2018 Eastern Mediterranean Trip - Day 34, Thessaloniki Iron Man/Woman Day

I am telling you right now all you children/nieces...don't want to hear a word...not one word...hear me...about certain older folks NOT learning from past experience...NOT ONE WORD.

Today was long...It was great...It was exhausting...It was a complete experience.

We did a photography tour but unlike others we've done it was less like a photo workshop and more a complete immersion into what this city is all about. It was a whirlwind going to all the places there were to go to an take pictures that captured its essence.

Thessaloniki is a city built on the side of a hill with a coastal plain. It has an incredible history. After being a Greek and Roman city, it rose to prominence in the late Roman period and the Byzantine era. During Byzantium it was the second city of the Empire. It was actually the capital in exile during the Fourth Crusade when the Crusaders and Venice capture Constantinople. During the Ottoman Empire it was equally important. When Moorish Spain was conquered by the Christians, many Jews and Muslims came to Thessaloniki adding to its prosperity. When the Ottoman Empire died, numerous Balkan countries fought to gain control over Thessaloniki with Greece ultimately prevailing. In this city are remnants of all these events.

Our tour was scheduled to start at 9 and last 5 hours. It went to 3:30. We drove to a citadel at the top of the old city (in past times, the city was mostly inland so it was not vulnerable to attack from the sea. We then proceeded to wind our way downhill through the old town, an visual delight of color. Then into the modern city which is dotted with various monumental artifacts throughout...a Roman Arch here, a Byzantine church there, an Ottoman era bath, the old Roman Agora, the offices from the early 20th century with clock that was frozen at the hour an earthquake hit. In a lot of ways it reminded me of Genoa, Italy, a city with all kinds of history but which was alive and in the moment.

Our guide, Spartakos, was not the photo teacher like some of our past photo tour guides but man he knows his city. We covered so much of it and were given free rein to do what we love to do best - just let our eyes wander and take pictures of the aspects of the city that strike us. It is rare that we get that from the guided tours we take.

We were about two thirds into our tour, when suddenly the weather turned and it started to pour. We made our way through an area mercifully with lots of overhangs until we came to grill place and grabbed some gyros since we hadn't eaten all day (it was around 1:30 in the afternoon at this point).

I think we got a better idea of what this complex city was about in one day then we might have in a week on our own. But oh my goodness we were tired when we got back to our Airbnb. We both collapsed and took a nap. Since then we've been working our our pictures. I took 195! That's more pictures in one day by a factor of almost 30%! Wife took even more but she always does. We've been working for around 3 hours since we've been back trying to winnow them down. I got it down to 70. But the bandwidth on the Internet here is limited. So I've decided I will get up early in the morning and try to upload them then in a separate post.

Tomorrow we are going to take it easier, go down to the waterfront which we did not see today. We continue to love and have a great time in Greece. But our time here is coming to an end. On Wednesday we leave and head for our last destination, the Aegean coast of Turkey. More adventures ahead!

2018 Eastern Mediterranean Trip - Day 33, Moving On To Thessaloniki

Kalispera! (Good Evening)

We're on the move again. This time we are in Greece's second largest city, Thessaloniki. It doesn't get anywhere near the tourist attention places like Athens and the Greek Islands get but it is deserving of much more as I will be showing you over the next two days.

It is a bit of a schlepp to get from Kalamata to Thessaloniki - no real way to go directly from one to the other. Our Airbnb host arranged a shared car that got us to the airport for only a bit more than it would have cost to take the bus to Athens and then a cab. And it saved us hours. Then we flew from Athens to Thessaloniki. A bit of chaos in getting checked in to the airline...a new one for us, Aegean with a self-check-in process that was totally thwarting us. They have two brands that fly the exact same planes and crews. But if you book on one, you have check in on it. Fortunately Wife played the, "we're poor pathetic tourist" card and had someone do the entire self check-in process for us. I love Wife, sigh💕

And I remembered that Aegean is a Star Alliance member so we got to use the club, got a free lunch and drink, got to board the plane first because of my status with United Airlines...I am so pathetic...I love all these perks.

Our new apartment is smack dab in the historical center of Thessaloniki. We have another photo tour/workshop at 9 AM tomorrow. So it will be back on the photo blogging train tomorrow night.

Hope you are having a nice Memorial Day weekend but remembering all the ones who have died, been wounded and served otherwise so we are in a position to enjoy the freedom and lifestyle we have!

An Interlude To Mark An Important Anniversary!!!!!!

In all the consuming excitement of our trip to the Eastern Mediterranean an anniversary, a very, very important anniversary took place and I totally forgot!!!

Bad me😒

May 14 marked the TENTH ANNIVERSARY OF MY DONATING MY KIDNEY TO MY SISTER!

Amazing enough that (at the time) 60 year old kidney is still going strong and has given my sister an additional decade of health. Damn good organ I'd say. I am still incredibly grateful to Wife for supporting me and God for having carried me through the whole thing.

If you'd like to relive as I am the events of that experience the first post of my chronicle starts here

2018 Eastern Mediterranean Trip - Day 32, Kalamata

As I make this post, I realize that we've been on the road for over a month. The pattern is always the same on these trips. We start out and it seems like we have forever in front of us. Then suddenly we realize we're over halfway done and the end starts barreling toward us and the return to our base life at home. But we still have more cool stuff in front of us so let's focus on that

Today was a chill day, a day to recuperate and to prepare to move on. Kalamata has been our base for the last five days but we really hadn't had any time to just explore the town itself. It is like so many smaller European towns we have visited. It is much more concentrated physically that a town of similar size would be in the US. The opportunities to walk are far greater. I wouldn't say it is the most interesting town to visit if you were coming to see sights, but it is a great base. We've been fortunate enough to have a superior Airbnb apartment with literally every service we need within blocks of us. Truly it is a very agreeable place to have as a base.

