The beautiful mountainous terrain of Sparta

I am now coming to the end of my holiday writing about Greece. I wanted to leave you with a few snapshots from my portfolio. These were taken whilst I was visiting friends and famiy in Sparta. Sparta is a 3 hour drive, south of Athens at the base of the Peleponesse. It has a small population of about 20,000 people. Its surrounded by rugged mountainous terrain. There is a lot of history in this part of Greece as well. Namely due to king Leonidas and the battle with Persia. Legend has it that 300 soldiers took down an invading army of Persians and won. The city of Sparta has a statue dedicated to Leonidas and it sits proudly in the city.


KIng Leonidas of Sparta

The amount of churches I noticed in my travels all over Greece were phenomenal. Whether I was in the city or on a long, winding road leading to a far away village, lo and behold another church would appear. They were everywhere and they came in all shapes and sizes.


Greek church

An opportunity arose whilst I was in Sparta to visit a seaside town nearby called "Gytheio". Don't worry too much about the pronunciation of this place. It's a port city and it too caters well to tourists. It's about 45 mins away by bus and its a very cute place. I remember coming here to swim in the summertime as a child.


The port city of Gytheio

Walking around you almost feel like you are on one of the Greek islands. Little holiday houses and bed and breakfasts dominate this seaside town. Fishermen bring in their daily catch from the sea. A giant light house overlooks the water, once used to guide ships in the night. It's almost cliched and very postcard like.


The lighthouse at "Gytheio"



Oh look! Another church

And of course after walking around all day lapping up the local culture I wanted to eat. So I headed to one of the many restaurants and began another feast, fit for a king.


Souvlaki and fried chips


Wilted wild greens with olive oil and lemon juice


Fried squid or "calamari"


Fried zucchini fritters with feta cheese

Lets dissect the menu. Being true to my blogs name I ordered the souvlaki. To my surprise, the majority of souvlaki served in Greece are made using pork meat. I always assumed it was lamb. Nevertheless, they were tender and had been grilled to utter perfection. The fried potatoes on the side were a nice bonus. Wild greens are served everywhere in Greece and they are very good for you. This mantra was repeated to me all the time as a child. It's only as an adult I realise how true this is. They are blanched and served with a liberal amount of extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice. They are very cleansing and can really help with detoxing the system. The pan fried calamari were a little too tough for me. The waiter exclaimed that they were fresh but had perhaps been over zealously cooked! The zucchini fritters were something else. Vegetarians rejoice! These are so simple but bang out a lot of flavour. Grated zucchini, mashed potato, feta cheese and dill make up the delicious morsels. I had seen them on a few menus but only now attempted to try them. The wait was worth it. These numbers would be great in a tapas menu. They are moreish and you really won't be able to stop at one.


This concludes my current series of posts about Greece. I could go on forever show you all my holiday snaps. But I wouldn't want to bore you. I have a lot of recipes I want to try and to photograph as well. Overall, it was a great time in Greece. It was good to reconnect with family and friends after nearly 30 years. I had left a child and returned a man. A man with a Nikon DSLR camera, that is! So, on with the show as Souvlaki For The Soul tackles the next chapter in its existence. I hope you stay on for the ride!

Pete

Tags:Greece

Traditional Greek coffee

While in Greece I couldn't stomach the local coffee very much. If anyone has ever tried "Greek style" coffee you'll know what I mean. It's a mean brew, all thick with a rich sediment that forms on he bottom of the cup. I personally believe it's an acquired taste and one that I'm not really keen on enjoying. Still, every house I went to, I was offered this rich brew and I politely accepted.




Greek Iced Coffee or "Frappe"

However, I did get to enjoy the local iced coffee otherwise known as "frappe". Dark, rich, cold with a golden foamy top this drink is very popular especially in the summer months. People sit at cafes for hours with one of these sipping it very slowly enjoying its rich, intense flavours. The cruel irony for me is, that's it's made with instant coffee!!! Shock! Horror! I couldn't believe it. Apparently this is the best way to achieve the golden foam on top. While I believe instant coffee does serve its purpose (in extreme emergencies) I reckon I could achieve a similar outcome if I used freshly brewed espresso coffee from my machine. There a re numerous ways to order it and I noticed the locals were quite specific about how they wanted it prepared. It's basically strong instant coffee added to cold water and ice cubes. It's then vigorously shaken in a cocktail shaker. Modern cafes tend to use electric mixers to achieve that creamy foam on the top.



"Frappe" served with milk

I was just glad that I could order espresso. Phew! That's my coffee of choice. Actually, a double espresso is my favourite. It kick starts the system like no other. So as you can see there are numerous types of coffees to order in Greece. The frappe was nice but I could probably stomach it better on a hot day. The traditional Greek style coffee is something I would have with relatives out of polteness. Cafe culture is alive and thriving in Greece. Cigarettes optional!


Double espresso for me please

Tags:Greece Coffee