On Our Way Spiti, Glyko Spiti

Hi Everyone,

Our last day in Greece...very hard to believe we've been here for 5 months and that our vacation of a lifetime is about to end. We could never put into words how wonderful it has all been, nor how important our family and friends here in Greece have become to us, nor how much we miss you all back home. Our choice to come here, and the way we spent our time here, were decisions that we would never, ever change.

We could never even begin to thank some people enough for helping us along the way. But we're gonna try, anyway...

First of all, Bill's Mom for making it possible to live in the house in Thessaloniki while we were here. What an enormous and generous gift, and packing it all up and saying goodbye to the house was more difficult than we imagined it would be. It was a comfortable, perfect home for us for almost half a year and we'll miss it. Thank you, Mom!

Second, John and Iro...wow, thank you for everything. The car--we'll miss you, Golfaki!--the mobile phone, your hospitality (towards us and our guests), for providing a place in Athens that truly felt like home. But most of all, for the opportunity to spend so much time with you. You and Dimitri are such a wonderful family...we love you all so much and are thankful that you are our koumbari, our cousins, and our friends.

Next, to all of our family in Thessaloniki: Thia Eugenia, Thio Manolis, Aki, Maria, Runia and the kids...we will miss you all so much. You made everything we did in Thessaloniki better because we could experience it with family. We love you and we look forward to seeing you again so we can make more fantastic memories together.

We also want to thank all of our family and friends from the States that came to spend time with us here: Bill's Mom, Polly, the whole Place family, Bruce & Tina, Rex...your visits all meant so much to us. You brought to us the comforts of home and allowed us to share our new home in Greece with you. We can't wait to see you all soon!

And we want to thank the countless new (and old) friends over here that helped us along the way: John's and Iro's families in Athens, Mary and her family in Filothei, Sophia in Paros, all the Blatza's in Thessaloniki, Gaby and Arnaud in Paris, Jeff and Ginger in Tuscany, the Massoli's in Rome. We hope we are not forgetting anyone, because you all made our experiences here so much more full and unforgettable because of your generosity and friendship.

We'll miss Greece so much, but we're not too sad about leaving because we KNOW we will be back very soon. This country has truly become a second home for us, and we cannot go long without spending time here. But right now our thoughts are on coming home to the States...getting to know and love Greece so well has also served to make us more and more proud that our home is America. We're ready for cheeseburgers, apple pie, the NFL playoffs and bowl games (Go Buckeyes!), and, most importantly, spending the holidays with our loved ones back home. See you all soon...mas ellipsate kai sas agapoume para poli!

Happy Holidays Everybody!

Bill & Amanda

Greek (or is Grecian?) Vacation

Friday, Dec 1 – Sunday, Dec 3: Athens

In the morning my family arrived at the Athens airport dehydrated and sleep-deprived after a really long night flight from Montreal. They all had huge grins on their faces despite their uncomfortable 11-hour journey across the pond. This European vacation was a first for most of them so their exhaustion didn’t get them down. Everyone was able to make it except for my future brother-in-law, Alex. Unfortunately, a business trip...so he says :)...kept him from joining us. Alex, we missed you!

Bill’s mom was still in town, so shortly after my family arrived we all had a great lunch together in Glyfada. The rest of the afternoon was spent getting settled in (which was easy for my sister Alisha since her luggage was still somewhere between Montreal and Athens). That evening John took us to a wonderful traditional taverna for more food and live music. This was where everyone realized why I had been talking so much about the food here, especially the cheese. We had huge plates of feta, great saganaki, and many cheese pies. It was natural that they would love all the cheeses but to my surprise they even ate all of the paithakia (grilled lamb ribs) and loved it.

As of Saturday morning, still no luggage for Alisha. Mom, Missy and I offered her our clothes but since Alisha is over 6 feet tall, she didn’t take us up on the offer. As a result, she was stuck in the outfit she wore for the flight over… you’ll notice in the pictures why she got the nickname “Pinky.”

Later that day the sightseeing began. Bill and I spent the day showing off Athens. We visited the Acropolis, the Parthenon, and the Plaka. It was a beautiful day and although Bill and I had been to these spots a few times before, it was nice to experience them with my family in the fall. It was hard to believe that just a few months earlier, Bill and I were visiting the Parthenon in shorts and flip flops.

