The ABCs of Greece & Italy! X, Y, and Z, and that Friends is THE END!!! :) See you in Asia and Australia, Join Me THERE!!

[pkondz]

Another day, another view from the porthole.

Interesting looking ship. I assume those are masts and it's at least partially wind powered.

Just getting anywhere in Athens takes a monumental effort. (See what I did there?)

I did!
You must mean that you have to be mental to try to get around there, right??

and happily boarded our bus.


Without my camera.

Oh, no.

Still... you did get some nice photos with your camera.

Unfortunately, this was the best, but not-so-up-close, shot I could get.

​

Cool! That dead tree trunk must be symbolic of their order or something.

Every tour guide that is registered and licensed has been to school, actual school, to be one. It is the equivalent of a 2-year degree here in the States. Lessons cover ALL of Greek history, EVERY major monument, historic site, and archeological thing, in ALL of Greece.

Whoa. Impressive.

our tour guide pointed out the rendezvous location. Oddly, it happened to be at one of her family member’s souvenir shops

Gee! What are the odds?

shopping for crap made in China that no one really needs but seem to buy anyway.

Yeah, who needs junk like that???

Dad decided to join us on this day

Oh, good. Glad that at least one of your folks is going to see some sights.

And with a LOT of people.

​

Not exactly what the tour guidebooks show you now, is it?

I think that was last we all saw of each other for the next 2 hours.

I found that interesting. I can see one of you splitting off... but all three of you went in different directions. Huh.

We truly lucked out at the timing of our visit as the lighting was absolutely superb.

Yuss...

Impressed with the Ancient Greek's ability to build scaffolding so well.

Hidden Mickey!

Huh!
About two days ago, I was pointing out a pair of Magpies to my sister. And here you go posting a photo of two of them.

I’ll bet you’re wondering what a “metope” is.

I've heard all about it. Basically a movement against (disboards, so choosing my words carefully) inappropriate treatment of women.

Oh... wait...
That's Me Too, not metope.

Okay, nevermind, I have no idea what it is.

The Doric entablature includes a frieze composed of trigylphs (vertical plaques with three divisions) and metopes

Oh, sure. I was just saying those exact words just the other day.

According to Eleftherotypia daily,

Yup. Got a subscription to that. Good crossword puzzle in it.

The experts discovered the metopes while processing 2,250 photos with modern photographic methods, as the white Pentelic marble they are made of differed from the other stone of the wall. It was previously presumed that the missing metopes were destroyed during the Morosini explosion of the Parthenon in 1687.”

Interesting that they'd gone missing all this time.
Then again, maybe the Ottomans shouldn't have used a precious ancient relic as a gunpowder storage site.

Okay, enough of that. I know it’s tedious.

Phew!

Here instead, is a bit more tedium:

Hey! You just said "enough"!!!

This is where the exquisite Porch of the Maidens is, and oh, how the golden hour made them sing!

Nicely said... and...

I thought I remembered something about the significance of using the female form as a columnar support... I was quite surprised to find that those Caryatids are not the originals! (as I'm sure you found in your own research.)

Huge!

I came to a spot where you could overlook Mars Hill.

Cool! Did you see and of the rovers? Maybe Curiosity or Opportunity?

Acts 17:16-34 (where Mars Hill, or “the Areopagus”) prominently features the Areopagus as the setting for the Apostle Paul's Areopagus sermon during his visit to Athens,

Always makes it just that much more special when you visit a place that you've read about from an historical perspective.

I ended up with a wonderful “Freddo Espresso” and a large hunk of spanakopita. YUM!!! HELLO!,

And GOODBYE from me!
I don't do coffee and spinach and I just don't get along.

Naturally, I found my way to the appointed souvenir shop where I would end my time in the Parthenon area by shopping for crap made in China that no one really needs but seem to buy anyway.

. For those of you who’ve followed me for a very, very long time, I have done what I call my “Shop-Around-the-World game” in the past.

I leveraged my “expertise” and did a Shop-Around-the-Mediterranean, which meant I had to be super choosy. Honestly, I don’t have room nor need for a lot of “stuff”. I am a minimalist at heart and loathe clutter. So what did I end up with? Well, this would be the last real opportunity to find a little something from Greece, and while there were quite a few things in this little shop, I found just the right something.

I get it. I started buying a minimal souvenir from places that I've gone to that are more... (at least for me) remote or unlikely that I'll re-visit.

And well, everyone loves a bit of pleasure now and then.

Except for masochists... Maybe not them.

I’m pretty sure that Dionysus himself endorses massages, pedicures, dinner at Vic and Al’s, and Big Thunder Railroad.

Yes, it really is an image of Dionysus.

Oh sure. Totally recognized him.

I thought it’d be fun to collect a few small representative trinkets from the trip then buy a nice display shelf to arrange them on. Then, I’ll pick out my 5-7 favorite/best photos and have them framed to hang around the shelf to have a little “trip memory corner”.

Nice idea.

It’s been a very rough and full week with very little sleep, so I apologize for the clunky writing.

Don't apologize. Given that you've had a rough, full week, I'm impressed that you could write anything at all!

Mom continues to make slow progress in her recovery.

Good to hear. Progress is good, slow or otherwise.

I need to also use the time to start looking for a per diem job as well as do my taxes.

