Two Nights in Thessaloniki

Our gracious friends offered us a couple nights and some touring of one of Mediterranean Europe's oldest cities, and we said yes! Saturday we said goodbye to Mesohori and Peliti. We boarded a train to Thessaloniki, only to realize half way through we had mistakenly sat in first class. Oops! As no one checked our tickets or asked us to move, this did not prove to be problematic.

The boys and I enjoyed beverages in the dining car, and before too long we arrived at the train depot in central Thessaloniki. From here we took the number 3 bus to Aristotle Plaza, the old city center right on the Med. We stopped at a small bar to wait a short while and people watched. No shortage of that here.

Soon we arrived at the home of our friend Vasillis in the neighborhood of Kalamaria. This is some distance from the center of the city in what used to be an old fishing village 50 years ago. Now it is quite built up with all manner of shops and apartments everywhere. The first floor apartment is spacious and our hosts, native Greek speakers with no English, were more than hospitable.

We feasted our first evening on traditional moussaka and Greek meatballs. We then headed out to catch a late movie on the beach: Inception. Then on to gyros at a local late night spot. All this within walking distance.

The next day brought breakfast sweets, Greek coffee and a tour of Thessaloniki from a native resident. Starting at the archeological museum, which was incredible, we walked our way to the old Byzantine section of the city. Now alive with shops of all kinds, and still preserving the ancient ruins. We saw several churches old and new, and stopped in a very lively sidewalk cafe for refreshments.

After a bit of time resting, we continued down the waterfront to the White Tower. A relic of the Ottoman Empire. Further along we saw many statues, the most impressive was the one of Alexander the Great and Bucephalus. We continued walking on the waterfront quite a bit more before we threw in the white towel and rode the rest of the way in a bus.

We were treated to a delicious dinner of grilled sea bass and Greek salad back at home. We went to bed early because we were so tired after a long day of sightseeing.

A bit of a whirlwind trip.

Thessaloniki has much to see and offer. It is a busy city too, with always something going on. We liked it a lot. It is clean, well laid out and has frequent cheap buses. Good nightlife, shopping... basically everything you could ask for from a big city with the added bonus of the beautiful Med right there. Check it out sometime, and if you please, say hello to Katarina and Nicos! Efkharisto poli!

Up next: Possidi, Helkadiki beach, and off to Bulgaria!

Working on the Chain Gang

Move 15 tons and what do you get? Another day older and deeper in debt...
Well we didn't build a pyramid, just 40 yards of retaining wall. Let me tell you, I will never look at a rock or pebble the same way again. Ella laspi! So, we wrapped up our latest, survivor Peliti, and finally got kicked off the island. Not too bad as our friends have offered to show us around Thessaloniki for a couple days before heading off to the beach community of Posidi for some R&R on the Med. This will be a welcome reward as we have worked really hard in Mesohori. The strawbale building didnt see a single bale this season, but the plans are beautiful, oreos, and it will be stunning when finally done.
We will be leaving the Schengen area on September 4 and starting out in Bulgaria for two months. Here we will most likely start out staying in a caravan and then possibly moving into a small house.
We have downsized again! The blue roll luggage that lost a wheel is now a dead soldier, and his guts are full of more junk we can live without. Now we are down to one large roll luggage and four backpacks. I'm tellin ya, by the time we get back it may just be the clothes on our backs and a crazed look in our eyes that we have.
The boys are great and having so much fun, learning Greek, playing chess, (thanks Josh!), and scrapping about looking for food with the local dog pack. I have found the Greeks to be generous beyond measure as well as hot blooded and very good natured. Just beware the Cretian masons! Much love to all back in PDX and to all the great new friends we have made so far. The experience has been wonderful, and we look forward to seeing you all again soon.
A big huge happy birthday to my wonderful grandma!
Until next time, Yamas!

