Friday, May 25, 2012 Last day in Greece –  our last day of vacation.   After a restful night, we gradually gathered in the Fisher’s kitchen and living area.  Brenda, who was first up, had a big pot of coffee waiting for us.  Glenn entered singing – Oh, what a beautiful morning!  He was right.  The sun was shining on Neohori and all of us.  So much so that we could have breakfast on the porch with hot fresh bread that Guy and Glenn brought back from the neighborhood wood fired oven bakery!   

It was a relaxing morning.  Guy and Peggy packed and the rest of us went into Stoupa for a quick trip which included a few more shops, coffee and internet in one of the cafes.  We were preparing ourselves for a trip through the mountains for potato omelets for lunch.

Later, we drove slowly through the mountains with a number of stops to have a look at the Wow! That’s incredible! views. These sites are seen about every 3.5 seconds.  (See photos.)  The day also afforded priceless photo opportunities of animals and people.  I confess to really wanting a few photos of the elderly men and women in black, who are an integral part of the Greek countryside.  The trip to the Potato omelet place (which is simply the café in the village of Upper Milea) made that wish come true.  

Visitors know they have reached the potato omelet café because there will be an elderly woman in black sitting in front of  a church is a courtyard with a gigantic mulberry tree.  (Truly that’s how you know you are there.)  There is a table and chairs under the tree and persons in search of the famous potato omelets sit down and the owner brings out homemade wine in a tin cup and asks, “How many omelets?”  

It takes a while to be served because once orders are taken, the owner/chef goes inside and begins to peel and cut up the potatoes. The walls inside are covered with original family art. (See photos)  There are no prep chefs in Upper Mani.  Somehow the owner does magic with potatoes, water,  free range eggs and sea salt.  The omelets are served with Greek salad and bread. The omelets worth walking up the mountain, if necessary, to taste.   (See photos) 

While we were waiting, an elderly man invited us to see his garden and take a photo of him.  That was followed by his twin brother joining him -  it was photo time again.  Across the courtyard was an even more elderly man, who called me over and asked me to photograph him.  This was followed by the woman in black who was also delighted to be photographed.  This was not to be the end of the photographs.  

Down the mountain we went.  We took a last walk through the village, had great iced coffee at one more local taverna/café and started back to the Fishers.  It was just about time for our 5 p.m. departure. On the way we saw more gardens; one of the fertility symbols that adorn almost every house; a grinding stone; a threshing circle; and a few more animals.  However, there were more delightful photos to take.

 As we turned onto the Fisher’s street, we saw her neighbor and another woman sitting on the steps.  Wonder of wonders, their next door neighbor saw my camera, motioned for me to wait, climbed the stairs to her house and came out on the balcony and stood smiling among her beautiful flowers.  She wanted to be photographed!   In thanks, she threw roses from the balcony, which her friend gladly held as she also wanted to be photographed.   Guy and Peggy will be taking photos with them on their next trip to Neohori and Upper Milea…..photos of very beautiful, friendly, smiling Maniantes.  

The last photograph for the day is one of Peggy and Guy beside their front gate.  Their home is a place of welcome and they do open it to visitors from across the world looking for a vacation rental.  For more information on visiting the Mani area of Greece, visit   http://www.greekhouse.horizon-host.com/greekhouse.htm.  

As this blog entry is being written, Guy, Peggy, Rose Mary and I are in the car on a four plus hour drive for an overnight stay in Athens and our Saturday flights back to the States.  Judy and Bob will join Brenda and Glenn for a week in Neohori.  We were six friends on a once in a lifetime tour of Croatia, Bosnia, and the Mani area of Greece.  We spent 15 days together – and enjoyed every adventure – and meal.  We truly were the Whos in Whoville who anticipated a great time in Europe and found it – even though the cold weather afforded us many opportunities to remember the words of a German tourist on the cold day in Plivitice Lakes who said:  “There is no bad weather, only bad clothes”.  In brief we had fun…..thank you Peggy and Guy!  The trip was memorable.  

 And – for any readers interested in viewing the thousands of photos from the trip and sharing Croatian and Greek food with us, let any one of us know.  The photo event will be months in the making but we will keep you posted and invited. 

