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Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 Tuesday, October 3: Our anniversary! The hotel clerk failed to knock at 6:30, but we were up anyway. After showering with ice cold water, I went up at 6:50 to make sure our breakfast would be ready at 7:00 as we had asked. There was no sign of life, even after I called repeatedly. Hearing a slight sound as I passed the desk, I saw the clerk peeking out from behind a curtain. He was still in bed in a little bunk behind the desk. I reminded him that we wanted breakfast. When we went upstairs at 7:00, the water for the coffee and eggs was on the stove. The clerk had to send his son out to buy bread, but we were eating by 7:10 and finished by 7:30 as we planned. We finished packing and walked down to Diana Travel. It was a cold morning, but sunny. When our tickets and passports were ready (and we had paid another $20 Turkish port tax), we walked the half-block to the port. It was mobbed. We got in line, worried that we would miss the 8:30 Turkish ferry. (We never did find out what happened to the Greek hydrofoil we expected to take.) It turned out that we had plenty of time because the ferry didn't leave until 9:05. As the Turkish coast receded behind us, we had a few general observations about our visit. It had been a hectic five days, but very enjoyable. Most of the Turkish people had been very friendly and helpful. Sometimes we found that this friendliness was a lead-in to an attempt to sell us something, but even then they were very slow and subtle about it, never aggressive. But even strangers we stopped on the street to ask directions went out of their way to help. The least friendly people we came across were those who worked in tourist offices, museums, archeological sites, and other places where it was their job to deal with tourists. In retrospect, we also realized that (except for Gursel's cousin in Sirince) we had not met or spoken to a Turkish woman. We had found the food in Turkey very good. Most of the dishes and the style of cooking are very similar to Greek cuisine (not surprising after centuries of Turkish occupation of Greece). One impressive feature was that we never saw anything canned or frozen; everything was fresh.
We arrived in Samos at 11:00 and left our luggage at Samos Tours where we
had bought our
ferry tickets six days earlier. We walked along the waterfront, then visited the Archeological
Museum. There wasn't very much there, though. We knew we would be traveling at dinner
time, so at 1:00 we had a big meal at a waterfront restaurant. We had two small fish each as the
main course, but they were very bony and not too good.
There wasn't much more of Samos Town to see, so we got our luggage and had a taxi drive us to Pithagorio, a picturesque little port where Pythagoras, of mathematical fame, was born. We left our luggage at the tourist office there and walked around town. After we saw the harbor, the remains of a 19th Century castle, and a Byzantine church, Jane went back to the harbor to nurse a lemonade at an outdoor cafe, while I went to explore. I saw several minor Roman ruins as I tried to find the Evpalinio tunnel, an aqueduct cut through the mountain just north of town. I wound up on a goat track halfway up the mountain, and even passed a goat herd with about fifty goats.
There was a great view, but no tunnel. Finally, I returned to the harbor to join Jane and have a lemonade, too. We walked around the harbor area as the sun set and it began to get cool. We decided we'd seen enough of Pithagorio and, even though it was early for our flight, we got our luggage and took a taxi to the airport. Our flight was delayed, and we worried it would be canceled altogether because of the fierce winds. We met a British couple in the airport, and talking to them helped pass the time. The 6:45 flight finally left about 7:30. Ore and Charlie were there to meet us at the Athens airport. They were a welcome sight! Ore served us a late dinner, then we unpacked and went to bed. Wednesday, October 4: This was to be a day of rest, and we needed it. We slept late. After breakfast, Jane washed clothes, and I sorted out our guidebooks and maps for the next phase of the trip. Bia had invited us over for the midday meal, and we left with Charlie and Ore shortly after noon, stopping at a bakery for a galactabouriko on the way. It was a 30 minute drive down the peninsula toward Sounion. They have a lovely house and garden. Bia served a large and delicious meal around 2:00: sliced potatoes baked with bacon, garlic, onions and cream; a thin mousaka; homemade blue cheese pastries; and later, galactabouriko and cappuccino. Yanni arrived later and we all talked at length. We left at 7:00 but, after driving 15 minutes, realized we had left our camera there. We went back for it only to find that Yanni had taken it and was trying to catch us. Bia called him on the car phone, but he was almost to Glifada by then. We waited while he came back. It was 8:00 by the time we left again, this time with me driving. When we got to Glifada, Ore insisted on going out and bringing home a large pizza. We ate, then finished packing before going to bed. Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 |
