Final day

The final day of our roadtrip around southern Greece saw us completing our classical and Greek history education with a trip to see Epidaurus Theatre. What an impressive space. All of the classical places we've seen - Delfi, Olympia, Mycenae and now Epidaurus - had a scale to them which was scarcely believable. Like the others, Epidaurus - although obviously a popular attraction - was sufficiently large to absorb the visitor numbers, so you didn't feel overwhelmed. I really want to go back and see a performance there.

We also completed the set of "lunch-places-by-the-sea", by eating in a beach restaurant in New Epidaurus. I also managed a final swim in the sea, having also swum twice in the excellent hotel swimming pool.

L and G dropped us back at the airport, and we sat around waiting for our flight. Unfortunately, it was a bit late, and it took ages once we got back to Edinburgh to get out of the airport. Thank goodness there were taxis, even at that time. We weren't in bed until nearly 2.30am.

It's been quite a trip through the Balkan peninsula, from Vienna (where the Ottomans were famously halted in their march across Europe) through Slovenia, Croatia (briefly), Serbia and Athens to the southern tip of the Peloponnese, to a peninsula that the Ottomans never subdued. We were only in Greece from Monday afternoon until the Tuesday evening the following week, but it was an extraordinary time. The colour; the history; the warmth; the food; and of course the wonderful hosts L and G. We have come away with a determination to return. Luckily L and G seem to share our enthusiasm for this idea, although we shall probably see them first in Scotland, all being well.