July 2017 – Summer of Shanley

My sweet sweet Milos

Words couldn’t begin to describe the magic that your island brought to my soul. I could give you a rundown of all the things there are to do or see in Milos, but I only read about most of them in a guidebook. I left our little fishing village of Firopotamos Beach (and in case you are wondering the S at the end is silent so while it looks like it does, it doesn’t exactly rhyme with hippopotamus) just twice in the last four days; once to go to the Health Center (more on that racket later) and the other to catch the Ferry back to the mainland. I’m sure the restaurants and other beaches are lovely, but why leave when I had all that I needed right outside my front door. We stayed in a “syrmata”. A syrmata is a fisherman’s dwelling most usually carved into the rock walls. I think in America, we’d call this a garage for your boat. The top floor was typically for fisherman to have a rest after pulling in their catch and boat before walking back home. In the mid 20^th century when swimming became more popular the families began to use them as weekend residences and now converted summer homes. This quaint fishing village of around 20 homes catches your eye from the moment you make the steep decent from the road. The colorful homes, the crystal clear blue water and the one church high upon the hill bring your eyes to sensory overload. Can a place really be this beautiful? If I blinked would I wake up and find out it had all been a dream I’ve been keeping in my heart for years now?

I guess in this case, dreams do come true. For four days I barely left my swimsuit, never put on makeup and only brushed my hair once when it was time to go back to Athens. There is something so magical about being perfectly content doing nothing. It’ s not as if I just lay there in my costume all day, I did do things. There was swimming, and jumping off rocks, laying in the hammock, sleeping in, napping on the beach and eating. I guess any of those things could be done somewhere else too, but when you look up and take a look around as to where you are doing these everyday things, they seem to carry so much more weight.

My trip to Milos didn’t go off without a hitch. When I arrived in Milos I had been suffering from a toothache for the last few days. I didn’t want to believe that I was having tooth problems on vacation and never mind in the middle of nowhere. Turns out, my denial lost out to the pain that first afternoon in Milos and I found myself at the Health Center. I had no idea what to expect, but when I walked in I was greeted by a nice gentleman and asked to wait in empty but very clean waiting room. After being ushered inside to speak to the doctor (I mean I think she was a doctor) we

All smiles knowing relief is in my future

began a game of “Where does it hurt.” In the end it was an infection and she prescribed me some antibiotics. She warned me to drink lots of water and also to use sun protection. You should have seen me trying to convince her that I’m always wearing sunscreen. I guess if you took one look at my skin tone right now you’d never think I was a 50SPF every 80 minutes gal. It must be the Greek in me. With my prescription in hand, I walked back to the front desk to offer my payment. I honestly had no clue how much it would be, but felt whatever the price, having the possibility of freedom from pain in my future would make the cost all worthwhile. When I got there the gentleman working the desk looked at me weird and asked, “What you need?” After telling him I needed to pay he said, “No, it’s free.” What the?? Free Health Care? This was my lucky day. As we walked over to the pharmacy across the road, my luck changed a little bit. Apparently you should not get sick or need a prescription during the hours of siesta because “Sorry we’re Closed”. After finding a café that wasn’t asleep, I sat around for a few hours, may have taken a siesta of my own on their couch and soon enough was in the hands of some Amoxil. Best 4 dollars and 20 cents I’ve spent all trip. Yup, even the prescription was cheaper than my own copay.

We decided that we’d go to the market and pick up some things so we could essentially make our own meals and never have to leave. While here we survived on pretty much the same meals everyday; eggs, Pita and some sort of meat in the morning and Pita, cucumbers, feta, some meat and tomatoes in the evening. I did not do the tomatoes. I’m more of

a tomatoes as needed kind of person (i.e. salsa, sauce, ketchup). Once in a while, we’d get wild and have Pita with peanut butter for a late afternoon snack! I think of all the times I’ve said, “No I don’t want that I just had that last night or two days ago” and here I was relishing in the fact that I was getting to eat the same thing over and over again.