Sunday, Dec 3 – Tuesday, Dec 5: Hydra

After lots of unsuccessful phone calls to the airline in search of Alisha’s luggage, we decided to leave Athens for the island of Hydra (and after four days of the same outfit, the nickname “Pinky” morphed into “Stinky”—just kidding, Alisha!). Instead of the direct ferry from Piraeus, we decided to take the scenic and more exciting route over the Corinth Canal and down the east coast of the Peloponnesus to the village of Galatas. From Galatas we hopped on a small water taxi that took us to the island of Poros in all of about 3 minutes. Poros is separated from the Peloponnesus by a very small passage of water (actually, the Greek word poros means passage…am I sounding like a Greek yet?). Poros seemed like another charming island worth visiting, but we only had time to sit in the harbor and sip Nescafe’s and hot chocolates while we waited for our boat to Hydra.

That evening we arrived on Hydra and to our surprise, we were all blown away by the island. Because of its close proximity to Athens, we were afraid the island would have been spoiled over the years by tourism. Fortunately, the island still seemed to be untouched. Hydra once was once a thriving port, even trading directly with North America. In its hey-day it was inhabited by 40,000 people and now only holds a mere 3,000. No cars are allowed on the island of Hydra so we were greeted by donkeys, as they are the main mode of transportation on the island. This was a far cry from the hustle and bustle of Athens. So for my family, it was an awesome first exposure to village life. Over the next two days we saw gorgeous sunsets and another huge full moon (our fifth, and sadly, final one here in Greece). We ate at fabulous tavernas and strolled through many of the harbor town’s cobblestone streets.

Monday morning we were all shocked to see Alisha’s luggage come off the ferry from Piraeus. The pink outfit was officially retired… possibly forever?

Tuesday, December 4 – Wednesday, December 5: Delphi

We reluctantly said our goodbyes to Hydra and headed back to the mainland. After many hours in the car we arrived in Delphi that evening. We had a very lively dinner at a local taverna that included many carafes of the house wine, most of which was consumed by my brother-in-law Nathan who seemed to particularly enjoy ordering wine by the kilo.

The next morning we set out to see what else, other than wine, Delphi had to offer. Bill and I had been through Delphi once before, but because we had never visited the ancient sites, this was another first for us. Delphi is amazing in so many ways. It lies on the southern slopes of the Parnassos Mountains, overlooking thousands of olive trees that fill the valley below. You can even see the Gulf of Corinth in the distance. And if the view alone isn’t enough, the ancient ruins are incredible. Delphi is over 3,000 years old and was once considered the center of the world by the Ancient Greeks, mainly because it was the site of the most sacred oracle of the time. We visited the remains of the Temple of Apollo, a large amphitheater, and a very well-preserved stadium. My family loved Delphi, and Bill and I would have been very disappointed if we hadn’t squeezed it in before leaving Greece.

Wednesday, Dec 6 – Thursday, Dec 7: Meteora

So, if you’ve been keeping up, you’ve already heard me talk about Meteora; I won’t bore you with the details. But I will say that it was equally impressive the third time around. We visited the monasteries of Agios Stephanos, Roussaneau, and Greater Meteora. Most of my family said this was now their favorite part of the trip, but then again I had heard that the day before. Actually, I think this was my Mom’s favorite part of the trip. She really enjoyed the monasteries and their spectacular views. I think she felt the same kind of rejuvenation that I experience every time I visit Meteora. It’s truly unlike any other place on earth.

Thursday, Dec 7 – Sunday, Dec 10: Thessaloniki and Vergina

Heading up to Thessaloniki we stopped for lunch in the restored traditional village of Pallio Panteleimonas, now one of our favorites. Thursday evening in Thessaloniki we had a little down time from all the traveling we had been doing. Friday was spent touring the sites of the city, which took all day with all the stops we were making along the way. You see, there are tons of stray cats and dogs in Greece and walking with two veterinarians meant stopping every few minutes to pet a stray.

