Travel Diaries - Unexpected Grace in Greece

“No, we are done! Really.”

Those were the words that we heard ourselves speak when the taxi driver taking us to the airport on our last day in Greece, offered to take us to “one last place” that he really wanted to show us as a local.

As we were ready to depart from Greece, we felt really happy and complete with our experiences during our time here. It was filled with beauty, awe, wonder, synchronicities and delicious experiences. And we were ready to go back with a promise that we will revisit this wonderful country.

A fine gentleman arrived to pick us up and asked us about our trip. We happily shared with him that we felt it was a magnificent country and the people were wonderful. As we drove out of the hotel, he out of the blue offered to take us to this one place! And we said no let's just head to the airport as we feel complete about our trip! He replied that as a local I want to take you there and if you don’t want don’t even get out of the car! But I will take you there! He was insistent!

We were wondering what was going on as we arrived at this place. And that was one of the most magical moments of my life because we had stopped in-front of a tiny church, the smallest I have ever visited. And this was the very same church that we found in a magazine that we were flipping through in the hotel the previous evening and I had said to my husband - “Oh! This is so beautiful, we didn’t go here!” We didn’t even know it existed! Something in that image had struck a cord with me. We agreed that there is so much to experience in this country and that we would come back.

So imagine our surprise when we were in front of that very church and my husband was excitedly with disbelief telling our driver about how we saw this very church in the magazine yesterday! 

To add to this experience, there was no-one in the church or outside. It is a tiny church, and beyond it was the sea. The most beautiful blue contrasting against the white structure of the church. As I walked inside the church, I was there alone, as I looked around this sacred space, I felt the presence of three energies that came and stood around me. It's how I always perceive the presence of angelic beings, as if someone much taller and more expansive than I am is standing beside me. I just stood there with reverence, with gratitude knowing that this experience was put in my path, it was orchestrated by the Divine.

After a few minutes, my husband came in and we lit a candle here. I then heard some people arrive. And now we were done - we walked back to the taxi and thanked the gentleman for he really played his part in this synchronicity.

I don’t know what gifts and blessings I brought back from that place perhaps it was the feeling of those divine energies around me or the knowing that I am never alone and that everything that was meant for me will come to me effortlessly even when we tried to say no so profusely!

For my husband, I think the gift was that he felt the magic. He felt that there is something bigger at play here. 

Whoever that gentleman was, the kind taxi driver, he was the messenger who brought us to this very special place. That one place has remained in my heart, my heartfelt wish to visit that place was answered so magically. 

This small church is the Agios Nikolaos Chapel in Rafina.