Not all the homes in Firopotamos beach are renovated or rented out. It would appear that many of the original owners and families still reside there. During the day, the Greek men would work on their homes. In the afternoons, you could find them sitting outside or taking a swim with their wives. Sometimes in the evenings the couple at the end of our “block” would go over to the cliffs to fish together, but not sitting together. I happened to spy them sitting on their respective corners one night and then watched them walk home together with their catch. Our next-door neighbor, George was never at a loss for a smile or a helping hand. George saw us eating on the beach one night with our plates in our laps and he came out and put a nice table in front of us to use. Sometimes little tourist boats would come into our harbor and upon their arrival, one of the gentleman in the neighborhood would get out his Conch and blow a welcome as well as goodbye as they left. We were blessed to have two very caring people from Firopotamos that checked on us and made sure we had anything we needed. Desy and her husband even found me a dentist in case things got really bad with my tooth. I hope they come to the States someday so I can return the favor. It was noticeably different how few people spoke English on this island in comparison to the others and it was quite lovely. We resorted to my broken Greek go to phrases, context and gestures. In the end I think we all did ok.

In Santorini, I checked donkey ride up the Caldera off my bucket list and in Milos I knocked Rock/Cliff jumping off my list. It was a perfect swim out to the rocks, but a not so perfect way to get up to jump off. It was like slippery rock climbing and I have zero upper body strength. I ended up resorting to using my legs and scratching the hell out my hands and knees. I looked at my hands and thought if I’m jumping off more than once, there has got to be a better way up. There wasn’t really but thejumping and the diving off made me forget those cuts were even there. We floated around the rocks for bit longer and came across a gentlemen snorkeling out there. Per usual he asked us where we were from. I finally

stopped answering the States because that seemed to be already stated in the way we spoke. The gentleman asked us to guess where he was from and wouldn’t you know he was from Cape town, South Africa, last year’s summer of Shanley destination. Our new friend Mano reminded me a lot of Rodney Dangerfield. I made a comment about it being warmer in certain spots and Mano popped right back into our conversation and shared, “Must be where I wee’d a bit!” He was showing us different fish and I exclaimed how cool it was to look upside down in the water with the mask on. Rodney took it amongst himself to tell me “Oh it’s great this way” and then flip my body in the water. Oh ok, I guess we are going there??

I had a small goal to run in each of my destinations. Personally, I think you have more chances to explore on foot. So far I’d managed to run twice in Athens, twice in Crete and once in Santorini. Our beach while and oasis, it was not very runner friendly. The roads were super narrow and it was quite the trek to get up and out of the beach. One afternoon, I decided I would hike out and then run once I was up in the village. I found some running partners in the goats. At first, they looked at me very

suspiciously, but soon enough we all got into our own rhythm. Yoga with Goats is a thing, why not running with the goats. When I returned to our home our neighbor to the left was out doing some more maintenance on his syrmata. I gave him a quick Kalíspera as I caught my breath and he gave me a shrug and a quick smirk. I couldn’t tell if it was a “hey good for you” or a “whatever floats your boat girlie” kind of smirk, but I liked the encouragement all the same.

On our last morning at the beach, we had our usual breakfast of Eggs, Pita, and cheese on the beach. For most of breakfast and a good time after none of us said anything. We just stared out to those blue waters of the Aegean that had brought us so much joy these last few days. It was if we’d come to the point in a relationship where neither of you can find a good reason why it’s ending but you know it needs to and you don’t want to say anything to make the first move in leaving because once you do, you know that it’s really over.

It was no coincidence that the home we stayed in was given the name Paradise. Milos is not necessarily one of the more popular tourist destinations, as they do not rely on tourism like some of other islands do for their income. But I would say that if you are going to Greece and you wanted to get as close to what I think heaven would be, I suggest you find yourself in a fishing village in a cute syrmata to soak up all that Milos has to offer. You can thank me later!

In the ruins of what my romantic heart thought was a castle…it was a chalk factory;)

I was definitely the saddest leaving Milos. I know that I have to not be sad that it’s over, but happy for the time I had. I am but I can’t help but have a few quiet tears for having to be the first to walk away from this newfound love of mine. I will see you again Milos… Kápoia Méra. (That’s “Someday” for all you non Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants fans;)

Believe all the hype…it is true.

Stronghyle, Caliste, Thira, Santorini…whatever name you are going by these days, I feel blessed to have met you.

