Travel – Page 94

Crete – Iraklios: Arrival, The Galaxy Hotel, and dinner at Pantopoleion (aka, it’s all Greek to me…)

April 10, 2012 mmm-yoso Cheese, Crete, Greece, Greek Food, Iraklios, Memorable Meals, Travel

We arrived at the Nikos Kazantzakis (whose book I'm sure you've heard of) International Airport ready to go. The airport was indeed fairly small for an international airport. We made our way out of the airport and caught public bus #1 asking the driver to drop us at the stop near Dimokratias Avenue. The hotel we were staying at was outside the city walls, but Iraklios didn't seem like that large a city and we were a bit away from the main tourist tract. Many of the signs were just in Greek (ελληνικά) so we were a little confused. I stopped and asked the very tall soldier with the big gun (there were a couple of riots recently) and he smiled and pointed us on our way. By its looks the Iraklios Galaxy looks like a business hotel, but the room were probably the most modern of our entire trip, most unlike the B&B stops we had. It was fairly large, had great A/C, the television actually worked and had the BBC….and the Missus loved the breakfast (more on that later).

Several of the staff here were very nice and we depended on their recommendations for two of the best meals we had on this trip.

Staying the in nice air-conditioned comfort of our room was tempting, but hey, we were in Crete! So after freshening up we headed down the road parallel to Dimokratias, Ethniki Antistaseos past the McDonald's (this will be important in a later post), down to the harbor and past Bus Station A, which is where we'd have to catch our bus to Chania in a couple of days, all the way to the Old (Venetian) Harbour.

Which leads to the Koules Venetian Fortress which was called "Rocca al Mare" or Sea Fortress by the Venetians.

I've read both that the fortress held out for over 20 years of attacks by the Ottomans and that it played little or no role in the invasion. Which is true, I'm not sure. But under Ottoman rule it became a prison.

Under the influence of the blue sky and ocean I guess it's pretty easy to get in touch with your inner child….or perhaps the sun was getting to the Missus……

By this point we'd made it down the shoreline to the Historical Museum of Crete.

The Museum is small but interesting. It also has the famous painting Modena Triptych by El Greco who was born Doménikos Theotokópoulos in Crete. I also loved all the different Coat of Arms of the Venetian and Greek aristocracy in first Chandax, it's name during the Byzantine Greek era, then Candia when it was bought by the Republic of Venice.

After being refreshed by our visit in the cool confines of the museum we headed back out. The Missus was searching for the Morosini Fountain in Lion's Square which was built in 1628. We headed in the general direction of the center of the walled portion of the city, up streets, then back down street, sometimes turning around at dead ends….part of the fun is the trip, not necessarily the destination. And in this was certainly true in this case as the fountain itself was a bit underwhelming for us.

Just off to the side of the fountain is 1866 Street, named after the year of the famous Cretan uprising against the Ottomans. The narrow pedestrian street that is the site of the Central Market. There are tons of stands, restaurants, and shops along the street. This is where I got my first glance of the famous Cretan snails which was supposed to be delicious.

Eventually we turned around and headed back toward the hotel, cutting right through the middle of town and out through the city walls. Back at the hotel we asked the really nice gentleman at the front desk for a recommendation for dinner. He recommended a place called Pantopoleion, where he oftens dines after work.

The name was said to mean "Market of good tastes" or something like that and we were told it was right down Ethniki Antistaseos, the street we had walked down in the morning. However, I could not, for the life of me, find the place. Until the Missus saw a sign that said "ΠΑΝΤΟΠΩΛΕΙΟΝ", and told me, this must be the place. Now how the heck She got Pantopoleion from that I'll never know, but we found that She had a knack for reading street and business signs. And She was without a doubt right in this case.

You want to eat at a popular restaurant in Greece? Go around opening time and there won't be a soul in the place, as was our experience here. Of course, the Missus immediately ordered some house red wine.

Our next challenge was when we were handed our menus. This was indeed more of a locals place….the entire menu was in Greek….with no translations! This was really funny….it really was "all Greek to me!" Lucky for us, the young lady serving us, whose name was I believe "Helene" was so funny, good natured, and full of pep, decided that to get maximum enjoyment, she would read and describe the entire menu to us…all four pages, well three minus drinks! And so she started with an "ok lets go…." Laughing all the way, we asked her to stop and with a few hints, asked her to order for us and she proceeded to bring us what was probably one of our top three meals on this trip.

Of course everything started with bread…..

The Missus had already fallen in love with "rusk" the twice baked bread that is very crisp and toast like.

Helene arrived with a sampling of cheese she selected for us.

The two thin slices on the top were just plain fantastic, intensely flavored, just plainly great. When we mentioned this, Helene beamed and told us that this cheese isn't on the menu. It's a local artisan cheese that they use in another dish she ordered for us, but it's flavor is so unique she decided we should taste it.

