All good here thanks. A couple of people has asked recently if I enjoy my walks. Obviously my blogs have not been explicit enough. Yes I do enjoy my walks. I love putting my walking boots on in the morning as I leave our accomodation and I love taking them off in the afternoon after we arrive. That’s not to say there aren’t some tough sections but even in the difficult parts there’s a sense of satisfaction and a degree of accomplishment that is satisfying. Here on the Menalon Trail the terrain changes quite often, although rocky paths seem quite prevalent, so a sense of walking rhythm is difficult to achieve. The last 5 km or so (excluding last 500 m uphill) was smooth and easy walking and was probably the first time I experienced here ... read more

We get up. We have breakfast. We walk. We arrive in a cute little village. We go out for evening meal. So far 4 out of 5 ticked off and here there are a few tavernas so the last on the list should not be too difficult. Big breakfast spread particularly considering we were the only guests. Far too much for us even taking into consideration the lunch we take. The host even supplied take away bags and still we hardly made a dint in the offerings. Then it’s on the trail. We re-walked the last 20 minutes of yesterday’s trail as the first 20 minutes of today’s. Quite frustrating but here necessary. Then it’s along the river for quite a while. Picturesque and quiet delightful really and as it is heavily forested it was cool ... read more

Couple of food photos first. Our last night in Stemnista was back to the only restaurant in the town (surprise, surprise!) but not for a a whole grilled chicken-we Made that mistake last night. I’m not sure how they cut the chicken up but there must have been at least 20 portions! Some identifiable, some not so but all good. It was spanakopita and lamb cooked in lemon, served with the ubiquitous chips. Vegetables are very hard to come by here. There are virtually none on the menu except for tomatoes. Our accomodation has a great morning breakfast, most of which they were happy for us to take away. So a couple of s cheese and spinach rolls, a couple of egg and bacon bakes and a couple of sweet biscuits went with us. Still managed ... read more

You gotta eat but this is ridiculous (almost!). It’s not long after breakfast so the legacy of a few pastries, some fruit, a good measure of yogurt and honey, a liberal supply of juice and of course some coffee have not worn off. The 3 minute walk did not exactly compensate either. But we were off on the Athens Food Tour. After some chicken and cheese, spinach and cheese, ham and cheese and of course some cheese and cheese pastries followed by some donuts with cinnamon and honey (they are seriously good but I could only eat 2 of the 3 we were offered), some Greek coffee, then helpings of beef meat balls, zucchini and carrot balls, tzatziki, stuffed capsicum, fried cheese, chicken cooked in garlic and lemon, some pork cooked in garlic and tomato, some ... read more

Greet from Greece. In fact from the base of the Acropolis, near the Plaza, between the 2 main squares and near the old Roman Agora. The location is ideal for any activity in central Athens although our hotel which was terrific last year is showing signs of its age. Admittedly our room is smaller and lacks the balcony I had last year so it’s decreased in size but the prices has inversely risen. We paid more for a small bottle of sparkling water than I did for a souvlaki on the streets! And the souvlaki was good. The same bottle of water is less than one fifth the price at the supermarket 3 doors away! But… The view from the rooftop garden here is probably worth the inflated drink prices. There’s not a bad view of ... read more