I need to get on my taxes too. And pretty soon. Don't want to leave it to the last minute.

The guy I’d used last year raised his fee to $500 which makes it a hard pass for me.

Then, back to Tucson for 2 last weeks of Arizona Spring, packing and buttoning up the RV, and driving back to Bowling Green arriving the first week of May.

May I ask why you didn't button up the RV before, instead of driving back and forth to Kentucky?

 

[Wood Nymph]

It's a good thing that cell phones have cameras, although having a real camera would have been better. Athens looks like a fascinating place.

It sounds like you have a busy time in Bowling Green. I hope mom gets better and the taxes work out, too.

 

[Steppesister]

Replies soon…

Sorry for long delays!

 

[afwdwfan]

So, we geared up with all the things- water, phones, extra charging packs, sunscreen and happily boarded our bus.

Sounds like you've covered all your bases...

Without my camera.

A short word about Tour Guides in Greece... Every tour guide that is registered and licensed has been to school, actual school, to be one. It is the equivalent of a 2-year degree here in the States. Lessons cover ALL of Greek history, EVERY major monument, historic site, and archeological thing, in ALL of Greece.

That's actually incredible! I've been on tours where I've wondered if somebody is just feeding me a line of BS knowing that we don't know any better. With all the history in Greece, I'm glad that they take that role so seriously.

The golden sun filtered through the columns casting a perfect glow on the off-white marble; the cloudless blue sky gave a stunning contrast to the perfect lines of the Parthenon. We truly lucked out at the timing of our visit as the lighting was absolutely superb.

Sounds like the perfect setting for a photographer... oh yeah...

They gave a cool sense of “old”, but this one helped us see what it might have actually been like in the days of Grecian Tragedy and Comedy. According to Wiki, the theater reached its zenith in the 4th C. BC.

They even had a nosebleed section in the BC days???

Seriously though, the acoustics would have had to have been perfect for the people sitting in the back to be able to hear back then.

It was wonderful to see in real life places I’d only read about up until then.

Our pastor was actually there just a couple of weeks ago over Spring Break. He posted on FB that same story about Paul's speech there.

Anyway, I have this idea that I’ll probably never find time to actually do. I thought it’d be fun to collect a few small representative trinkets from the trip then buy a nice display shelf to arrange them on. Then, I’ll pick out my 5-7 favorite/best photos and have them framed to hang around the shelf to have a little “trip memory corner”. For now, they’re sitting all forlorn-like on a counter waiting to get a little love.

That's actually a great idea. I hope you'll get a chance to bring it to fruition!

Stay safe, y’all over the next few days… gonna be a wild Spring it looks like!

No kidding. I'm already sick of all the straight line winds we've been getting the past several months. Seems all I get done is picking up limbs and repairing wind damage. And that's not even taking all the severe weather and tornado warnings into account. We had several move through the state Friday evening. Nothing like having to watch the weather reports at 11:30-midnight when you can't even see what's coming.

 

[Steppesister]

Athens- Pt. 2; N is for: Nice Coastal Drive to Even Nicer Views
​

After the our visit to the Acropolis and the acquisition of the small trinket that my kids will one day have to take to the Goodwill or throw in the garbage, it was time to head to lunch. The bus ride to the Grand Hyatt, the fancy hotel we’d eat at, took about an hour. Athens traffic is HORRIFIC! I think I’d have preferred a cute little mom and pop place with gyros, but instead we were shown to a nice looking buffet surrounded by tables with white cloths and fancy dishes.

If only the food was as good as the lobby was pretty. It just wasn’t this time. The moussaka was far too full of cinnamon, the meats were either too dry or too salty, and I dunno, the spread just lacked anything really special. There were a lot of salads and goodies we could try, and I did get full, but the baklava was the only thing that really tasted great. Lunch was so ho-hum, in fact, that I didn’t even bother to take one single photo of the buffet.

Sadness prevailed.

Then again, we were all feeling like crud this day and just worn out. It was at that point I wished they’d put a Sea Day in the middle of our itinerary.

After lunch, we headed to the bus where I almost got hit by a car. Quite literally. Mikki pulled me back from stepping out into the street just as a car was zooming by and I had failed to look both ways like a responsible adult should. The honking and middle finger were an extra special touch.

Do as I say kids, not as I do.

Saved for another day of spilling coffee down the front of my shirt or wondering why I decided to go on a keto diet for a few weeks, we boarded the bus again for the long journey south to Cape Sounion.

Google says it was about 1 hour and 8 minutes from the hotel to the Cape where we’d see another temple of Athena (how many temples does one chick need?!) and another for Poseidon.

​

I will admit the journey was quite lovely and it did help me see why so many folks go to Greece for seaside vacations. The water was so crystal clear, the towns are very well developed with tons of amenities like bars, restaurants, groceries, vacation rentals, etc…., the weather is perfect, and the people are friendly. I get it! We passed loads of little beachy coves that were strewn with sunbathers of all ages taking in the glorious sunny day and warm waters.

Caution: My retinas are seared forever from a Speedo overload and if you want to see B00bs, this is your place.

(We think these are crabbing traps or oyster beds or some other sort of fish farming)
​

We finally got to the ancient ruins on the jutting cape overlooking the Aegean Sea. A short walk from the parking lot on an accessible cement sidewalk got us to the few, still standing columns and foundation.

