This morning after breakfast we walked a short distance down the road to the Ana Hotel to catch the train. But when I say train I don’t really mean what you’re imagining. It’s not a train like the one that you would pick up at Aylesbury, Chesham or Tring station.

It’s one of those trains on wheels where the driver is sitting in something shaped like a steam train locomotive, and all the carriages behind are windowless with bench seats and a canopy roof.

We boarded at stop number 14 on the route and the little train continued along the road towards our hotel and then sharply left, as it couldn’t go past our hotel due to the steps that were in its path. It drove around the front of the hotel and onwards towards Anaplisi village. Eventually, we stopped at Old Hersonisos this being the first of two stops where you were permitted to treat the train like a hop-on, hop-off tour. And then went through Koutouloufari, a larger town before we stopped at the old port of Hersonisos, the final place you could hop on or off catching a later bus, or catching a train to suit your itinerary.

A short distance down the road from the train stop a mystical bell rang in our ears that only we could hear heralding cappuccino o’clock. And as well-trained min-break team members, we dutifully strolled into a beach bar and ordered a Cappuccino, Coke Zero for Liz and a berry smoothie for your scribe. Aside from a picturesque scene in front of us as we sat in the beach bar (see pic below), there wasn’t very much on this side of the harbour. 

We decided to walk back into the large town we’d passed before stopping at the old port. Little did we know that there were way more shops hidden from view in the streets beside the port out of view from where we were standing. A fact we only discovered on our way back to the train stop. 

But first, I’ll tell you about our adventures after we’d had our Cappuccino break. 

As we travelled through the town in the train I spotted a bunch of shops I wanted to circle back as I guessed the have magnets and other things were interested in looking at, so I dropped a pin on Google Maps pretending that that’s where we’d parked the car. Did you know you could do that on Google Maps? Neither did I.

Using the pin I’d dropped we walked back to what we’d describe as the High Street and began browsing the stores. A little way along the road we found a bag shop where Char bought a new shoulder bag. On our mini breaks, it’s useful to have a bag to store your phone, sunglasses, a 500ml drink and other odds and ends. Char’s bag was a little smaller than ours and she found it a squeeze fitting all her essentials into her previous bag. 

The train glided past us as we walked back down the road, and not wanting to miss it and have to wait 50 minutes I took an impromptu diversion. We could see the sea on our right and I reasoned we were probably not too far from the harbour, and if we hurried along our “crow route” we might just make it back to the pick up point in time. 

Striding back to the harbour we were surprised to discover a road full of little stores which included a McDonald’s, the first one we’ve seen since we arrived. So now you know how we found out about the street hidden from view. I know you’ll be delighted to discover we made it back to the train in time to get back to the hotel for lunch. 

On our way back we passed a waterpark under construction and I managed to snap a pic of the flumes sitting in sections waiting to be craned into place and bolted together.

Back at the hotel we dined in the Greek Taverna, which was really tasty. At lunchtime it serves a blend of Greek and International cuisine and in the evening just Greek. For me, the lunch was awesome, with Aubergine dishes, grilled vegetables and feta cheese. Add in some fresh focaccia and tzatziki, what’s not to like?

After lunch, we returned to the room so Liz could make a coffee with the instant coffee we brought with us. She finds the barista’s coffee too strong. Afterwards, we sat on the loungers by the pool and relaxed with a couple of drinks from the pool bar to rehydrate ourselves. Eventually, the wind got the better of the ladies and they retreated inside the pool bar out of the breeze, leaving me soaking up the rays. I was so engrossed in my audio book I didn’t notice they’d gone until the story finished and I looked around to sip my drink and discovered they’d gone. When I asked why they’d stalked off without me, they replied that I looked so comfortable they didn’t want to disturb me. 

Having joined them in the pool bar out of the afternoon wind, the ladies decided it was time for Bucks Fizz, or Mimosa which is the local name for it.

And after their second, they decided it was time for the evening meal. We ate in the main restaurant as you needed to book the others for evening food. For our evening walk, we decided to explore the front of the hotel and take a look around the sports complex. There are over a dozen tennis courts, basketball courts, table tennis tables, pickleball and so on. Not to mention the gym equipment and huge snack bar/cafe. As we looked out over their “centre court” complete with spectator seating I commented that it felt likely the hotel hosted tennis events. Once we’d reached the top of the road we saw a huge poster advertising a big tennis tournament, confirming my suspicions.

Now we’re back in the room for pre-bed coffee and last-minute chat, while your scribe posts this edition of the blog. From our balcony, I can see the pool bar which is hosting an ABBA master-mix complete with a dance floor. Unfortunately, that didn’t last long and has now turned into “Moves Like Jagger” and other tunes I’m not so keen on. But had they played Kylie…. Now I finished the blog they’re playing all my fav banging tunes, but the ladies are in their PJs and in no mood for a turn on the dance floor. Never mind… Good night.