Iasos, Kos & Athens Trip

Kelly and I flew out of Minneapolis on September 23, 2026 with Discover Airlines to Frankfurt, then on to Athens and Kos, Greece. The next day, from Kos we took the ferry to Bodrum and drove to Iasos, where we stayed at Ruyam Kartepe with Isil and Nefis for a week of wing foiling, SUP sessions and visits with the neighbors.

On the way back we spent a weekend in Kos with Nefis. On Sunday we dropped off Nefis at the ferry back to Bodrum, then flew to Athens. We arrived in Athens to visit the Ancient Agora, the Acropolis and the Acropolis Museum before flying home on October 7.

Itinerary

Day 1 - Wednesday 9/23

We left for the airport with the dogs and luggage, dropping them off at Tim's place on the way. We arrived at Terminal 1 and dropped off our bags and leaving the the car with Tim. Tim is super nice to do drive us in and out of the airport. From Gate G10, flying to Frankfurt with Discover Airlines. The flight was at 3:55 PM. We used Kelly's misc credit card points for MSP to Athens leaving about $192 in taxes which I covered earlier in the year. I also paid for the Athens to Kos and Kos to Athens flights. Before the flight, I have picked up Firehouse Subs at the airport since the food on the plane is lacking, finished one and the second one was saved for the flight.

Day 2 - Thursday 9/24

The Discover Airlines flight from MSP to FRA was on time. I had the middle seat, 35E, and Kelly had the aisle next to me, it was two-four-two seating and we were 4-5 rows from the back of the plane. Not the most comfortable, and service was skimpy: pesto pasta and orange juice (they were out of chicken by the time it was our turn to be served). We were told to have pay for wine, so we didn't. I got up and walked around at the 4-hour mark to stretch my legs and drank water for a good half hour. The flight attendants were nice and professional. When asked if I needed a headset, I made a gesture that I was okay, but she took it as a sign that I needed one.

We landed on time but just had two hours to catch our next flight at gate A62. Little did we know we had to go through German immigration (EES system) to get our passports stamped. There was no proper guidance, and the gate lines were long and we empathized with the other passengers and the occasional personnel walking around. Inch by inch we asked to cut the lines, asking people for permission; some gave us really bad looks as if it was our fault, but we tried not to care. But the carefree German officers were the worst offenders: they were taking calls, constantly getting up and changing stations, 2 minutes to change a card or personnel change.. At one point we had 3-4 people ahead of us with the clock at 8:53. Kelly and I got through around 9:05 and blasted through the aisles towards A62 following the signs.

After forcing the passport stamp and immigration gate, we were faced with another security check into the terminal. Kelly led the way and cut the lines again, and we got our stuff screened in short time except after my blue carry-on went through but they wanted to open the backpack. After 7 minutes of delay, a backpack search and a German police officer taking a picture of my passport, I was allowed through.

And the race to the gate was on. Kelly called twice and I kept running, walking the moving walkways, passing people, up and down the staircases in the maze of the terminal. Around 9:20 I arrived at the gate, and there was Kelly waiting for me. They scanned my boarding pass and let us down through an entrance, but all the doors were locked, so we went back and asked for them to be opened. Turns out we had to keep walking to a bus waiting outside. I was the last person to get on, but the bus waited another 10 minutes before we left for the plane.

The plane to Athens was a modern Airbus neo. The middle seat was empty, so we sat down comfortably, amazed that we had made it. Missing that plane would have derailed our vacation by at least a day, plus misplaced luggage, canceling services, etc.

At exactly 1:30 PM we arrived in Athens. The airport is a bit outdated but looked good. We walked down to baggage claim and were reunited with our luggage.

The next ordeal was our Kos flight on Aegean Airlines. Luckily I had the Aegean app on my phone, but the process was not clear to me. With the help of a slightly frustrated lady, fast but not patient with us, we got the boarding passes and luggage tags printed and applied to our bags. The next agent at the luggage carousel was super nice, and I practiced some Greek with her: thank you, sorry, please, goodbye, good morning.

The airport has free Wi-Fi, but I started with the Nomad eSIM installation. The instructions were not clear. The eSIM we installed in Minnesota was there, but I was looking for "Nomad" in the eSIM name. I engaged an AI agent and tried to get a refund; that didn't work. The plan was showing but not active.

