Waiting for the tram |
Since living in Corfu
I can’t say I used public transport, very rarely and the only option there to
use is the notorious Green bus or to the Greeks; the Ktel, which is basically a
bus connection to and from villages to the main town. A crazy journey of about
1 hour, up and down the villages, spiralling over the mountain and racing towards
the finish line to the bus station… Not a journey for the faint hearted. I
learnt to drive at the age of 19, since then my car became my only mode of
transport and my freedom to travel wherever I liked, whenever I desired.
Metro station |
My next experience was the bus. I wanted to
take a short journey of around ten minutes to a neighbourhood a little further
away to meet a friend. I had the option of three different bus lines to choose
from so obviously I picked the one that came first. It was an easy journey, it
lasted about 25 minutes (longer than I thought) but the problem I had was to
guess which stop I had to get off, it turned out I made the wrong decision and
had to walk back down the same road. So basically if you don’t have any idea
where you’re going my best advice is to ask someone on the bus to get an idea
of your destination. My second trip with the bus was definitely unexpected and
surprised me. Travelling from Piraeus
to Syndagma at about one in the morning, a journey I expected to take over half
an hour took only 15 minutes. It was one hell of a ride. The driver was
speeding down the road (he must have been late for his rendezvous!), people
were holding on for dear life, but we arrived safely which was all that
mattered.
The most recent encounter of mine was the tram.
A line which runs from Syndagma to Piraeus and vice versa, a line going from Piraeus
to Voula (the south suburbs of Athens) and another going from Voula to
Syndagma. It was a Sunday, I had nothing else to do and I was on my way home so
instead of taking the metro I had a spur of the moment idea to take the tram
back to Syndagma to waste some time. In my opinion it wasn’t anything special,
it took about three quarters of an hour but the great thing about it is you get
to see the heart of the city from a different view, whereas on the metro you
don’t really see much. After that I decided to take a trip to Glyfada to check
out the numerous beaches along the southern coast to get an idea of the areas,
you could call it detective work! Again it was definitely an enjoyable ride
with lots to see but again it took a while.
Tram lines in Glyfada |
A new jaunt of mine had me visiting a very close friend who
lives in Halkida, about a hour’s drive away, but I didn't drive so how did I
get there you ask... Well, I took the train! Not the
metro or the electric railway, the train. This journey was one of a kind, it
had its up and downs but I am now aware of the way things should be
handled.
My first problem was buying a ticket, after queuing at
the wrong desk I found the correct one hiding in the left hand corner. The guy
behind the desk asked me how old I was, my first thought was: isn’t it rude to
ask a lady her age? Well, he was asking because being under the age of 26 I
received a discount! I'll have to make sure I look under 26 for a long time!! Overall the journey took around an hour and forty five
minutes as we sat for ten minutes at a station, according to the driver there
was a lot of traffic, traffic on a train line, is that even possible?!?! Anyway
I arrived at my destination safe and well.
The return journey wasn't as pleasing, I had a two
hour wait at the station as the schedule times had changed and I had to change
trains about half way into the journey. Again this took longer than stated on
the website, four and a half hours later I finally arrived home. For my future
trips I will make sure I note the correct times to be certain I’m not waiting
around, it’s definitely an alternative and cheaper way to get out of Athens
centre for the weekend.
Overall I think that the public transport in Athens centre is great,
without a doubt it makes your commuting much easier than taking the car and
sitting for hours on the congested roads. A considerable “bravo” to Athens Public Transport for
making my life easier, thank you.
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