​

To be honest, after the Parthenon, it was incredibly anticlimactic and all 3 of us later said the day would have been far better to have just cut that side trip out completely. It was 2+ full hours of driving, and the ruins just didn’t justify it for any of us really. Yes, the drive was very pretty, and yes, it’s cool that I can now say I’ve been there, but this just put our “tired and cranky” over-the-top.

I consoled myself with this:

​

It was delicious and just the perfect little treat to enjoy with the bit of free time we got at the little restaurant at the historic site. The view was ridiculously amazing as I sat all by myself for 20-30 minutes taking in the peace and quiet as Dad and Mikki were still making their way through the ruins.

(A pilfered photo to show you the view towards the ruins from where I was sitting. I was under the covered area towards the sea.)
​

When they got back, they each got a bottle of water before everyone boarded back onto the bus for the long drive back. We all dozed a bit on the return journey and soon enough we were back onboard the Constellation where we spent the evening doing…. something. I have no photos and zero recollection.

I surmise we ate in the Main Dining Room where we’d been getting superb service all week. Since we had the late 8:00 dinner seating, which my folks grumbled about every day, we had to find something to do until then. Luckily, we discovered that our favorite part of the evenings was sitting in one of the wine-themed lounge areas where the string duet played classical arrangements. This helped pass the time until our seating was called. My dad talked their ears off and had plenty of requests. I can’t remember which evening it was, but I had to tactfully intervene at one point so they could actually get a drink of water or potty on one of their breaks.

A few more thoughts on our dining experiences: Our waiter remembered every evening to bring hot tea for Mom, an extra breadbasket for Mikki, and Oregon Pinot Noir for me. The others changed their wine orders every night, so he sent the sommelier to the table when we arrived each evening. It took forever for her to get to us as we were probably the lowest rollers in the house, but when she was with us, she was friendly and knowledgeable. As I’ve mentioned the food was very hit and miss. Some things were quite good, others were very forgettable. Generally, the pasta had almost no sauce no matter what kind we ordered; steaks and meats were rather flavorless, and some of the soups were good and some not-so-good. We usually ordered a couple different desserts to share around the table and those were pretty good. It's hard to miss with ice cream. I liked that the portions were small, so we didn’t feel like we were wasting a lot of food. Sorry, this really wasn’t a foodie sort of trip report from the ship portion. It just wasn’t a highlight for us at all.

Surprisingly, there are only 2 ports left on this cruise- Chania, Crete and Zakynthos, Greece. I hope you’ll stay tuned for that and all that I have in store for you as we transition into 2 ½ weeks of a grand tour of Italy. I’ll try to keep getting a few more chapters up for you before I start my next term on May 1. I applied to 2 different per diem positions yesterday and will be looking for a travel assignment starting on or around June 20th or so. That’ll give me some time to get at least one course (of 3 for the term) done before things get too crazy.

Meantime, Mom gets a little better each day and I think she is having more good days than bad. Overall, she is able to do a bit more for herself little by little, so progress!


Until next time, Friends!

 

[Steppesister]

Interesting looking ship. I assume those are masts and it's at least partially wind powered.

I do believe it was a wind-powered cruise ship that they use sometimes? Maybe?

I did!
You must mean that you have to be mental to try to get around there, right??

Yes, exactly.

Still... you did get some nice photos with your camera.

Meh. Not my best lot from the trip.

Cool! That dead tree trunk must be symbolic of their order or something.

No, it's purposely planted right there so tourists can never get a good photo of their guard.

Yeah, who needs junk like that???

Hmm, I wonder....

Oh, good. Glad that at least one of your folks is going to see some sights.

Yes!! Things were just too tough for Mom with her mobility, and tbh, she was perfectly happy reading and eating on the ship.

Not exactly what the tour guidebooks show you now, is it?

Not even a little.

I found that interesting. I can see one of you splitting off... but all three of you went in different directions. Huh.

There were just so many people and it was hard to stick together. If you moved up even a little, you'd quickly lose sight of your touring partner.

Impressed with the Ancient Greek's ability to build scaffolding so well.

Ok, for reals though, I'll bet they actually did.

Hidden Mickey!

Actually, I saw that too, but thought it looked more like Oswald Rabbit.

Huh!
About two days ago, I was pointing out a pair of Magpies to my sister. And here you go posting a photo of two of them.

NO way! Magpies are definitely pretty and so fun to watch.

I've heard all about it. Basically a movement against (disboards, so choosing my words carefully) inappropriate treatment of women.

Oh... wait...
That's Me Too, not metope.

Okay, nevermind, I have no idea what it is.

Yup. Got a subscription to that. Good crossword puzzle in it.

Really? Metopes!

Interesting that they'd gone missing all this time.
Then again, maybe the Ottomans shouldn't have used a precious ancient relic as a gunpowder storage site.

I know... how incredibly silly.

Huge!

Yes! Very impressive for sure.

Cool! Did you see and of the rovers? Maybe Curiosity or Opportunity?

Nope, just a lot of people! A foreshadowing?

Always makes it just that much more special when you visit a place that you've read about from an historical perspective.

For SURE! Brings it alive.

And GOODBYE from me!
I don't do coffee and spinach and I just don't get along.

