Port of Piraeus

 During winter there are only 2 catamarans daily between Poros and Athens.  One in the morning and one at 5pm. We were finished and at the harbour at 1 and  had a 4 hour wait for the evening boat. The passenger waiting room was padlocked.  Thank goodness there were toilets, sparkling clean too, a canteen and an open air seating area

I bought K a can of beer and a bag of chips and went off to explore the harbour shopping district

Electric Bus was written on it's side. The buses were very quiet and so was the tram gliding along the harbour.  I looked left, right and left again before crossing its tracks.  That's something new too. I have no idea where the tram goes but I'd love to take a trolley ride one day

Itinerant sellers

Most were Greek but this one was Pakistani selling sunglasses and belts

There was an endless stream of them selling more sunglasses, perfume ('genuinely' fallen off the back of a lorry), belts and phone chargers

I bought 3 pairs of socks. 1 euro a pair. They're really good socks. I wish I'd bought more but we'd run out of small notes buying beer and chips

I'd given my last 2 euros to a true beggar. No teeth, filthy and rather smelly.  I wish I hadn't. After his thanks he gave us a long lecture on the decline of Christianity in Greece and the dangerous influx of infidels and heathens. We didn't make any comment and thankfully he wandered off to the next victim. 

There was plenty of opportunity for photos but nothing exciting. Boats coming in from Aegina and Salamina, unloading cars and people, loading, leaving.  These are the closest islands, one hour by slow boat and have a continuous timetable all through the year

We lived in Piraeus for 10 years and I know it well, on foot.  I was looking forward to wandering around the harbour shopping area.  From the taxi it looked bright and busy with a few new shops.  A Lidls and an IKEA store. 

I was sorely disappointed

The Lidls was too far.  And IKEA was a store front only, an advertisement 

Once colourful, bustling with sounds and sights and smells

Now, 50 years on, it's dirty, full of old boarded up shop fronts

This building is seriously dangerous. The top half looks as though it's going to collapse at any minute

One shop that's new. This is a chain called Miran.  It sells all sorts of cured meats, spices, cheeses. I thought I might get K up to come and inspect it but he was happy on his hard harbour seat. 

The last fish shop left at the old fish and meat market. This is a short alley which once had a dozen or more little shops cheek to cheek with open showcase trays of meat, fish, cheese and Greek specialities 

Like many Piraeus housewives I used to come down here to buy a kilo of today's catch or a few pork chops to cook that day. Everything was fresh and cheap. The sellers would be shouting out their wares one competing with the other. I'd wander up and down, trying to avoid being collared and compare prices. It was always crowded, mostly with men, retired and sent off by their wives to bag a bargain and get out of their hair for an hour or so.  There were cafenions in the area where the men gathered to drink coffee, have a cigarette and pass the time with their friends, bags of shopping at their feet

I walked slowly around the harbour streets, seeing what shops were left.  There were still a couple selling underwear, pots and pans and a few with bags of herbs and spices at their doors, a shoe shop and my old wool shop was still there. 

It's a place hard to find, down the end of a closed passageway. You can see the dark tiles and flowers in old oil tins. Very out of date and a strange place for a wool shop. There's a café in the alley and some sort of nightclub upstairs. 

I strolled down to look at the wool but nothing jumped out at me. I lost my shopping mojo after seeing how desolate the whole area had become 

It's no longer an exotic and exciting shopping hub. Once you could buy anything in the streets around the harbour, a Naval uniform for K, a few kilos of cabbages, the old black house frocks my m-in-law lived in, a hairnet or a hamster. There was even a red light district. That might still be there for all I know. 

In days of yore we would come in on the early morning Delfini Express, rush off to a doctors appointment or to organise some official paper and be back for the return journey at 2pm. We'd all be carrying bags with bananas, which were hard to find back then, a large bag with a greasy and aromatic rotisserie chicken from one of the waterfront tavernas and shopping bags overloaded with all the necessities we couldn't get on the island. I can remember hauling plates and glasses, towels, a kilo of fresh ground coffee, a string of garlic, cheap toilet paper, bottles of booze, new shoes for the girls, a side of lamb, a few of those hairnets my m-in-law favoured, crocheted slippers sold by Grannies perched on a crate on the footpath.

