I would never mock

Other countries obviously do a few, some or many things very differently to what you're used to back home. (Seeing these alternative approaches is without doubt one of the major reasons to travel - unless you're solely interested in pretty scenery and famous landmarks.) Sometimes these differences will be improvements which you'll wish could be brought back home with you; sometimes they'll be things which make you appreciate the better way they're done at home.

And, consequently, I'm bound to mention these differences whilst writing about this trip - sometimes positively, sometimes negatively. This is not a value judgment about the decency or worth of the people involved - it is commentary purely on aspects of their lives imposed by either their bureaucracy or, indeed, other citizens, and should not in any way be taken as some kind of smug mockery.

I don't want anyone thinking that whenever I describe less than enthusiastically the laissez-faire nature of the Greek road laws or the completely batshit insane behaviour of many of the drivers here that appears to be a direct result, that I am not enjoying my time here with the people of Greece. If I mention how sick I am of restaurants and hotels regularly trying to rip us off by sneaking in extra charges (such as for bread we didn't order) and pretending not to understand when next time we try to determine the price of the meal before eating, that's an indictment on those particular institutions (which are undoubtedly corrupt and dishonest at home as well) and not the country in which they happen to be located.

Likewise I'm not going to tar Italian drivers in general with being like the Roman taxi driver who took us to the airport AT 160KPH (in a 100 zone) whilst driving with one hand and texting on his mobile phone with the other and checking himself out in the mirror.

Because you get those sorts of people everywhere.

Now, I might disagree with the government policies which have led to some of these differences - the decision not to have stricter road rules that would curb dangerous driving behaviour or take maniacs off the road, for example* - but I disagree with many such policies at home as well, so that's entirely consistent. It's not that they're Greek, or Italian, or Australian, it's that good ideas are good ideas, and bad ideas are bad ideas, wherever they are enacted.

But as to the people - there have been lots of lovely, kind people in every country we've visited, and they have far outweighed the dodgy bastards that you find anywhere in the world.

I am loving being here - and not just for the scenery.

*Pity we can't have a happy medium between Victoria's draconian road laws and their inflexible enforcement and the perhaps a little TOO flexible southern European equivalent, isn't it?

TODAY: Off to a little mountain village above (Xylocastro), and perhaps pottering down to Κόρινθος (Corinth) to see the canal.