I teased my sweet husband about taking me somewhere special for our first anniversary because we are so close to amazing places. We had already been to some great places recently, including a spur-of-the-moment jaunt back to New York City, so I wasn't actually sure what we would do. 

The weekend we got to hang out in New York, we took a leisurely walk in Central Park. When we stopped near the Bethesda fountain, Taylor pulled out the secret itinerary from his coat. I had asked him why he was carrying around an unmarked envelope around but refused to say anything about it. Drove me nuts. I was so relieved when he shared it with me and that he was kind enough to give me hints so that I could pack correctly!

I got really excited about Greece! Of course Taylor came up with a perfect destination that would be the total surprise. I love that man. To add to the perfection of the destination, Taylor got a whole week off. The last time we had a full week together on vacation was a year ago on our honeymoon. 

Our airbnb apartment in Athens had a stellar terrace. November is off-season for tourism in Greece. It's pretty chilly but perfect if you don't like crowds of tourists. 

We found a tiny little English-speaking branch that is in the shadow of the Acropolis. There were probably 15 people, the majority of which were full-time missionaries. 

Since we were so close and it was at the top of our list, we headed up to explore after church. 

The west side of the Odeon of Herodotu

Watching the sun set from about halfway up the Acropolis, facing the Philipappou Hill with the Odeon of Herodotus amphitheater in the foreground. 

Erechtheion. "The Porch of the Maidens". It reminded me of the Muses in the Disney movie, Hercules. 

Too many amazing views of the Parthenon to share!

Always, always, always under construction. But hey, I'll take the random cranes if I get pictures like this with probably the tiniest crowd ever in the way!

The Hill to the east. 

Olive trees galore. I wanted to try one but chickened out. I like olives (not black though) and I'd like to keep it that way. 

Areopagus Hill. Once the meeting place of a council of elders. Birthplace of democracy. I love it!

View of the Acropolis from the Areopagus Rock. There's evidence that this hilltop was inhabited as far back as 4000 BC. That is pretty stinking cool. 

The Agora is down there and Lycabettus Hill over yonder. 

Hadrian's Arch/Gate. Built by a Roman emperor in the second century AD who admired the Greek culture. The Arch was supposed to be separate the Classical Greek city and a new Roman city. That's the Acropolis you can see through there. 

View from our airbnb terrace. So no, it's not Beirut as some might think. 

Monastiraki Square

The Metro is surprisingly clean on the inside...outside not so much. But cool ruins are everywhere!

Hadrian's library. This is the kind of library I would have spent all my time in. 

Word to the wise: Athens is the kind of place that is perfect for early risers. Everything is open from 8am-3pm. And no later. 

City Center ruins 

The changing of the guard in front of the Parliament building. I think I laughed out loud a few times. Sorry dudes. They walked by kicking their legs up reeeeally high or drag and squeak their shoes on the marble. And it took a really long time. 

Ah! Taylor planned an even better surprise than a week trip to Athens... Early Tuesday morning we made our way to a ferry on our way to......

Santorini! 

This is NOT Santorini. We stopped at a few islands before getting off the ferry. They were a beautiful warm-up for when we actually got to our stop in the early afternoon. 

This is the port in Santorini. 

Bye-bye Blue Star Ferry. 

A nice taxi ride to the other end of the island where we stayed called Oia. 

The driver told us about the volcano out there that used to be part of the whole island. Thousands of years ago, the two smaller islands were part of Santorini and the whole was called Thera. But now, there's a gorgeous caldera. Nice for us, not so much for the people who suffered the ashes and lava. 

Uhhhh.... Can you believe it? Because I could barely handle it. This was taken standing in front of our airbnb cave home. Thousands of people flock to this spot to watch the sunset.  I walked outside every 15 minutes to take another panoramic. Enjoy the sunset with me.

The next morning. 

Exploring Oia (pronounced 'ee-uh', drop the O) 

The island is shaped like a crescent moon. So we got great views of the coast as it curves around.

Temple ruins. 

Oia. Above the Amoudi harbor. Iconic and amazing. 

On our way down the famous steps, we were held up behind the donkeys that were working. Smelly but strong. 

Amoudi. Scenes from Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants were shot here. It's basically abandoned in the off-season though. We would definitely come back just to eat at the seafood restaurant down by the water though. However, just getting down to this point made the climb back up an intense workout. I choose the car option next time. 

Church of Panagia of Platsni Oia Caldera Square 

We hopped on a bus (that only runs from Oia every 90ish minutes. Talk about ANNOYING) and went to Fira. 

See? A beautiful ghost town in November. Limited shopping. Oh well. This is in Fira, the island's capital. 

Fira, Santorini. 

Donkeys were hard at work!

More sunset panoramics. :) sorry but you're welcome, too!

We made friends with a store owner named Helen, a darling Australian-Greek woman. She told us about her friends making a Thanksgiving dinner at Naoussa Restaurant in Fira. Hooray! We got in on the menu for pumpkin soup, 'bread pudding' which was the most delicious stuffing substitute that I have EVER eaten, and tasty rolls. 

Turkey plate! Complete with mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, green beans, brussel sprouts, and corn. Such an amazingly delicious surprise. Great dinner. 

Oia at night. 

Helen also told us that Lucky's was the best gyro place and she was right! Unless you find Helen and her cute store on the Main Street in Fira, make sure you study TripAdvisor for reviews of restaurants because there are two huge scam restaurants that you need to avoid! We read the reviews for kicks and it's shocking that the owner of those two restaurants is still in business. 

On our last day, we rented a car and checked in at the airport to make sure our flight was good. This is the most ghetto airport I've ever seen. This was at mid-day. When we actually flew, the same kid dressed in sweats was running this checked bag conveyor and the security to board the plane. Really professional and secure. 

Nice tape for the sign....

Found more ruins!

Old castles are our favorite. 

There was this newlywed looking couple (traveling with a mother-in-law) that happened to be exploring the same place and offered to take our picture. 

This is the kind of pose that happens when he pretends to hate that I take so many pictures. :) he still loves me though. 

Pretty sure a homeless person or two have lived in this place. 

Sculpted by the wind. 

Our airbnb cave home! Because it is built into the volcanic mountain, it is always warm. The bathroom/shower was bizzare but fine. The bed was uncomfortable but the location was worth it. 

Sad to leave but we WILL be back. 

One last panoramic picture on the best weather day of the trip. Perfectly perfect. 

Saying goodbye by taking pictures of every step to the car. Ok, ok not every step. 

I went with a traditional Grecian meal and loved it. It's called soutzoukakia and it'll be served in heaven. I also recommend you try the moussaka. It's my new favorite eggplant dish and I'm going to make it at home.