On the big car ferries we hauled a chest of drawers, a coat stand, your newly purchased washing machine, mattresses, barrels for wine or oil

Those were the days

Today we finally boarded our catamaran at 4.30 with my 3 pairs of sox and settled back to enjoy a smooth and quiet trip home.  It's only one hour now and non stop to Poros 

Nothing like the return on the Delfini Express or one of the old slow chugging car ferries where we spread out our chicken, ripped up a loaf of bread and bought a few beers to share with all the other locals doing the same and shouting out to each other and comparing the bargains we'd bought .  The air was always thick with cigarette smoke and very noisy, not just conversation, because those old boats made a lot of noise. They really did chug and they shuddered terribly. The trip was usually around 3 hours with stops at Aegina and Methana. An opportunity to get out on deck, watch the people and cars disembarking and take a few lungfuls of fresh air

Sorry that was so long. It grew along the way

The Big City

 The day after that celebration of shellfish and ouzo we were up at 6am  to catch the 8am catamaran to Athens.  It was a freezing morning and I was glad to walk up the gangplank into the warm lounge of the high speed catamaran.  I haven't travelled on one of these for years.  I loved the trip.  It was quiet onboard, the seats were wide and comfy and the sea was smooth.  I had a seat beside a large window and enjoyed the sights.  Small rocky islets came into view, then the islands of Angistri and Salamima and the backside of Aegina with its sheer cliffs, narrow enclosed bays where they met the sea. Then the container ships anchored and waiting their turn to enter the Port of Piraeus and finally the port itself with a huge cruise ship tied up to the tourist wharf and the big boats which steam overnight to Crete.  I remember them from our years living at the Navy Base on Crete though that route is now covered mainly by high speed catamaran in half the time

On entering the harbour you're greeted by this huge poster.  The man with open arms is the owner of SeaJets wishing you a Bon Voyage. Or wishing himself a good journey to the next life.  It hangs over the front of the company offices

Our mission today was to reach the Naval Hospital in central Athens without hiccups.  There is a metro station near the hospital but we haven't been on the underground for years.  There are so many new lines, stations and ticket options we were a bit wary of even finding the right entrance.  Old-er age and uncertaintity has set in.  So K found a taxi and agreed on a price for the journey.  We were slightly overcharged but it was worth it, and he knows for next time.  The taxi drove through the outskirts, into the centre around Syntagma Square, Parliament buildings and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, round a few backstreets and avoided all the congestion on the main avenues.  The taxi driver had a GPS which showed the route and traffic delays. 

K showed his ID card at the hospital Guard House and we sailed through.  I had my Naval ID card in hand too.  No problems, they didn't even look.

The orthopedic dept was busy, people everywhere, some with crutches or legs in plaster. As you would expect. 

All went well, we were called before time to see the doctor.  K had served with him at Poros Naval Base and they're old friends.  We had a box of Poros almond cakes to give to the doc to sweeten him up. No envelopes under the table here.

K severed some tendons in his shoulder 4 years ago and should have had an operation back then

But.... he thought he could sort it out with physio and painkillers.  Time does not heal tendons and now an operation is a necessity.  The pain some days is unbearable and he can't sleep at night.

He has been reassured, it will be keyhole surgery and only one night in hospital.  Should have done this years ago.

Now we wait for the call .  Could be a couple of months.  Doesn't matter.  He's on the list 

We both breathed a sigh of relief and went downstairs for a subsidised coffee and cheese pie in the canteen.  It was lovely just being somewhere different and watching a parade of people, officers in uniform, doctors in scrubs, sights we don't see on Poros.

I hadn't realised how narrow my life had become.  It was exciting seeing block after block of apartment buildings, hearing sirens and honking horns.  On our way back, once again by taxi, and 10 euros cheaper, we passed the American Embassy, The Athens Concert Hall, the marble Athenian stadium and the old Hilton building.

Apartments old and new and no place to park

I enjoyed the visit but wouldn't want to live here any more

The Kalimarmaro Stadium

Built on the site of a 4BC stadium

Restored  for the modern Olympic Games held in Athens in 1896

Shellfish and Ouzo

 It has been a busy few days.  Monday was the big day of clean eating to celebrate the beginning of Lent.  No dairy, no eggs, no meat and only seafood without blood. That meant a lot of shellfish, octopus, squid, vegetables and all sorts of lentils and other pulses.  

The most traditional food today is the lagana, flatbread, and taramasalata. That's salted fish roe mushed up with breadcrumbs, lots of oil and a bit of onion and lemon juice. 

I made some flatbread. The dough rose slowly all night in the fridge and I baked 2 loaves the next morning. 

K made the fish roe dip (taramasalata) the day before but I made my own version with half bread/half boiled potato. It comes out smoother.  Daughter Danae made some with potato too. 