Frustrated, I talked to airport information and asked about a local eSIM. He mentioned a store on the first level, so we walked down there. Kelly was visibly tired and needed to eat and drink, so she did at the cafe. I found the Vodafone store and after 5 minutes had a Greek Vodafone plan, 25 GB for two weeks, activated for €35. Broke a hundred and I was up.

Then I went to the bathroom, still trying to figure out the Nomad eSIM issue (a 10 GB package for 32 USD). Kelly, feeling a bit refreshed, used ChatGPT to get more insight into the eSIM configuration. There was another eSIM in our list that wasn't named Nomad; cross-checking the ICCID, we found out that was the Nomad one and her 10 GB plan showed active. So we had it configured all along.

With that hurdle behind us, I bought two small bottles of red wine for €7.50 plus a simit, which was tasty, and got Kelly a white wine.

Our seats were 6C/D, at the front of the plane this time. The bus drive to the plane was a bit long, but we landed in Kos at 5:30 PM and once again collected our luggage.

We had purchased a shuttle ride to Kos Town, which we sorted out at the suntransfers.com counter. The shuttle had loud Greek and Turkish music playing; we dropped another couple at their hotel, but ours was Kos Town. We got dropped off smack in the middle of the square and I tipped the driver €2. He gave us the wrong directions, and Kelly stood on the bike path and got called out by a cyclist, weird.

We found the correct direction, and after 7-8 minutes of walking arrived at Sonia Hotel. Dimitrea from Selanik greeted us, took our passports and checked us in. We were in room 8 on the second floor with a nice balcony.

After freshening up, we walked to Noah's Ark restaurant and had aubergine, tabbouleh, icli kofte, a mixed grill kebap and 4 glasses of red/white wine.

The cost was €70; I picked up the tab and paid cash. We had a lot of leftover meat and asked for a box. We dropped the box at the room and walked the main road by the marina and the bay.

There were wildfires on the Turkish coast, terrible. see above ^

We came back to the hotel to crash and slept till 2 AM, then got up and made instant coffee. After the coffee, I started looking for chargers and hooked up the laptop, iPhone, GoPro, power bank, etc. Read, then slept a bit more. Noticed that I did bring a USB-C card reader with all the connectors.

Day 3 - Friday 9/25

Got out the door by 7:45 AM with the food from the night before (mixed grill and koftes) packed in our carry-on, and made our way to the ferry station. Found a coffee shop by the ferry, ordered two americanos and fresh-squeezed orange juice, walked around and came back to move into the Schengen area.

Got our boarding passes for the ferry. The passport control line was long but moving. We entered around 9:45 but the boat was not ready, so we got our place on the first deck. It was a very fast catamaran. We left around 10:20 and talked to Isil and Nefis about where we were going to land in Bodrum. We landed at the Icmeler port around 11. Passport control was very easy; I used my Turkish passport. We walked out of the parking lot, but after a call with Isil and Nefis, we came back to the parking lot to reunite. They were looking for us at Kebap Gupta.

After loading our luggage into the trusty Toyota RAV4, we made our way to downtown Bodrum. Isil and Kelly hunted down a HalkBank branch to exchange USD to TL. Kelly traded in about 100 USD. She said they won't take 50 dollar bills, good to know, because I didn't bring any.

Called Ali, Selim, Tolga and Renan and chatted. Selim is still in the Bodrum area working remotely (he sounded happy with his accommodations). We stopped at Sok for garlic and other veggies Nefis was prepping for us, and at a Shell gas station for the bathroom.

Around 1:30 PM we arrived in Iasos. All the gear seemed to be in good shape. Since I forgot to charge the electric pump, I had to wait for it to get a few bars. Then it occurred to me I could use the hand pump to inflate the Duotone Skybrid 85. It was whitecapping but didn't feel all that strong.

With Isil's help, I pumped up the board, attached the mast and front wing, and moved the board down to the beach. Then I took down the 6 m Cabrinha Mantis. The hand pump didn't have the right connector, but luckily the electric pump had two bars, so I was ready to inflate the wing.