On Saturday, Thia Eugenia had us all over for lunch. To our surprise most of Bill’s family was also there. Thia had made a humongous spread of food like she always does. It was a really special afternoon because it was the first time my family met many of Bill’s cousins here in Greece.

Sunday afternoon we snuck in one more side trip before my family piled into the rental car to head back to Athens. We visited Vergina, the tomb of King Phillip II of Macedonia. We had been here two times before, but it was so remarkable that it warranted another trip. My family was amazed with what has remained inside the burial site for so many years. In particular, my Dad looked shocked when he first saw the grand entrance of the King Phillip’s tomb, totally intact after 2,300 years.

Upon my family’s arrival in Athens, Iro prepared another fabulous meal for them, and on Monday, John shuffled them all off to the airport for their flight home. We just can’t thank John and Iro enough for all of their generosity over the past 5 months, not only to us, but to all of our family and friends that have visited us over here.

I was so glad that my family came to Greece. We all had so much fun together…it was definitely a trip of a lifetime!

Just a few days left in Greece for Bill and me…we’ll try to squeeze in one more goodbye post before we head home. Hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season back home…we miss you all and look forward to seeing you soon!

Kala Christouyenna!

Amanda

"Almost Turkey"

While Mom was here in Thessaloniki, she spent a lot of time visiting cousins whom she hadn’t seen in a while, plus, of course, we celebrated Rooster Day. But the following week we did manage to sneak in a little sightseeing with our trip to “Almost Turkey.”

“Almost Turkey” is what Amanda and I have been calling Thraki, the easternmost region of Greece that borders on Turkey to the east and Bulgaria to the north. It is very different from the rest of Greece in that the influences remaining from centuries of Turkish rule are far more prevalent: nearly half of its residents are of Turkish descent and practice Islam. I had never been there, and Mom had not been that far east since she went there on a field trip in high school.

Monday, November 27: Kavala and Xanthi

We started out by driving east to Kavala, a seaside town about 150 kilometers from Thessaloniki. Kavala isn’t a large town, but it has prospered over the years due to its large shipping port. The east side of the harbor, known as the Panagia, still looks much like it did during its centuries under Turkish rule: old shops, homes and restaurants in a maze of winding cobblestone streets, all surrounded by huge citadel walls. We parked along the water and admired the fishing boats (if you look closely at the pictures above, you can see where Santa spends his off-season), then walked along a huge 16th century aqueduct and into the Panagia, where we viewed a monument commemorating the birthplace of Mehmet Ali (who later became Pasha of Egypt). We next found the Imaret, built by Ali to house theological students and still the largest Muslim building in all of Europe. It has since been converted into a beautiful hotel. Mom, Amanda and I sat down in one of its charming tea rooms, ordered some great Turkish coffee and hot chocolate, and enjoyed the view overlooking the harbor.

We next drove to Xanthi, the highway heading east surrounded on either side by miles and miles of tobacco fields. Xanthi became rich on the proceeds of these large tobacco plantations, and is still a bustling, thriving town, thanks mainly to the thousands of students that attend the university there. We stayed in a hotel on the mail platea, which is surrounded by modern restaurants, bars, and galleries. But we bypassed all that and walked into the pallio polis (the “old city”) and sat down at a charming little taverna nestled in a back alleyway. I guess we were all hungry from our road trip, because what ensued may have the worst case of over-ordering that I have ever done here, and believe me, that's saying something. We enjoyed a fantastic, overindulgent meal and called it a night.

Tuesday, November 28: Komotini and Philippi

The next day we headed further east to Komotini, a very modest town in the northeast corner of Greece. Komotini does not really have much to offer in the way of sightseeing; we went there with one goal in mind: to find the bazaar, rumored to be the largest in Greece. As soon as we parked and walked into the bazaar, it was like stepping into a different country, perhaps a Third World one (even the weather got worse).

From here, Turkey is only 60 miles further east, and Bulgaria is even closer—only 14 miles north—and the Muslim and Slavic influences are accordingly strong. Greeks, Turks, Pomaks (Muslims with Slav rather than Greek or Turkish origins), and gypsies were selling their produce, clothing and crafts in the largest outdoor market I have ever seen. It must have been a mile long, not kidding. We bundled up and shopped around for a couple of hours, then walked back to the car and headed back west toward the archeological site at Philippi.

