What should the first time visitor to Greece know?  What would they like to know?

I have just accumulated a few words of wisdom into a new web page.  But please don’t look at it until you comment to this post.

What advice would you as a resident or visitor to Greece give?  Or having never been to Greece what would you most like to know?

I am looking forward to your comments.

Cheers,

The photo is of Parikia port in 2001.

Here are a few items that I should have reported on earlier.

The archaeological excavations on Despotiko off the south coast of Antiparos produced major finds this summer.

While uncovering a wall of an archaic building they discovered half of a “kouros” that matches the other half found in 2005.  They found a head in 2010 that may belong to the same statue.  All of which are of excellent quality and are of a style used on Paros in the 500’s BC..

It is possible to arrange boat tours of Despotiko and adjacent Tsimintiri where other large ruins have been unearthed.  That is on our list of things to do this September.

Another positive achievement for 2011 is flat taxi and limo rates between the Athens airport and central Athens.  In the past this was a major sore point as many taxi drivers took advantage of unaware visitors.  So now you are aware of the following:

Fare for Taxis

DAY TIME FLAT FARE (05:00-24:00)

€35 AIRPORT TO ATHENS CITY CENTRE INNER RING

€35 ATHENS CITY CENTRE INNER RING TO AIRPORT

NIGHT TIME FLAT FARE (00:00-05:00)

€50 AIRPORT TO ATHENS CITY CENTRE INNER RING

€50 ATHENS CITY CENTRE INNER RING TO AIRPORT

1. The flat fare price depends on the time of arrival to the destination.
2. The flat fare includes all applicable surcharges (V.A.T., meter start, luggage, toll fee, and airport charge).

The fare to Piraeus is not fixed but under normal conditions it is officially indicated as €47 Day time and €72 night.  You still have to be aware of attempts at over charging or taking slow routes.  The best defence is to agree a rate in advance.

Finally be on the look out for Greece wines at your local importer.  Prior to the economic crisis 90% of Greece wines were consumed within Greece.  Read why I think this best.  But now sales are down by about 40% so winemakers have an incentive to export.  Undeniably the quality of the better Greece wines has increased over the last decade and are able to compete with the best from France, Oregon and other wine countries.  So help a Greek; drink a glass of wine from Greece.

As usual the summer Paros Life is chock-a-block full of music concerts and art events.  One that did not make the listing deadline has an Oregon connection. Also it is coming to Paros at the instigation of our American friends of Scooter Rally fame, Al and Ardy.

The Cappella Romana from our home city of Portland, Oregon is celebrating its 20th Anniversary by singing at the Patmos Sacred Music Festival and on Paros at the Church of Panagia Ekatontapilliani  which is one of the oldest and most important churches in Greece.

The group will sing music ranging from Medieval Byzantine chants to modern choral works by Californian Greek composers, including rhapsodic works by modern Greek composer Michael Adamis.  The Paros concert on 5 September at 8:30 P.M. will be recorded by a Grammy winning record producer.

We are really looking forward to this event.  The first concert that I attended on Paros was held in the courtyard of Ekatontapilliani and I still remember the magic.

Believe it or not, all good things come to an end; that includes our paradise on Paros.  Karin and I have decided that our needs and desires have changed.  So we are moving on to greener pastures literally and figuratively.

Hopefully we can carry on the lessons learned about integrated lifestyle from the previous post as we change the Greek taverna for the Prague pub.  I have initiated a new web site to go along with the change:  www.TravelShepherd.com  Please take a look.

As you will see on the new site we will not be abandoning Paros.  I will continue posting in this blog as items of interest to grecophiles come to my attention.  I will continue to host workshops and market private villa rentals, actually expanding this to include holiday homes around the world.

Our primary “home” will be moved elsewhere but we will return to Paros as often as business dictates. So please help us get back frequently by signing up for art or cooking workshops or hiring a villa by the sea, its cheaper than you think.

Cheers,

I have written before about our healthy lifestyle on Paros.  Now there is a scientific study about longevity on Ikaria.  It’s percentage of residents over 90 is 10 times the European average.
The study was wide-ranging so did not come to any absolute conclusions but pointed out what the older islanders did versus their younger relatives and the rest of the world.  "Fish, fruit, vegetables, legumes and tea shield the cardiovascular system. Moreover, daily use of olive oil is beneficent to sexual activity and, if added to the moderate consumption of coffee in the afternoon 'siesta', form the ingredients that may compose the secret of longevity," the researchers said.
Of course they also throw in that genetics and physical activity may have something to do with it.

The only conclusion I draw is that you can not pick any one factor as the solution to a long, healthy life; it takes an integrated lifestyle.  More on this theme of Live Long & Prosper
The photo is by Karin taken in Parikia Sunday evening.