The roasted vegetables with fresh tomatoes and goat cheese was quite delicious…this is where the Missus started eating roasted vegetables every couple of weeks.

The least favorite dish of the evening were the stuffed mushrooms.

Stuffed with something that tasted like panchetta, these weren't bad, but paled in comparison to this:

Horta is what the Greeks call wild greens and there are literally hundreds of varieties. We'd come to really enjoy simple Horta Vrasta, simple boiled wild greens, never knowing exactly what we'd get, but tasty all the time. Funny that the first taste of horta would be in the form of very tasty fritters paired with goat cheese.

But my favorite dish of the night was the pork chop stuffed with the cheese we'd tasted on the cheese plate and sun dried tomatoes.

This was so tasty and as far form the "other white meat" as you can get. It had that great pork flavor and the flesh near the bone was barely opaque, as it was moist and cooked to perfection. Even the Missus, who had sworn off pork ages ago couldn't help but have a couple of slices and gnaw on that done. It was one of most memorable dishes.

It was a fantastic dinner, thanks to this young lady:

We would come to love the traditional digestif that accompanies dessert (usually free) which is normally a cheese pie. It's called Raki, the stuff "that makes you dance on the tables if you drank enough". Made from grape skins, it has a nice bite, but goes so well with sweet-creamy-mildly savory items. Usually something like this would KO the Missus….but for some reason, having all that wine, then finishing with Raki never touched Her in Greece.

As we were leaving Helene gave me a copy of the menu……the all Greek menu that we could keep "to remember".

Pantopolian Gefseon (ΠΑΝΤΟΠΩΛΕΙΟΝ ΓΕΥΣΕΩΝ)
Ethniki Antistaseos 72
Heraklion, Greece

We had spoken about returning for dinner the next night, but were told that they were closed on Tuesdays. I'll make sure to drop by if I'm ever back here…….

After doing some post-dinner walking we returned to our room. As I looked out onto busy Dimokratias from our balcony, I thought to myself, "man do I love Crete……"

Thanks for reading!

Greece: Meteora – The Holy Monastery of Saint Stephen, Holy Monastery of Roussanou (St Barbara), and lunch at Estiatorio Meteora (Kalambaka)

April 6, 2012 mmm-yoso Greece, Greek Food, Travel

In spite of a terrible tourist buffet dinner at the hotel, the Missus and I slept quite well. The rain had really cooled things down and the previous day had really been long…….sitting in a bus for six-seven hours just isn't our thing. But here we were, the Missus had always wanted to visit the Eastern Orthodox Monasteries perched on sandstone pinnacles (Meteora literally means "suspended in air"). Even the rain didn't dampen Her spirits….She was ready to go. We did wake hungry, of course this was the same type buffet type affair of that dinner was, so we kept it simple and didn't eat much. I'd always thought that you couldn't get terrible goat cheese in Greece….but this meal proved me wrong.

Of course, our first stop was to a bit of business……

No hard sell at this shop of religious icons. I was entertained by the dog out front who just loved any and all attention……..she would come up to someone and just roll over begging to be rubbed. She was adorable.

You might recognize the structure in this photo at one of our first stops. Especially if you're a James Bond fan. This is the Monastery of the Holy Trinity.

Quite dramatic, even on a cloudy drizzly day, huh? It was said to have been established around 1438, but there are manuscripts indicating that men were living the monastic life here in 1362. The main church was built in 1475.

I think it deserves another photo……

Our first stop was at the Holy Monastery of Saint Stephen, whose existence dates back to 1192, but was officially built in 1545. It's now the Holy Nunnery of Saint Stephen…and we were told, I'm not sure if it's true, but apparently a while back a Canadian tourist came to visit and she was so taken and inspired by the place that she became a nun!

There is a museum on site and the icons and artwork is absolutely stunning. We respected the request of no photos, so you'll just have to visit and see for yourself.

We were told that the skull of Saint Charalambos is kept at this monastery and still works miracles to this day!

During the German occupation, the monastery was bombed and damaged. The Nazis believed that the monastery was harboring resistance fighters.

The view from here is amazing…….

What interesting is that this monastery is only one that doesn't reside on a peak.

If you're wondering what all those folks are taking photos of, it's this…….

There's beauty everywhere…….

The bus picked us up then dropped us off a bit further down the road. From that spot we'd walk down a path to our next stop. But not without taking one more photo of Saint Stephen.

It was a nice walk and we got glimpses of some of the other monasteries. I believe this one is the Holy Monastery of Varlaam.

At the gates of our next stop, the Holy Monastery of Roussanou, this little fellow was waiting for his master. He was so well behaved.