King Philip II of Macedonia named Philippi after himself when he conquererd the area in 356 B.C., but most of its ruins date from the slightly more recent Roman period. In addition to the remains of three gigantic Roman basilicas, there is a sizable amphitheater and the prison where St. Paul was reputedly held when he arrived in 49 A.D. to first spread Christianity to the west. After the Acropolis in Athens and perhaps Delphi, it is considered one of the best archeological sights in Greece. We spent some time walking and taking pictures among the ruins, and then had a late lunch before heading home to Thessaloniki.

Unfortunately, Mom had to head home to the States just a few days later. It was absolutely terrific to have her here in Greece with us for as long as she was, although, of course, it felt too short. We look forward to seeing her for Christmas when we can relive some of these great memories together.

Amanda’s family arrived for a visit last week…I’ll let her tell you all about it our next post. Until then, yiasas!

Bill

In Loving Memory

On Sunday, November 19, my mother offered a mnimosino in her home village of Kolindros. Let me start by saying that of all the wonderful experiences Amanda and I have had over the past 4 months, this day was by far for me the most incredible, and certainly the most heartwarming. To have Polly, Mom, Amanda and I all together in my mother’s home village, surrounded by all our family, was truly an amazing experience I will always cherish.

Mnimosino comes from the Greek word “to remember” (as do a few related English words, like “mnemonic”), and is a church ceremony offered in honor of deceased family or friends. The short ceremony is conducted after the regular Sunday church service, and is followed by coffee and pastries at the church social room, and then later, dinner at the local catering hall. Mom hosted one that Sunday for my father, my grandparents, and my mother’s two older brothers who have passed away.

I was here the last time my mother hosted a mnimosino, just four years ago, yet I had forgotten how many relatives Mom has in Kolindros. Both of her parents came from big families (Papou was one of 10 children, Yiayia one of 11), so Mom has countless first cousins, many of whom also went on to have big families. It’s probably a conservative estimate that at least a tenth of Kolindros’ 3,000 citizens are related to us.

Well, I think just about every one of those relatives showed up at church that Sunday. It is such a homecoming every time my mother visits Kolindros that it seems the entire village lines up to see her, kiss her, welcome her back. Amanda and I were introduced to so many people, some of whom I remembered, many whom I was meeting for the first time. It was a great day for Polly and me to spend time together with all of our first cousins over here--Costas, Stephania, Aki and Runia--walking through the same village where we all played together many years ago. But best of all, at least for me, was to see Mom surrounded by so many relatives with whom she grew up, or played with as a young girl, or with whom she went to high school. And just like four years ago, I was so impressed with my mother’s memory…she remembered every cousin, many details about their childhood, and could point out the names of homes she remembered as we walked through the village.

And the highlight was walking with my mother into her childhood home. My Thia Keti still lives in the renovated house above it, but below is the tiny modest house where my grandparents lived, rather unchanged from the time when Mom grew up there with her four brothers and sisters. It had been 25 years since we had all been in the house together, and the memories just came rushing back for Polly, Mom and me the minute we walked through the door.

One of my favorite pictures from my childhood is a photo of all of us sitting together around my grandparents’ dining room table: Papou, Yiayia, Mom, Polly, me, Thia Eugenia and Thio Manoli with Rania and Aki, Thio Elia and Thia Keti with Costas and Stephania. I was only 4 years old at the time. We walked up the creaky old stairs and, sure enough, there was the old table, like it was yesterday. Polly and I even walked across the street to the little shack where Papou kept his donkey, and as we approached it I swear I felt a little of the same trepidation I felt as a small child when I was scared to death of it. Every corner we turned, every creaking floor board reminded me of a time we all spent together at my grandparents’ home when I was little. And to see the happy (and sad) expression on Mom’s face was something I will never, ever forget. All in all, it was a really special day, all centered on an event fittingly called a mnimosino because it brought back such wonderful memories for all of us.