This is the official end of the blog for our trip – who knows what will follow it – perhaps at least an entry on Things Learned in Europe. We are looking forward to seeing you all back in the states (this includes friends from Europe who we are hoping accept our invitation, so we can reciprocate your hospitality.)

Thanks for reading --- and wherever you go – travel safely, blog away and send us your blogspot address!

   

Thursday May 24, 2012 Journey through Mani.   After a hearty breakfast (See photos), Peggy, Brenda, Rose Mary and I went for a road trip through the Taeygetos Mountains – and I mean MOUNTAINS.  There were moments went we truly were eye level with the clouds.   Guy and Glenn stayed behind for some rest, relaxation, and visits in town.  So, this blog entry will mainly describe the women’s day in the mountains of Mani, which is the area in which Guy and Peggy live.  It has a history dating back thousands of years. It was inhabited during the classical Greek era.  History records Spartans influence on the area.  It’s many ruins and stone terraces give evidence of a highly populated and agricultural area of Greece.   (See photos) The Maniates were and continue to be a very independent people, who prize their history and cultural identity. 

There was a dual purpose of our lady’s day out.  Peggy wanted to show Rose Mary and me some of the main Mani villages and sites, and Brenda (who had been here before and is staying on with Glen for another week) wanted to be certain of locations and driving directions to favorite restaurants and historic sites.  Although the day was overcast and rainy, we were certain the sun would come out – which it eventually did (See photos).

Our first stop was in Neohori to visit 300 plus year old bee hives (no longer active) and to see the cave home of the ancient bee keepers.  From there we continued to Nomitasi to visit a 13^th century Orthodox chuch.  (See photos.)  Our next stop was Lagada to visit another beautiful church. (Photos again).  Then we went to Areapolis to visit the town for a mid-morning coffee break.  We discovered La Roca (See photos) a most welcoming café, with, according to Brenda – the best latte EVER!  LaRoca was also a internet hotspot (these have been few and far between), so we relaxed, uploaded, downloaded, talked and enjoyed a long break. (See photos)

The next stop was the Diros Caves, which are reputed to be among the most incredible caves in the world.  This is a well deserved reputation; there are miles and miles of caverns beneath the earth.  We were on a boat for six people (I was assigned the seat in the front of the boat!  Best seat of all – except when it looks like we are about to hit a stalagmite because the woman behind me couldn’t keep still – we had been given strict instructions to sit straight and do not move!)  The 30 plus minute ride on 1,8000 meters of underground river is simply indescribable.  (See photos which do not do the experience  justice or book a flight to Athens or Kalamata, take a bus to Stoupa and ask for directions.)  The boat ride was followed by about a 15 minute walk through another section of the caves. (Photos again.)    

Before leaving the cave area we viewed the statue dedicated to the Amazon women of the area, who using threshing scythes held off the Turks in the 18^th century and helped Mani maintain its independence.  (Still working on how I feel about that imagery.)

From there we went Vaphia to visit the tower village.   The towers were used to defend the area as well as for families to fight with each other. (The Manis had their Hatfields and McCoys – who now live peacefully).

From there we travelled to Porto Gaio.  This village got its name because quail migrated through the area and the villagers would put nets hundreds of feet into the air and capture the quail.  They then preserved them in oil and sold them throughout the area and exported them to France.  Eventually the quail supply was depleted and today Porto Gaio is a picturesque fishing village – with a great café.  Not surprisingly, the owner of the café, is a friend of Peggy’s.  Instead of coffee I ordered mountain tea (wild sage – see photos.) The high point of my day was the owner’s generosity.  As we were leaving she presented me with a bag of wild sage that had been collected from the mountain.  (See photos).

We returned to the Fisher’s home for a quick happy hour before dinner and then went into Stoupa for a bit of shopping and the last dinner in Greece for the traveling tourists from Delaware and Pennsylvania.  The sun, which has been in hiding much of the trip, gifted us with a rainbow on the way into town for dinner and a most memorable sunset.  We ended the evening with (once again) some great Greek food and wine and then went home for our last night in Neohori.