This monastery is also known as the Holy Monastery of Saint Barbara, who is the patron saint of artillerymen! This nunnery is dedicated to the transfiguration, one of the miracles of Jesus and takes up the entire peak…which really ain't that big.

You walk up some stairs……

And across a walkway, which used to be a drawbridge. We saw the ancient pulleys and cranks that were used ot retract the old bridge to keep the occupants safe. In fact, we were told that before the advent of roads, the only way one could make it up to many of the monasteries were by net. You were cranked up or down the peak. Man, talk about isolation and asceticism!

The nuns have a little shop where we bought some olive oil soap and other stuff.

One thing I forgot to mentioned was the rules of modesty. Everyone, including men need to have their knees covered. Women need to wear long skirts. The Missus had some slacks on so She had to go with one of the "one-size-fits-all-wrap around skirt" thingys at each stop. They really are one size fits all; She had to wrap it around Her four times!

After spending a bit of time here, we walked a bit further down and met our bus. We stopped one more time at the site of some abandoned monasteries. Apparently there were a great number here, but only six survive to this day. If you closely to this photo, you can see one of the defunct locations on the right side of this peak.

That town you saw in one of the photos above is Kalambaka the closest town to the monasteries. So of course we stopped there for lunch. Based on the previous night's dinner and this morning's breakfast I had my doubts about what we'd be having. But it turned out to be not bad.

The place we ate as was Estiatorio Meteora. Here you walk into the kitchen and get a choice of two veg and a protein. You pick what you want from the pots lined up for you.

Drinks are extra….but hey, this was Greece and the Missus just needed Her red wine.

The food is hearty, stick-to-your-rib stuff that will keep you going for a while. It was nothing particularly memorable, but after what we had previously, this was a feast.

We finished lunch (and the wine) pretty quickly, which left us with some time to explore the town. I swear this was a Chinese restaurant….but I found out that many tailors and retail clothes shops had Chinese lanterns in front of them in Greece.

What really stood out was how the presence of Meteora loomed over everything in the city.

For some reason, the ride back to Athens didn't seem quite as long. Though we were pretty tired by the time we got back to our hotel. Our dinner was at a nearby diner/restaurant which was totally forgettable. What we did remember was that we needed to catch the 5am bus to the sirport and our next stop, Crete, where we'd have the best meals of the entire trip.

The Missus really enjoyed Meteora. It gave Her a glimpse into a different time…..a totally different world.

Thanks for reading!

Oh, and please read fellow San Diego Food Blogger Little Miss Contrary's posts on Meteora and Greece.

Greece: Delphi and the Leonidas Monument at the site of The Battle of Thermopylae

March 30, 2012 mmm-yoso Greece, Greek Food, Travel

*** Not much food in this one. you can come back tomorrow and hopefully I'll have somthing a bit more delicious for you…..

The Missus really wanted to get to Meteora during our trip to Greece, but there seemed to be only a short two day window to fit a trip. The only way we could make it was to take a bus tour…..as you probably know by now, this really isn't our preferred way of getting to places, but sometimes you just can't avoid it. Which is how we ended up on a pretty long bus ride……for some reason, we find this more exhausting than say…..hiking the Great Wall from Jinshalang to Simitai. The sitting just sucks the energy out of us.

Anyway, we ended up with quite an animated guide….who loved to weave stories and seemed truly excited when we stopped at the site of Delphi, probably most famous for being the home of the Pythia, the priestess of the oracle of Delphi, whose translated prophecies held great power. Of course, there are those in modern times who think it was just, well "gas".

The site itself is quite beautiful as it is located in the mountains.

Delphi was also well known for several other reasons. When the oracles of Delphi were credited with providing advice key to the victory of the Battle of Marathon, the spoils were supposedly used to create the Athenian Treasury, one of the few restored buildings on the site.

The Theatre of Delphi, while not as grand as the one at Ephesus, is still impressive. It could hold up to 5,000 people in its 36 rows and provides a wonderful view.

If you look past the theatre you'll see the ruins of the Temple of Apollo.

It must have been quite a building in its day……

For me, the most interesting structure was up the hill from the theatre…..

Around the 6th century BC, Delphi held the Pythian Games every four years, between the Olympic Games. Athletes from all over Greece competed in a number of events. Up that hill is the stadium, a long (about 550 ft) and fairly narrow (about 84 feet) track.

The stadium could seat up to 6500 spectators.

In Greek Mythology it is said that Zeus sent out two eagles in opposite direction around the earth. Where the eagles met was deemed the "navel of the world", the center of the world…Delphi.

It's quite a sight and a worthwhile stop…..