The dinner Mom hosted was fantastic—delicious fish and roasted potatoes, sautéed chorta, taramosalata, and eggplant puree—and we spent much of the afternoon making our way around to all of the 70 or so friends and family that attended. It was a long, wonderful, emotional day and Polly had many hours of travel ahead of her on Monday, so we called it a night and went home.

[Side Note: I must admit I was looking forward to Polly’s arrival for many reasons…but one of them is because I had hoped that after 4 months here, my Greek would finally, for once, be better than my sister’s. But Polly and Stephania rode together in the same car between the church service and dinner, and when they arrived Stephania announced: “OK, Polly only remembers 30 Greek words…but she speaks them all better than Bill!” I guess the best I can make out of that is a draw…]

I can't describe how nice it was to be together with Polly in Greece. It was a short visit for her because she could only get away from work back home for a few days. But many times during those few days I felt like we were kids in Greece again. It is a wonderful feeling I could only get by her being here...Polly, we have to come back again together, and soon!

Hope all is well back in the States…hard to believe we have 18 weeks behind us and only 2 to go. Time has just flown.

Yiasas for now!

Bill

Happy Rooster Day!

Hi Everyone! Let me explain. Yesterday was Thanksgiving, and despite our best efforts, we could not find a turkey anywhere in Thessaloniki. Apparently, butchers who sell whole turkeys hang on to them until Christmas so they can compete with those sold by the American Agricultural Univeristy here. Keeps prices down at Christmas time, but leaves out in the cold those of us wanting to celebrate Thanksgiving. So, Amanda stuffed and cooked a delicious rooster and she, Mom, and I had a wonderful Rooster Day. Hope you all did, too.

Amanda just dropped me off into a crowd of bundeled-up backpack-toting university students, and now I’m on my laptop at the campus Starbucks (the holiday peppermint mochas arrived last week...very excited), listening to Bobby Darin’s recording of Silver Bells. So far the day is a lot like being back at GW.

Sorry it’s been a little while since we’ve posted. We drove down to Athens two weekends ago to see John before he started his new job commuting to Zurich, and also to pick Mom up from the airport when she and Thia Marit returned from Crete.

[Quick side note: if I haven’t mentioned it before, the traffic here in Greece is horrible. It makes D.C. look like a leisurely Sunday drive. The worst of it is the motorcycle and moped traffic, especially in summer when it constantly surrounds you like a swarm of hornets. Well, it took four months, but I finally got in an accident driving around Athens the day before Mom got back from Crete—basically, both a motorcyclist and I tried to make a questionable move in heavy traffic at the same time. Luckily, it was a very small “fender bender” and no one was hurt. In fact, after it was over, Amanda told me how jealous she was that I actually got to hit a motorcyclist…she’s wanted to do that for four months now…]

We hadn’t seen my Mom since we were home in Erie for July 4th, so it was really great to see her again. We spent one night in Athens visiting some of her cousins and then Wednesday drove home to Thessaloniki. Two days later, Polly arrived for a long weekend. Seemed difficult to believe, but that was the first time Mom, Polly and I had been in Greece together since 1981!

Polly was so excited to be back. Amanda and I didn’t have much planned for that Friday afternoon because we assumed Polly would be napping off the jet lag. If she had any, she certainly didn’t show it. She wanted to go, go, go from the minute she arrived. We spent the afternoon walking all over Thessaloniki, sipping coffee as we walked along the paralia to check out the new Christmas lights. We strolled past Lefkos Pirgos and the statute of Alexander the Great, up Aristotle Square and then back along Tsimiski Street, the city’s main shopping drag.

To our surprise, there was a huge demonstration marching up Tsimiski. It was then that we realized what date it was: November 17. Thousands of Thessalonians, all carrying red flags or wearing red arm bands, were marching to commemorate a time when demonstrations and free speech were nowhere to be found in Greece. A little background: from 1967 to 1974, Greece was ruled by a right-wing military junta. Some Greeks believe that the junta helped Greece recover from its post-World War II woes. However, many remember it as a terrible time in Greece, full of mass arrests, martial law, torture, heavy censorship, and violations of civil liberties. When hundreds of students demonstrated against the junta at the Athens Polytechnic Institute on November 17, 1973, most were massacred by the Greek army (although there are no official records as to how many were actually killed that day).

