Our local market

 

Tuesdays are market days. The venue changes every six months and this summer it's very near our home, so we try to never miss it. Great produce, good prices, and the best eggs I've ever had... but more about that later.

 

 

 

 

There is a flower stall but the bulk of the produce is fruit and veg

 

 



 

The large umbrellas give it a very intimate feel as well as providing the much-needed shade

 

This gentleman who sells grapes wanted me to photograph him so how could I refuse



 

 

 

 

here are his grapes. Our favourites are stafida, literally translated raisins, and they're the only grapes we buy

 



 

 

 

lots of stalls selling tomatoes, at a very good price as you can see: 50 cents for a kilo

 



 

 

 

 

everything that's being sold is seasonal and beans are abundant at the moment. The cranberry beans in the middle, called handres in Greek, are absolutely delicious

 

 



 

 

 

apples

 

 



 

two of the essential ingredients for horiatiki, Greek salad

 

more luscious tomatoes - this is the variety we buy: beef tomatoes, big, red and juicy

 

 

 



 

 

this is the end of the season for peaches but they're still good to eat

 



 

 

 

 

plums and nectarines

 



 

 

so many varieties of aubergine






they look so good - its a real pity I do not like the taste

We always buy our beans from this stall - the two ladies running it always greet us in English

 

Endless bowls of olives. I noticed last time that they have also started selling fresh, unprocessed ones - do people process them themselves?  They must do

 

 

 

 

Luscious red pomegranates



 

  

 

And now we come to the eggs and the reason why I won't miss a market day. These eggs are unlike any eggs I have ever eaten. They are literally a new experience, and every time I have one I feel that I have never eaten eggs before. I always buy free-range but these are a totally new taste. The hens that lay them are not only allowed to roam free but their diet consists of exclusively what is produced on the farm (with the exception of corn). Maybe this is the secret, I don't know.

 



 

 

 

Mountains of peppers

 

 

 

 



 

 

 

A souvlaki stall for those who get peckish

 



 

 

 

Fish - sardines in this photograph

 



 

 

Pulses and rice

sweets

 

 

Central

A roof terrace bar in central Athens with great views of the Acropolis. We weren't sure whether it was a good idea to go as the sky looked very threatening. Other people had the same doubts and as a result the place was virtually empty - great for us as we were able to enjoy a quiet drink and it did not rain after all. Not in central Athens anyway - the northern suburbs got flooded, the rain was so heavy.

I liked the bar - the bay trees behind the glass give it a very distinct look.

It was the Acropolis that was the star of the show though and we feasted our eyes.

 

 



 

Pledges by Kalliopi Lemos

Pledges by Kalliopi Lemos

This is the second site-specific installation that Kalliopi Lemos has created for the Byzantine Museum in Athens. Both involve boats and both are concerned with the human condition, suffering, displacement and hope. You can see last year's installation here.

 

The installation is in the courtyard of the museum and is visible from the street.

 



 

 

 

 

The boat draws on the tradition of votive offerings which is very strong in Greece. Focusing on the struggle through life in an era of deep economic and social crisis throughout the world, and the plight of people who are forced to leave their countries for all sort of reasons, it's a work imbued with notions of interculturality, social solidarity and empathy.

 

Tamata, votive offerings, are small metal plaques which are sometimes made of silver or gold, with an embossed image symbolising the subject of the prayer for which the plaque is offered. They are usually offered to an icon or shrine as a reminder of a petitioner's particular need, or in gratitude for a prayer answered. The images vary and can have multiple interpretations: a heart may symbolise a prayer for love or a heart problem; eyes may indicate an eye affliction; hands or legs may indicate maladies of the limbs; a pair of wedding crowns may mean prayer for a happy marriage, and so on. In a country as deeply religious as Greece they have major significance.

 

 

 

Even though the installation draws on this tradition of tamata, Lemos' tamata are different. 10,000 have been used on a now abandoned boat which has been used to transfer immigrants. The tamata are handcrafted from drinks cans and are incised with the names, dates and places of birth of immigrants. 

 

 

 

 

A statement focusing on the journey as transition from despair to hope, from death to life, the installation expresses the constant human quest for a better life, for hope.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kastraki

I have posted this photo before when I wrote about the Messinian Bay. This was the view from our hotel balcony and the Taygetus mountain range was behind our hotel and you can see a section of it in this photograph.

We were told about a bar/restaurant on the side of the mountain and we went there twice, once for a drink and once for a meal. It's an amazing place. Built 25 years ago and still a work in progress, it's called Kastraki, small castle, and this is what it is. It's a whimsy. A folly. Great fun.







A water fountain by the entrance







 and then we walked in through this arch, and our first reaction was ... wow....

 



 

High up on the mountain the place affords the most fantastic views and the whole time we were there, particularly the first night when we sat in the bar, we were enchanted. The whole of the Messinian bay was at our feet - a fairy-tale castle, with fairy-tale views. The moon was very bright, and this was our first view as we walked in.

 

 

 

 

 

Built on levels the views of the place itself  are interesting too

 

 

 

 

 

On our left we could see the silver path of the moon and this amphitheatre where the dancing takes place, cushions on the levels to sit while watching  the dancers

 

 

 

 

In front and to the right, was the whole of Kalamata, laid out for us, illuminated, mesmerising

 

 

 

We could not get enough of that view

 

 

 

The night we visited was Latin night, and after midnight people started dancing to the music

 

 



 

 

 

 

What should one look at? The dancers or the moon? A dilemma

 

 



 

 

Going to the toilet was an experience in itself, this vaulted ceiling is marvellous

 

 



 

 

 

the toilet door

 

 

 



 

 

detail

We had the choice of leaving via a different way and we took it

 

a last look at the moon - it was 1:30 in the morning by then

 



 

 

 

a last look at the bay and Kalamata

 

  

Spectacular.