I'd like to start with a brief tour of our apartment

The stairs leading up to it

The great room

One of the hallways leading to the sleeping areas

Some of the outside spaces

One of the three bedrooms

One of the two bathrooms

Tour de Kalamata

Coffee anyone?

If you are a coffee lover, you will have to suck it up

Because in the greater downtown area, you might have to go a block and half (if that) between coffee places. Seriously. I have never, NEVER seen so many coffee places per square foot of retail space as Kalamata. Places to get a sandwich or any food... non-existent. Coffee pastry places? I could blindfold your, turn you around three times and you would find one in 5 minutes.

Our local has the most cosmic chocolate croissants with a filling of Nutella that goes from end to end. Also shown is a doughnut like twist with a honey glaze

I mentioned in Athens how prevalent the balcony/deck is

No different here in Kalamata

Just a sampling

 

Heads and balconys

 

There are these street side convenience stores

Some are open 24 hours

Street scenes

Beware!

Mister Potato Head stalks you

As does a squadron of pink bikes

Church Scenes

Old Church - 11th Century

New Churches

New church interiors

These looked identical in overall format to the great churches we've seen from the middle Byzantine era. That's close around 1500 years of continuous form

So if you are thinking of a place to go and chill and enjoy the Mediterranean lifestyle put Kalamata, Greece on your list...truly a congenial and enjoyable small city

Tomorrow we are off again

To the second largest city in Greece, Thessaloniki

A city with great history but for some reason not on the tourist mainstream radar

 

But before we go

SIGNS OF THE WORLD!

Is Hot Dog Coffee like really, really good coffee?

Or is it some infusion made with sausage?

I need to find out

Who knew there was such a public demand for a place catering to masochists?

2018 Eastern Mediterranean Trip - Day 31, Pylos and Methoni

It is our last day with our great guide Ioannis (pronounced Yanni like the singer...but as he sadly said without the money). Ioannis has probably been the best guide we've ever had. His knowledge of the history of the area is encyclopedic and he has listened to our desire to NOT go to the A-List sites, to find the exciting lesser known sites and to give us full rein for our photographic impulses.

After two full days in the mountains, we needed a change in venue so he changed our itinerary and we went to the two historically significant towns of Pylos and Methoni on the western most of the four peninsulas that spread out of the Peloponnese like fingers from a hand facing the Ionian Sea. This area is in a particularly strategic position right along the sea lanes that connect the Western Mediterranean with lands to the East.

Pylos (whose antecedents date back to the days of the Mycenaeans) was the scene of two historic sea battles. The first was between the Athenians and the Spartans during the Peloponnese War. Athens won and had Sparta on the ropes for a time. Centuries later during the Greek War of independence in the 1820's, the battle of Navarino was fought just outside the harbor of Pylos. A combined British, French and Russian fleet defeated the combined fleet of the Ottoman Empire and Egypt, a major blow to the Ottomans trying subdue the Greeks.

Methoni has an even more complicated history. First mention by Homer in the Iliad as one of the seven cities given to Achilles to mollify him and keep him in the war, it was a fortified town and harbor through Ancient Greek and Roman times. A Byzantine fortress and town was there as well. But the current fortifications took shape under the Venetians who conquered during the days of the Fourth Crusade when the Crusaders took control of Constantinople from the Byzantines. For three hundred years, the city and castle prospered. But in the 16th century the town was finally taken by the Ottoman Turks. In the late 17th century, the Venetians returned a second time. This second Venetian period was to last only 30 years until 1715 when the Ottomans again took control. During the Greek War of Independence, this was on fortress that was never captured by the Greeks and their allies but it was turned over once Greek independence was achieved. By this time the fortified town and castle had deteriorated substantially. Even the Germans in WWII made use of this location and were bombed in turn by the RAF.

Pictures

What does this have to do with anything?

It was a place we passed on our way out of Kalamata

I have subsequently learned that the local specialty is Gournopoula - roast suckling pig

(Think Bali Babi Guling!)

Not sure if we're going to be able to get any with just one day left

 We continue our attempt to get on the official 'Greek Tourist Postcard' list with pictures of Pylos harbor

On to our main attraction, Methoni Castle

Here is what it looks like in total if seen from the air

Entering 

Our intrepid guide Ioannis bringing knowledge to us

 

Lions of St. Mark

The Emblem of Venice

This piece has an unusual story

It is Egyptian...Ancient Egyptian in origin

It was looted by the Romans who took it to Caesarea

Then the Crusaders looted it where it ended up here

Road from the entrance to the famous tower known as the Bourtzi

Intrepid guide and Wife on the road to the Bourtzi

Ruins of the Byzantine Church of St. Sophia, which became a mosque, which became a Catholic church, which became a mosque....

There are two ruins of Ottoman bath houses

One comes from the first Ottoman period and the other from the second

Can you tell which is which?

I can't

Now on to Bourtzi-mania

It is one of the most photographed sites in the Peloponnese

I have added to that record

And looking back the way we came

Other shots from around that area

 

Why this?

Because I was marveling at the fit of the stones and asked Iaonnis when it was done

It is modern

We don't have this skill set back home

The castle still is invaded!

Looking over the site and town from a bastion on the far opposite end from the Bourtzi

The full panorama

We finished our day by trying to find the waterfall

However it turned out it was going to be too steep a hike and we bailed

But there was this coffee shop (in the middle of nowhere)

Run by a guy who was born in Toronto but whose family moved back to Greece

So we had coffee and enjoyed the scenery before heading back