We made our way down from the mountains and onward toward the plains of Thessaly, man the ride was getting me sleepy. Eventually we stopped on what seemed like a parking lot right off the main road. Right next to the parking lot was this monument:

This roadside stop was home to the monument to Leonidas the King of Sparta. Now does that sound familiar to you? Perhaps you've heard of him…..maybe from the movie 300. Indeed, the Battle of Thermopylae occured just a short distance away.

Looking at the topography changed by land reclamation projects and silt, it's hard to imagine what took place here 2500 years ago.

I'm thinking after the movie, most folks know about the 300 Spartans. But this monument to the side of Leonidas's also adds to the story.

It's a monument to the 700 Thespians who died alongside the Spartans in battle.

After a while, the boredom of the bus ride just seemed to be sapping all the energy out of us. Rain had started falling, which left me wondering how manageable the next day's visit to Meteora was going to be. We eventually stopped at our hotel for the night….which was a massive resort-like complex in the middle of nowhere………

The rooms were nice, but as we figured, dinner was a buffet style chafing dish affair where everyone ate in assigned "shifts".

We actually walked out to the road to see if there was a way we'd be able to avoid this….but it was raining and there was nothing for miles…..

And as brutal as the bus ride seemed, the food was its equal.

Things could be worse…….it could be baloney sandwiches. At least it was sustenance and we knew there'd be another busy day ahead.

Lana’i: Lana’i City Grille and the Lana’i Heritage and Cultural Center

March 28, 2012 mmm-yoso Asian Fusion/Pacific Rim/Hawaii Style Fusion, Hawaiian Food, Lanai, Travel

Because we were staying at the Hotel Lana'i, it only made sense that we had dinner at the Lana'i City Grille, since it's located in the Hotel Lana'i.

After all, the restaurant's menu is designed by Beverly Gannon, one of the 12 original members of the Hawaii Regional Cuisine Movement. I'd missed out eating at the Haliimaile General Store a couple of years ago, so this was about as close as I'd get for a while……

The dining area has a nice relaxed and warm feel…

Sorry to say, that photo was taken the next morning……the following photos just don't do the food justice, mainly because it was so darned dark in the room during dinner. Also, I'm pretty discrete, in other words no giant DSLR and especially no flash. I really don't like the attention…..

Anyway, the dishes seemed a bit heavy, so we went with just entrees, which turned out to be a good move. The Missus went with the Pecan Crusted Catch of the Day ($34) which was Ono, served with chorizo mashed potatoes and a chipotle honey butter sauce.

The fish was dry and overcooked, the pecan crust under seasoned and bland. We really enjoyed the mashed potatoes, which were smooth, but not too creamy. The spices of the chorizo came through as the the sauce balanced out the spiciness with a touch of sweetness.

I ordered the Pan Roasted Venison Loin ($38).

The venison was cooked perfectly, it was a loin cut which meant that we were talking about a lean cut of already lean venison. Yet this was toothsome, but not tough. Loved the venison flavor as did the Missus. We were worried that the fruit compote would kill the dish with sweetness, but unlike that now defunct San Diego restaurant that used to dump so much fruit on protein it looked like a fruit cocktail, the stewed fruit appropriately complemented the gamey venison. The mushroom risotto had more than a few hard grains, it was obviously cooked ahead and heated to order. The flavor was very mild and the Missus didn't care for it. Of course, before we left on the trip, I'd been making mushroom risotto just about every week at home. In other words, there wasn't any porcini in this……

Overall, this was a good meal, but nothing particularly outstanding. Our favorite part of the evening was when we got around to chatting with our server, who had a distinct Eastern European accent. We found out that she was from Poland! So how did a young woman from Poland end up working at the Lana'i City Grille? It turns out she came to visit some friends working at the resorts…and ended up staying! As often happens, the food is important, but it's the people and their stories that make the moment. We talked about the very small town/small island life, which is not for everyone, to which she lent insight…"we usually go camping or hiking on our day off….and there's the ferry to Maui. You would not believe how fantastic Costco sounds when you've been here for a while!" She actually made our night…….

Lana'i City Grille located in the Hotel Lana'i
Open Wed – Sun 5pm – 9pm

One morning, while the Missus was taking a nap, I walked over to the old Dole Administration Building. The Lana'i Cultural and Heritage Center is now located in the building.

There's no entrance fee, but donations are welcome. The little two room display area show photos and artifacts in a timeline fashion form the days of the original inhabitants to now. The young woman here was very friendly and took time out to chat with me….she also knew my family as well.

I'm old enough to remember using some of the items in displays….which I guess makes me sort of an artifact as well?

I found this aerial photo of Lana'i taken in 1929 to be very fascinating. Even though the now tall pine trees look like, and were tiny plants, you can still make out what today's Lana'i City still looks like.

What was even more funny is that I saw a photo of my Aunt and Uncle posted on one wall!

Love this sign……..actually I believe it used to be posted on the way to Lana'i City from the airport.

