Can't help getting on the net and posting new stuff for the blog. Lei, Johnno and I have all been spending lots of time on internet lately - trying to organise accommodation, do up job applications, and find out about sites in the areas we're travelling between.

We arrived last night in Thessaloniki and found a very dodgy room with a leaky toilet, leaky water heater and very little hot water - but it was cheap. And the beds were good.

Today, spent the morning in Thessaloniki - it truly is a great town! The 'white tower' - some old Byzantine tower that was part of the city walls and fort - was a huge let-down. But nearby there was a big puddle with lots of pigeons having baths, looking very bedgraggled but having a great time! They were very entertaining... Ahem, moving right along... Johnno and I headed to the Achaeological museum and Lei went to the Byzantine museum. We were all in a bit of a rush as we are due in Istanbul on the 28th Nov and we wanted to get part of the 560km today. The museum was fantastic - so much gold and lots of REALLY ancient stuff, like a skull from the Petralona caves where the oldest human skull in Europe was found (the skull from a Archanthropus (a human-type that lived 200,000 yrs ago and is the transitional form between Homo erectus & Homo sapiens).

At these caves, they also found fossils of extinct animals like lions, hyenas, bears, elephants, panthers, rhinos and 25 different species of birds we also found here. SO now I can can report that one of my biggest questions since we entered Greece (and saw so many references to lions and lion hunts/attacks) has been answered. YES, there were lions in Greece!!!!! They were either a branch of the asiatic lion or there own species - the European Lion (Wikipedia ref here).

Also since I'm into reporting at the moment, please note that Northern Greece is fascinating. Lonely Planet does an absolutely abysmal job and I am highly disappointed at their lack of info on the region. PLEASE check out Macedonia here - if you're thinking of visiting Greece, I recommend you visit this region. Macedonian tombs, Byzantine castles, Roman ruins, sites of significant battles...

The White Tower, closed for renovations

Bathing pigeon

Gold jewellry from a female burial late 6th C BC (Thessaloniki Archaelogical Museum). I loved the detail on the beads (a bit hard to see here).

Gold myrtle wreath, indication of higher social status, worn at public events and went with the dead to the grave (as all valuables did).

After the museum I went for a wander past a few of the old churches. I really wanted to see the Roman Forum and Roman baths that are in town (Thessaloniki was made the main city of the Roman Empire's Macedonia) but ran out of time so will have to do it next time. Ok, now about Thessaloniki being a cool town: it is bustling but fresh-feeling; there are heaps of cafes; lots of trendy people; quite a few interesting landmarks to see (but particularly in the region around); it's cheap; the shopping is cheap; there is nothing touristy about the town (although there is one tourist office). Apart from about 6 people I saw at the museum, I did not see one other obvious traveller - I was the only one out with a map and a camera (& I got some weird looks for it :)). Oh, there were some others out with cameras taking photos of this huge iguana thing that some guy had out on some wall (right next to some Roman ruins, funnily enough - to me it's like the ancient stuff in these cities just blends in with the modern life of the locals, like once you've seen it you just live with it). The iguana was adorable... (Am I easily amused?? pigeons and an iguana and I'm happy??) Anyway, both Lei and Johnno also thought Thessaloniki is brilliant - so there.

Cutey :)

Church of Panagia Chalkeon, right in amongst all the traffic bustle and apartment blocks (built 1028 by the (Byzantine official) Christophoros. Converted to a mosque in 1430, by the Turks who conquered Thessaloniki, but became a Christian church again, with the liberation of the city, in 1912. )

We are now in this absolutely fantastic town of Kavala (abot 160km down the road from Thessaloniki). IT IS GREAT!!! Cheap accommodation; great food; a Byzantine Castle on the hill nearby; an aquaduct; beaches; and a fantastic tourist office :) We'll check out some of these sights tomorrow. Right now, I'm knackered for some reason.

Take care all. Can't believe it's less than a month till Christmas. I'm missing home and going through a reflective time at the moment, but this is an experience that I may never get the chance to have again - although I like to think that if I want to travel again for extended periods, I will. Life is truly too short to not be happy. I am definitely realising some the things I value and miss about home, even simple things like: clean bathrooms; shower curtains; English-language movies; hearing my favourite music; clean/non-smoky air. And of course and most notably, I miss family terribly and you guys, my mates. Even if I haven't seen some of you for a while, I do think about you often and I hope we can catch up again sometime soon in this big, wide world.

Signing off.