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My first visit to Kos was in 1990 with my best friend, two girls together; both of us just turned 18 and making our first trip abroad without parents.
We were thrilled at the thought of having a two weeks holiday on such a party island as Kos. At that time Kos was much quieter than it is today but it was already famous for partying. Our holiday turned out exactly as we had hoped, lots of sun and beaches during the day and lots of partying during the night. It wasn't a holiday for total relaxation, not with those nights of only few hours of sleep, but more of being independent and free. We were glad to discover that this island was full of other young adults with similar holiday plans.
It wasn't hard to return to Kos in 1999. Almost a decade had passed but at first sight the town appeared unchanged since my last visit. It seemed very familiar and in a way, very cosy. I went to Kos on this occasion to visit my boyfriend. He was in the army at that time and his post was in Kos. I had booked only a flight from Finland and had planned to stay at his apartment. During those three weeks I got to know Kos town very well. I lived right in the middle of town and I had "a local" as my guide. I had a bicycle to move around and when my boyfriend got off the army duties in the afternoon, we often took his motorcycle and went touring around the island. I got to know the island from one end to the other and almost everything in between. Besides Kos town there are other places perfect for a holiday such as Kardamena, Mastichari or Tingaki.
Kos Island wasn't the only one to explore. We took excursions to Rhodos and Symi, as well as to Kalymnos. You can read about these trips on my other sites, which you can see listed on the left of my homepage. Sadly I also became familiar with the Kos town general hospital. I love snorkelling and beaches in Greece are ideal for that. I had this little accident, nothing too serious though, while snorkelling one day and due to that had to visit the "oto-rhino-larigo-logos", (that's an ear-nose and throat-specialist in English), every third day for two weeks. Almost spoiled my entire holiday!
Luckily my holiday was otherwise a success. I think it was then, that I lost my heart and soul to Greece once and for all, and started dreaming of living there myself one day. I was with the man I loved and we had a great time together. I also made good friends with his army mate Dimitris and his girlfriend Fotini. We spent a lot of time with them out in the town. It was fun to go out with them and visit places I wouldn't have visited if I were alone. I remember this one place especially. It was an old mill outside the town by the beach. I can't remember the name exactly but I think it was Milos; it was at the end of a side street off Lambi Street in Kos town. It was a nice outdoor restaurant and they played Greek music all night long. Through my friends I got to glimpse the Greek way of living. I had a chance to meet my dear friends Fotini and Dimitris again in 2001 in Patra while I was on my Peloponnesean tour. Now that is an entirely different story and you can check the site for my tour in Peloponnese top left button on my home page or use the site navigator button.
Heidi
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