Having A Heat Wave ~ A Novel Escape

You can count on July and August in our slice of the Greek Peloponnese to be sizzlers. But this year, the heat has had an intensity that takes one's breath away. 

Heading to Pantazi beach to beat the heat

Our wet, chilly spring hung on so long that we wondered if we would have a summer. But by mid-July there was no doubt about it: summer had arrived. Two weeks ago, temperatures hit 109F/42.7C at our house, and just an hour's drive to our east, soared to 115F, slightly over 46C.

Kalamata beach fun and sun - a tourist favorite

Plants in our gardens have withered - blooms and leaves are brown. Hillsides and olive groves are virtual tinderboxes. Tourists are flocking to the beaches to cool off while residents, like us, are hunkered inside behind shuttered windows (to block sun rays) with our fans and air conditioners getting their seasonal workout.

Hillside tinderboxes 

The heat has occasionally shut down popular tourist attractions like the Acropolis in Athens during the day. Jobs requiring hard physical labor throughout the country were suspended several times during the mid-day as heat reached record highs. Wildfires are still being fought out on several Greek islands and near Athens. 

The water bucket is an ominous sign of summer here

The sound of helicopters this time of year means firefighting is underway. We search the surrounding sky for smoke when we hear the beat of the copter's blades. Luckily, fires have been a distance from us and have been contained quickly.

With no energy or desire to leave our home's cool interior, we have turned to novel getaways for our summer fun; the kind of get-away best undertaken from an easy chair or couch.

Our Novel Escapes

Our favorite souvenir is a book purchased at some wonderful bookstore we've happened upon in our travels. The book, besides providing a great armchair escape once we are home, brings back the memories of shopping for it as well.  Sometimes the search for a bookstore is almost as memorable. Surprisingly, one of our favorite 'reads' of the summer came from failing to find a bookstore:

Celebrity Edge has a pool but no library.

We'd taken a week-long Celebrity cruise from Rome to Barcelona in late May. Planning to find a bookstore at one or more of our ports of call, or turning to the ship's library if we couldn't find a store, neither of us took any reading material. A mistake, to be sure! 

We couldn't find a bookstore in Ajaccio, Corsica, nor in Portofino, Italy or Cannes, France. And our Celebrity Edge ship, built in 2018, was constructed without a library (one of the few negatives about the ship, to my way of thinking).  

Our cabin's indoor deck was a perfect spot for reading.

I finally managed to find a handful of books (in a cupboard behind the reception desk) that had been left behind by former cruisers. 

Italy

Among them was a beat-up book, The House at the Edge of Night, by Katherine Banner. Published in 2017 by Random House, it was that year named one of the Best Books of the Year by NPR, the Los Angeles Public Library and Kirkus Reviews. Set on a fictitious Italian island, the novel spans four generations, and features a main character who collects stories of island life.  The author was inspired by three real-life chroniclers of Sicilian and Italian folk stories: Giuseppe Pitre, Laura Gonzenbach, and Italo Calvino.

A perfect summer read

Malaysia

My favorite novel getaway so far this year came from a chance purchase at Eslite Bookstore in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - a sprawling place that encompasses most of the second floor of a downtown shopping mall.  It required at least three trips to visit all its sections. We seek local authors whose work has been translated to English and hit a goldmine when we discovered. . .

Display at Eslite Bookstore Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

. . .The Gift of Rain, the debut novel of Malaysian writer, Tan Twan Eng. The book set in Penang, Malaysia, opens in 1939 and spans a time before, during and after the Japanese invasion of that country as part of World War II. The book is so rich in historical, religious and cultural layers, that I plan to read it more than once to absorb all that it has to offer.   The author is a gifted wordsmith whose first line had me captured: 

Debut novel long listed for the Booker Award

 'I was born with the gift of rain, an ancient soothsayer in an even more ancient temple told me.'  

