Day 11 Souvlaki, Bathrooms, Metro

Today is World Mental Health Day. In Syntagma Square the Red Cross observed it by inviting a band, and then the wonderful Red Cross volunteers did a quick dance to the music. 

Maybe we each should take a moment and assess our mental health and those we love. I know there are people I can rely on if I need someone's ear. I hope that those who know me feel that I can be their ear.

On our walks today we came upon this very unique door handle. It opened up in an art gallery.

For lunch we had a pork souvlaki. (Souvlaki is a meat that is grilled, like a kabob.) Nick and I were under the false impression that a lamb souvlaki was the traditional meat, but that is true only in Muslim countries where they don't eat pork. In Greece, pork souvlaki is the tradition. Anyway, in the tiny shop where we ordered it, with the help of the young man in line with us, this is their source of light. Veddy, veddy fancy.

We sat a spell in Syntagma Square (below) to eat our souvlaki, listen to the Red Cross band, and talk with a couple (Pat and Karen) from southern California who'd just finished a cruise and were spending a couple nights post-cruise in Athens. We then headed to a bookstore across the street that was rumored to have a rooftop cafe. Indeed, it did! We ordered cool juice drinks (aaaah!) and watched the Greek world go by. That's the Parliament Building in the center background where we had watched the changing of the guard earlier this week.

Rooftop bars are numerous here in the center of Athens, many with views of the Acropolis. At night, it's stunning and well worth the price of a cool drink, alcoholic or not. 

Athen's weather has been hotter than Corfu's was last week, with temps in the low 80s. It's also been rainfree, unlike Corfu. I cannot imagine being here in July, August, or even September, with the hotter temps and a lot more tourists. No thank you.

Now a word about public bathrooms here. They are usually clean enough. Most will have ceramic or porcelain tiles.  The toilets almost always have a seat but here's the thing. You are NOT to throw any toilet paper in the toilet in public or home bathrooms. This is true throughout the entire country. You throw it in the waste basket (literally a waste basket) next to the toilet. The sewage pipes here are much smaller in diameter than what is code in the US, and TP would easily clog the pipes. The signs that say, "Do not throw paper in the toilet" are referring to TP.  (We've seen this in China at roadside rest areas.) Also, the flush handle may not be obvious so you may have to look for it and figure it out.

When it comes time to wash your hands, there will be soap and cold water. Not warm water and not hot water. Cold water only.

This particular sink, below, at the port in Saranda, Albania, poured the water--not in the sink-- but on the stainless circle on the back edge of the sink. Water went everywhere, some even back into the sink. 😏 If only they extended the spigot about 4 inches, it'd be right over the drain.

The metro seems to be modern, inexpensive, and clean. We only saw two metro stations so we can't really speak about it in depth. We took a bus from the airport (€5) vs taking the metro (€9) so we could see more of the area. The airport is out a ways. It takes roughly an hour to get there: the bus slightly longer, the metro slightly quicker than that.

Tomorrow we fly to the island of Paros, part of the Cyclades, southeast of Athens. We'd intended to take a ferry but it left earlier than we wanted to leave, 7:30 am, meaning we'd have to leave our apartment about 6 am. Nope. Our flight leaves at 3:45 pm. Yup, that's the option for us, and it didn't cost all that much more. Though I acknowledge that flying is a lot less environmentally kind, and I regret that.

Carol

I thought you should know

This has nothing to do with Greece. 

Luis "El Tiante" Tiant died on Tuesday. Tiant won 229 games and struck out 2,416 batters in a 19-year career, six with the then Cleveland Indians, and eight with the Boston Red Sox. He also spent two years with the Yankees, and one each with the Twins, Pirates, and Angels.

Luis Tiant was famous for his corkscrew windup (his back was to the batter), his long cigars, and his warm, outsized personality. 

Tiant is not in the Hall of Fame. Catfish Hunter, Don Drysdale, and Jim Bunning are. Compare their stats.

Carol and I both spent time with Tiant. 

Carol had about two minutes in a Minneapolis hotel elevator with him in 1978. I spent a week with Tiant at the Red Sox Fantasy Camp in 2005. Ask Carol about her experience; it's a much better story than mine. 

--Nick