As I was preparing for my trip to Greece, people would ask which islands I was going to visit. Two things would happen. Before I was able to say the names of where I was going, the person would say, “You’re going to Santorini, right?” or, I’d hear that slightly audible, “Oh good”, after I let them know that Santorini was on my list. Fifty percent of these people had never even been to Greece themselves but clearly the word is out. Everyone that knows me, knows I love to take pictures while I run or just doing everyday things, but I can honestly say, I don’t think I’ve ever taken more pictures in one place in my life. Well with the exception of the Golden Gate Bridge…that girl’s always popping up in my photos.

excited to disembark the ferry for Santorini

One day in Santorini we hiked the Caldera. The Caldera is named for the shape that Thira (pronounced Fira) has taken after the Minoan Eruption. One giant cauldron. We chose the route from the capital city Thira to Oia (pronounced EEYA) WORD NERD ALERT, I learned that when there is an O before the I in Greek it’s pronounced as an I. For half of the hike we were walking through high-end hotels and homes. In my next life, I think I’d very much like to spend a few days in one of these places. The other half of the trek is climbing hills, stairs and sometimes even, rocks. The rocks weren’t always stable and going downhill felt like you were sliding in snow at times. We passed churches and other religious structures perched high into the hills with their tiered bells, characteristic blue domes and white crosses. I wondered if some of these structures or places were used anymore. I was wishing to hear those church bells ring throughout all of the Caldera just once. In some faiths, including the one I was raised in, people will light candles for another person to either send them good health, a good intention or maybe to keep them safe. Out there on the Caldera I wasn’t able to go inside any of the churches, but outside a cute one that appeared to have just celebrated something with it’s blue and white streamers flowing in the wind, we came across what I’d like to think is the perfect intention box. Atop one of the hills someone had set a little tin house with a wide-open “front door” to welcome in intentions. People who had come before us either to pass by on their way to the next town or maybe people who attended this church regularly had placed stones inside this home. At this point the stones are coming out, but it didn’t stop us from each setting our own intention for someone or maybe ourselves. Throughout this trip, I’ve seen lots of “mini roadside churches” or Kandilakias and was curious as to what they were. While it can be used to signify the loss of someone in a tragic accident or someone who survived a potentially fatal accident, it can also be used as a public place of prayer. I liked this makeshift Kandilakia the best because I wanted to believe that people of many different faiths and spirituality have come by this house and all of our intentions are living as one in one of the most beautiful places you could imagine.

After finishing the hike all I wanted was what I normally get after a long or hot run…a GTL of course. Thankfully Starbucks has not found it’s way to Santorini, but I thought when we stopped at a café at the end I’d just ask them to mix their green tea with their lemonade. Upon asking the waiter, I got a “uhh it won’t be nice. I uhh am just being honest.” WHAT? It can only mean one of two things, they don’t know the goodness that is the GTL yet or either their Green Tea or Lemonade is gross. I can tell you after some extensive research over the past few days in different cafés and tavernas, it’s the Lemonade that was not my fave but the Green Tea was divine.

While in Santorini, I received a message from one of my first SF Speechie friends that she too was in Santorini. We’ve let time go by and seeing each other in SF does not happen often, but I do believe it was the magic of Santorini that let us meet up and catch up again.

The Sunset in Santorini is a big deal…some might say huge. Folks will post up along the cities of Thira, Imerovigli and Oia to catch a glimpse of the yellows change to oranges, pinks then reds. There is no denying that the sunset is gorgeous but when we weren’t posing or taking our own pictures it was loads of fun watching all the models of instagram do their photo shoots. One girl, bless her heart, was trying to capture the perfect pose while perched on a “railing” of sorts along a hotel. She tried once and kept sliding. But determined she was and got right back up there only to fall off the other side and down into another hotel. My first reaction was shoot, I hope she’s ok and my next was man I hope someone got that on film. (For the record she bounced up rather quickly so don’t think I’m too mean). Oh and them church bells…they rang right after sunset…magical.

Dinners in Santorini were pretty much the same as what we experienced in Crete. The hosts want you to come “check their lists” and then want you to stay at their restaurant for hours on end. They aren’t even necessarily trying to sell you anything more; they just seem to hate to see you leave.

Another day we took an excursion to the Volcano Island of New Burnt. This island is called New Burnt because it’s relatively young… Many years ago there was the biggest eruption in all of history and its repercussions wiped out the Minoan civilization covered the town of Akrotiri. It’s a shame too, because even 4000 years ago both women and men were treated as equals. Thanks to the still active Volcano on the island we had the luxury of swimming in some Thermal Springs…they have to call them thermal and not hot because they are not hot enough. Our boat dropped us off at the Harmony Port in Oia. To get up to the city, you can either climb a ridiculously steep staircase, or take a donkey up. It just so happened that ride a donkey in Greece was on my to do list, so I was able to check that off. My donkey definitely had a mind of it’s own and kept trying to get to the front of the pack. Clearly he did not get the memo that I’m more of the middle of the pack kinda gal. After taking the somewhat scary ride up the mountain, we were rewarded with those sweet sweet views of Santorini.