In any case, every year the massacre is remembered, and many Greeks march in demonstrations to honor the murdered students and to voice their opposition to any type of totalitarian rule in Greece. And obviously, every year the marches are also a way for communist and socialist political action groups to distribute leaflets, and, incidentally, for people to loudly shout anti-American sentiments (as Polly commented, it was fine for us to quietly watch the march, but had we been standing there eating apple pie and waving Cadillac keys, we may have had a problem).

With the city center all bottled up the demonstration, Amanda, Polly, Aki, Maria, Runia and I went to dinner at a great hunters’ taverna in the mountains above Panorama where Aki and Maria live. We spent hours catching up over wild boar, chicken, beef, rabbit, and lots of great barrel wine. Polly and I spent so much time with Aki and Runia growing up; it had been 12 years since Polly saw them and twice as long since all four of us were together. A long meal turned into a late night.

Saturday, we drove out to Vergina to show Polly and Mom the tomb of Philip II that had impressed us so much a few weeks ago. It was a beautiful day and with Polly having such a short visit to Greece, we were all glad we could squeeze in at least a little sight-seeing. That evening we took it easy (except for dealing with a surprise power outage that was, well, comical) and turned in early to prepare for a long day in my mother’s village on Sunday. More about that in our next post.

By the way, how ‘bout them Cowboys?! Romo may be the answer, after all.

Yiasas for now…

Bill

The Hotel Bartender's Name Was Spyro, Too

On the 30th, Bruce and Tina arrived from DC for a visit, and we hit the ground running.

[Guest Blogger Bruce: Upon our arrival into Athens we were gifted with a few "travel essentials" to include: fabulous Greek chocolate, a calling card, ouzo, a rather interesting deck of cards, and some laxatives; all of which would or could be used during our trip.]

We first spent a couple days with John and Iro in Athens, including another hike up the Acropolis, a walk through the plaka, complete with the Rex-inspired tradition of stopping for a shot of kumquat liquor, and, of course, some completely over-indulgent meals.

[Guest Blogger Tina: John & Iro provided our first exposure to Greek food - wow! From tasty souvlaki pita rolls to the evening smorgasbord we seemed to try it all within the first 24 hours. Being pregnant I wasn't too concerned about my waistline but I did need to fit into the one pair of jeans I brought to wear all week.]

We then road-tripped north, made a stop at Delphi, and then took the new bridge (Greeks are SO proud of this new bridge because it took a scant 20 years to complete it) across the Gulf of Corinth to Patra. There we caught the overnight ferry to Corfu for two days on one of Greece's most famous islands.

[Guest Blogger Tina: Sleeping on bunk beds in a room smaller than most dorm rooms made me feel like a coed girl-scout as all the juvenile behaviors come out in close quarters.]

Corfu is unlike the blue-and-white-washed islands of the Cyclades that Amanda and I experienced this past summer. Instead, its location in the Ionian Sea and its history of different occupiers has given it many different cultural influences, and the architecture in Corfu Town definitely reflects this. The buildings there range from tall condominiums like those in the large cities on the Greek mainland to Venetian townhomes with wrought-iron decorations. On the main square in town, the Spianada, there are a line of cafes called the Liston that French settlers designed to resemble the Rue de Rivoli in Paris, and the cafes serve ginger beer, a refreshment left over from years of British rule. The square itself even has a cricket field at its center.

We spent the day Thursday walking around the square and then exploring the ruins of the Palaio Frourio--the "Old Fortress"--a 16th-century Venetian fort that juts out into the narrow channel between Corfu and the Greek mainland. Stopped for coffee and ginger beer on the Liston and then walked to Agios Spyridon, a church of particular importance to me because its namesake, St. Spyros, shares my father's name and my middle name (along with, it turns out, like, half of the male population ofCorfu). We then walked around Old Corfu Town for shopping and dinner, and stayed up late at the hotel bar playing cards and talking.