Viet Nam

Ho Chi Minh City Opera House

 I wanted to read more books set in the countries we'd visited on that February trip, specifically Cambodia and Viet Nam.  While taken with the beauty we found in Ho Chi Minh City (aka Saigon)  I wanted to be reminded of the country's recent history as well. I had been too young during the war to grasp the magnitude of its horrors. 

I got a taste of them though in, The World Played Chess by Seattle author Robert Dugoni.

A coming of age novel

His book is a coming-of-age tale that centers around three young men: one an 18-year-old fighting in the Viet Nam war. It is a captivating read, with story passages that can make you laugh and cry. Spoiler alert: His research on Viet Nam combat was thorough, there are some tough passages in this one.  

History

Boboli Gardens and Pitti Palace - Florence

I am the first to admit that I find textbook-style history to be too dry to comprehend.  But when I happen upon a well-written historical novel - or in this case, a saga of novels - that keep me entertained while teaching me something, I am unable to put them down.  

Italian writer Matteo Strukul, has caught both of us up in his three-book trilogy about the Medici's: Medici Ascendancy is set in 1429, Medici Supremacy in 1469 and Medici Legacy, 1536. 

Florence from the Boboli Gardens

The Medici's were a rich and powerful family that ruled Florence and later Tuscany from 1434 until 1737, with the exception of a couple of periods of time.  It is difficult to visit Florence and not be impressed with the impact of the Medici's on Italy.  These books are an entertaining- if somewhat imaginative - look into the history and legacy of that powerful family

Who Dunnit?

I love getaways, that involve figuring out who committed the crime in some favorite destination.  While on the topic of Italy, Florence in particular, we must give a shout-out to our favorite crime writers in that city, Michele Giutarri.  He certainly has done plenty of first-hand research and probably has more story ideas than he'll live long enough to write.  

Florence at night

Giuttari is the former head of the Florence Police Force, serving from 1995 until 2003.  He has turned his talents to writing crime fiction. . .or is it fiction? Whatever the case, the books are page turners, and you get a travelogue of the city with each case he solves.

A who-dunnit set in Florence

And then came Pinocchio

'How can I be an English major and traveler and yet had never read Pinocchio?' I asked myself during our visit to Florence last month. And I remedied that, during that same visit with a purchase of the Penguin Classic version of this book written by Carlo Collodi in 1880. 

Carlo Collodi is the pen name of Carlo Lorenzini, 1826 - 1890, a writer, novelist, journalist and political satirist who was born in Florence.  

You are never too old to read Pinocchio!

I was expecting a quick read of a simple children's story - with a storyline similar to the mid-century Walt Disney movie I had seen as a child.  Was I ever in for a surprise! Thanks to this annotated edition I discovered this little children's story is actually a sophisticated satire that reflected the author's concern for the social inequities of his time.  The annotations were as interesting as the plot!  Who knew?  It was a delightful read and I highly recommend it!

Enough about our novel getaways.  Where have books taken you this season?  Leave us a note in the comments or shoot us an email -- we are always looking for a recommendation for a novel getaway! Until next time, wishes for safe travels to you and yours and thanks for the time you spent with us today!

Rhodes Less Traveled

The plan was to be at the palace when it opened. That way, we reasoned, we'd avoid the lines of tourists waiting to enter.

However, we found that aside from a few staff members keeping an eye on visitors, we were alone in the Palace of the Grand Master, the crowning structure within the walled medieval city of Rhodes on a Friday morning in May.

As we made our way up the enormous empty stairway it really became clear that we were traveling in a Rhodes less traveled.

Alone in a Palace

The last time we visited the Palace, nearly a decade ago, the crush of tourists was so dense I let The Scout blaze us a trail and we walked single file at times as we made our way through the hordes filling this edifice that dates back to the 7th Century.

Empty Courtyard Palace of the Grand Master - Rhodes, Greece 

By the time we completed this recent visit to this massive palace we had encountered fewer than a dozen other tourists. 

