Райский сад на берегу Коринфского залива Garden of Eden on the Corinthian Gulf

We (two adults and a child of 7 years old) rested at the Pappas Hotel on the outskirts of the resort town of Loutraki, which is 80 km from Athens, from May 21 to June 3.2010.
We chose this place and this hotel deliberately, and were not disappointed.
The place was predetermined by its proximity to historical sites: Loutraki is located on the shores of the Gulf of Corinth, opposite - a mountain with the ruins of the famous Corinth. Not far from Athens, where we went by regular bus (12 euros for a one-way ticket) to see the Acropolis with the Parthenon and other marvelous ruins. (And there is nothing else to see in the noisy metropolis, only museums, although it should be borne in mind that the most famous sculptures of the Parthenon are in London).

Usually I choose a place to stay (so that it is not far from the “antiquities” and on the seashore), and my husband chooses a hotel. This time he settled on the secluded Pappas. And how right he was! We arrived at the then almost empty hotel, on an unusually rainy day for Greece - and saw a paradise blooming garden on the seashore. Something reminiscent of either “Winter Evening in Gagra”, or “From the Life of Vacationers”. Then the people increased: cheerful German pensioners “come in large numbers”, quite a few Russians. The hotel is outwardly modest, the rooms are small, but if you have a sea view, you are guaranteed fabulous beauty. This hotel feeds on the principle of "breakfast - dinner. " And if the breakfast is monotonous (scrambled eggs or scrambled eggs, sausages or fried bacon + all sorts of muesli and yoghurts with delicious honey and jams), then dinner is a varied Greek-style buffet. The main cook named Christina is plump and friendly, like most cooks, she tries to follow the rules of cooking national dishes. And they seemed very tasty to us: from the traditional “moussaka” to all sorts of grilled pork-mutton, stewed beef, meat rolls, meatballs, vegetables in a variety of forms. Plus, the desserts are always delicious. It seemed to us that everything was tastier and somehow more soulful than in the also good Turkish Tropical Hotel in Marmaris, where we were in the fall of 2009.
The service staff is quite friendly. The Greeks as a whole are very restrained, but also unobtrusive, as happens in the East.
There are very nice Russian-speaking women in the restaurant: Russian Olga, Georgian Sofia, Anya from Moldova. In general, even the good knowledge of English that we had will not always help in Greece: the local population has about the same relationship with English as in Italy.
In general, it is always useful to learn "thank you" and "hello" in local languages. And Greek, as it is known from Chekhov's textbook story, is beautiful. (Although the sound is not as melodic to the Russian ear as French or Italian). Therefore, boldly say “EucharistO” (thank you, emphasis on the last syllable) or “Kalimera” (hello).
In addition to Athens and Corinth (where we went from the bus station in Loutraki), we went on an excursion to Mycenae and Epidaurus. The first place is known from the history of the Trojan War and Schliemann's excavations, the second is the largest theater in the Greek world. (By the way: the second largest is in Ephesus, where they travel from Marmaris in Turkey). Many people prefer to rent a car, it really will turn out cheaper (although gasoline has risen in price and now costs one and a half euros). Moreover, the Russians we met said that they rented it calmly and according to our usual, and not international, rights.

You can walk to Loutrak itself for 15-20 minutes - either along the highway (but cars rush past), or jump a little on the rocks along the beach (but it’s safe). But then we got lazy and began to call a taxi - directly from the reception, and a taxi "by tax": 4 - 5 euros. In Greece, they give change, although you can leave a tip. In cafes (taverns, as everyone here calls it - from a village tavern to a huge restaurant), 10% for tea is included in the bill. It is better to buy souvenirs in Athens, in Loutraki it is much more expensive. We could not resist and bought stylized ancient Greek "vases" (amphora, kylix - such a saucer on a leg), which in Greece are often painted by the shop owners themselves. Some shopkeepers are "our former people. " The Greeks are generally friendly towards the Russians, although they do not really remember the Russians' ardent support for their struggle for liberation from the Turkish yoke.
Yes, we confirm that you can safely drink water from the tap, and it will not fundamentally differ in taste from the local mineral water bought for 1-1.5 euros. Since we didn't have lunch, we sometimes shopped at the small supermarket "Dia" on the main street of Loutrak. There is also a large Epac store further away, but it seemed more expensive to us.
Unfortunately, the beach is pebbly. Therefore, slippers with sides cannot be dispensed with. In addition, in the sea, on large stones, there are urchins with terribly hard needles.
BETTER DON'T STEP! In general, the sea is the cleanest, we saw octopuses, and starfish, a bunch of fish that some local amateur fisherman was catching from the pier tirelessly. The entrance to the water is quite gentle. The beach on weekdays was almost empty, on weekends Greek families ran over. But the sea at this time of the year was cold. But the pool is wonderful: with SEA water and heated, suitable for both children and adults.
The hotel has a pride of cats, with a brood of kittens. All are very thin and shy. They are fed at the hotel, as I later found out, but on the very first day they were bought food, because such thin cats had only been seen in Turkey before. At first, they even ate slices of bread (! ), but when the people in the hotel increased, they began to fall more. My daughter also regularly dragged something from the table.
On the whole, in terms of the combination of the beauties of nature, the proximity of antiquities, the tranquility of the place, this outskirts of Loutrak is approaching our ideal.
For lovers of the warm sea, like me, it is better to come a little later, starting in June. And, of course, you need to travel around Greece. Because there is nothing more beautiful than Italy and Greece, for our taste, on earth.
Maria, St. Petersburg