Thassos, Kavala, Xanthi, Paranesti, Mesohori and Peliti

After many hours spent on the crystal beaches of Thassos and many kilos of gyros devoured (thank you Edmund!), we departed for the small (100 people strong) community of Mesohori.
Our travels did not involve airlines so we had no one to blame for our luggage breaking but ourselves. No joke, one rolly cart down, busted outside of Xanthi railroad station.
I'll tell ya, I'm glad I learned a bit ofGreek 'cause these towns are smaaall and although people do speak English, it is really helpful to know some words in Greek. So bye bye Cantonas, hello road. Bus from Eri's to Skala Prinos to catch a ferry to Kavala, to take a bus to Xanthi, to catch a train to Paranesti (seats are assigned), to get picked up by the extraordinarily kind Panagioti. That's his name y'all. Then a short drive to the small community of Mesohori. I'm not talking Portland small, I'm talking big Thanksgiving dinner small.
Mesohori is set on the edge of the Rhodopi mountain range. Sort of a mix of Appalachians and Rockies with a tropical heat thrown in for measure. It's simply beautiful. And I have never met kinder, more generous people. No joke. We were here for a few hours and had already been fed dinner, invited to a birthday party where they gave us presents, and given a peach on the street for saying hello. That was just the first day.
Work here is tough but doable, ranging from yard work to concrete, cooking, laundry, gardening, etc. We are about 16 total workers, and very international too, here to build a straw bale house to store seeds for the nonprofit organization of Peliti (http://www.peliti.gr/). Peliti puts out a yearly newsletter and a facilitator for a whole barter system for organic seeds and goods in Greece to promote seed saving and organic, money free living.
We are staying in a nice small house on the very edge of the 1 kilometer long town. Our diet is all vegetarian - fresh from the garden to pot - and so delicious. They make their own cheese and yoghurt and Cad has learned how. She claims both are so simple to make, it is ridiculous to buy them from the store. We take all our meals together in a large field covered with tents where one day soon the straw bale house will be erected.
The boys are loving it here because they have about six other kids to play with. They enjoy watching all the people work and having water fights with the other children (and sometimes adults) as it is hot.
We will have a big celebration in town this weekend because August 15th is the third biggest holiday in Greece celebrating the death of the Virgin. Music, food, dancing and prayer. Probably some ouzo too.
On Sunday, we will take a guided canoe trip down the Nestos river. A big, fast, cold river, not too many rapids... class I mostly. The launch is about two kilometers from town and the owners are friends of Panagiotis so we received a group discount.
Everyone in the group here is great. Mostly couples: Greeks, Swiss, Kiwis and not a bad egg among them. I know you Portland punks will think hippies, but they are jokers and partiers out here to learn straw bale construction and to have a different travel experience. Many of them have invited us to stay at their homes and we just may take them up on their offers later in our travels.
We miss our Spanish friends daily and hope to see them again soon. Our Greek is better each day as we get a lot of practice. Each new place brings a whole new adventure, friends and language. We are soaking it up and wishing we had done it ten years ago.
A big hug to all back home as we miss you dearly too... and a happy early birthday to Kel. Yamas!

It's All Greek To Me

So we said goodbye to our new friends at Cortijo Vadillo in proper fashion: a day at the waterpark in Granada. We definitely made a big splash. After an evening bus ride to Malaga, we checked into our non-airconditioned fifth floor walk up room (sink and shower but no toilet in the room?) And it was only $136... Downtown Malaga was hopping. We had a couple sandwiches, people watched and headed for bed.

The next day, we started early as we caught the city bus to the airport for a 10:30 flight to Milan. The flight was uneventful and we arrived in Milan only to realize we didn't have the phone number for our hotel to get a pick up. However this proved to be no problem as the number miraculously appeared on a sign in the airport just when we needed it. A short shuttle ride later and we arrived at the Hotel Sempione which is a quaint little hotel a few miles from the airport. This room was airconditioned (a good thing since it was on the fourth floor in the attic). We slept most of the day and then dined at the restaurant downstairs. A delicious Italian meal.

Our wake up call was at 5:00 the next morning and thus began our travel day to Greece. We arrived in Thessaloniki and took a bus through the city to the bus station. We were helped along the way by a friendly Greek guy named Nick who was nice to me because I spoke Greek to him... it seems a few words in Greek go a long way. We purchased tickets to Kavala (the port town near Thassos) and had a quick snack before our 2.5 hour bus ride. In Kavala, we walked a short (and very hot) distance to the port. Here we boarded the ferry to Thassos, the legendary island of Zeus' childhood.

We arrived in Thassos too late to take the bus to Eric's Apartments and Studios so we had to take (an expensive) taxi. We were immediately pleased with our choice of hotel because the room is spacious (with airconditioning!) and came with a kitchenette. And, Eric Cantona greeted us... you know, the famous football player. Come on Americans, join the football craze.

Skala Potamia, the beach where we are staying, is just one of many little beach towns on this pine forest covered mountained island. Although a bus can take you to the other beaches, we are staying put on Skala Potamia, mostly because we have everything we need right here. Beautiful sea, great food (gyros and more gyros, and sometimes some delicious fresh seafood), mountain backdrop and a pool if we get bored of the green-blue sea. That said, there's only one ATM in town and it's currently empty, so we may have to head to Thassos town tomorrow.

Our day of departure approaches and we will all be sad to leave. If you get a chance, don't miss Thassos. The people here are extremely friendly and Americans are sorely under-represented, as we figure there are probably four, maybe five, Americans on the island right now... including us.

Next up: Paranesti and the alternative community of Peliti...
Happy belated birthday mom and Torrey!