Tourists were few in the ancient city

In pre-pandemic years it was normal to have this and other ancient sites within the walled city teeming with tourists. But this year, like last, is turning out to be not quite 'normal' in terms of tourism. Admittedly, our visit here came within a week of Greece re-opening the country to tourism. It will take some time for tourists to return.

Greek Island Hopping

Arriving Kastellorizo - island-hopping in Greece

Rhodes was part of a week-long island hopping adventure that kicked off our travel season in Greece. The ease of travel within Greece is among the many benefits of being expats living in the Peloponnese. We simply drove to Athens' port city, Piraeus, and boarded a ferry. Traveling by ferry is one of our favorite means of exploring Greece.

The far-flung island of Kastellorizo, also known as Megisti, located far south of Rhodes, off the coast of Turkey was our first destination. After three nights there we caught the local ferry that runs between it and Rhodes to finish our week on the larger island. The massive ship carried us between the two islands in 4.5 hours at a cost of 1.5 euros, roughly $1.80  per ticket. 

We had the better part of three days in which to reacquaint ourselves with Rhodes, or Rodos, as it is known here; the largest of the Aegean Sea's Dodecanese islands.

Rhodes/Rodos

Our focus was within the walled ancient city

Rhodes has a bit of something for every visitor:  the new Rhodes city (begun a mere 500 years ago) offers modern, sleek high-rise resort accommodations, a casino, dozens of dining venues and a plethora of shopping opportunities like found in any large city. Traveling outside the Rhodes metropolitan area one can find beaches and resorts and several small towns offering accommodations and endless dining opportunities.

Our room - Nikos Takis Hotel Rhodes

With only two nights we were content to focus on the history found within Rhodes ancient walled city. The Scout found us a stunning hotel, the Nikos Takis Fashion Boutique Hotel, which put us footsteps between two landmarks representing different periods of island rule: that of the Knights of St. John and the Ottomans.   

Nikos Takis Hotel patio with views to the harbor

Our room, one of eight in the small boutique hotel, opened onto the hotel patio from where we had views of the harbor. The nightly rate also included a full breakfast served in the patio.

Street of the Knights not crowded at all

We wandered about on foot, following narrow streets back and forth, up hill and down. We remembered these streets as being congested on our last visit, The reduced number of tourists rendered them delightfully easy to maneuver. A number of tourist shops and restaurants hadn't yet opened for the season but there were plenty of shopping, eating and drinking opportunities to keep us satiated during our stay. 

It is interesting to note, that while we think of the old walled city, surrounded by a moat, as a tourist destination, this UNESCO World Heritage Site is a very real and active neighborhood in the city - home to some 6,000 residents. 

Knights of St. John 

Entry Palace of the Grand Master

While the island's history, like many in the Dodecanese, is a checkerboard with periods of  Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman, and Italian occupation, it seems the fortifications built, modernized and expanded by the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem during their occupation dominate the tourists' top 10 favorite places.

Archaeological museum in Knight's hospital

It was in 1309 when the city was sold to the Knights. The Order had been founded in the 12th century to provide care for the poor, sick or injured pilgrims traveling to the Holy Land and the Crusaders.  It soon became a military unit, acquiring large amounts of land. It founded its headquarters in Rhodes. 

Church of Panagia Tou Kastrou

The Knights' hospital houses the Archaeological Museum. It was difficult to decide if the displays or the building itself was 'the best part' of that stop.  The nearby Church of the Panagia Tou Kastrou, with its towering nave, is a performing arts venue. 

We visited the hospital, church and the Palace as part of a package admissions ticket that got us into the three sites for 10 euros each. 

Ottoman Influence 

Mosque of Suleiman the Great from Sissito Restaurant

Our hotel was a short walk from the Palace of the Grand Master to our right and the Mosque of Suleiman the Great to our left.  We also were lucky to have our hotel recommend Sissito, a restaurant serving amazing food in its courtyard at the side of the Mosque. Suleiman the Great had founded a public kitchen in the area where the restaurant now operates and many of the buildings surrounding the restaurant in the complex host cultural activities and art exhibits. 

