for mom's final weekend in greece, we had to make a serious decision; Mountains or Island? there are places in the country where you can have both at the same time, but that is a bit far from thessaloniki, and we really wanted to commit to one or the other.
eventually, after some in-depth pros and cons work (the island is how many hours away?) we decided on the mountains, and the choice was a good one. we ended up in zagoroxoria cluster to the west of thessaloniki about an hour and a half outside ioanina. Specifically we stayed in megalo papigo, at a little inn that was recommended to us by good friends. we toured a number of villages, ate very well, saw some awesome bridges, impressive rock, and relaxed, simply relaxed.
so, some of my pics may look a bit like mom's, but that is okay, hopefully it augments your experience and makes you want to come visit even more.
artemis and grandma. they got along splendidly from day one. grandma had been a bit apprehensive at first, but artemis had no issues and was quick to welcome.
these are the mountains in and around the village. it was all very impressive. lots of greens, big rock walls, cool stone villages and deep gorges. yes adam, there is rock climbing in some areas, i don't know about big wall; however, i am planning to investigate. Unfortunately, it looks like the rock is a bit unstable, so, we'll see. It is still worth the visit and i think that we should all go the next time you guys are in town.
artemis is not a fan of sitting, unless of course it is a swing, but eventually we did get her strapped down.
not for long though. the first stop was, you guessed it, coffee. artemis is crawling a lot now, and is getting braver and braver. it has been fun to put her down and let her explore on her own.
in the village there was a pretty cool old-school tree house behind the old school. it made eleftheria think of adam's book about tree house design. we were thinking that this would be a great spring project for grandpa, and we will probably need a similar installation at uncle keiths. sorry adam and leanna but i thing that cacti won't provide the kind of structural stability that we are looking for.
this scene is pretty indicative of old villages around greece. this is the main square of the village, at its center is a large maple tree, a church and a fountain. they are by far my favorite trees here in greece and it is such a lovely setting.
artemis loves the backpack, and has a great time generally. i am impressed with how comfortable it must be as she is able to fall asleep whenever she likes.
aside from the cars in this picture, i really like it. adam had commented a long time ago that these villages seemed to blend in with their surroundings. i love how organic and natural they look; by far my favorite style in greece.
one of mom and dad's favorite photos is one of the appalachian mountains through the mist where each series of mountains appears in a different shade of blue as the disappear into the distance; this photo reminds me of that with the added bonus of a dilapidated building in the foreground.
mom and daughter, they are meant for each other, and i feel so lucky/greatful/thankful to have them both.
artemis hanging out while we sit down for dinner. this may look like the perfect set up, but i literally had to put her on the blanket so that i could get this picture.
mom has a similar photo, and spouts all about the cafe, so i will keep my comments brief. it was wonderful.
more wonderful
more wonderful (dad and keith, my expectations have been raised)
more expectations
i was jealous, lets be honest.
i was jealous, lets be honest. seriously, she gets carried like a princess.
follow the . . . well grey covered in foliage . . . road. it was beautiful and new and awesome.
a family selfie (man i hate that that is a word)
mom doesn't do selfies, but she does do pictures of EVERYTHING else. i hope that she will post from the rest of her trip as i, unfortunately, had to spend a large amount of it at school. post some more when you get a chance please.
here is the infamous splinter, it was pretty big, but thankfully not too deep.
yes, there are climbing routs. yes, they look awesome. no, mom did not try to climb them.
yes, artemis did.
I love stone arches.
chillin' on the bridge. i think that we buy her pretty cool toys, but then we get into situations like this, and i realize that we could just go to the garden center and buy her a bag of dirt and some rocks and it would easily make her just as happy. i love this whole series of pictures.
i am still taking picture through the view finder and not looking until later, i was pleasantly surprised by this one; usually i am ticked at myself for missing or messing up a shot.
one sock is still on here, while the other is half-way off.
that changed quickly.
upon our return to thessaloniki we went down the the sea side for a nice walk,
we sat for a coffee and the two karens played while eleftheria and i sat back and rested.
she really likes the camera.
but not nearly as much as she likes the playground.
