fortunately, we're very determined. After a few awkward conversations, an espresso shop that claimed to have internet but only boasted a scantily clad barista with tables full of poicemen, and wandering around with my iPhone trying to find a wireless signal, we found it.

     The restaurant was not open (Sunday), but the owner was sitting outside and invited us to sit and use the internet. Thank goodness. We quickly found a hotel, and set off for a walk by the water. Two Ice cream treats and a funny picture of Becca on a kiddie train later ,  we were on our way back to the train station. As both of us are great with directions, it took considerably longer than we anticipated. We stumbled upon a fruit stand and picked up some dinner for later on the train. We waited a little bit longer (our patience improved immensely on this trip) and we boarded the train in dire need of some sleep. But sleep was not in the cards for us.

View of Turkish countryside from our train window.

We were abruptly woken up about 230am by a loud, booming PASSPOOOOORTS! Startled and fumbling for our glasses (at least I'm not alone in my blindness) we opened our door and handed them to the night guard. Fifteen minutes later, our door was pounded upon and our passports handed back.  Thinking the customs part of our trip was over, we snuggled back into our blankets. False. Another Turkish man came by, pounded on our door, and again demanded our passports. Okay. And then the same loud booming voice was ordering us outside. At four am? Luckily, Becca and I are cheery people. But this was pushing it a bit. We stumbled out of our cramped car in our pajamas, confused and unsure of what was going on. 

     We stood in line on the train tracks, shivering on the border of Greece and Turkey. One by one, we were escorted into a brightly lit hut and paid for our Turkish visas. Finally, we thought we were finished. Alas, we were again mistaken. Another man ambled by our compartments and pounded on the door, booming "CUSTOMS." After finding out that we're two young girls from America, he smiled and said "Good night." Pleased that our baggage was not going to be searched, a rigorous process but even more draining at five in the morning, we laid back down. And finally our passports were returned.

Sunflower fields in Turkey.

     Perhaps the overnight train was not our best choice, but it was definitely an adventure. Next time, we don't need to bother with the sleeper train, as we were up all night anyway. At least the cheery sunflowers brightened our day. Onto the bus portion of our trip. An estimated hour trip, ended up taking two, but we finally arrived. A hotel has never looked so good.