Czeching Out

Oh, where to begin? Prague is quite a lovely city. Too bad my first impression was being scammed out of my money, but after the initial two days and nights of picketing in a pirate costume, I moved on as I remembered the sage advice of Yoda, that "anger leads hate; hate leads to suffering." That's not my bag, baby. Different movie, I know, but this is my blog, and I can do what I want. Sufficed to say, I've been more discriminating in my dining choices and have had better luck as of late. However, as some people claim to be true, there is more to life than food, so I've done a lot of wandering, especially by the river. This city is old and wondrous, with magnificent architecture and many photo opportunities - no compromising shots of members of the British Royal Family, but I guess that's why I'm still small-time.

Speaking of things other than food, does wine count? I actually had no intention of furthering my wine studies after Greece, but I happened upon a wine bar here in town. I figured, "okay, one glass of tasteless grape juice, and I can say I tried it." Well the owner saw me taking notes and discerned that I was a professional (I get that a lot), so he kept pouring me tastes of some of his favorites. A lone Argentine, who may or may not be gay (definitely suspect), and I start conversation... you know: fashion, favorite actors, pink things, etc... Wait a minute... Well, next thing I know, these eight sixty-something English women traipse in looking for a good time. The Latin music was on, the lighting was right, so we started a dance party. Usually, I'm nervous competing in this arena with a hispanic guy as my competition, but these were married British senior chicks; I'm golden. Well, we had fun, but we cleared the place out of younger locals; I guess they just weren't into it. It's like the old Bohemian saying goes, "when life hands you cheap obscure wine, dance salsa", or something like that. Sam would approve.

I gotta go. Train to Munich tomorrow. Happy Friday.

Athens

I was not in Athens very long - just a day. I ate delightful moussaka by candlelight at Daphne's (a restaurant, not someone I met), scrumptious meatballs by daylight at Taverna Tou Psiri, and studied wines at a great place called Brettos. This is a wine bar dedicated to Greek wines from many different regions. Thank God; if you ask for a glass of wine in Thessaloniki, they ask you, "red or white?" Oh, yeah, I climbed up to the Acropolis and spent the afternoon on the top of that hill overlooking all of Athens. It was quite warm, but it was also quite breezy. Again, all photos published here so far are from my phone.

*Note to Self: Always agree on a price for a cab ride in advance where the bus drops you from the airport - easy prey! 12€ to go about a mile? You're welcome, Greece.

All Roads Lead to Roam

Istanbul may just be the center of world civilization. It is where Europe meets Asia and where east meets west. IT'S HUGE, by the way, and it is ancient, vibrant, and enchanting. Istanbul is a sprawling metropolis that is home to nearly 14 million people. While the cityscape is dotted with huge mosques that belt out periodic songs on their loudspeakers with regularity, (I refrained from dancing) this is a liberal democracy inclusive of other religions and varying degrees of piety. Like I eluded to earlier - nothing is what it seems.

Istanbul is an ancient giant, rich with history. I remarked to a friend while visiting one of the city's many museums that a certain clock was older than my country. I quickly realized what a ridiculous statement that was, since just about everything in Istanbul is older than my county. That's an exaggeration, but many of the city's most prized artifacts go back not centuries, but millennia. I'm still rather in shock to have viewed David's sword (yes, that David), Moses' staff, and Mohammed's footprint. (We may have had Mohammed Ali's handprint at one of the Planet Hollywoods, but not quite as intriguing.) INCONCEIVABLE! They had mummies too, etc.

Culinarily, there is much cross-over, or shared tradition, between Turkey and Greece. How insightful of me to do a Greek/Turkish/Greek sandwich (sounds like an after-hours party at... nevermind) trip, when their cuisines are so related! And if you're just tuning in, my journeys are always, in addition to photographic, an exploration of food and beverage. This goes back to when I said we are more alike than different; evidently we all like pizza, meatballs, and fire- roasted meat on a stick... except you vegetarians - see "Greek Salad", but that's another entry for another day.

I hesitate to draw a conclusion about Turkey from a few days in Istanbul, but what I will say is what I've already said, which is it's amazing what you will find if you dare to explore... that, and any Turk who visits should never pay for a thing! Thank you, friends. Thank you.

Bad Eats in Prague

Speak of the devil - it's one thing to have poor customer service, but it's quite another to prey on tourists' disorientation and cheat them out of their money. I'm no Rachel Ray and have minimal clout to force some sort of positive outcome for my experience, but if the blogosphere has any say as to which level of hades the man at this establishment should be sent, then here goes:

At the north end of Old Town Square in Prague, there are a number of food vendors that appear to have some lower priced take-away items. I opted for the spit roasted ham "staroprazska", and potato salad. The menu lists the portions as 1 kilo with price in Czech Koruna. I thought I was in for a simple economical dinner. They gave me enough food to satiate a small family and charged me 640 CZK. I hadn't yet acclimated to the exchange rate, so without thinking, I paid... about $33! I inquired about the price moments after my calculation, and was basically told "too bad, sucker" with a smile - "just like when you buy nice steak at restaurant, by weight!"

Yeah, just like that.

I spent the next hour telling prospective victims in line that he is a horrible person and a cheat. So please never visit this deceptive tourist trap. I will be very careful with my calculations from here on out.

Turkish Delight

Much like Zaytinya's interpretation of the famed treat that is a national treasure - Turkish Delight, many things in this world are often different in reality than in the imagination, or even first impression. I suppose that is part of the exhilaration of travel; it is a unique insight into alternative realities. This world is made up of so many cultures, traditions, and ideas about life in general, yet all are intertwined in a giant web of coexistence. The point is that despite all of the world's forces of language, religion, politics, and power - barriers to international harmony - we are all more alike than we are led to believe. It is this universal truth that I discover time and time again no matter where I go. Unfortunately, there is always the competing human force that is divide and conquer. It is blatantly clear that this is rampant in American politics, as well, no doubt throughout the world and throughout human history. It is pretty much everywhere. People will often use ignorance as an opportunity and fear as a tool. I do not pretend to offer a remedy, however you may care to settle for a simple insight - be not afraid; scratch the surface and don't settle for first impressions or someone else's version of the truth. You might find something really great.

Thessaloniki, Greece

Forced

I was so pleased to arrive in Thessaloniki to celebrate the finale of Birthmonth 2012 with one last something new - Country #20! I feel like I should have so much more than 20, however those pesky little countries like Mexico, Peru, Italy, and Spain kept pulling me back like a tractor beam. Well, sometimes you have to use Harrison Ford's definition of "the force", and just "force yourself." So, I got on ANOTHER airplane and went to a NEW country... Hello, Greece! Someone must have told them I was coming, because my first evening's walk landed me in Aristotelous Square where they had a symphony already set up for me outside, under the stars, with the sea as the backdrop! Not too shabby. Check out this line-up: Mozart, Rossini, Offenbach, Bach, Strauss, Pachelbel, Stravinsky, Vivaldi, and more. For the finale, they played a Star Wars medley! What a welcome!

Thessaloniki is in the far north, in the Macedonia region, not to be confused with the Former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia, which is just to the north. As I mentioned, we are on the coast, and the weather has been perfect. They keep claiming that the temperature is in the 20s, but I think their thermometers must have frozen in the wintertime or something. The people are quite friendly, which is something I'm told will change once I get to Athens. I believe my stomach is still on DC time, so I've mostly been eating at nighttime. I had the pleasure last night of dining with the Kapnos research team, and it was quite an experience. Speaking of food, I have to get back out there... So good!

Happy Labor Day!