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Selasa, 23 Agustus 2016
archaeology
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beaches
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castles
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excursions
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explore
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friends
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Greece
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historic sites
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islands
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London
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photography; exhibits
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vineyards
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MAKING TRIP PLANS, 2016
ENGLAND AND THE IONIAN ISLANDSI've started to verify and plan my trip to Europe this year which will begin September 4 when I fly to London. From there I will go right away to Caerphilly, Wales to spend a couple of days visiting with my cousins and touring my castle. It's a quick trip due to me having to take advantage of cheap air fares.
Caerphilly Castle
Windsor St. Where my Dad used to live.
On Sept. 7 I'll head into London again, early, in time to take in a special exhibit at the British Museum. I'm really excited about seeing EGYPT'S LOST WORLDS, which are artifacts found under the see, some off of Alexandria which was the city founded by Alexander the Great and occupied but the first Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt.
The British Museum
Early the next morning I fly to Corfu, my first stop in the Ionian Islands off the west coast of Greece. I was only there briefly back in the early '80's so I wanted to spend a few days there as Corfu has an interesting history with lots to see. I've check out the tours and will try and take one of them so I can see as many of the special sites as possible. This will include the palace where Prince Philip was born and the home of the Durrell brothers of literary fame.
Corfu, Kerkyra
Mouse Island
Kerkyra
I'm staying on Corfu for 3 days then taking the quick ferry over to the tiny island of Paxis where I'll spend two days exploring. There are a couple of interesting museums and a Venetian Kastro on an islet off shore that was reputedly designed by Leonardo da Vinci.
Paxi, Gaia
Paxi harbour
From Paxi I must take a ferry to the mainland and then a bus to Lefkada where I'll head south to the town of Vassiliki (the surf-boarders paradise). Not sure yet if I'll spend a night there. It depends on the ferry service onward to Kefalonia where I will visit the seaside town of Fiscardo, established and named for a famous pirate.
From there I will head by bus to Athens, and will stop there to visit friends for a few days before heading on another island adventure, this time to the islands of Paros and Naxos. I decided to stay two days on Paros as it is another island that I've only visited briefly back in the '90's.
My favorite island is Naxos, so I'll stay there five days in a bed-tent at the Maragas Camping, a campsite and beach that I just love going to. I never get tired of visiting Naxos as it's a big island and lots to see besides having the most fabulous beaches! I can hardly wait to have my dinner at one of my favorite sea-side tavernas there to watch the sunset!
From Naxos I will head south to Crete. I haven't been to Crete since the '80's and wanted to see the Minoan site of Knossos again as well as exploring around Iraklion. I'll be there a couple of days and hope to get up to a mountainside resort owned by a FB friend.
When all my Cretan adventures are over, I head back to Athens and that's where I'll be for the month of October, until the 20th when I head back home. There's lots to see and do in my favorite city besides visiting with my friends. I'll go over to Salamina island for a few days to explore with Christina and probably make a few day trips around If finances enable it, I might even go up to Pelion for a few days as I've been wanting to explore that area for quite some time now.
Some of my Athens friends
Zoe and me
Carola, Christina and Kim
I'll be posting along the way and sharing all my adventures with on-line friends and family. So stay tuned for the next installment!
Jumat, 27 November 2015
adventure
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cruises
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history
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islands
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pirates
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sea life
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seafood
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Spain
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tourism
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EXPLORING TABARCA, THE PIRATE'S ISLAND, SPAIN
If anyone mentions �pirates� to me it immediately piques my interest. So when my friend Inkasuggested that I might like to visit the pirate island of Tabarca off the Coasta Blanca in Spain, I was more than interested.
We caught a boat from Torrevieja for the short, pleasant cruise to the island, just a few nautical miles off shore. The island was once known as Illa de Sant Paul (Saint Paul�s Island) because it is believed that St. Paul disembarked here. For many years up to the 18th century it was a refuge for Barbary pirates and part of the Republic of Genoa. Later it was fortified by Charles III of Spain. Around that time, some Genoese sailors were shipwrecked off the coast of Tunisia and rescued by islanders from Tabarca. They settled there and people of Genoese descent can still be found on the island. From 1770 the island was known as Nueva Tabarca (New Tabarca).
My two travel writer friends, Inka and Darlene and I wandered around the old town and explored the shoreline and ruins. The island was once fortified with walls, bulwarks, warehouses, a governor�s house and barracks.