Everyone devours hot lagana smothered in taramasalata. Daughter Elli brought a lagana with olives in it.  Delicious. You don't worry about cutting up the bread, just rip it apart with your hands

It was a lovely sunny day but very chilly in the shadows

Yiannis cooked the squid and cuttlefish outside.  We ate them hot from the pan

Lagana, salted vegetables, dolmathes and giant prawns. Elli brought a huge pot of macaroni with a sauce of tomatoes and shrimps. 

Yiannis also made a really great mixed salad

Danae steamed cauliflower and broccoli

K?  Oh yes, beside the taramasalata he also made a big bowl of pureed yellow lentils, called fava. 

And I almost forgot the octopus. You can't have Clean Monday without octopus.  Yiannis prepared, boiled and tossed the octopus in olive oil and vinegar. It was soft and tasty.  

That sounds like an awful lot of food.  And there were only 8 of us.  All the grandchildren were celebrating with friends either in Athens or on the island

The Patriarch awaits 

It seems to be all about food again. While traditional fare is important, and the cooking and eating, it's the comeradeship, the laughter, the togetherness with family and friends that brings the greatest enjoyment

When the sun went in we moved inside to the warmth of a roaring wood stove 

Family

And the sweets 

They're supposed to be made from semolina today, pastry, nuts and syrup. Friend Nikos knows what people really want.  A Chocolat and caramel tourta.  I had 2 pieces.  

Bravo Niko.  He brought a box of baclava as well, with those nuts and syrup.  I ate one of those too 

The finale

Dividing up the leftovers

We took enough shrimp macaroni, lagana, octopus and squid to feed us both for a couple of days

No cooking. Yeh

Kali Sarokosti

Good Lent

And it wouldn't be a party without Boem 

Long Weekend

 Yes, it's another fiesta, a long weekend, 3 days of celebration 

All of Greece is celebrating, each district, town, village in their own traditional fashion

It's the beginning of Lent tomorrow and this Saturday and Sunday everyone is out celebrating the end of Carnival....... 

Except us. 

What's going on? 

A record number of flamingos are wintering on the estuary across the Strait, round the corner and down the road

Brad Pitt is making a film on Hydra, the next island down.  

 Poros is celebrating carnival with a concert, a school parade, songs and dances. 

Not anything that excites me anymore. 

Monday is a public holiday. Called Clean Monday. The family gathers. We eat shellfish and drink ouzo. Some may fly a kite. 

I am making Lenten flatbread called lagana. The dough is ready in the fridge for a long, slow overnight rise. 

It's the beginning of the 6 weeks of Lent. 

Under Water

The sea level on the island has been rising and falling for the last 3 weeks.  This is the harbour road at its worst.  Sea water is lapping harbourside cafeterias and has risen even more since this video 

These high tides are occurring all over Greece. Some say it's because of the strong south winds or the alignment of the sun and the moon. The Mediterranean Sea doesn't have dramatic tide fluctuations . Changes in atmospheric pressure and high winds though can make a difference. 

This present phenomenon has Not been caused by climate change, they say  

However sea levels have risen 10-15cms in the last century. As sea levels rise this flooding will occur more frequently 

It has happened before and it will happen again

Gull walks on water

Boat or car parking?

This is the centre of town and the parking area is usually full of motorbikes, cars and delivery vans, not to mention pedestrians

A Venetian canal?

Instead of a gondola transport is by paddle board 

Further down the waterfront 

That's the church of the Evangelists

Fortunately, like most churches, it's protected from the flood waters 

by a flight of steps leading up to the front door

Like that gull this boat will soon be floating on land

Further out of town at Neorio the sea has surrounded this bench which is usually a metre or two inland

But that was yesterday, last night

The wind changed to strong northerlies.  In just a few hours harbourside flood waters receded 

The parking area dried up

However the sea water is coming and going

One minute it's dry my daughter says and in 10 minutes it's flooded again

We went down to shop today but kept down the other end of town where the sea hasn't yet washed over the road.  

The sea is rough today 

We are having days of sunshine followed by rain and strong winds

One Day

 I woke up this morning with a feeling of doom and gloom.  It must have just been winter blues because the day has gone quite smoothly.

Spit spit spit...... Go away dark thoughts

I talked to one of my granddaughters on the phone and saw a daughter in town with her crowd of happy coffee drinking friends.

I have every reason to be happy

This afternoon as I was returning from my daily walk my son in law Yiannis whizzed past on his bike. Another cheery greeting and a wave.  He's super fit biking up our hills and around the island. 

