Emilio and I met in the hotel lobby at 8 o’clock to have breakfast. We claimed a table and went over to the food presentation, where I grabbed a plate, put on one of the cute little gloves supplied and then started putting food items on my plate. About halfway in the server gets well and fully in my face and asks “What are you doing?”. Um, “Getting breakfast?”, I replied wondering what was going on. He pointed to the small sign behind the serving table that guests were not allowed to handle food. Geeze, really? So I gave him my plate and he put the rest of my breakfast…
Athens
So after a couple of very pleasant days with Pam and Emilio, it was time to depart for the completion of my trip in Athens. Ever the good host, Emilio had decided to accompany me to Athens to be a tour guide in and around Athens. The bus departure was scheduled for 5:30 a.m., so we arose at an ungodly hour, finished our packing and Pam drove us to the bus station in Kranidi. I’m still not certain she was fully awake. I know I wasn’t. We were a few minutes early, and went in search of coffee and sustenance, not finding a lot. As we were ready to abandon…
Greek Villa
The following Tuesday was Pam’s day to bop around town and do all the hum drum things in life, like shop for groceries, visit the bank, etc, except in this situation in rural Greece, which brought a new level of curiosity. So after a comfortable breakfast, we departed the house mid-morning on our adventures. None of the stops on the agenda were very far away, but the roads in this part of Greece are not exactly meant for high speed transport, so the trips could take a little minute or two as they say. The general philosophy of the local Greek’s was reinforced in my mind as we drove about…
Archaeological Site of Mycenae and The Sanctuary of Asklepios at Epidaurus
On Sunday, after a nice Greek breakfast, Emilio (Pam’s partner) decided we were going to go and check out the some of the antiquities of Greece in the vicinity. The weather had turned a bit to the worse and it was cold and rainy when we left the villa. I was thanked, yet again, for bringing the winter weather to Greece… LOL. The first leg was to Mycenae, which is referred to as the city of the legendary Agamemnon. As I know (or remember) very little about ancient Greek history, all I could do was agree. The 38km drive to the site took something over 1 1/2 hours, which should…
Transitions
I know I promised you the first glimpse of Greece, but life has interceded and for no other reason than to get this off my chest, we’re going to diverge from the core theme a bit. My relationship with my mother and father has been tenuous at best for all my life. My parents came together as the result of a child conceived out of wedlock. At the time, in 1957, the thing to do when this happened was to get married. In those days that was the result. Not so much nowadays. That child was me, and my creation was the beginning of 36 years of unhappy marriage for…
Greece!
So after my most wonderful day in London, the next day, I got up early-early and caught a Uber to Heathrow. The only good part of traveling at this ungodly hour is traffic in London is very light, unlike the trip when I arrived. Was fairly early getting to Heathrow, and being the ugly American that I am, I thought nothing of getting in the security line without removing all my toiletries and such. I’ve been a TSA Pre-Check forever and don’t even think about this kind of thing going to security. So, I got an up-close and personal meeting with a Heathrow inspector. I got the same one for…