The gateways are still there as are the Governor�s House (now a hotel) and the church of St Peter and St Paul built in 1770. Later the garrison was removed and by the end of the 19th century the island was populated by about 1,000 people, mainly fishermen. Tabarca is the smallest inhabited islet in Spain. Today the population is around 50, although during the tourist season there are up to 4000 people a day who arrive as visitors.
The gateways are still there as are the Governor�s House (now a hotel) and the church of St Peter and St Paul built in 1770. Later the garrison was removed and by the end of the 19th century the island was populated by about 1,000 people, mainly fishermen. Tabarca is the smallest inhabited islet in Spain. Today the population is around 50, although during the tourist season there are up to 4000 people a day who arrive as visitors.
After seeing all the sights around the town, we stopped by a restaurant for lunch, attracted by the �pirate� who welcomed us inside.
We chose a table on the terrace of the Nou Collonet, overlooking the sea and enjoyed a delicious lunch from the menu of langostas y bogavantes, pescados and other traditional Spanish cuisine. The island has several good restaurants as well as hotels for overnight accommodations.
Inka meets the Pirate
Langostas
After lunch we hiked across the desolate grassy expanse to the garrison ruins and the old lighthouse at the tip of the island. Tabarca is a protected marine reserve for seabirds and various marine fauna. The sea around the rocky shoreline is crystal clear and perfect for snorkeling. It was declared a Marine Reserve in 1986, the first one in Spain. Boats to the island run from Alicante, Torrevieja and Santa Pola. Some of them have glass bottoms so you can view the reefs and sea life.
I didn�t see any pirates on Tabarca other than the one who welcomed us to the restaurant, but it was certainly an excellent way to spend the day with my friends. 
Old Fortress
Lighthouse
Jumat, 27 Maret 2015
A VISIT TO SOME MYSTERIOUS LITTLE ISLANDS
One thing I love to do when I am visiting friends in Athens is to go on the Senior's Bus Tour. These are special bus tours designed for seniors (although sometimes younger people are aboard too). My friend Carol told me about them and last year we went on one to Euboea, crossing the island to the east coast to view towns and villages I'd never seen before We ended up on a lovely beach where we spent several hours.
These tours are like 'magical mystery tours' and usually go to destinations even the Greeks don't visit. This year it was a trip to some mysterious islands off the north-east coast.
The price for these day tours is reasonable (usually about 25 Euro). We boarded the bus early in the morning and headed up the coast to a town named Kamena Vourla noted for it's resort hotels. From there we got on a boat and head out into the Malian Gulf that separates Euboea from the mainland.
It was an overcast day which made the trip seem even more mysterious. We were headed toward Monolia Island which is apparently steeped in legend. As the story goes, Hercules won a bride in a battle. Her name was Deianira. After a time, she learned he took another woman as his favorite. Deianira send a servant, Lichas, to take a 'gift' to Hercules. It was a cloak. And when Hercules put it on his skin started to burn and he knew it was a poisoned cloak so he threw the servant into the sea. Licha broke up into pieces and Poseidon the sea-god turned the pieces into stones and created the Lichades Islands.
Of course, more logically, these islands were formed by a prehistoric volcanic eruptions and further reshaped from an upheaval of an earthquake in 426 BC.
Of course, more logically, these islands were formed by a prehistoric volcanic eruptions and further reshaped from an upheaval of an earthquake in 426 BC.
Roman Ruins
Volcanic remains forming islets
Remains of settlements.
One of the islets has some Roman ruins, another a lighthouse. There was a settlement on Monolia, and along the shore you can see abandoned stone houses. There may be still people living there as I saw a woman on the pathway leading into the trees. According to what I've read there are bars and pensions on the island but we didn't see them from our small boat.
We circled Monolia and the boat anchored at Lixadonisi island where there is a small beach strewn with beach chairs, deserted on this chilly day. Usually the beach is crowded and popular with kayakers. It was our intention to have a picnic here but the weather proved to be too inclement. A few folks braved the chill and went swimming while the rest of us shivered on the shore.
Lixadonisis Island
To compensate, after failing to picnic or even sight the monachus monachus sea turtles that are usually present in the area, we boarded our boat again and headed back to Kamena Vourla. There we were treated to a buffet lunch at the posh Galini Wellness Resort http://mapcarta.com/12868100Kamena Vourla
Galini Wellness Resort, Kamena Vourla
Kamena Vourla is famous for the hot springs and boasts several resort hotels. Nearby, up the hill, is the monastery of Iera Moni Metamorfoseos tou Sotiros built around the 11th century. We didn't visit the monastary but were treated to a stop at the monument and museum to the Battle of Thermopylae located nearby.
NEXT: The monument to the Battle of Themopylae.
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