On Saturday, I climbed a mountain. Now, let me be clear, in America when we say "I climbed a mountain," it usually means "I walked up a nicely cleared, marked trail to the summit." In Greece, it means something entirely different. For one, there are a lot fewer "trails." Actually, you're usually better off not taking the trails, as they are quite slippery. I have learned that Greece is a very slippery place. It's also very pokey; all of the plants here have either thorns or brambles. It's like the country wants you to be uncomfortable. The number of times I actually thought I was going to die was way too high. But...the view and sense of accomplishment I felt at the top made it all worth it.
Jon took us up to an old cave, where soldiers used to be posted for lookout. There were inscriptions (basically ancient graffiti) there from the 1600's and earlier. It was amazing. We even found some more bones, which I'm beginning to accept happens with alarming frequency here. Katie identified them as goats. Bones are her thing.
After the beyond treacherous descent, we sat with Aristides at a small café, and then headed back to the hotel. About an hour later, we all reunited to begin our trip to Itea, where we were staying the night before we visited Delphi on Sunday. It was an extremely long and nervewracking but beautiful drive up through the mountains and back down to the coast. The Greeks don't believe in guardrails, even in the mountains (which is not surprising in the least). Our little hotel was pretty nice and was very near to the water. We spent the night relaxing and enjoying the little town of Itea.
We all ate together at a place called Pizza House (I'm not kidding), which had a very interesting owner who spoke perfect English. We had a good time chatting with him about all sorts of things.
view from the cave
Jon took us up to an old cave, where soldiers used to be posted for lookout. There were inscriptions (basically ancient graffiti) there from the 1600's and earlier. It was amazing. We even found some more bones, which I'm beginning to accept happens with alarming frequency here. Katie identified them as goats. Bones are her thing.
inscriptions in the cave
Katie and her bones
After the beyond treacherous descent, we sat with Aristides at a small café, and then headed back to the hotel. About an hour later, we all reunited to begin our trip to Itea, where we were staying the night before we visited Delphi on Sunday. It was an extremely long and nervewracking but beautiful drive up through the mountains and back down to the coast. The Greeks don't believe in guardrails, even in the mountains (which is not surprising in the least). Our little hotel was pretty nice and was very near to the water. We spent the night relaxing and enjoying the little town of Itea.
town of Itea
We all ate together at a place called Pizza House (I'm not kidding), which had a very interesting owner who spoke perfect English. We had a good time chatting with him about all sorts of things.
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