Friday, we jumped in the car and drove through the Troumbetas Pass to the north side of the island. Ventured through Sidari and then stopped at the the beach at Arilas, Greece's westernmost point (and that day, by far its coldest and most windy...I know Tina and Amanda will be absolutely thrilled with the photo I posted above). We then drove to Paleokatritsa, a beautiful resort on Corfu's west coast, before cutting back across the island to Corfu Town. We were all pretty beat from four days of heavy traveling and sight-seeing, so we stayed in that night and had some pizza delivered, ordered drinks from our hotel bartender, and continued the Spades Championship of the World.

Saturday, we caught the early ferry over to Igoumentisa, the busiest port on the west side of Greece's mainland. From there, we took the long and winding road through the Pindos mountains to Ioanina. We stopped there to walk through the ancient walled part of the city, which still holds all the architectural and cultural influences left over from its years under Turkish rule. From Ioanina, we continued east to the monasteries at Meteora so Bruce and Tina could experience what we feel is one of the most unique places in Greece, if not the world. After touring Varlaam, Greater Meteora, and Agios Stephanos, we ate dinner down in Kalambaka and then drove back to Thessaloniki.

Sunday night, we headed out to a bouzouki bar with a few of my cousins: Aki, Maria, Rania, Costas, Nitsa and Dimitra. A very late night led to sleeping in, so we didn't get on the road for more sightseeing until Monday afternoon. We drove an hour west of Thessaloniki to Edessa, truly one of Greece's most unique towns. The entire city is built over an area of natural springs at the top of a cliff, so tiny rivulets run throughout the town and join together to form a waterfall over 80 feet tall, the largest in Greece.

Tuesday, we went to visit Vergina, the site of four tombs that were discovered by a Greek archaeologist in 1977. The tombs include that of King Philip II, King of Macedonia and father of none other than Alexander the Great. You have to see these tombs to believe them. Each one was found exactly as it was built over 2,300 years ago, perfectly preserved for centuries under tons of soil. Inside Philip's tomb, his bones and all of his royal treasures were unearthed, in the heart of a large mound of earth about 40 feet tall and an acre in area. The museum is literally built on top of the site, with all four enormous tombs encased in glass for visitors to view. It is a very, very impressive display, and a nice place to finish Bruce and Tina's visit.

[Guest Bloggers Bruce & Tina: With so many memories we're glad we could share just a few with everyone. We really enjoyed our week touring and tasting our way through Greece with a translator, the best tour guides, and personal advocates (to keep the smokers away from the pregnant lady!). Thanks to both Bill & Amanda and John & Iro for their sincere hospitality and incredible generosity.]

It was so great to spend time with Bruce and Tina; every time we all travel together, the time unfortunately flies by so quickly, but it's only because we have so much fun. And they were such troopers for enduring our Planes, Trains, (Ferries) and Automobiles itinerary, and the fact that on many days in the off-season certain Greek attractions are closed--like the sun, for instance.

Mom is in Greece now, vacationing with John's mother in Crete for the week. We'll see her next week and Polly arrives a few days later for a quick visit, so lots to look forward to and blog about.

Tha ta xanapoume syndoma!

Bill

The Big FIVE for Dimitri!

Hi everyone! Sorry it’s been awhile since we’ve blogged but we’ve been traveling again so we're a bit behind. Bill and I have been spending the majority of our time up in Thessaloniki but last week we traveled back to Athens to celebrate Dimitri’s 5th birthday.

But first, Saturday Oct 28th was Ochi Day, one of the major holidays on the Greek calendar. Greeks commemorate the day their government said “Ochi!” (“No!”) to Hitler and Mussolini using Greek land for military operations during World War II. John and Iro took us to the Ochi Day parade in Voula, where all the spectators waved Greek flags along to the music while all the local schoolchildren and marching bands filed down the street.

After the parade, Bill and I visited Mary, a friend and former co-worker of mine. Mary and her husband Nick live in Athens with their twin boys, Johnny and Teddy (who are so big now and doing extraordinary things). They’ve been living in Athens for the past 3 years so it’s been awhile since we had seen them. Their home in Filothei sits atop one of the highest points in Athens, overlooking the new Olympic stadium and the other Olympic venues. It was great catching up with Mary and getting some more pointers about Greek life, as Mary seems to thrive wherever she is. Nick was out of town but we hope to see them all again before we head back to the States.

