Wednesday, May 25, 2005
Greek Isles
Aegean Thesaurus were highly successful in putting us in the most spectacular hotels. In Rhodes the hotel was built into the city walls - small - we almost had to take turns in getting off the bed to dress, but the ambiance was great. In Heraklion, Chania and on Milos our rooms overlooked the harbor; on Santorini our balcony had a view of the caldera and the volcano island and on Sifnos the Windmill Bella Vista had the view of Kastro, the old city way below and half a dozen of the Cycladic islands that other tourists were climbing to see.
RHODES
The town of Rhodes is the largest inhabited medieval town and we were constantly getting lost in the narrow alleys but found if we kept walking eventually they would wind around to where we really wanted to be. It was our first experience of the multitude of cats in Greece. There are post cards celebrating them and one of our landlords confided, after the sixth ouzo, that when he was in Tunisia he asked them if they ate cats because he could not understand why there were none around. We walked the crusader walls, the crusader moat and tried to find every crusader inn around. A local bus took us to Lindos farther down the coast where the acropolis has Greek, Roman and Byzantine ruins and there as in every place after three weeks, we were still exclaiming over the unbelievable view of cliffs and ocean wherever we went. The food was great, Bill ate octopus, kalamari (squid) and cuttlefish and I became addicted to Pita Gyros for lunch and enjoyed lamb in every way.
Rhodes
Octopus for supper
CRETE
While in Heraklion, we took the local bus again to see Knossos. What an impressive sight and fortunately, it is early enough in the season that the number of tourists was managable. They have repainted a number of the friezes and rebuilt a lot of the palace so it meant so much more when we visited the archaeological museum in town and could see the originals. We took the bus down to Chania, where life revolves around the harbor (the cafe culture is a very social life-style) and there is a choice of wall to wall restaurants to sit and people-watch or enjoy the boats coming in. They are rebuilding the lighthouse so it is covered in scaffolding but still very picturesque. We found the Greek breakfasts so satisfying that we started having the next meal at 3 pm and cut out dinner altogether. With all the walking, we feel quite healthy.
SANTORINI
From our Balcony Villa, we could walk the rim of the caldera to reach the local town. The view along the way was quite something. Looking down at the old port where the cruise ships come in, I was glad I did not have to climb the steps. The alternative was to ride the donkeys, which I fear would have been even more vertigo-inducing. The ferry comes in at the new harbor, which has an abundance of taxis for the climb. We went on a fabulous tour, starting off at the ancient Minoan ruins, which are in the process of being covered by a protective roof and tourist-friendly walkways between the mostly intact houses. One eruption of the volcano buried the ancient town totally but they have not found any human remains yet. They think the folks had all evacuated the village and if they did not escape, would have been caught at the harbor. Then we were loaded on a wooden tall ship and cruised out to the active volcano, followed by the opportunity to swim in the hot springs at the next stop and then lunch on a third island. Those who chose, could disembark at Oia to watch the sunset, but we elected to go back to our villa as the view was the same and it did not involve a donkey ride up the cliff.
MILOS
We got very friendly with the cab drivers who took us up various Greek hills to see the sights and then we could walk back at our leisure. The site of the Venus de Milo is marked by a plaque and a few hundred meters farther on is an ancient theatre and city. The archeological museum in the capital, Plaka has some wonderful sculptures and other finds from the area. The early actors must have been particulary good to keep the audience's attention as the view from the theatre over the bay is very distracting. We planned to take a small ferry across to the tiny island of Kimolos, but as we watched it coming in to the harbor with the bow bouncing six foot above the waves in the gale, we concluded that Kimolos was probably not much different from what we could see on the main island.
SIFNOS
The islands were getting progressively smaller and Sifnos is a jewel, with every corner taken on the walks a different perspective. Bella Vista, where we were staying was well-named and the studios built around the 250-year old windmill, charming. The first evening the owner asked us over for an ouzo and three hours later we were still partaking along with cheese made by his mother, capers, picked by his niece and octopus caught on the rocks below by him and his buddies after work. Needless to say we sorted out the world's political problems with great clarity during the deep philosophical conversation. Each day, we set off in a different direction, taking the bus one way and walking the other.
