Sojourn in Greece

A freighter pulls out of the harbor and rounds the Nafplio pennisula.

The town of Nafplio crowds up against the port of a large protected harbor with extensive fortications behind it atop the steep hills between the town and the sea. A defensible large harbor and an expanse of flat farmland on the north and east shores made the region ideal for conquest. Franks, Greeks, Ottomans, have all had their turn, but the castle fortifications are mostly Venetian. Another reminder that empires come and go.

Today the locals mostly fortify themselves against the streams of tourists who cluster in the old town between the port and the cliffs. At the last minute, I lucked into a small attic room with its own little balcony, slanted ceiling, and tiny new clean bathroom. I arrived midday and, charmed, fell asleep at once.

Once awake again, I set out up every flight of steps I saw to take a two hour rambling walk, starting with the fortifications lining the top of the hill. A French couple and I shared some conversations in passing as we explored the peaceful views in 3 directions. For the rest of the afternoon, I saw one middle aged couple after another enjoying the quiet warmth of September in Greece.

I traipsed down to the rocky beach -- only the brave going in with the chilly wind, and a pair of experienced rock climbers blatantly ignoring the "no climbing" signs. Then walked all the way around the penninsula and back.

The beach is almost empty, but a number of us sit and look out to sea for a while.

Went back to the attic room when it started spritzing and took a second nap during a steady rain that started with a few bolts from Zeus rolling through the sky.

Rain drips from the palm and tile roof out the bathroom window.

Had a slow dinner on the pier -- delicious fish soup with a side dish of eggplant & tomato. I brought my schoolwork to keep me company. Then a late evening ramble -- artsy shops open til 10pm, and after a dismal half hour listening to business news on CNN, took a hot shower until the hot water ran out (not very long) and slept a long time. Again.

Woke up leisurely, fixed my own breakfast in the pension's mini kitchen, and sat out on the balcony grading for several hours. At 9am, men started drilling a hole in the street below, but after a while I tuned that out too and enjoyed the sun on the rooves and the hill behind.

At 11, I left to tromp ALL the way up the 900+ stone steps to the castle, with only a slight asthmatic reaction. The scenery is so spectacular that you want to stop and take pictures at each landing. What surprised me was the acreage of the castle itself -- fortifications, buildings, towers, storage areas, sleeping rooms etc sprawl the length of the the large hilltop. I walked around for at least an hour and didn't see all the sections. The place radiates masculine energy. To think that each stone and brick was transported and laid down by somebody (and probably re-laid by other somebodies over the years) -- an awesome amount of human labor.

The stairs up the mountain to Palamida fortress, seen from the beach road.

Looking over the western ramparts.

As elsewhere in Greece, I was pleasantly surprised by the lack of bureaucratic management. Virtually no signage -- for information or "forbidding" this or that. No guards. Few guard rails. No warnings about loose stones or sheer dropoffs or slippery stone paths. And strikingly, no grafitti either, and no trash. You paid your 4 euros and wandered about as long and wherever you pleased.

Back down to earth, I bought some cookies at a tiny local shop to bring back to the office, then enjoyed a crepe for lunch, lounging in a cushioned couch overlooking the port. Then quick to catch the bus at 3pm, where despite vows to watch the Pelopponese scenery, I promptly fell asleep again for most of the 2.5 hour trek.

Walked through the dense urban downtown area of Omonia, and over to the more upscale University blocks for a slow cup of coffee and notebook scribbling. I caught the local express bus for yet another hour's ride down the endless coast to beautiful Vouliagmeni. A wonderfully refreshing trip.

In front of the main university building, the professor holds forth, with some peaceful students.

After a day of sitting at my desk on Sunday, I took a walk before the impending rain arrived, climbing the streets of very wealthy homes, dodging the protective dogs loose on the steep streets, and clambering up the stony backside of the hill behind my apartment.

Stony pathway of sorts across the hillside.

As storm clouds spread across the Saronic Gulf, my poor little point-and-shoot could not begin to capture the many shades of gray and blue. Nor can I edit out from most of my shots the new condos blocking the view, old flat concrete rooves, and endless ugly telephone poles and thick wires. Here are a few that avoided the many obstructions.

On the way back through the main streets, I took pictures of people attending a wedding, and of the 2 dozen outdoor restaurants which were just beginning to seat customers for dinner at 8pm. Maybe I'll post photos later.

Looking west. I lived just to the right edge of the photo in 2006 and have many photos of walking out the Kavouri penninsula in the earlier blog posts.