Northern Greece is truly beautiful — and at the same time, strangely forgotten by mainstream tourism. Rhodes, Kos, Santorini, Crete, sometimes Athens… but the northern part of Hellas rarely makes it onto travel agency posters.
Let’s start with the name. For Greeks, this region is simply Macedonia. Not long ago, they were in a naming dispute with the Macedonians — as in, the people from the neighboring country. Greece made it clear: if they don’t change their country’s name, they’ll block their entry into the EU. And they did change it. Today, we have North Macedonia (the country), and Macedonia (as part of the land of Socrates and Plato). Oh, and of course, Alexander the Great was Greek — not Macedonian (as in, from the modern country), but from Macedonia, which is part of Greece. Everyone got that?
Now that we’ve dealt with the names, let’s move on to what you can actually see. Gorgeous poppy fields that Dariia couldn’t get enough of — she jumped out of the car and started hopping through one like a kangaroo. Lush greenery everywhere, streams, creeks, and… a turtle crossing the road (back home we’re more used to seeing squashed hedgehogs or cats — clearly Greece offers more variety). The greenery was a surprise — we often associate Greece with beaches, sea, and rather dry vegetation, but here… a delightful twist.
Thessaloniki turned out to be beautiful too. A chaotic city where everyone seems to use their horn just for fun — but also a lively, energetic place full of young people. And we have to admit: it’s overflowing with history. The Arch of Galerius is fairly well-preserved, as are the ruins of the imperial palace. But the real gems are the buildings from the Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine periods — some of which are in fantastic condition.
When it comes to food, Thessaloniki is packed with cafés — stuffed with every possible kind of sweet. Oddly enough, despite wandering through the city on a Saturday evening, we didn’t pass a single nightclub or dance venue. On the flip side, the cafés were bursting at the seams. Seems like young Leonidases prefer stuffing themselves with baklava at night — perhaps to gather strength for their next raid on Troy!
We also made it to the Aegean Sea. A beach covered in multicolored stones. We often collect little pebbles as souvenirs, but here it felt like you could grab a shovel and fill a bucket — there were hardly any ugly ones to be found.
Naturally, being in this part of Greece, we couldn’t miss a visit to Zeus’s neighborhood — hence a small trip to Mount Olympus. The slopes of Olympus are truly stunning — so much so that I simply had to imagine the king of the gods residing there. And below Olympus, you can visit the Sanctuary of Zeus, House of Dionysus, altars, stadiums, and the very road that served as the city’s central artery 2,000 years ago. Do you feel the history there? Absolutely. It’s one thing to learn in school about Zeus, Dionysus, Apollo, Hera or Aphrodite and to see Olympus in a cartoon. But it’s only when you walk those roads, touch those stones, that it all takes on meaning — it has a smell, a weight, it stirs emotions.
To wrap up — two surprises, one positive and one not so much. In a nearby town, we popped into the very first café we passed. Fantastic coffee, wonderful service, and the most delicious bougatsa. But to balance the nectar and ambrosia… the house we booked via Booking.com: a disaster. The place itself was barely acceptable, but the owner? Instead of giving us a full address, she gave directions over the phone using Greek street names and sent us a photo of a hand-drawn map… No comment.