Well we are over all the tours and the excitement and are winding sown the vacation. Today it is Patmos a very small Greek island. St John was exiled here when he was caught preaching in Ephesus. He lived in a cave half way up the main hill and it was here that he wrote “Revelations” the last book of the New Testament. There is a monastery on the top of the hill which looks more like a fort which says a lot about the time it was built. We are not doing any tours we are just going to wander up and down the front. Greek islands have this slow pace which you cannot escape. You just fall into the rhythm and your steps become easier as you drift around. We stop for coffee we go into a Jewelers where the owner only says good morning, none of this let me help you spend your money or tugging your arm or where do you come from etc. In fact he never even got up from his chair. We settle in one of the little restaurants on the front looking for “Tzatziki” and find ourselves in the only “authentic” local café which does not serve it. Not a problem the host apologies and points us towards a place he says serves the best on the island, he suggests we come back for our deserts as he has plenty. We move 40 yards and sit down again order our tzatziki, a feta cheese salad and some Saganaki (fried Cheese) Greek Style. Probably much more than we needed as we have eaten far too much on this trip and most if not all of it excellent. There is however something about simple fresh food which warms the soul and here it is. Something they make every day and have perfected over thousands of hot summer days. Fresh and simple remember that, it is always a winner. We stagger back to the ship a little fuller and more relaxed. I notice a small van selling fresh fish with two sun dried old men doling out stuff from the back, two young girls sat in the van playing and a cat wandering around looking sometimes hopefully and sometimes suspiciously around the activity. Dinner is relaxed and as the US Open tennis has started we retire to watch it in the cabin. Tomorrow is Santorini a place we know well as we spent two weeks there several years ago. Santorini is quite a spectacular place to visit. It was formed after a massive volcanic eruption several millennium ago and the myth has it that Atlantis is somewhere around here. It is very dry and the houses are either perched on top of or hanging perilously to the side of an outcrop. They are white and blue and the story is that when the Germans occupied the place in WWII they banned the national flag so the locals painted their houses in the White and Blue of their national flag. No idea if the story is true or not but it fits well. When we were here we saw a shop which was part Jewelry and part Art. There was a necklace I should have bought at the time which I have remembered and regretted not purchasing almost every day since. We did the same in Savannah with a picture we saw on the first visit and had to go back 4 years later to buy. So we know where we are going. Off the ship at 10:30 and onto the pier 10 minutes later we join the queue for the cable car. The other option is to take a donkey ride up the very steep slope which isn’t going to happen. The cable car is enough of an adventure sort of a cross between transportation and a Disney ride it bumps and sways and the white marks Judi made in the back of my hand with her nails should heal in a day or two. We find our shop right where we left it 7 years ago which is a relief and wander around it. Less jewelry than last time but the art is still stunning. A parody of fish movement in metal and glass. We don’t buy just yet as we have all day. We want to savory this for a while and wander off for a coffee and to find another jeweler with lots of necklaces of which there are many. We complete our search and leave one very very happy man behind as we walk out with both necklace and earrings for Babe made by a local artisan. Certificates and tax rebate form in hand and back to our art shop. There we meet the artist who was not there earlier. It was a one man show first time around but not we see crates marked up for the Intercontinental in Dubai and some for places in New York so it seems he is doing ok. We purchase and wander back down the narrow whitewashed streets full of smiles. Approaching the cable car we decide walking down the donkey path would be ok. Well walking will be better than riding. It took 40 minutes but it seemed far safer than either of the alternatives. Tonight we must pack but not just yet so we can have our last dinner which will be full of Highs and Lows and baked Alaska which for some reason is a tradition.
La Jourdinarie our place in France
Steve & Judi's website for all sorts of stuff