Athens: A little self catering

March 23, 2012 mmm-yoso Athens, Greece, Greek Food, Markets & Grocers, Travel

We headed back to our room after a pretty long day, starting with the Acropolis, down to the Ancient Angora, up to the Central Market, back to Syntagma Square and the changing of the guard. It was time to head back. We did take a short break at Hadrian's Arch, built by the Emperor Hadrian in 131 AD. It is said that the arch marked the dividing line between the old city and the new city of Athens. Just a handful of yards away stands the Temple of Olympian Zeus. Work on the temple was started in the 6th century BC, but not completed until the reign of Hadrian. It was built to be the greatest temple Greece, but was pillaged by the Romans in the 3rd century AD. Eventually, much of the temple was removed to be used for construction elsewhere.

By this time, I'd pretty much had my fill of ruins and temples. Walking back up the hill to our hotel, we ran smack dab into the farmer's market that was just getting started when we left in the morning.

This was how it looked in the morning…….

Right now it was going full blast……..

It had been a pretty long day and we didn't feel like heading off into the mass of humanity that is the Plaka, so we decided to self cater. Hotel Tony had a small kitchenette stocked with plates and utensils. We first headed down a couple blocks and went to the market. We bought some cheese and a bottle of wine.

While the really nice fellow behind the counter fed the Missus samples, I had a look around. I even noticed Soy Sauce being sold. Having picked out what we needed we headed back up to the now dwindling mass of humanity and started browsing.

Of course olives were on our list and this stand had a great selection.

We went through all the booths of tomatoes and found some really ripe ones and some great cucumber as well. No stove so their wouldn't be any cooking going on, though that's not to say I wasn't sorely tempted…..

While the Missus freshened up, I popped open the bottle of wine and set the table. You see, the other thing great about this room at Hotel Tony was the little balcony.

Dinner was perfect for relaxing at the end of a somewhat busy day. It gave the Missus and I time to reflect on our day and plan what was coming up next.

As I watched folks going about their daily routine, getting home form work or taking the dog out for a walk, I was reminded of something that I always mention to folks…… we are more alike than different.

I also reflected on the fact that here I was…in Athens…..over 2000 miles from my home in San Diego, sipping wine on a balcony watching a young woman walking a dog. How did some poor kid from Hawaii ever manage to get here? I have really been lucky……

Of course, I didn't have too much time to dwell on the subject…..I was dog tired.

We'd be having a long day again tomorrow….maybe not physically…..we were headed to Delphi and Meteora in the morning.

Thanks for reading!

Breakfast of Champions: Lana’i Edition Part 2 – Blue Ginger Restaurant, Manele Bay Resort, Hulopo’e Beach, and the Puupehe Rock

March 22, 2012 mmm-yoso Breakfast/Brunch, Lanai, Travel

The Missus must have felt really comfortable at the Hotel Lana'i. As usual I got up pretty early….She was still counting, sheep, or maybe opihi…. I decided to walk down and grab a bite to eat. Having another meal at Canoe's sounded tempting, but I decided to walk a few more feet, right next door actually and grab a bite at Blue Ginger. There were a lot of old timers hanging out in front drinking coffee. I went to the counter and ordered a "regular breakfast" which consists of your choice of protein (Portuguese Sausage of course), two eggs (over easy), fried rice, and toast. I grabbed a cup of coffee (serve yourself) took a seat at one of the tables adorned with blue vinyl checkerboard tablecloths, and took a look around. I recall someone telling me this used to be the dry cleaners and looking at the pipe fittings hanging from ceiling, I'm thinking they were right.

I quickly figured out why this place was popular with the old-timers. The coffee was serve yourself, the cups were quite large, and you can just keep your caffeine buzz going….

My breakfast was not quite as good as what I had the previous morning. The sausage and eggs were good, but the fried rice was a bit too mushy for me and the toast was loaded with margarine.

As I walked back to our cottage I noticed an interesting vehicle in the parking lot.

Hmmmmm…..

I hung out and watched the TV until the Missus woke. She, of course, instantly wanted to head back to Hulopo'e Beach…of course. But first She needed Her caffeine fix, so we headed down the hill and got a cup of coffee for Her. Wouldn't you know it….as we headed back up Seventh Street, we saw one of the shuttles driving up to the front of Hotel Lana'i. The Missus determined not to miss a single moment of beach time decided to run up the hill to the shuttle. Of course, She first handed me Her scalding hot cup of coffee yelling at me to hurry up as She took off up the hill. Somehow, my stumbling attracted a dog who decided it would be great fun chasing me nipping at my heels. So there I was looking like some pupule (crazy) tourist being chased up the hill by a dog spilling hot coffee all over himself….only to find that the shuttle we were chasing was the one to the airport. The other folks waiting around for the shuttle to Manele were treated to a bit of morning slap-stick courtesy of your truly and his first degree burns.