OH dear!

I get it. I started buying a minimal souvenir from places that I've gone to that are more... (at least for me) remote or unlikely that I'll re-visit.

I just don't need the clutter of stuff in the limited space I have, but do want a small reminder or conversation piece that can trigger memories.

Don't apologize. Given that you've had a rough, full week, I'm impressed that you could write anything at all!

Busy, busy for sure!

May I ask why you didn't button up the RV before, instead of driving back and forth to Kentucky?

Well, I needed to have an important school interview/shadowing experience that I'd set up with a local CNO (Chief Nursing Officer) that I did NOT want to have to miss. finding those and getting them scheduled takes a long long time. That was on Monday, 4 full days after Mom and Dad asked me to come home to help out. If I'd driven it'd been 4-5 MORE days on top of that. They needed help rather urgently because at the time my dad and sister were overwhelmed and Sis had to get back to work. Plus, it takes quite a bit more of a monumental effort to close up an RV for summer storage in Southern AZ. Everything in my "yard" has to be put away, seals greased, slides in, cords and hoses put away, etc... it's a lot of work. Plus, I really want to have 2 good weeks of REAL spring there. This winter sucked for weather and the flowers are just now blooming. I want to be there for some of that and enjoy the beauty that Tucson offers.

 

[Steppesister]

It's a good thing that cell phones have cameras, although having a real camera would have been better. Athens looks like a fascinating place.

It sounds like you have a busy time in Bowling Green. I hope mom gets better and the taxes work out, too.

Cell phones do really well for a lot of things, but never for zooming in for far away things. And sadly, a lot of that was for this shore excursion. Better photos coming up in the next 2 updates.

Athens was NOT my favorite by far of the places we visited. To me, it's just another big city full of graffiti, loud noise, pollution, and crowds. There are WAY nicer places to see in Greece, and next time, if there is one, I'll head to those.

 

[Steppesister]

Sounds like you've covered all your bases...

Yeah, about that....

That's actually incredible! I've been on tours where I've wondered if somebody is just feeding me a line of BS knowing that we don't know any better. With all the history in Greece, I'm glad that they take that role so seriously.

They really do. They are accredited and have to take continuing ed too.

Sounds like the perfect setting for a photographer... oh yeah...

D'oh!!

They even had a nosebleed section in the BC days???

I think, in all seriousness, slaves sat up there, and were still given time to enjoy the theater as they could.

I found this absolutely FASCINATING article on the importance of theater, and yes, slaves and even prisoners were encouraged to go to the theater and it was so closely intertwined with democracy. (maybe we should have a bit more encouragement of theater nowadays...)


https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/06/... evolved as democracy,who could not afford it.

Seriously though, the acoustics would have had to have been perfect for the people sitting in the back to be able to hear back then.

Agreed, I wonder how much the message also depended on visuals costumes, music (that carried better?), or movement? No idea, but the nosebleed sections may have gotten a fair bit by other than voice. ??

Our pastor was actually there just a couple of weeks ago over Spring Break. He posted on FB that same story about Paul's speech there.

How cool! It was an important bit of Biblical history, and I'd say many are indeed familiar with that particular speech. That one and the one in Ephesus that I'd been to just days before.

That's actually a great idea. I hope you'll get a chance to bring it to fruition!

Probably not this year; just far too much going on right now in my life.

No kidding. I'm already sick of all the straight line winds we've been getting the past several months. Seems all I get done is picking up limbs and repairing wind damage. And that's not even taking all the severe weather and tornado warnings into account. We had several move through the state Friday evening. Nothing like having to watch the weather reports at 11:30-midnight when you can't even see what's coming.

You know it, Brother! We've had awful wind in the short week I've been in BG with 2 tornado watches already and a warning and Mod. risk on Wednesday again. Crazy!! Hopefully, we'll get our roof repairs done sooner than later. The late night storms, from what I've heard, are fewer in number, but more deadly due to people going to bed too early to be vigilant. Stay safe! When it gets bad here, we tune into Ryan Hall, Y'all and/or Andy Hill on YouTube. He can pinpoint right down the exact streets hail or tornados are going to hit with unbelievable accuracy.

 

[franandaj]

All caught up!

 

[pkondz]

After the our visit to the Acropolis and the acquisition of the small trinket that my kids will one day have to take to the Goodwill or throw in the garbage

One woman's treasure...

Athens traffic is HORRIFIC!

Never been but I've heard that Athens has some of the worst traffic in the world!

I think I’d have preferred a cute little mom and pop place with gyros, but instead we were shown to a nice looking buffet surrounded by tables with white cloths and fancy dishes.

Menu over buffet all the time... unless the buffet is exceptional... and that doesn't happen very often.

If only the food was as good as the lobby was pretty. It just wasn’t this time.

Yeah... not surprised by that.

Lunch was so ho-hum, in fact, that I didn’t even bother to take one single photo of the buffet.

Bet you would've taken that photo of the gyro, though.

Sadness prevailed.

Oh dear.

It was at that point I wished they’d put a Sea Day in the middle of our itinerary.

Getting a little travel burned out, huh?

After lunch, we headed to the bus where I almost got hit by a car. Quite literally. Mikki pulled me back from stepping out into the street just as a car was zooming by and I had failed to look both ways like a responsible adult should.