Yiannis wind surfing in yesterday's Saharan dust storm

There aren't many people around when I go out.  It's gets chilly early. I usually see more dogs and goats than humans. 

But this evening there were neighbours up the road clearing out a shed. We called cheery  'good evenings' and on my return another neighbour slowed down as he drove past and we exchanged a 'how's things' before each continuing on our way.

The day started with morning coffee, sitting in our lounge with the sun pouring through the big windows. 

Then it was time to get out of the house for our weekly shop. 

First stop at the bottom of the mountain were the rubbish bins to toss our rubbish and recycling.  I checked our post box which is in a bank of boxes on  the roadside there.  'Lo' my Xmas calendar from cousin Jenny in NZ had arrived.  I bet she sent it months ago.  I love the way Jenny always sends a photo too.

I must get some photos printed and send them to friends and family.  It's lovely to have an actual colour close-up to stick on the fridge. 

If I send them next month they might just arrive before next Christmas!

After the rubbish drop off we went to one of the bike hire places so K could look for a new helmet.  I go on about how peaceful and safe this island is but it's not crime free.  His helmet was stolen from the closed baggage carrier on his motor bike which was parked right outside our house. Who the hell took it??  We are both puzzled and disappointed. 

The dogs all bark when a stranger goes down our road. I often go outside and see who it is. Nosey? Yes!   Who was skulking around  and what were they looking for besides his helmet?  And oddly enough they also took the board of nails he leaves on the bike seat to deter cats. Kids?  Who knows

I'm glad we have shutters which I can shut tight. 

We went to Kostas Bike shop to look for a helmet. Kosta is a school friend of my K and his  shop is open all year round.  I left them to reminisce and wandered along the waterfront to take photos. 

On one side there were blue skies and on the other storm clouds. The storm clouds soon covered all the sky but the rain has kept away today. Tomorrow will be wet again.  We've had plenty of rain this winter. The vineyards and olive groves around us still have a lot of ground water. 

K can buy a helmet for 45 euros from Kostas. He has an old one he can wear while he decides what to do. His bike also has a flat battery. We use the car more in winter. 

On to the supermarket where I was again aware of price rises.

A good cheese from Crete or the island of Naxos can be up to 20 euros a kilo.  We only buy feta now, at around 10 euros a kilo or gouda which is even cheaper.  K is finicky where his feta is concerned.  It has to come from Kalamata (where those olives grow) or from a village up north.  They all taste the same to me.  Strong

Bread and milk prices have remained steady.  Honey has risen by a few euros.  We usually buy our honey from our little Farmer's market but use cheaper stuff for baking.  I use honey instead of molasses, treacle or golden syrup. 

I often buy supermarket brands because they're a cheaper version.   Macaroni, flour, are fine. 

 Filter coffee prices have gone up. We are only given the choice of Jacobs....or Jacobs, the most expensive on the market here.  The downside of living in a small town. 

Last stop the Allwyn shop.  All-wyn?  Who are they kidding.  This is the betting shop.  It's where we play EuroJackpot and Joker.  I checked the numbers I played a couple of weeks ago.  I often win a couple of euros.  Nothing this time.  But it's only 4 euros to play both games.  If you don't play you can't win!

I usually buy a 1 euro Scratch card too so it comes out at an even 5 euros. 

Home again

Home again, James

And don't spare the horses

As my grandmother loved to say 

Valentino is Greek

 Happy Valentines.......which all began on the slopes of Mount Lykaia (Wolf Mountain) here in Arcadia many eons ago.  The celebration took place at night and Pan joined in with his nymphs, dancing and 'frolicking' to the music of his magic flute  

Ancient Greek colonists brought the festival to the banks of the Tiber where it turned into a wild fertility festival. 

Later Christians tidied it up and turned it into a celebration of sweetness and love. 

One of the Catholic Popes decided the feast of St Valentine would be celebrated on 14th February. And then, who knows...........

The Orthodox church celebrates St Valentine in July.  He has nothing to do with love and romance or chocolate bonbons.

The mythical Greek gods and goddesses of love are Eros (Cupid) who shoots his deadly darts straight to the heart and Aphrodite, Goddess of love and beauty 

We all know what Valentines Day is today. Nothing to do with saints and everything to do with chocolates, red roses and romantic dinners.

 We shall eat leftover meat and salad. I shall buy him some galaktobouriko (cream pie in syrup) and we shall drink wine from a plastic bottle.

Saturday of  Souls

This year  the Saturday of  Souls in the Orthodox church also falls on February 14th

K has lit a candle for the repose of his dear departed and our friendly ghost Barba Lazaros. 

