Cycling in Greece

I did not intend to travel to Greece but here I am. 

First time I've crossed a border at the top of mountain. What's more, the Bulgarian immigration officer and Greek officer sat in adjacent booths, one structure right next to the other, to pass my passport through both windows to the other for stamping 😆 

Then I had amazing mountain top descent, dropping 1600 feet with unobstructed views of the ocean 30miles in the distance and mountains all around. I coasted down with minimal traffic, mesmerized by the view

The agriculture changed to cotton 

And tobacco 

Saw tortoises cross the road 

I strolled into a small town, Sapes, meandering to find a drink or something to eat when two guys invite, insist! I join them for beers on a sidewalk table in front of one guy's butchery. They end up buying me 4 beers and 2 sandwiches from the restaurant next door and chaperoned me over to the only hotel in town (where I was going to stay anyway) to cover my stay for the night. So hospitable! They assured me that "Greece is paradise!" a dozen times. 

They also suggested I go to Samothrace

"paradise in paradise" they assured me. So I said okay, I'll check it out. A 2 hour ferry from Alexandroupoli. 

Turns out to be a nudist island.

I stayed at a "free camping" site. By a nude beach. But basically any beach is a nude beach here. As are the waterfalls, rivers, and hot springs. Where you will indubitably encounter people naked during the day.... So I followed suit 😁

The natural hot springs 

And river, waterfalls, pools 

I ctually really enjoyed my few days here. There is good vegetarian food and the live music at night has been very good. Never have I ever met so many people while naked. 

Closest things I've experienced to this vibe are Burner festivals (Firefly, Burning man) and Zipolite, Oaxaca, México.