Now the last time I was in Lana'i the resort at Manele Bay wasn't open yet. So I was interested to see what it looked like. The shuttle drops you off right in front of the hotel and you walk through the lobby and down the trail to the beach. Unlike many other resorts, you're not bothered much at all…in fact the staff was giving us water and even asked us if we needed towels? Well, there are only the two big resorts and the Hotel Lana'i on the island, so I guess they figure you must be staying at one of them……

The lobby of the hotel is beautiful with a strong Asian theme.

There's a sense of quiet and exclusivity on mst of the hotel grounds. The Manale Bay Resport only has 236 rooms so things really don't seem very crowded.

I'm wondering what the staff to customer ratio is……as there seemed to be quite a few people working.

Here's a view of the pool area and Hulopo'e Bay below…….

To get to the beach, you simply walk past the pool and head down the trail past the foundations of a old fishing village…..

I tell folks I know who are going to Lana'i to "look out for all the turkeys." They think I'm joking, but there are folks of wild Rio Grande Turkeys flourishing on Lana'i. I've heard they have to be brined before cooking because they've learned to catch and eat crab and other crustaceans and there's no real above ground freshwater source on Lana'i so they drink brackish water making the meat fairly funky. Sorry to say I've never had it….though I did taste wild venison from Lana'i years ago. Still, it's quite a sight seeing flocks of wild turkey roaming the golf courses…more on that later.

As I mentioned before, the beach here is lovely and the Missus loved it.

After swimming I took Her past the camping area to the tide pools, which are great fun. There's even a stairway built going down to the tide pools.

Hike a bit further up the dirt path and you'll see one of Lana'i's landmarks, the Puupehe rock, also known as the Sweetheart Rock and the Tomb of Puupehe.

Several variations of the story exist, but the gist of it is the same. A young warrior from Lana'i fell in love with a beautiful girl from Maui. He was so jealous and afraid he would lose her that he hid her away in a sea cave near the rock. One day, the weather turned bad, he rushed back to the cave to find she had drowned. He managed to retrieve her body, and with the help of the gods scaled the rock carrying the body of the woman. When he reached the summit, he buried her on top of the rock.

There is an actual rock structure on the top of the rock! The late Archaeologist and Anthropologist Kenneth Emory actually scaled the rock and investigated the platform. He concluded that this wasn't a tomb, but more likely a altar. Nice story though!

Athens: Diporto and the Changing of the Guard

March 17, 2012 mmm-yoso Athens, Greece, Greek Food, Travel

By the time we'd finished walking through the Central Market we were pretty hungry. Luckily, we happened to be right outside the fruit and vegetable section of the market. Here, on the corner of Theatrou and Sokratous, down these stairs and past these doors was a place I first read about on Matt Barrett's wonderful Athen's Survival Guide.

Matt calls this place the "Secret Underground Taverna", but later on, when one of the customers, a very friendly young woman originally from Athens, but now living in London, who was quite surprised seeing us eating here, told us the name of the place is Diporto. Yes, "double doors", those very doors you walk through when you enter.

There is indeed a sense of mystery as you walk down the stairs and enter what looks like a wine cellar…..

In the corner was an older gentleman moving at a steady pace preparing the various offerings for the day. This basement taverna has no menu, the two men working that day didn't speak any English. They smiled and invited the Missus over to the pots so She could choose our lunch for us.

Based on our experience, you'll get a tin of wine and some glasses delivered to your table regardless if you request it or not.

This tasted pretty astringent. Later when that young lady started talking to us, we were told that next time we should order a Sprite to mix with the wine.

In good order our food arrived, the food was simple, but like many of these types of places, very comforting. The Missus favorite of the two soups was the Revithosoupa, a simple but well seasoned Garbanzo Bean Soup.

I enjoyed the Black Eyed Bean soup, which was very hearty.

The Greek Salad seasoned with sea salt and oregano, was quite delicious. The tomatoes were so perfectly ripe…….

The stewed lamb shank actually had more flavor than what we'd had at Strofi the night before.

In retrospect, this was my favorite meal in Athens. As we ate our meal, we watched the locals, mostly older gentlemen come in and get their lunch. Overall, a relaxing and enjoyable experience.

After lunch, we walked on over to Syntagma Square. The Missus really wanted me to see something. She led me to the gathering of tourists in front of the Parliament Building.

I really didn't know what the heck was going on until I saw some soldiers dressed in ceremonial uniforms march up.

This was the changing of the Presidential Guard in front of the Parliament Building, which I understand occurs every hour….24 hours a day.

The uniforms are based on those worn by the Klephts, the mountain people of Greece who fought the Ottomans.

