Starting out on our World trip – the first few days:
Introduction
“Travellers Tales” takes us on the journey around the world that Lida and I took in 2016, and the follow up to it India in 2018.
Our trip started in Skiathos, then Athens, London, San Francisco, Hawaii, NZ ,OZ, Malaysia, London, Bath, Athens, and finally Skiathos again.
The “World Trip” was to see and stay with friends that we had made in Skiathos, but who had subsequently left. We sent out emails saying things like, “You remember 30 years ago, you mentioned that, if we were passing by, to drop in? Well, we are passing by!”
We had some wonderful times reconnecting with all those friends. We saw beautiful landscapes, amazing sunsets, ate delicious food, and met people from all walks of life.
Our trip to India 2 years later was also an eye opener.
We had some incredible times, and met people and cultures that were so different from our own.
However, wherever we go, when we return, we say. “Ah, Skiathos!” It has everything that the world has to offer, just in miniature.
Starting out
Friday 15th Jan.
Desperate last minute packing, emails and property things. We are getting there …. we think. Arrived in Athens, usual traffic jam getting to Paleo Psichiko to Panos and Cori’s, but we are now enjoying a glass of wine (Lida’s happy!). It turned out to be Panos’ birthday, so we were treated to an excellent roast chicken dinner – scrumptious. We met their friend Anna, who is Greek American and works in tourism, so of course we suggested that she looks at our site http://www.zorbathes.com and/or comes for visit to Zorbathes. Late (for me) to bed at 23:00 and I’m up and about now, looking forward to another day in Athens.
Athens 1
16th January
Rain! I hope it is raining in Skiathos. We desperately need it after almost 3 months of warm, sunny weather. I know, I know, only a farmer would complain! —- It’s stopped now, just really strong winds from the South.
Went to the tsipourathika, where Mara’s previous Greek boyfriend, Arkileus, sometimes works, with Panos and Cori and ate lots of fish and shrimps. Now waiting for Arkileus to pick us up for a coffee. The consumption has begun!!! The downward spiral has gotten steeper :o(
Had a really nice meeting with Arkileus at a nearby cafe, caught up with all his news, and told him all of ours. We told him how Miou, his former cat was doing, and we all agreed that he was an outstanding animal! Life is not easy for a thirty something year old in Athens, (Arkileus, that is, not the cat) but he is doing reasonably well all the economic conditions considered. He still works 5 days a week in the ouzeri and gets a fair wage plus good tips. But to make ends meet, he and his sister still live with their parents, and share the cost of paying the mortgage for the communal house. He promised to try to come to Skiathos this summer. We’ll see. If everyone arrives who we are likely to meet (and invite) on this trip, we are going to be inundated!
Athens 2
17th January
We had a lazy morning with me doing Internet stuff and Lida struggling with the intricacies of her iPad. She couldn’t log in to Instagram and was spitting fire. It’s usually good to be doing something else at that point. Sort of on the principle of, “Jesus is coming, look busy”.
The monument of Philopapou.
We went downtown by Metro – we only pay half price crumbly tickets now :o) – to take one of our favourite walks around the bottom of the Acropolis and up to Philopapou Hill, which is one of the three high points which surround the Acropolis.
We walked from there to the “Stegi tou Ilia”, which is a lovely funky taverna near Thision Metro Station. It has around 25+ tables and serves a few different salads, but the main course is only lamb chops, which you order by weight. A half kilo was plenty for us both, with some boiled wild greens to counteract the grease, and washed down well by a half kilo of good house wine. There are only Greeks there as it is still one of the undiscovered places of Athens (but now I’ve blown it!), and you can imagine the noise as 60+ Greeks shout at each other. Wonderful!
We arrived back home to be threatened by Panos with a curry for supper. Panos is one of those annoying Greeks (actually half American) who says he has been everywhere, has done most things, and to to top it off, says he is a good cook too. The problem is that he has been most places, does know a huge amount and, as I can testify, is a great cook. Damn, you can’t win ’em all, surely! His lady, Cori, is simply just one of the nicest people we know. So he has that too!! Rats!
I’ll let you know about the curry later.
Aaaahhhh! The curry was truly delicious!
Flights of fancy
Monday 18th January
Off to Windsor today, flying with BA (but not on the Concorde alas). Years (many years!) ago, when I was working on Heathrow Airport, the first Concorde came in to land. The whole airport stopped working and went out on to the tarmac to see it. It was probably one of the most beautiful pieces of kit anyone had ever seen up to that point. I never flew in it, but have been told that it was noisy, stinky and cramped. However, it still looked beautiful!
Flying now has become as mundane as catching a bus, the only exciting thing is being groped up by the security officials! Still, somehow, it is magical that A, you can be transported so far, so fast, and B, that these huge lumps of metal and carbon, packed to the gunnels with people (sardines come to mind), can ever get into the air at all.
Our trip (Skiathos, Athens, London, San Francisco, Hawaii, NZ ,OZ, Malaysia, London, Bath, Athens, and finally Skiathos again) is going to involve a lot of flying, and a lot of hanging about in airports, which is the downside of the ability to go almost anywhere, any time. Lida and I are fairly good at keeping each other entertained, and I love people watching, so it’s not going to be too bad. The great thing is that we are going to be greeted by friends when we arrive, some of whom we haven’t seen for over 30 years! (Did you invite them, or did I? I never thought they would turn up!!! Now what are we going to do?!).
The weather forecast for Greece is that it is going to turn cold (it has already) and rain, and possibly snow, is on its way. Time for us to be off to (sunny?) England!