Kastro from Bella Vista, Sifnos
SERIFOS
This was our last stop and the smallest island in our month. The harbor is as quaint as the others, the bread from the local bakery, delicious and the ride on the bus up to the Hora one of the most hair raising I have encountered. We spent a happy morning on the old Kastro which was destroyed by pirates in 1270 and elected to walk down the ancient path to return to our studio. I could not see any bus having efficient enough brakes to tackle that slope. The beaches on Serifos are the attraction and we walked along the headland far enough to see the transition from the family beach, to the topless to the totally nudist. I prefer the non-organic views, I think.
We leave for Athens tomorrow and then on by bus to Sofia in Bulgaria.
LS
RHODES
The town of Rhodes is the largest inhabited medieval town and we were constantly getting lost in the narrow alleys but found if we kept walking eventually they would wind around to where we really wanted to be. It was our first experience of the multitude of cats in Greece. There are post cards celebrating them and one of our landlords confided, after the sixth ouzo, that when he was in Tunisia he asked them if they ate cats because he could not understand why there were none around. We walked the crusader walls, the crusader moat and tried to find every crusader inn around. A local bus took us to Lindos farther down the coast where the acropolis has Greek, Roman and Byzantine ruins and there as in every place after three weeks, we were still exclaiming over the unbelievable view of cliffs and ocean wherever we went. The food was great, Bill ate octopus, kalamari (squid) and cuttlefish and I became addicted to Pita Gyros for lunch and enjoyed lamb in every way.
Rhodes
Octopus for supper
CRETE
While in Heraklion, we took the local bus again to see Knossos. What an impressive sight and fortunately, it is early enough in the season that the number of tourists was managable. They have repainted a number of the friezes and rebuilt a lot of the palace so it meant so much more when we visited the archaeological museum in town and could see the originals. We took the bus down to Chania, where life revolves around the harbor (the cafe culture is a very social life-style) and there is a choice of wall to wall restaurants to sit and people-watch or enjoy the boats coming in. They are rebuilding the lighthouse so it is covered in scaffolding but still very picturesque. We found the Greek breakfasts so satisfying that we started having the next meal at 3 pm and cut out dinner altogether. With all the walking, we feel quite healthy.
SANTORINI
From our Balcony Villa, we could walk the rim of the caldera to reach the local town. The view along the way was quite something. Looking down at the old port where the cruise ships come in, I was glad I did not have to climb the steps. The alternative was to ride the donkeys, which I fear would have been even more vertigo-inducing. The ferry comes in at the new harbor, which has an abundance of taxis for the climb. We went on a fabulous tour, starting off at the ancient Minoan ruins, which are in the process of being covered by a protective roof and tourist-friendly walkways between the mostly intact houses. One eruption of the volcano buried the ancient town totally but they have not found any human remains yet. They think the folks had all evacuated the village and if they did not escape, would have been caught at the harbor. Then we were loaded on a wooden tall ship and cruised out to the active volcano, followed by the opportunity to swim in the hot springs at the next stop and then lunch on a third island. Those who chose, could disembark at Oia to watch the sunset, but we elected to go back to our villa as the view was the same and it did not involve a donkey ride up the cliff.
MILOS
We got very friendly with the cab drivers who took us up various Greek hills to see the sights and then we could walk back at our leisure. The site of the Venus de Milo is marked by a plaque and a few hundred meters farther on is an ancient theatre and city. The archeological museum in the capital, Plaka has some wonderful sculptures and other finds from the area. The early actors must have been particulary good to keep the audience's attention as the view from the theatre over the bay is very distracting. We planned to take a small ferry across to the tiny island of Kimolos, but as we watched it coming in to the harbor with the bow bouncing six foot above the waves in the gale, we concluded that Kimolos was probably not much different from what we could see on the main island.
SIFNOS
The islands were getting progressively smaller and Sifnos is a jewel, with every corner taken on the walks a different perspective. Bella Vista, where we were staying was well-named and the studios built around the 250-year old windmill, charming. The first evening the owner asked us over for an ouzo and three hours later we were still partaking along with cheese made by his mother, capers, picked by his niece and octopus caught on the rocks below by him and his buddies after work. Needless to say we sorted out the world's political problems with great clarity during the deep philosophical conversation. Each day, we set off in a different direction, taking the bus one way and walking the other.