An Island Escape Artist

Patricia Wilson, and her latest book, Summer in Greece

One of the highpoints of our stay was meeting one of the best 'island escape artists' I know. British expat Patricia Wilson, author of several novels set on Greek islands, lives with her husband on Rhodes. Each of her books, set on a different island, is an entertaining historical novel that highlights a segment of the featured island's history, while providing a bit of contemporary romance and a very good Greek getaway. 

Over a long leisurely lunch, the Wilsons and we talked of expat life in Greece, writing and Greek island adventures. I am trying to convince her the next novel should be based in The Mani!  BTW, the novel in the photo above, Summer in Greece, was just released this spring. I won't give away the plot but if you want a great armchair getaway to Greece this year - this is the book to read.

Rhodes, Greece

I will sign off for this week with a thank you to all of you who took the time to write and let me know that you had received last week's post. The  new email system is working! And a welcome to all the new subscribers as well - several who've reported how easy it was to sign up.

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However you joined us, we are glad you are here and hope to see you back again!  Stay safe ~

Linking soon with the following:

Through My Lens
Travel Tuesday
Our World Tuesday
My Corner of the World Wednesday
Wordless Wednesday

Novel virus, novel times, novel getaways

This novel virus that seems to have upended the earth and all of us who inhabit it, has certainly made this a novel time in our lives.

Greece is on CPOVID-19 lockdown - streets are empty

In Greece, where we live as boomer-aged American expats, we are on government ordered lockdown. It began Monday this week at 6 a.m. We learned of it on Sunday evening thanks to Greek media, social media and the country's emergency alert system.

For the next two weeks, we must notify the government of our plans to leave our home and only six categories of destinations/reasons are permitted for leaving the house. Grocery stores, banks, pharmacies as well as being out for dog walking/exercise are among those permitted destinations/reasons. Fines of 150 euros ($163US) per person per violation will be levied if you are found being out of compliance with the directives. We ventured to the village grocery last night and passed only one other car - our area's sole police car was slowly cruising through the village checking for compliance.

Pantazi Beach  near our home is empty

Airlines have pretty much quit flying to Greece and all hotels save for three in Athens and three in Thessaloniki and one in each regional capital are closed.  All non-essential business is closed. Hopefully, the closures will only be until the end of April.

So we are staying home. . .not just because the government has ordered us to do so, but because the number of COVID-19 cases continues to climb here and we'd prefer not to be among its statistics.

Our home lower left, Taygetos Mountains in the distance

Our Stone House on the Hill has never been so clean (nor the skin on my hands as dry as it is from the scrubbing I have done on it and myself). Our garden has never been as weed free. But we are vagabonds. . .travelers. . .who still have the travel bug. So what do we do to ease the itch of that travel bug?

Our regulars here, know the answer. We head to novel destinations.  We've hit quite a few in recent weeks and I thought I tell you about a few of them in hopes that you will share some of yours in the comments below or by emailing us.  It was great hearing from so many of you after last week's post, so hope you'll continue to stay in touch!

Afghanistan:

Sheik Zayed Grand Mosque - Abu Dhabi - a Middle East treasure

I am currently immersed in an action packed spy thriller/romance by Ken Follett, 'Lie Down with Lions' set in Afghanistan. Now I am likely never to visit Afghanistan in this life time, but this 1980's era book brings the area to life and makes me think back to travels we've had in other parts of the Middle East. It has me entertained and thinking about where to expand our Middle Eastern travels when we can travel again.

Egypt:  

On the Nile near Aswan - great memories

I can thank Egyptian author Naguib Mahfouz for setting me,'Adrift on the Nile' with his 1966 novel. It's main character, a drug-addicted and bored, civil servant and his circle of friends provide an interesting portrait of the country's middle class - at least as it was then. I became hooked on Mahfouz when I read his Cairo Trilogy set in colonial Egypt many decades ago.