Yikes! Good thing she was there to save your bacon!

The honking and middle finger were an extra special touch.

Lovely

Saved for another day of spilling coffee down the front of my shirt or wondering why I decided to go on a keto diet for a few weeks,

I don't know if I'm impressed or shocked that you decided to start a diet at the beginning of a vacation!

we’d see another temple of Athena (how many temples does one chick need?!)

I Googled. Chicks don't even need temples. Mostly they need coops.

The water was so crystal clear

I wonder if it was warm at all? Did you ever dip a toe?

Caution: My retinas are seared forever from a Speedo overload

Hey. Nothing sexier than an overweight dude in a speedo.

and if you want to see B00bs, this is your place.

On my way!!
(starts Googling flights to Greece)

A short walk from the parking lot on an accessible cement sidewalk got us to the few, still standing columns and foundation.

May be anticlimactic to you, but to me, those are fascinating. Still standing after all this time. And I can just see it roofed with throngs of worshipers milling between the columns.

To be honest, after the Parthenon, it was incredibly anticlimactic and all 3 of us later said the day would have been far better to have just cut that side trip out completely. It was 2+ full hours of driving, and the ruins just didn’t justify it for any of us really.

Sorry that it was a bit of a bust for you.

this just put our “tired and cranky” over-the-top.

Oh dear.

I consoled myself with this:

​

Pistachio?

The view was ridiculously amazing as I sat all by myself for 20-30 minutes taking in the peace and quiet

See? Not so bad after all.

soon enough we were back onboard the Constellation where we spent the evening doing…. something. I have no photos and zero recollection.

So memorable!

Since we had the late 8:00 dinner seating, which my folks grumbled about every day,

Luckily, we discovered that our favorite part of the evenings was sitting in one of the wine-themed lounge areas where the string duet played classical arrangements.

That sounds really nice and relaxing. Throw in a nice cocktail and you've got a little slice of heaven right there.

My dad talked their ears off and had plenty of requests. I can’t remember which evening it was, but I had to tactfully intervene at one point so they could actually get a drink of water or potty on one of their breaks.

Our waiter remembered every evening to bring hot tea for Mom, an extra breadbasket for Mikki, and Oregon Pinot Noir for me.

Nice personalized service.

It took forever for her to get to us as we were probably the lowest rollers in the house

Next time tip big up front... you'll get service after that! Until she figures out you're not tipping more.

Generally, the pasta had almost no sauce no matter what kind we ordered; steaks and meats were rather flavorless, and some of the soups were good and some not-so-good.

That's a shame. I mean... you're in pasta central in that part of the world!

Surprisingly, there are only 2 ports left on this cruise- Chania, Crete and Zakynthos, Greece. I hope you’ll stay tuned for that

Absolutely!

I applied to 2 different per diem positions yesterday and will be looking for a travel assignment starting on or around June 20th or so.

Good luck! Hope you get (one of) the jobs!

Meantime, Mom gets a little better each day and I think she is having more good days than bad. Overall, she is able to do a bit more for herself little by little, so progress!

Good to hear!

 

[pkondz]

Yes, exactly.

Knew it.

Meh. Not my best lot from the trip.

Well, okay then.
Terrible! Awful photos! Worst I've ever seen! Pure dreck!

No, it's purposely planted right there so tourists can never get a good photo of their guard.

Very clever of them.

There were just so many people and it was hard to stick together. If you moved up even a little, you'd quickly lose sight of your touring partner.

Now I'm thinking of dozens of small children all crying because they've been separated from their respective parents.

Ok, for reals though, I'll bet they actually did.

But not metal.

Actually, I saw that too, but thought it looked more like Oswald Rabbit.

Oh sure... ruin my moment.

NO way! Magpies are definitely pretty and so fun to watch.

Really? Metopes!

I just don't need the clutter of stuff in the limited space I have, but do want a small reminder or conversation piece that can trigger memories.

Agreed.

Well, I needed to have an important school interview/shadowing experience that I'd set up with a local CNO (Chief Nursing Officer) that I did NOT want to have to miss. finding those and getting them scheduled takes a long long time. That was on Monday, 4 full days after Mom and Dad asked me to come home to help out. If I'd driven it'd been 4-5 MORE days on top of that. They needed help rather urgently because at the time my dad and sister were overwhelmed and Sis had to get back to work. Plus, it takes quite a bit more of a monumental effort to close up an RV for summer storage in Southern AZ. Everything in my "yard" has to be put away, seals greased, slides in, cords and hoses put away, etc... it's a lot of work. Plus, I really want to have 2 good weeks of REAL spring there. This winter sucked for weather and the flowers are just now blooming. I want to be there for some of that and enjoy the beauty that Tucson offers.

Ohhh..
Somehow I thought you'd driven back and were going to have to do that drive two more times.
I didn't realize that parking RV for storage was so involved... never having had one.

 

[Wood Nymph]

Athens was NOT my favorite by far of the places we visited. To me, it's just another big city full of graffiti, loud noise, pollution, and crowds. There are WAY nicer places to see in Greece, and next time, if there is one, I'll head to those.

I feel the same way. I used to work in downtown Chicago and big cities do not appeal to me.

It's a good thing Mikki saved you.

