Lake Vouligmeni is a lake set in a gorge thing, (technical term), filled with brackish salt water that comes off the Med. I chose the lake over the beaches just across the road as the lake has thermal springs underneath that keep the water at 21-28°C all year round. I don’t know what happened when I visited but there was absolutely nothing thermal about those waters, let me tell you. Still, it was a stunning setting to just chill and relax – cold plunges are good for you right?

That night we had the best dinner I think I’ve ever had in my life, but it deserves its own post.

On our final day, we wandered around the National Gardens, headed up Mount Lycabettus and generally just walked around the Monistraki area. A lot of places mentioned the Monistraki and Plaka areas as super important to walk around but we found them painfully touristy so you could probably skip.

This wrapped our short but very sweet few days in Athens. I’m actually writing this about 3 weeks into my big adventure trip. Reminiscing is making me see how Athens really was a lovely few days with my Mum. It’s fully hit me that I won’t be able to hug her or my Grandad or anyone I love for a 5 whole months – I’m actually missing home a lot.