caught trying to sneak in a few winks…the waves woke me up with a smash to the face:)

We decided to walk around Oia and stick around to see the sunset from another point of view on the island. The girls and I had some time before that so we were able to get some refreshments (that yummy green tea) and then hit up the shops. We met a new friend named Nicholas who swore he was going to change our world with his hats and scarves…maybe next time Nicholas. We posted up on the top of Sangria to take in the sunset of Santorini one last time. Nights out or anytime we spent in restaurants; I fell in love with many old songs. Greece does a good cover of almost any song you can imagine. At Sangria we were in for a treat because we got the original version of Mamma Mia and gosh did it feel right! (You know you’re singing the song right now)

Santorini, I came for your sunsets, but I’m leaving with so much more. And while the pictures don’t do it justice, my memories of my time here will always be in focus.

Being a Cretan ain’t so bad after all..

Crete was the first stop on our island hopping adventures. It is the biggest of the islands and trying to squeeze what some people call a “separate” country in three days was not easy, but we did it. We spent most of our time in the coastal towns of Chania (the C is silent and you have to put a little throat on that H), Rethymno and Heraklion (pronounced Iraklio). There must be some Greek rules where sometimes you say the H and sometimes you just don’t.

Chania was a charming beach town with an Old Town port filled with cute alleyways, shops and of course swordfish heads on tables next to you at lunch. We like to joke and called Chania the Watertown of Crete, because Sara D said she would have been happy going back there, it had everything.

On our way or more or less out of the way to the next town of Rethymno, we drove to ElaFonissi Beach. “The people” say it’s one of the best. What they didn’t tell you, is that you are literally putting yours and your friends lives in your hand driving over the mountains, through little villages and then down again to get there. The drive made the drive to Stinson seem like the straightest drive around. I have to admit it was worth it. The water was so blue and you could walk around to different tide pools to cool off. While we were there, there was a sand storm that was like a free whole body scrub. After a while of getting pelted, we decided to pack up and make the trek back up and over the mountain to Rethymno.

In Rethymno, we found ourselves in another cute village with sunsets you only see in the movies (Although I hear that even better ones are to come). After some more sights, shops and sounds we settled in for yet another Marathon Dinner. I know that in the US we totally rush through everything, but a simple dinner of Greek Salad and Chicken can last until 11:30 at night. We started to notice a trend that when you ask for the check, they bring you something “on the house” instead. Typically it’s some Raki (alcohol made from grapes native to Crete) and either dessert or watermelon. At first we’d never get the watermelon and I wondered if my reputation of dessert queen preceded me all the way over here in Greece. Luckily soon enough we were given the watermelon treatment. I can’t lie; I stopped drinking the raki after the first dinner. To me it was like pure gasoline down my throat, but didn’t want to look ungrateful so sometimes, we’d pour a little into a water glass when the waiter wasn’t looking. I don’t think I have to tell you how amazing the food is, but one more funny thing about the restaurants before I move on to talking about our travels to the last Cretan city of Heraklion.

Our hotel and breakfast nook in Rethymno

In the major port cities there are what feel like hundreds of restaurants. The hosts of the outdoor tavernas will constantly try and grab your attention or get you to eat at their spot versus the spot right next to them selling the same exact food. Initially I just thought, cool I’m getting hellos and getting to practice my best “Kalíspera”. I soon realized that while maybe saying “good evening” to the obvious touristas was on their to do list for the day, it was more about getting us to come and sit down. As the days in Crete were coming to an end, I realized more and more that I was avoiding making eye contact with them kinda like I avoid the perfume ladies at Nordstrom. If I don’t make eye contact they won’t ask, “You hungry?” Umm yeah always, but that’s beside the point!

One of our many marathon dinners in Crete

Ok like I said back to the trip. Before making our way to our last port city of Heraklion, we wanted to stop in at an Olive Oil Factory. We decided on the Paraschakis Family Olive Oil Factory. Boy, were we in for a treat. Not only was this completely sustainable “vineyard” adorable with machines dating back to the days of using donkeys, but as we walked over to meet the owners we were greeted with a very familiar sound…the undeniable Boston accent. “Just pahk ya cah ovah theh honey.” The mother was originally from Haverhill, Mass and her 27 years in Greece have not lessened her accent in the slightest. All three of us agreed that my mom would have loved this woman. At one point she was up there hula dancing while giving us the tour and we could all picture GAS doing that same thing. She was a hoot! With some olive oil in tow, we put our lives back in the hands of my Grecian driving skills and headed to our last stop in Crete.