Egypt has been on our minds because we just had friends visit last week (who got out of Greece just before everything shut down) and before coming here they had visited Egypt.Their tales and photos activated the travel bug and our desire to return to this magical country.

Austria:

Me at the Hapsburg Palace in Vienna

I time traveled back to the mid 1850's and took a sneak peek into the lives of Europe's powerful ruling family, the Hapsburgs, in 'The Accidental Empress' a historical novel by Allison Pataki.  This is a love story about Emperor Franz Joseph and the woman (15-year-old girl, actually) he married. His Empress Elisabeth, known as 'Sisi' was beloved by those they ruled.

We saw so many statues of Franz Joseph and tributes to 'Sisi' while in Vienna last fall, I wanted to know more about the two.  We ordered not only some history books about the Hapsburgs but this book as well after our return. It was a good entertaining introduction into the time and the ruling family.

Hungary: 

Budapest street after dark

During our time in Budapest last November we happened upon a bookstore that had a section of books written by local authors and had been translated to English.. The novel, 'Budapest Noir' by Vilmos Kondor was among the souvenirs we bought during that stop.  It is a murder mystery set in 1936. No one but a crime reporter for the newspaper (the book's main character) wanted to investigate the murder.   It was such a good read that we went in search on line of other of his novels, but we have found no others have been translated into English.

Germany:

My garden - African daisies are in bloom

A good friend, an avid gardener and  reader, recommended a vintage book, 'Elizabeth and her German Garden' by Elizabeth Von Arnim. First published anonymously in 1898, it was a fictionalized account of the author's life and the creation of her garden at the family's home in Nassenheide in Pomerania.  While, as a bumbling gardener myself, I could relate to her efforts, the book was far more than a garden journal. Set in the final years of the 19th century Germany Elizabeth offers some interesting insights to the every day life of minor Prussian aristocrats.

Goat bell door bell - Kotroni village

So where have you traveled to in your easy chair? What novel destinations have you visited lately? Any recommendations for us?

We do wish you well during this unsettled time.  Take care. Stay healthy. There will be plenty of time for real-time travel when this comes to an end.  

Hope you will be back next week as we do have a few travel tales yet to tell ~ as always thanks for the time you have spent with us today!

We are linking this week with:

Mosaic Monday
Through My Lens
Travel Tuesday
Our World Tuesday
My Corner of the World Wednesday
Wordless Wednesday

Lights, Camera, Action, Popcorn. . .Greece!

Stolen jewels. A hint of romance. A bit of danger.  A scene that makes your heart race, with Hayley Mills, the Walt Disney star of the mid-1900's trapped in a Greek windmill and escaping by clinging to the canvas blade as it spun past.

My introduction to Greece

That was my introduction to Greece. 1964.

Thanks to Walt Disney's movie 'The Moon-Spinners' filmed on Crete, starring Mills, Eli Wallach, Irene Papas and Pola Negri - I had an action-packed introduction to Greece. It planted the seed . . .

I knew that someday, I was going to Greece (Back then, I certainly wouldn't have thought I'd be living here, but I sure did want to visit!)

A movie sent me chasing Greek windmills. . .

It was Pauline Collins as 'Shirley Valentine'  who 'took' Pacific Northwest friend, Barbara Cantwell, to Greece via the movie of the same name. The 1989  film, about a bored, middle-aged housewife -- Shirley Valentine --who ditches her mundane life and her husband and heads to Greece on her own, was filmed the island of Mykonos.

While Barbara lives on an island in Washington State, she continues to escape to a Greek island 'with' Shirley.  

Scenes of Greece 

For our English friends, Bill and Val Kitson, it is watching that toe-tapping 2008 'Mamma Mia' -- filmed on Skopelos island -- that is a must-watch prior to trips to Greece. They say it helps build the excitement for their bi-annual trips to Crete (this spring they watched it before they left and after they returned)!