The wing was inflated to 8.5 PSI and strapped on. It had the original long windsurf harness line, which I found too long to hook into. Also used my new NSI travel harness, which I will take with me. I was able to push out past the rocks and got on foil with too much effort. The wind was not very consistent or strong enough for gybes, and it took a bit of riding to figure out the feet placement and footstraps. The 1000 cm Seven Seas worked quite well along with the 95 cm F-One mast. Didn't venture too far out, but passed the shallow rocks at the point. Sailed about 12.5 miles over 1.5 hours - fun times. They could not steal our joy.

Wrapped up around 5 PM. Kelly came down to help me wrap the wing, and we moved the board by the game area under the cafeteria. Talked to Zeki Bey and met a few other gentlemen playing okey.

Showered and got ready for the evening. Had a bit of sleep and steered clear of alcohol till late. Dinner was light - lots of veggies, garlic yogurt, etc. We chatted till 9 PM and went to bed. Read my Kindle book, but opened my eyes at 11:30 and 12:40, got up around 2 AM, and was still awake after some connection issues.

The 5G switchover in this area has not been successful. Our eSIMs are working, but only from the top floor, and not very fast. The package from Kos was the better deal. Checked a few emails.

Day 4 - Saturday 9/26

Didn't sleep well, but got up around 10 AM, stayed around and talked to Nefis and Isil. Late SUP session for 15 minutes in the afternoon, then hung around. In the evening we went to Iasos Marina Restaurant for drinks and snacks; Kelly picked up the tab for $52. Also purchased and reserved the ferry, car rental and Kos Palace in Kos. All set to go.

Day 5 - Sunday 9/27

Woke up to rain. Packed up and wanted to check the Iasos-to-Gulluk ferry, but the times were late, so we decided to drive to town. Ate pide at Alex's pide place: I had diced meat and Kelly had cheese with egg. I picked up the tab for $57. Also walked the boardwalk and shopped for beer at Migros for $30.

Day 6 - Monday 9/28

Got up at 7:20 AM. YETI cold coffee by the cafeteria with the Interwebs - checking correspondence and doing some work. Four hours and 37.5 miles of winging - started on the 6 m, but it was too much, so I switched down to the 4.5 m. Two back-to-back sessions for 2.5 hours and a 1.5 hour session in the afternoon. Long day. Grocery shopping in the late afternoon; picked up biscuits and snacks for extra calories.

Day 7 - Tuesday 9/29

Milas pazar in the morning; left the house at 9 AM. Isil drove us into town and we walked to the Milas pazar - lots of fresh produce. Bought lettuce, pide and gozleme. Kelly is congested and needed a pain reliever from a pharmacy, but didn't like what she got after checking the label. So it goes. Arrived home around 2 PM and it got windy. Pumped up the 6.0 m wing for two sessions, 14 miles and 8 miles, finishing a bit after 6 PM. Dinner was pirzola, salad, and bulgur pilav with onions and tomato - a Nefis special 😋.

Day 8 - Wednesday 9/30

No predetermined plans and a calm morning, but we got invited to Zeki and Nurten's after 8:30 PM for drinks and to catch up. Feeling a bit rough in the throat. SUP session around noon for 1.5 hours and a wing foil attempt for an hour. Spent the evening with our neighbors Zeki and Nurten. Cats and dogs were in our talks and thoughts.

Day 9 - Thursday 10/1

Got up at 6:45 AM, checked email by the cafeteria and listened to Billy Strings up on the balcony. Hoped for wind after 4 PM, but none came. Swam 300 yards around 3 PM and read by the beach. Went to Didim in the rain and had midye dolma, kokorec (not great) and Maras ice cream.

Day 10 - Friday 10/2

Last full day at Ruyam Kartepe. Had breakfast around 10 AM and flew the drone for half an hour. Got ready to leave for Milas which we did. Bought a polo shirt from Defacto (thanks to Isil & Kelly) Shopped around town. The two boards (SUP and Skybrid) and two wings (4.5 m and 6 m) are washed, dried and stashed away for next year.

Day 11 - Saturday 10/3

Early 6 AM departure for the Kos ferry. Got up at 5:30 AM, not feeling well. Isil drove us to Bodrum port. We checked out, and Kelly, Nefis and I arrived in Kos on the Akcakoca. Waited one hour and forty-five minutes in the Kos customs line.