I'm sure the ceremony itself is full of symbolism…….

And is full of synchronized high and kick like steps along with arm movements.

I think you'll have a better understanding after watching this Youtube video…..

Athens: The Acropolis, Ancient Agora, and Central Market

March 13, 2012 mmm-yoso Athens, Greece, Markets & Grocers, Travel

No trip to Athens would be complete without a trip to the Acropolis to see the iconic Parthenon. The Missus's plan was to get there early before late rising Athens was fully awake and take in as much of the Acropolis and the Ancient Agora as we could. We awoke at a pretty late (for us) 7am and left Hotel Tony for the Acropolis at about seven-thirty.

We were surprised when we walked out to the street and saw this.

Walking into the lobby of the hotel, I spoke to Tony who told me once a month, Zacharista has a large market day, with fresh fruits, vegetables, and other food items for sale.

Our lucky day! This would add another wrinkle to our day which i'll cover in another post.

We made our way to the Acroplois through the surprisingly empty streets……..

I guess even the dogs wake up late in Athens…….

As we aid our admissions and walked up the stairs we ran into the soldiers who guard the Acropolis on their way down…..

Rifles over their left shoulder, left arm swinging back then high into the air as they marched. It was quite a sight.

Walking up the stairs, you look up and see the pillars of the Propylaea rising up in the air. It's quite a dramatic sight.

It's easy to imagine the drama and pageantry that took place here.

Of course once past the Propylaea, there's the Parthenon, one of the undying symbols of Greece.

Most of the major building that we're familiar with were built under the watch of Pericles. Of these the Parthenon is the most recognized and impressive. Built as temple dedicated to the Goddess Athena, it actually replaced the "Older Parthenon" which was destroyed by the Persians around 480BC.

Yet, the Acropolis is not defined by the Parthenon alone. For us, one of the most interesting and photogenic structures is the Erechtheion.

And the beautiful "Porch of the Maidens".

There's a look-out where the flag of Greece is raised, the views from there are fantastic.

Overall, it was nice to see, but for some reason this felt anti-climatic after our visit to Ephesus.

After our visit we headed down the hill and Panatheniac Way to the Ancient Agora, once the heart of Athens.

I enjoyed meandering along the paths, some of which have been used for centuries.

The two most prominent structures in the area are the Temple of Hephaestus.

Built for Hephaestus the God of technology and artisans.

And the Stoa of Attalos which is now the Ancient Agora Museum. We had times things right, the place was empty when we arrived and the echoes of the hallways and peristyle really played with one's imagination.

Perhaps it was because we could only hear the rustle of the trees and the birds singing between our footsteps; but I enjoyed this more than the Acropolis Museum. The busts lining the peristyle seemed to gaze upon us……..

There's a small, concise collection of items related to the Athenian democracy.

We decided that having seen the Ancient Agora, that we should make our way to the present day agora, the Athens Central Market. The building of the "modern" market was initiated in 1875. Like most of these types of markets (and we've been to a few), things are organized in sections. For us, the most fascinating was the meat. Where the carcasses of lamb were cut directly in half, looking like something from an anatomy book.

I was particularly fascinated by the offal, especially the long strands of intestine hanging on a hook like twine, ready to be spun around offal to make kokoretsi.

The Missus and I noticed something interesting as we passed the rabbits hanging ready for sale. We wondered why they left the furry tail and hind feet intact. Was it a sign of neatness, or perhaps freshness?

The seafood area was another place where I took my time looking around. The seafood looked very fresh and the smells were of the sea, not decomposing flesh.

Eventually, we found ourselves outside the market……

Passing along the perimeter and the nuts, sausages, and fruits…..

By this time we'd covered quite a bit of ground for a single morning and the Missus was hungry. And I knew just the place………..

Athens: The Acropolis Museum and a return to Strofi

March 8, 2012 mmm-yoso Athens, Greece, Greek Food, Travel

After a nice lunch at Strofi we took the short walk to the Acropolis Museum. This was, of course before all of the economic and civil turmoil in Greece, before the word austere was more commonly used to describe someones taste in decorating. We did though, see some signs which I'll describe in a future post.

The museum has a very modern design, though you're quickly reminded of the historic underpinnings of Greece by just simply looking down before you enter the museum as it built right over an archaeological site. You can look upon the site through the glass floors before entering the museum.

The museum consists of four floors and beyond the ubiquitous restaurant and multi-media areas, is divided into basic time periods, with the Parthenon display taking up almost all of the third floor. sorry to say no photos are allowed. But since we didn't find out until we snapped a couple….there was no clear signs….here's a couple.

We did stop as soon as we saw a sign.

Worth a visit if you're in Athens, admission is 5 Euros.