Kastro from Bella Vista, Sifnos
SERIFOS
This was our last stop and the smallest island in our month. The harbor is as quaint as the others, the bread from the local bakery, delicious and the ride on the bus up to the Hora one of the most hair raising I have encountered. We spent a happy morning on the old Kastro which was destroyed by pirates in 1270 and elected to walk down the ancient path to return to our studio. I could not see any bus having efficient enough brakes to tackle that slope. The beaches on Serifos are the attraction and we walked along the headland far enough to see the transition from the family beach, to the topless to the totally nudist. I prefer the non-organic views, I think.
We leave for Athens tomorrow and then on by bus to Sofia in Bulgaria.
LS
# posted by Bill and Lynne @ 8:28 AM 
Saturday, May 07, 2005
Suffolk in Spring
We arrived in England on April 6 and spent nearly a week with my brother, Dudley in Swanbourne. It was a treat to get to know my nephew, Andor whom I had not seen since 1987 when he was ten. Andor is the same age as young Bill and a marathon runner like my elder brother. A large part was spent on the internet checking the market and availability of accommodation in East Anglia. After renting a car we set off for Stowmarket in Suffolk and moved into a self-catering cottage in the grounds of the Mill House in the village of Hitcham. It was an idyllic place with our glass doors overlooking the mill pond complete with ducks, geese and moorhens. There were peacocks in the grounds and alpacas and emus across the fence - even a deer in the early morning checking our patio for succulent greens. Suffolk is wonderful for gentle walks - no steep or high hills and as with the whole of England, public footpaths are clearly marked and you have no worries of trespassing. We got a kick out of one stile. It had a section of wood which could be lifted for the dog to get through.
Mill House
Stile on Suffolk footpath
We have discovered that internet cafes are non-existent in Suffolk and the library computers are in heavy demand and inclined to be unstable on the Vanderbilt website when we were checking our e-mails. We ended up driving into Ipswich and using the computers in the local game store surrounded by excited teenagers playing endless loud games with much shouting and hand slapping. It made organizing our flights to the Greek Isles and Malta a challenge.
For the second two weeks we moved to Deben Lodge, a 1,200 acre farm near Felixstowe. We had a view of the sails of the boats on the Deben River across the fields of rape and wheat and more great walks down country lanes and around fascinating villages. Churches in Suffolk are huge and old and so much dates from Saxon times. We shall definitely return after our coach trip to Eastern Europe.
View of Deben River from our cottage
We had lunch with our birdist friends from the Galapagos and also with our two fellow voyagers from around Cape Horn. The Custersons live in Cambridge and we were delighted to visit old haunts from our ten month stay there in 1974. There has been so much construction since then that we were mortified to find we did not feel as familiar with the town as we expected and hope it was because of the new buildings and not thirty years of senility. It was a relief to manage to get to Kings College where Lynne worked in the library and then the Sedgwick Museum where Bill did his research. The Pownalls live in Wharf House in Bure St Mary's and gave us a real taste for village life and the charm of a beautiful home and garden. We hope we can find a humble cottage in a similar village setting when we get back in July.
LS
Mill House
Stile on Suffolk footpath
We have discovered that internet cafes are non-existent in Suffolk and the library computers are in heavy demand and inclined to be unstable on the Vanderbilt website when we were checking our e-mails. We ended up driving into Ipswich and using the computers in the local game store surrounded by excited teenagers playing endless loud games with much shouting and hand slapping. It made organizing our flights to the Greek Isles and Malta a challenge.
For the second two weeks we moved to Deben Lodge, a 1,200 acre farm near Felixstowe. We had a view of the sails of the boats on the Deben River across the fields of rape and wheat and more great walks down country lanes and around fascinating villages. Churches in Suffolk are huge and old and so much dates from Saxon times. We shall definitely return after our coach trip to Eastern Europe.
View of Deben River from our cottage
We had lunch with our birdist friends from the Galapagos and also with our two fellow voyagers from around Cape Horn. The Custersons live in Cambridge and we were delighted to visit old haunts from our ten month stay there in 1974. There has been so much construction since then that we were mortified to find we did not feel as familiar with the town as we expected and hope it was because of the new buildings and not thirty years of senility. It was a relief to manage to get to Kings College where Lynne worked in the library and then the Sedgwick Museum where Bill did his research. The Pownalls live in Wharf House in Bure St Mary's and gave us a real taste for village life and the charm of a beautiful home and garden. We hope we can find a humble cottage in a similar village setting when we get back in July.
LS
# posted by Bill and Lynne @ 10:44 PM