It looked like the crowds and mediocre food is spoiling the fun a little.

 

[KathyM2]

It was at that point I wished they’d put a Sea Day in the middle of our itinerary.

It can be so tiring being in a different place each day...I find it hard to care about seeing much towards the end of it...

Since we had the late 8:00 dinner seating, which my folks grumbled about every day, we had to find something to do until then.

This is always a conundrum for me. The early dining time you wonder if you will be rushed getting back from excursions or the pool to get ready for dinner...but the late seating seems too late (IMHO)...not sure what the answer is...

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

So, we geared up with all the things- water, phones, extra charging packs, sunscreen and happily boarded our bus.


Without my camera.

D'oh.

Just before our bus let us off at the foot of the Acropolis, we were incredibly lucky enough to have the Presidential Guard of Athens march right beside us! Our guide, sadly not the best one, but still very, very knowledgeable and personable (just unbelievably difficult to understand at times), made sure to let us know that that was something really very special to have come across.

A nice, happy accident there.

The bus driver let us off at the designated drop-off spot and our tour guide pointed out the rendezvous location. Oddly, it happened to be at one of her family member’s souvenir shops where people could end their time in the Parthenon area by, wait for it....

... shopping for crap made in China that no one really needs but seem to buy anyway.

Imagine that! Who would have thought?

And a lot of steps!

And with a LOT of people.

Did you celebrate like Rocky at the top?

Instead of spending most of my time where the hordes were, I headed off to one of the other buildings (there are 4 on the Acropolis) called the Erechtheion. This is where the exquisite Porch of the Maidens is, and oh, how the golden hour made them sing!

Yes, lovely photos!

There are still theater events and concerts today should you be so inclined. ​

Or have the money.​

Great spot. If the play is boring you can still enjoy the scenery.

It was wonderful to see in real life places I’d only read about up until then.

I imagine it would be a thrill to visit some of the places from the Bible in real life.

I’m pretty sure that Dionysus himself endorses massages, pedicures, dinner at Vic and Al’s, and Big Thunder Railroad.

Absolutely. I remember reading that in the Odyssey.

Anyway, I have this idea that I’ll probably never find time to actually do. I thought it’d be fun to collect a few small representative trinkets from the trip then buy a nice display shelf to arrange them on. Then, I’ll pick out my 5-7 favorite/best photos and have them framed to hang around the shelf to have a little “trip memory corner”.

Love the idea! Go for it.

Then, back to Tucson for 2 last weeks of Arizona Spring, packing and buttoning up the RV, and driving back to Bowling Green arriving the first week of May.

Yikes. I got tired just reading about all of that.

Lunch was so ho-hum, in fact, that I didn’t even bother to take one single photo of the buffet.

Sorry it was a cruddy experience.

After lunch, we headed to the bus where I almost got hit by a car. Quite literally. Mikki pulled me back from stepping out into the street just as a car was zooming by and I had failed to look both ways like a responsible adult should. The honking and middle finger were an extra special touch.

Whoa. I'm glad Mikki was there!

(how many temples does one chick need?!)

Husbands have been asking this since the dawn of time.

Oh, I thought that said "shoes". Never mind.

Caution: My retinas are seared forever from a Speedo overload and if you want to see B00bs, this is your place.

I was all sold on visiting, and then this made me cancel everything in one sentence. I'm out.

To be honest, after the Parthenon, it was incredibly anticlimactic and all 3 of us later said the day would have been far better to have just cut that side trip out completely. It was 2+ full hours of driving, and the ruins just didn’t justify it for any of us really.

Yeah, I get that.

Meantime, Mom gets a little better each day and I think she is having more good days than bad. Overall, she is able to do a bit more for herself little by little, so progress!

Glad to hear some good news!

 

[vamassey1]

Two very impressive chapters with gorgeous photos and lots of history.

I'm so impressed with the Parthenon. The size and beauty of it and to think of how old it is. Just amazing.

It's good to hear your mother is on the mend. She's lucky to have you and your nursing skills.

I hope you continue to stay safe with all the crazy weather.

 

[Paulaparm]

Gorgeous pictures!
Glad to hear your mom is doing a bit better.

 

[disneyAndi14]

I agree with the craziness in Athens, not my favorite city at all, the history is amazing and very glad I have visited all the historical sites! I thought the way the cars were parked like right on top of each other on these crazy narrow streets was so strange to me!
Beautiful scenery in Greece, wow!
The seaside pictures are so inviting!

 

[Steppesister]

O is for: Out and About on Crete and a Little Too Much OPA!!!!​

New day, new port!

​

This time we landed on the largest and most populous Greek Island- CRETE! Overall impression? I adored this island! It was picturesque, friendly, the waters were clear and beautiful, and it was green and lush with loads of agriculture sandwiched between the rocky coast and snow-capped mountains that fill the center.

​

Follow me for a hit-and-miss tour of a few of the sights around Souda, Chania, and the nearby countryside of Crete!

Crete is a long, narrow island oriented mostly East-West with a fairly lofty mountain range that’s visible from most every beach. It’s history, of course, is noted for hosting Europe’s first advanced civilization, the Minoans. Since then, it’s been inhabited by Arabs, Ottomans, Romans, Venetians, and Byzantines, and obviously Greeks. The island is covered with olive orchards, vineyards, citrus fruits, nuts, and avocados. Who wouldn’t to have all that nearby?!

