Hitchhiker’s guide, rule one: a German tourist will always be along eventually
The Man Who Pays His Way: Greek mainland hopping – and why a 180-degree turn is sometimes the only way home
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Your support makes all the difference.“Piraeus?” asked the taxi driver. Yes, that was my destination.
“Problem,” he responded.
Fortunately, at this location on a lonely road in the wilds of the Greek peninsula of Methana, it was one that he and his Mercedes were uniquely placed to solve.
He drove the 10km to the port, also called Methana, swiftly, skilfully and silently.
A man clearly given to one-word questions, his next enquiry was:
“Ticket?” No, I needed to buy one.
That was the essential information he needed to know about whether to drop me at the Saronic Ferries office rather than the quayside.
“Eight,” he said, helpful holding up the requisite number of fingers to indicate the fare. The driver was well worth the €10 I handed over. He was the final element in a journey that had started early and optimistically on the island of Poros.
I was booked on the last British Airways flight on Friday from Athens to London Heathrow. I could have taken the high-speed ferry from the island of Poros to the main Greek port of Piraeus, followed by a train to Athens airport.
But I had arrived in that fashion, and I wanted to explore more of Greece on the way to the capital. So instead I hopped on a shuttle ferry to the mainland and proceeded to hitchhike north to Methana, a beautiful not-quite island. A ferry would be leaving at 2.10pm for Piraeus, giving me plenty of time to reach the airport.
John Humphrys – the excellent former presenter of the BBC Radio 4 Today programme – is rumoured to have a property on Methana. But he was not among the people who gave me lifts. The first was on the back of a motorbike, ridden by a construction labourer, who dropped me off at his building site.
The theme continued with Costas (civil engineer specialising in holiday homes for foreign buyers), then a building supplies merchant who took me to the pretty fishing village of Vathi, where I paused for breakfast.
Finally Miltiades drove me along part of the road that meanders around the north of the island. He was another civil engineer: evidently lots of foreign property buyers besides Mr Humphrys are attracted to Methana.
The main tourist attraction in Methana is a volcano, and Miltiades dropped me off at the start of the trail. It is a half-hour round trip, presenting idyllic views over the Saronic Gulf. The hike involves some scrambling over rocks and stops short of the summit (or at least I did, lacking both the courage and equipment to complete the last few vertical metres).
I made it back to the main road at noon. With over two hours remaining before my ferry to Piraeus/Athens, I was quietly confident of hitching to the port. Indeed, was fondly anticipating a Greek salad and coffee while I waited for my ship to come in.
One hour later, only one vehicle had passed – and that was Miltiades coming in the opposite direction on his way back. We exchanged a few words and I carried on.
By 1.30pm – ferry minus 40 minutes – no other vehicles had passed. In such circumstances there was no option but to try a Reverse Wolfgang. This little-deployed technique relies upon Rule One of hitchhiking in Europe: however bad the situation, if you hang on long enough a German tourist will come to the rescue. But he or she may approach from either direction.
Wolfgang and Regina, from Cologne, turned up in a camper van travelling in the opposite direction, and kindly picked me up. They (or at least Wolfgang) were reliving his 1980 adventure by motorbike. They took me whence I had come – to the village of Vathi, where at least there were signs of traffic.
Ferry minus 20 minutes: I strode out on the road to the port, which is when the taxi saved the day. At the Saronic Ferries office, I bought the ferry ticket and hurried to the quayside – where it became clear that the ship was running late. At the taverna next door I asked: Can you make me a Greek salad and a Greek coffee in time for the ferry? They could, and did, as my ship came in.
“You must go now!”
The waitress ordered me to eat the last olive from the dish, helped gather my effects and ensured I walked up to the vessel just in time to join the other foot passengers on board. From the deck I watched the muscular terrain of Methana retreat. I will return one day to complete the circuit – but I may need to contact Mr Humphrys first.
The rest of the journey from Piraeus to Athens airport went implausibly smoothly... and at the airport I learnt all the planes to London were at least an hour late. Thank goodness for that salad.
Simon Calder, also known as The Man Who Pays His Way, has been writing about travel for The Independent since 1994. In his weekly opinion column, he explores a key travel issue – and what it means for you.
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