That Sunday afternoon was Dimitri’s birthday party and like all Greek festivities, it was quite an event. It was a perfect fall day for the kids (all 30 of them). Iro made a huge spread of delicious food, they hired a really funny clown that the kids (and adults) loved, and most importantly Dimitri had a blast! We were so glad we could be there.

On the following Tuesday Bruce and Tina arrived. It was really good to finally see them and we had so much fun together. Bill will give you all the details…..

Yiasas!

Amanda

(Quick) Tour de France

Saturday, October 14th – Tuesday, October 17th: Paris (Amanda)

Paris has always been a city high on our list to visit, and even with our lofty expectations, we were both blown away by the grandeur of the city.

After a quick flight from Florence, we arrived at Gabriela and Arnaud’s house. Bill and Gaby are good friends from high school when Gaby was a Mexican exchange student in Erie. Gaby, her husband Arnaud, and their darling three year old daughter Juliette graciously opened their beautiful home to us.

On Saturday night Gaby and Arnaud took Bill and me to Bon, one of their favorite restaurants in Paris. We enjoyed some nice champagne and an incredible meal that was followed up by our new favorite dessert…molleaux au chocolat! Move over baklava! After dinner we all drove around to see Paris by night…..it is the City of Lights, after all. Bill and I were very quickly impressed by the city and excited to see more the next day. We were already starting to wish we had planned for more time there.

With only two full days for sightseeing, we were so lucky to have Gaby. She helped plan out each of our days: Sunday we would hit the sights on the Rive Gauche, Monday we would spend on the Rive Droite. We began Sunday at the Arc de Triomph, most notable, of course, for being the spot where my sister Alisha and her fiancé Alex got engaged earlier this year. It was great to see the place where they shared such a special moment. After seeing the Arc we headed down the Champs Elysees, through the Place de la Concorde, and into the Jardins des Tuileries. It was there that we realized we were in Paris during the perfect time of year. The air was crisp and the leaves were just beginning to change colors. It was the first time on this trip that it felt like autumn to us.

After a stroll through the Jardin des Tuileries we ended at the Louvre. Initially we had planned on going inside, but we've heard that the Louvre itself takes at least a day. With our time running short, we decided it would be a good excuse to skip it (and plan a return trip to Paris, of course!). We crossed over to the Ile de la Cite—a small islet in the middle of the Seine—and spent what seemed like hours just staring at the Cathedrale de Notre Dame. The rest of the afternoon was walking and shopping, and, naturally, stopping for more molleaux au chocolat. We ended the day at the Bastille Memorial and then took the metro back to Gaby and Arnaud’s house. That evening Arnaud whipped up an incredible Parisian meal including fois gras, confit de canard, and lots of smelly French cheeses that I won’t try to spell. Everything was so delicious (even the cheese)! It was a perfect, cool evening, so after dinner we ventured back out and took the metro to Montmartre for some great nighttime pics of the Sacre Coeur and the Moulin Rouge.

On Monday we headed out for more of Paris, beginning the day at the top of the Eiffel Tower. I think it’s worth a trip to Paris if only to see the tower in person. It’s hard to believe that this magnificent structure was initially poo-poo’d by the public and considered an eyesore. It was once the city’s plan to tear the tower down after twenty years; can you imagine Paris without La Tour Eiffel? Thankfully, it proved to be valuable for radio communication purposes.

After a few hours gawking and touring the tower we followed the Seine down to Saint German-des-Pres. On Gaby's recommendation, we went to the most famous cafe in Paris, Les Deux Magots, once frequented by famous artists such as Jean-Paul Sartre and Ernest Hemingway. What was supposed to be a quick stop turned into a long lunch and an afternoon of people-watching. We eventually went back to the house and had one last fabulous dinner with Arnaud and Gaby at a nearby restaurant.

We were sad to leave Paris the next day but were both comforted by the fact that we knew we would be back. It was so nice to finally meet Arnaud, Gaby and Juliette. They made our first trip to Paris so specical, and we hope we can soon return the favor by hosting them in our nation’s capital.

Bill wants me to include a quick Hooray! for his Cardinals, and we hope all else is well back home in the States. Au revoir!

Amanda