(Taken from a moving bus; excuse the blurry mess.)
​

The island is also home to a sizeable US Navy port, NSA Souda Bay, which you can read about here:

(https://cnreurafcent.cnic.navy.mil/Installations/NSA-Souda-Bay/About/

On the way back to the Old City, our tour guide pointed this carrier out that happened to be in port that day. All the locals know their comings and goings and she surmised they'd be sailing out later that afternoon.

​

If you’re interested in WWII history (hey, I try to include something for everyone here!), Crete was quite important. “During World War II, the island was the scene of the Battle of Crete in May, 1941. The initial 11-day battle was bloody and left more than 11,000 soldiers and civilians killed or wounded. As a result of the fierce resistance from both Allied forces and civilian Cretan locals, the invasion force suffered heavy casualties, and Adolf Hitler forbade further large-scale paratroop operations for the rest of the war.

During the initial and subsequent occupation, German firing squads routinely executed male civilians in reprisal for the death of German soldiers; civilians were rounded up randomly in local villages for the mass killings, such as at the Massacre of Kondomarisa and the Viannos massacres. Two German generals were later tried and executed for their roles in the killing of 3,000 of the island's inhabitants.” – Wiki

(As a sidenote, and as a direct result of this massacre, Crete is a heavily civilian-armed population. Almost every household has at least one registered firearm, and while there have been many, even recent, attempts to change their gun laws, there has been no progress. The memory of that war is still very fresh with the Cretians and it's not likely they will give up their means of self-protection. It's not surprising there is very little crime on private property there.)

And yes, our tour guide did tell us about that history on our first bit of bus ride. Like I said, they know their stuff!

Our first stop of the day was a village about 30 minutes from the Souda Port. Believe it or not, all 4 of us joined in and it was wonderful to see Mom finally get off that ship and see something new! Described as one of Crete’s most traditional villages, I was excited to stroll and take in the atmosphere. I thought we’d have a bit of free time to explore independently, but instead our tour guide led us on a group walk through some of the more picturesque neighborhoods. I guess in the end that is okay as I may not have found places on my own that were quite as lovely. On the other hand, I might have found better ones.

​

The memories that stand out most were of plaster-covered, stone homes with quaint little, shaded courtyards with plenty of colorful potted plants, bistro-style tables and chairs, weathered bric-a-brac, and vines climbing up the 2nd story balconies. It evoked feelings of old Europe where neighbors share pastries and coffee in the morning and wine and dainties in the evening; where old ladies share their family recipes and old men swap news of the crops and solve all the world’s problems; where youngsters play with friends until it’s dark and mommas call them home for a hearty home-cooked meal.

(Does this not conjure up a story?! Maybe the owner, who also serves as server, cashier, bartender, and cook was totally wiped out after a long evening of serving customers, and poured a late nightcap for himself to enjoy a few moments of quiet taking in the warm summer night air before kissing his wife goodnight.)


​

Wandering at a leisurely pace, our guide pointed this or that out and gave us plenty of time to take the photos we wanted. Dad and I pointed out familiar plants that we have back home and enjoyed the comparison of horticulture. Much of what we saw also grows in Southern California where we lived for many years- grapes, oleander, pepper trees, bougainvillea, prickly pear cactus, loads of wild herbs, oak, and iris.

(Norfolk Pine Tree)
​

One fascinating feature she pointed out was a shallow sunken ring seemingly forgotten in a field. Guesses?

​

Here’s a super informative article explaining the Cretan “Alonia”. (Guess first, then you can see if you were right.)

https://www.explorecrete.com/traditions/alonia.html

We definitely found it to be quite interesting and loved learning about part of the “ancient” culture of this unique Greek island.

(Leaving Vamos- another really crappy, blurry photo from a moving bus, but shows that the island is water-sufficient.)​

Continued in next post....

 

[Steppesister]

​

O is for: Out and About on Crete and a Little Too Much OPA!!!!

Continued...

From Vamos, our tour was scheduled to head to the Saint George Monastery to see the ruins they are best known for, including the 12 remaining arches that once formed the roof of the once-operational olive mill. At its height of production, it had 4 enormous olive presses. In 1996, after having been abandoned for a century, new monks have taken up residence and are slowly restoring the church on the property. How are they doing?

I wouldn’t know. We couldn’t get there. The road from Vamos to the monastery is a winding, uphill road that happened to be getting a facelift while we were there. It was closed.

But how’s a bus to turn around?

It doesn’t.

But our driver was boss! Without breaking a sweat he backed ‘er right on out no less than half a mile, back down the twisting road including two hairpin turns, until there was a turnout that he could get that behemoth going the right way. The busload, many of the same folks who’d a few days earlier endured the boat crossing from hell, erupted in applause for such a job well-done. Here's the Google Map to show the heinous hairpin turns; we had to back all the way from the bottom arrow to the road split at the top arrow. Beep, beep, beep....

​

I’d have LOVED to have seen the monastery with scenes like this, but alas, it just wasn’t to be.

​

I did get a nice shot of another church not too far from the Monastery though. Churches like this are commonplace all over the countryside in Greece and Italy.