 

Others may be preparing koliva, funeral wheat, to be blessed or having a priest perform a memorial prayer over the family graves.  The koliva is handed out after today's church service.  It is made of boiled wheat, raisins, sugar, pomegranate seeds and nuts and is delicious. 

Happy Meat Eating Day

 Today is another big celebration all over Greece. Everywhere you go there are simple BBQs set up, clouds of heavenly smoke and the aroma of grilling lamb chops, chicken pieces, pork and sausages.  

You'll find small groups gathered round grills outside the petrol station, on the harbourside, in small alley ways, on balconies and in our back courtyard. 

Even the schools set up a bbq and hand out skewers of pork and chicken to the children. It's the middle of carnival now so all the kids will be in masquerade, throwing confetti and streamers and dashing or dancing to the carnival songs

All  that's necessary is good company, a glass of wine, a piece of meat on the end of a skewer and if you're a traditional Greek some music to sing along and do a few dance steps.   K loves to abandon the bbq and kick up his heels with an 'ooopa' and a wave of his oily rag

The boy has it all under control

Last night he made a bowl of tzatziki with enough garlic and vinegar to wrinkle your little cotton socks and put hairs on your chest

It's one of the last meat eating days before Lent.  

Cheers Bigears

We enjoyed a bottle of excellent prosecco, flavoured with lychee.  Something a little different and very pleasant

Now I'm stinking of garlic and sitting in my armchair beside the fire trying to digest the feast of meat with a glass of plain local plonk.  

Wheeere's Poppi.....and the other Grandchildren

Family Post............

My Mokapuna s

 Heeeere's Poppi

What's she up to? 

She's studying in Athens

She's a bit sad that she hasn't starred on my blog for quite some time. I promised I would let her fans know she is still rowing but she's studying hard at the esteemed Athens Gymnastic Academy 

Her syllabus includes actual hands-on athletics, everything from her rowing, soccer to dance choreography.  She also has lectures to attend and studies sport regulations, history, health, physiotherapy and a lot of complicated sport science. 

This is the way a true athlete studies. 

There's no time-out

Coffee time is study time too

The café here she says is actually a flower shop, and study hang-out

Poppi is not my only granddaughter

Though I can't say I blame you for thinking so

Oooooof the suitcase is finally packed AND closed

Luli is finishing high school and will be in Athens for higher studies next year

In their final year at Lykeio (High School) the kids go on a 5 day 'educational' trip

Her class went up to Thessaloniki, the northern capitol of Greece

It's an all day bus trip up North.

That didn't tire them of course

They all went bowling later

The class visits museums and historical sites during the day and enjoy a 'lively' nightlife 

 

These school trips can be wild

Ask the grandsons George and Jamie

I don't think they slept for the whole 5 days

Partying continued all night in their hotel rooms

George went to Crete for his 5-dayer

and 

Jamie also went to Thessaloniki

Poppi went to Yiannina, a city near the Albanian border. It's beside Lake  Pamvotida where she's often gone for rowing competitions

Poor Nels missed out altogether because her graduation was during the first covid lockdown

My girls, Elli and Danae,  went to Rhodes and Crete

There are hotels which give the schools special packages 

The kids spend months organising transport and hotels and raise money by selling raffle tickets, organising parties and luncheons and soliciting donations from the islands businesses and municipality 

There are usually a couple of  schools at each hotel.  Must be bedlam for the staff

The aftermath 

Luli caught the flu, along with a dozen of the other kids that were on the bus

 That nasty one called Influenza A

She didn't/ couldn't eat anything but Nana's brownies

Then her mother caught the bug and then her father

So I made another batch of brownies

And left them on the steps

I didn't dare get any closer

They wanted Weetabix too but I searched and there are none on the island

The brownies recipe is one I used to make with Luli many years ago when I babysitted her. They often came out too cakey.

  It's difficult achieving that gooey brownie-ness.  I googled and followed the tips. 

The eggs need a really good beating  

Don't over mix

Don't over cook

A packet of chocolate drops or 

A few spoons of nutella lifts them up to another level 

But

Back to Poppi

She's the Brownie Queen 

Her recipe takes 2 days to make and it's worth waiting for. However I don't have her recipe. If I'm going to make Brownies, I want to eat them today. Right Now

Luli's back at school now.  She has extra lessons on key subjects and will be swatting hard till her University Entrance exams in June

Nels, Luli, Poppi

My three girls

My 2 boys

George and Jamie