The 16 kilometre-long gorge starts at an altitude of 1,250 meters at the northern entrance in the settlement of Omalos and
ending at the shores of the Libyan Sea. The actual walk through the Samaria National Park is 13 km long, but the trekker has to walk another three kilometres to Aghia Roumeli from the park exit.
This trek is only recommended for the experienced walker with hiking boots. Also unless you take an escorted tour you have to be an adventuresome traveller because it is easy to miss the ferry and bus connection back to Chania, the nearest city. This happened to Karin and I when we made the jaunt in 2001. That was one of those days you can laugh about afterwards but was not pleasant as it unfolded.
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Part two of this post is follow-up on a previous post: Another Paros Boy Makes Good in which I commented upon Greece government decentralisation.
Recently Yiannis Ragoussis, Minister of the Interior, etc. presented the “Kallikratis” plan for re-organisation of local government. It is to create fewer municipalities with more power and funding, he says.
What was especially interesting to me was his admission that prior Socialist governments were part of the problem as well. Here is the quote from the Athens News Agency:
"There is now a general awareness that the wasteful, clientist,
centralised and inefficient state is the cause of the Greek problem as we experience this today," he said.
I think we are seeing the evolution of major changes in Greece. Who said, “We are living in interesting times.” ?
Thessaloniki is not on the main tourist route for Greece. Yet there is a lot of interest and value there to see.
Now the city is trying to make is easier and more pleasant for pedestrians to get around the downtown area by excluding cars on Saturdays between Noon and 7 P.M. I hope it works and gets extended.
ANA-MPA photo / S. Barbaroussis
Karin couldn’t resist swimming in the sea on a warm April afternoon.
She claims she wasn’t cold.
I stayed on the shore and took artsy photos.
April shadows will bring May flowers.
On Paros we are fortunate to have the world’s best gelato—in my world anyway—that is made on site by Denise of Gelato Sulla Luna.
On Paros the lessons will be from 21 through 25 April at 15:00 and 21:00. Each session will be 10 Euro or 3 for 25 or the best deal: a pack of 9 lessons comes with a full kilo of Denise’s gelato! Contact Denise at parosgelato at hotmail for bookings and location.
For tango on Paros in the summer read about Ballroom Dancing
Do it better on Paros
Now you can buy a monastery on Paros for half the price of an island. Today I got an email notice of a 14th Century Greek Monastery for sale. When I went to the company’s web site I couldn’t find the monastery but I did find an island off Voutakis beach near our village of Aliki.
There is a different Paros monastery that I would guess is available as well. We walked to it a couple years ago with friends. Here is Karin’s photo journalism account: Walk to Aghios Ioannis Klidonas
So here is your chance to counter those wealthy Greeks who are exporting their cash out of the country. Buy island property while the market is down.
Cheers,