After checking out the museum we took a leisurely stroll back ot the hotel, passing the various apartments and shops along the way. We even passed "Asian Market" a small convenience stored sized shop full of Filipinos buying snacks and other food items.

We freshened up, took a short nap, and being a bit tired decided to go back ot Strofi for dinner. After all, we enjoyed lunch so much and tomorrow was going to be a full day. Arriving at the restaurant we were led back up to the top floor patio with the wonderful view of the Acropolis.

And of course, the Missus ordered a liter of the house red wine vefore we even sat down. As with most of Europe, folks eat pretty late. The Missus and I however, usually eat fairly early, which was good since the restaurant started filling up. I'll get into this a bit more later on…..

We started with some bread with herbs, which was on the very dry side.

The Missus and I quickly noticed something about the staff here. There seemed to be no sense of urgency, even as the restaurant was filling up. There seemed to be a pretty blasé attitude. After seeing this, we decided to forgo appetizers and just order our entrees. Getting our order in was a good move. The couple sitting right next ot us came in about 10 minutes after us hadn't even gotten their appetizers and worked through a whole liter of white wine by the time we had finished our meal and left. They weren't the only ones, we saw several tables complaining about the slow service. It just seemed that the kitchen and the front of house was not up to the task. And the patio dining area wasn't totally full.

The Missus ordered the Kid Goat in Parchment Paper (15.5 Euros – about $24 US at the time of our visit).

The goat was very tender, though under seasoned for our tastes. The sauce was also quite bland and the gruyere cheese melted over the potatoes really didn't add much to the whole dish.

I went with the Baked Lamb Shank with Rosemary and Potatoes (14 Euros – about $22.50 US at the time). I was really looking forward to having some lamb in Greece, but this was a disappointment.

Pictures don't lie. This was tough, dry, and lacked the flavor of lamb. It was severely under-seasoned. I'm usually not a huge fan of rosemary, but in this case I sorely wanted more…well of anything. I actually poured olive oil and used the salt shaker, something I almost never do. The potatoes were done well, but also lacked flavor.

This had us scratching our heads. Lunch was pretty good, well flavored, what happened to dinner. Plus, we seemed to be in the midst of some pretty unhappy customers as most hadn't even gotten their apps yet. We decided to cut our losses and head back to the room.

After all, we'd have to be up early in the morning to grab some breakfast then get to here……

before the masses descend upon the place.

Madison – Pho Nam

March 4, 2012 mmm-yoso Madison, Wisconsin, Pho, Travel

Last week I found myself back in Madison. I'd been lucky, none of my previous trips had taken place during winter. Unfortunately, this time I couldn't avoid a February trip. I'd usually drive from Chicago, but there was no way I'd be doing that this time around. Folks, finding out I'm from San Diego seemed to take pleasure in reminding me that I was "lucky" since they were having such a balmy winter, heck it was almost like summer…….weather only hitting the single digits during those rare nights. It was a lovely, summer like 29 degrees as I walked out of the hotel. In truth, in spite of the rain, snow flurries, light rain, and once hail, I never once had to use my gloves, so I guess I should count myself as lucky……..

Being past eight, I ended up going to a restaurant about a mile from the hotel. I'd noticed it on my previous trips.

I thought a bowl of Pho might just be the right thing for a late(for me) dinner. The restaurant looks pretty generic, you could drop it most anywhere here in SoCal and it would seem to fit perfectly.

When I arrived, I kinda went, whoa……apparently Pho ain't cheap in Mad Town. The basic Pho Tai goes for $7.95. not quite sure about which beef choice would be best, I went with the Pho Dac Diet which went for $8.95.

While waiting for my bowl, I rationalized Pho in Madison. Well, beef is fairly abundant, so the Pho should be beefy. I'm thinking noodles, star anise, and some herbs would probably be harder to find and probably be a bit more expensive. My stream of thought was broken by the plate of herbs and bean sprouts arriving at my table.

There was quite a bit of basil, albeit wilted and rapidly turning brown. I was truly surprised to find Ngo Gai, old and dry, very soapy in flavor, but totally unexpected.

My almost nine dollar bowl of Pho arrived soon after:

The broth was low oil, pretty cloudy, and was just mildly beefy. It also lacked any anise flavor and I ended up using almost all the basil. There was a fairly strong onion flavor and the broth, which didn't seem very salty did make me thirsty.

As for the meat, well, most of it was mediocre. As expected, there wasn't much tripe, and the tendon (described as "soft tendon" in the menu) wasn't particularly soft.

The noodles were prepared adequately, but the portion size was on the small side.

Well, now that I've done my Pho due diligence in Madison, I think I'll just move on to something else, unless anyone has a recommendation. Being under eight bucks might be nice as well.

Pho Nam Noodle House
610 Junction Road
Madison, WI 53717