(Another of "one of my favorites". Remind to crisp it up a bit.)​

Instead, we headed for a family wine and raki making business. Tucked along a quiet road amongst rows of olive-laden trees and surrounded by lovely gardens was the generations-old winery and distillery. The gracious hostess escorted about tour group into a small, dusty room obviously long-abandoned for winemaking, yet still useful to give an informative, short lecture on Greek wine making and subsequent tsikoudia/raki distilling.

​

In Crete, tsikoudia is a pomace brandy that is sometimes called rakı. It is used to make rakomelo, which is flavoured with honey and cinnamon. Rakomelo is served warm during winter months. Cretan Raki does not contain anise, so it is not to be confused with the Turkish version.

The centerpiece of the room was the antique still. There were wooden shelves lining the walls with a mish-mash of winemaking equipment strewn about.

[img]https://photos.smugmug.com/ItalyGreece-2022/i-zszh87q/0/b3c3af5d/L/IMG_E6458-2-L.jpg[/img]​

If you’re really into liquor and want to understand the nuances between Ouzo and Raki, this may help. I’ll just say that I enjoy a small shot of “lion’s milk” when the occasion dictates.

https://www.greecefoodies.com/raki-vs-ouzo/

After the process was passed along, the hostess led us out to use the restroom and browse through the courtyard and a small "museum" of antiques gathered from the old family home (did you know the ancient Greek word for "farm" is "Georgia"?) and other villagers' donations.

​

After we were done at our leisure, we were invited to make our way to the area where rows of tables were set up with each place having a little snack plate set at it. This was not a meal sort of shore excursion, so a few little Greek tidbits would have to do. As we made our way to one of the spots, we could grab a small glass of wine, white or red, and enjoy what they offered: 2 tyropitakia (small hand pies, one cheese and spinach, the other ground beef), some olives, a bit of hard cheese, some rocks that reminded me of the starvation food from Magellan’s sailing, and a tiny bottle of olive oil for dipping. Mom liked the olives, I liked the hand pies, Mikki liked the wine (no surprise there), Dad ate… nothing.

​

By the time we landed at our last stop of the day, to say we were hangry is like saying Disney prices are too high. The most notable tourist spot on Crete is the Old Port of Chania with the Venetian Harbor. Here, our tour guide started with a brief history of the area and a few tips on how to be a savvy shopper then turned us loose to explore, shop, eat, whatever.

Mom, Dad, and Mikki couldn’t wait to eat any longer, but I was there for photos so went my own way. I had also decided that I wanted to buy a little piece of jewelry. We said we’d meet up in a bit; if they were still eating after I’d explored, I’d join in. Like most touristy hotspots anywhere in the world, there were rows and rows of souvenir shops, but this area seemed to have a higher density of jewelry. After looking in about 5 of them comparing prices and styles, I settled on a pair of silver olive branch earrings on posts. They were in my price range (under $30) and remind me of the millions of ancient olive trees we saw all over Greece still giving their gifts of oil and fruit after hundreds of years.

Similar to these, except with posts and leaves that are a bit more "pointy".

​

Too bad I broke one 3 days later. One fell out on the floor of our cabin and in the process of looking for it, I found it by stepping on it. Which snapped the post right off. Luckily, I found a place in an artisan village here in Arizona with a legit silversmith who said he can fix it, so I'll take it in next week.

Lots of old buildings on the square like this that I could enjoy as I shopped:

​

Shopped out (it doesn’t take long for this girl to be “shopped out”), I headed for the Küçük Hasan Pasha Mosque. (It) was built in the 17th century in honor of Küçük Hasan Pasha, the first Turkish garrison commander, after the conquest of Chania by the Ottomans, which is the most prominent feature of the waterfront square. Apparently, there is some nice art housed in it, but sadly, the interior was closed when we were there. More hit and miss.

(The domed one on the right.)



​

I had wanted to walk out the jetty to the Old Venetian Lighthouse (you can see it in the distance of the first harbor picture up there ^), but was paranoid I’d miss the bus back to port so opted to take a few more photos and try to find the others.

​

I texted and they told me, or tried to anyway, where they were, but try as I might, I could not find the restaurant they’d gotten a nice lunch at. In the end, I opted to go check out the church closest to the meetup point, light a candle, and trot off for a quick coffee and wait.

​

Grabbing a "quick" coffee was always an adventure in Greece and Italy. It’s like the ultimate guessing game of how to play. At some places you just find a seat outside, sometimes inside, but most of the time outside, and someone magically appears to take your order. Sometimes, you went inside and ordered and then found a seat, sometimes, you had to stand at the bar. I can tell you that if you guessed wrong, you looked like an idiot 100% of the time. Which was 100% of the time. Then you had to figure out how and where to pay. The creamy, caffeinated deliciousness was 1,000% worth the turmoil of appearing imbecilic.

And with that, our time on Crete had come to an end. We were whisked back to the ship where my mom played her own game of Sea Pass Hide and Seek, and everyone met back at our cabin for a little naptime before dinner.

This chapter took up more real estate than I thought it might when I titled it, so you’ll have to hang tight for Pt. 2 wherein Mikki and Mom whoop it up a little too hard.



Stay tuned, Friends!

 

[Steppesister]

All caught up!

Wonderful to see you here, Alison! Know you're as busy as me so just saying hi is really nice!!