Picked up the rental from Hakan for $135 (€120) and headed to Kos Palace. Dropped off our luggage and had lunch at Akrogiali in Mastichari: fish, salad and beer. Drove to Kefalos to see the water and stopped for coffee at the Kefalos market. Back at the hotel, still not feeling well, but went out for drinks. Went to Aliada, where Nefis had moussaka.

Isil visited with Isin Atasoy; Isil picked up Nefis the next day from the Bodrum Port.

Day 12 - Sunday 10/4

Light breakfast at Kos Palace - orange juice and cappuccino - getting sicker by the hour. Left for Zia for shopping and Greek coffee with Nefis, stomach problems. Lunch at Nefastas, outside Kos Town went south. Dropped off Nefis after 3:40 PM and picked up Hakan for the 35-minute drive to Kos Airport where he received our rental back and closed the books. We left for Athenns.

The plane to Athens was an ATR-72, a 78-seat twin turboprop. It was on time, but I was very stuffy and landed in Athens with a dry, bloody nose. Kelly got our €18 metro tickets to downtown Athens. We changed from M3 (blue) to M2 (red) and found our hotel, NLH Syngrou Fix. Went to bed very tired and sick.

Day 13 - Monday 10/5

First morning in Athens. Got up around 8 AM and scored coffee, OJ and a croissant before heading to the Ancient Agora. Figuring out our way around the Acropolis. Walked around and visited the Ancient Agora, €40 total which Kelly covered. Lunch in Plaka: kofte and patates, but the eggplant dish was the best part. Dinner was dolmades for me, and Kelly had dressed-up corn at 360 Cocktail Bar up top in Monastiraki Square.

Day 14 - Tuesday 10/6

Walked to the Acropolis for the official visit starting at 8 AM, beat the crowds and took a lot of pictures. Lunch in Plaka at Mikpo: two chicken gyro sandwiches plus a beer. Afternoon was the Acropolis Museum visit, 3 levels. Again Kelly covered the Acropolis tickets of €60 for both of us. Better dinner at Sto Kentro Athens Eatery: sea bream, mussels, shrimp and orzo, along with dolmades.

Day 15 - Wednesday 10/7

Got up at 3:05 AM, packed up and caught a cab to the airport at 3:30 AM. Arrived by 4:20 AM, dropped the luggage and got our boarding passes. The plane was packed for the 2.5 hour flight to Frankfurt. The next flight left from gate C16, reached through maze-like paths and tiny signs. Passport stamping was much faster this time; however, the second security checkpoint falsely flagged two of my bags. After careful screening, they were not opened.

We found a place to get coffee and food (protein salad, couscous wrap, americano). Still sick, got on the plane around 10:30 AM. The plane took off on time.

Arrived home at 4:19 PM after taking a wrong turn at the 494 E exit from Bloomington in stiff traffic.

Riding Logs

Baskin's Sessions

Date	Location	Duration (hrs)	Distance (miles)	Gear Setup	Notes
9/25/2026	Iasos	1.5	12.5	1000 cm Seven Seas / 85 lts Duotone Skybrid / 6m Cabrinha Mantis / 95 cm F-One	First session of Iasos 2026
9/26/2026	Iasos	0.25		SUP	Short late afternoon paddle
9/28/2026	Iasos	4.0	37.5	85 lts Duotone Skybrid / 6m - 4.5m	Three sessions (2.5 hrs back-to-back + 1.5 hrs PM); 6m was too much
9/29/2026	Iasos	1.5	14.0	85 lts Duotone Skybrid / 6m	After Milas pazar
9/29/2026	Iasos	1.0	8.0	85 lts Duotone Skybrid / 6m	Wrapped up after 6 PM
9/30/2026	Iasos	1.5		SUP	Around noon

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Final Totals

Baskin:

• Total Wing Sessions: 6
• Total Wing Duration: 8.0 hours
• Total Miles Winged: 72.0 miles
• SUP Sessions: 2

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Days Not Ridden by Baskin: 9/27 (rain), 10/1 (no wind, swam 300 yards), 10/2 (packed up gear)