Bet your toes start tapping . . .OPA!

And I bet everyone of you has seen at least the beach dance scene from the 1964 film, 'Zorba the Greek', in which Anthony Quinn as Alexis Zorbas and Alan Bates, his boss interlink arms and dance the 'siritaki' on a Greek beach. 

Mural in Stoupa - Kazantzakis and Zorbas

The movie was based on a novel written by Greek author Nikos Kazantzakis, who lived for a time -- a century ago -- just down the road from us in Stoupa village. He'd tried to mine lignite from a hillside behind the village. His mining operation foreman was George Zorbas. . .which gave rise to the subsequent novel.

Me in Crete on 'Zorba's beach' the movie dance was filmed here

The 1964 movie was filmed in Crete.
 .

The idea for this big-screen getaway post can be credited to the former Seattle Times travel editor, Brian Cantwell, (Barbara's husband) for whom I used to write travel tales. After reading my post about 'novel' destinations he asked about movie getaways to Greece (still thinking travel stories) So I set out to find some movies and was amazed at the number I found! Those highlighted are but a sample.  Some, you've probably heard of and others, probably not. 

Ill Met by Moonlight 

Take for instance, 'Ill Met by Moonlight' a 1957 movie shot in Crete. The movie is based on a real life incidient during World War II in which a Nazi commander was kidnapped by British armed forces and Cretan resistance fighters.  The one who led the effort was none other than Patrick Leigh Fermor, the British writer I told you about a few weeks ago. His Greek home (now officially open to the public) is just a few kilometers from us.

Patrick Leigh Fermor House in Kalamitsi

And while speaking of him, another movie, 'Before Midnight' was filmed at his home in 2013.  The film was the final one in a trilogy of movies that began with 'Before Sunrise' (1995) and 'Before Sunset' (2004). Featuring Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, it was shot in 15 days. The PLF House was loaned to the production crew by Benaki Museum.

Donkeys on Hydra are still used as transport vehicles

The Academy-Award-winning 'The Guns of Navarone' filmed in 1961 on Rhodes had a $2 million budget which was quickly blown because of the costs of filming there: the terrain was so rough that many of the locations could only be accessed by donkey and they hired 1,000 Greek soldiers to play the German army.

Island escape and escapade

One that I'd never heard of before writing this piece is 'Surprise Package'  a 1960's movie also filmed on Rhodes. The movie is about an American gangster sent back to his Greek homeland and is supervised by a corrupt police chief and the plot thickens from there. The stars include Yul Brenner as the gangster and co-stars include Mitzi Gaynor and Noel Coward.

Greece for your eyes only

A more recent movie, 'For Your Eyes Only' (1981) takes James Bond through locations in England and Italy and includes scenes shot in Rhodes and Meteora in central Greece where six Greek Orthodox monasteries are built atop stunning rock formations.

Boy on a Dolphin - Sofia Loren room in Hydra hotel

A 23-year-old Sofia Loren played a beautiful sponge diver in 'Boy on the Dolphin' a movie filmed on the island of Hydra in 1957.  Today on the island there is a statue in a park overlooking the sea of a boy on a dolphin to commemorate the movie. We also stayed in the Sofia Loren room at Hydra Icons hotel last year.  

Heading to new adventures this fall

Summer has on its way into the history books and September is definitely showing signs of autumn.  And for those who've been with us awhile, you know that autumn is the time of year we straddle two worlds: Greece and the US.  The next time you hear from us, we will be in the village of Manson on the shores of Lake Chelan in Washington State.  We have a lot to learn about that place we made our 'other home' last fall and hope you'll join us in our journey of discovery!

Thanks for the time you spent with us today!! Safe travels to you and yours ~

Linking with:

Through My Lens
Our World Tuesday
Wordless Wednesday