The Greek financial crisis was most evident in Heraklion. Many of the store fronts were empty and definitely some sketchier neighborhoods, but with an Opa and a direct quote from Bobby McFerrin we were welcomed to our hotel. Nothing like a little “Don’t worry be happy.” as you’re trying to figure out is it safe for me to park the car here. Similar to the other cities, Heraklion did not disappoint in the sunset department. Just before sunset I was able to run for a few miles (don’t worry mom I did my best to

keep to the more popular streets) and then wound up back at an old Fort to meet the girls for what we thought would be a quick bite and sunset watch…we couldn’t escape the bring us the check game here either. While catching the sunset a few younger boys were listening to music up on the rocks and I of course started joking around dancing. I was soon informed by the duo that “Is not how you dance to this music, you dance like this.” Full on demonstration, followed by me giving it a go. There’s video to prove that I would never make it in the rap /music video scene in Crete either. I ended the night in pure bliss. A GTL in one hand and a nutella and banana crepe in the other. I do believe that my cup with my name in Greek from Starbucks might be in the lead for favorite souvenir.

With Leg 2 complete, I’m off to fulfill my dreams of roaming the streets of Santorini like Lena Kaligaris!

It’s all Greek to me

The girls and I started our Greek Adventures in Athens on July 4th. This is the second year in a row that I’ve not been in the country to celebrate the Fourth. Funnily enough, when we got into the uber from the airport the driver was listening to Kid Rock’s “Summertime in Northern Michigan”. While I do get a little sentimental seeing the all the red white and blue and fireworks posts, it didn’t take long for me to get over that and on to learning about Athens.

I became fast friends with our Uber Driver Vasilis. He was kind enough to help me learn some common Greek phrases. He probably had no idea how much he made this word nerd’s day. I’m still working on thank you, but he told me that was the hard one:) Sara D. says she remembers good morning because it sounds like Calamari. It’s actually Kalímera and it’s pronounced Kah-lee-meh-ra (with a slightly rolled R). Close enough I guess.

Our hotel was super close to the Acropolis and seeing it in real life after only seeing it in pictures did not disappoint. We took some tips from friends of friends and decided to have our first dinner up on Mount Lycabettus. It’s the highest point in the city with amazing views. When you’re up there, the winds howl so loud it sounds as if cars are drag racing. On our walk back down we happened to pass by the Hellenic Parliment in Syntagma Square when the changing of the guards were about to take place. It was quite the choreographed routine. I’m pretty sure they had taps on their giant shoes!

After getting back to the hotel is was 1AM Athens time and while my body technically was still on Boston Time 6PM, I was zonked. After going to bed waaaay too late for my 85-year-old self the night of the wedding and then not sleeping on the flights, I found myself for once embracing the time change and hitting the sheets.

The next morning, I thought it would be fun to see some of the sights while running. It was a very slow run and not because of the heat, but because I was very cautious to not cross and alleyway or street without looking 7 times. The scooters and cars don’t care much for pedestrians and if I had to guess, I’d say that crosswalks are merely a suggestion.

We had a nice brunch at a little cafe in our neighborhood and followed it up with a walk around the PLAKA. The girls and I decided to make the small hike up to the Parthenon and see it all up close. We quickly realized that marble is very slippery and it was like a sandstorm up at the top. All things aside, it was sensational. I can’t begin to think how in the world they completed all that construction so many years ago. After some more sights we headed back to the hotel for my new favorite thing “Siesta time”. People nap or rest from 3-5pm…these are my kind of people!

At dinner that night, we were treated to some local expertise in ordering from my friend Ms. Nasia. She would rattle off things to the waitress and while I didn’t know what she was talking about, I did notice her counting off items on her fingers and the food just kept coming. We ended the night was a “ya mas” of Mastiha. After many laughs and really full bellies, we decided to make our way back to the Acropolis.

I’m quickly adjusting to late night dinners, learning to say my please and thank yous and trying to stay active so that I can still fit into my clothes after eating my way through Greece. First leg of the #yesIhavebaggage tour in Athens is complete…on to CRETE!!