There is a strange beauty in decay, and these shuttered windows are no exception. I took this pic somewhere in Aegina Town in Greece, I can’t tell you much about them, but I find them beautiful, and I’m sure that if I listened closely enough I would find a story worth listening to. But I prefer to make up my own story, wondering what was, and what could have been.
The old islands are full of stories.
It’s impossible to visit Greece and not see hundreds of Olive trees; no really – it is quite literally impossible. Olive trees grow just about everywhere. Sometimes we found ourselves walking through squashed olives that had fallen off a tree growing in the middle of the city, and in the country there are thousands of olive groves everywhere!
This particular grove was on one of my running routes in Vagia, Aegina; I ran past it several times, and to me it looks like the perfect spot to lay a blanket, and to sit and enjoy a picnic with some feta cheese, a few olives, and of course a carafe or two of Greek wine.
A camera obscura is a room with a small hole in the wall, through which light is projected to create an upside down image on the opposite wall. In short, it is probably the earliest version of a camera. It dates back to as early as around 400BCE.
So I was very excited to discover on our Greece holiday that there was not only a camera obscura on Aegina, but it is then only one in the world with a 360 degree view, so of course it became a destination for a trip around the island.
When I got there there was both good and bad news. The bad news is it is impossible to find. I (quite literally) had to drive around the back of the headland on some rocky, unmarked and overgrown island foot paths. It would have been fine in a 4×4, but it was not at all suitable for our little hire car. And secondly it was closed.
The good news is the door was not locked, so of course I went inside for a few minute to check it out. But it clearly was not being maintained, so while it was kind of interesting to visit I didn’t experience the 360 degree view. But the trip around the island was loads of fun!
It is just outside a lovely little village called Perdika, which is definitely worth visiting, having a walk around, and stopping for lunch in one of the waterside taverns.
The ferry trip from the Piraeus to Aegina is about 1.5 hours. Even though it was still part of the trip to get to our holiday destination, once we were on the boat it really felt like were were on holiday. We sat on the outside upper deck, relaxed and enjoyed the warmth, the gentle breeze and the view of the Aegean sea.
We saw the most beautiful sunset just before we arrived on Aegina
Lois relaxing on the ferry after an exhausting day and night of travel
A container ship in the sunset
You cannot go anywhere in Greece without seeing an olive tree. They grow in the middle of the sidewalks in Athens, in people’s gardens, and in Olive Groves all over the landscape.
I found this particular olive grove just outside Vagia, a small village on the island of Aegina. There were probably about 20 olive trees – neatly spaces apart and well maintained.
It looks like the perfect spot to take a bottle of local wine, some cheese, a book and a blanket. Although I am sure that would have resulted in a grumpy landowner.
But still, a lovely spot to spend a few minutes.
In my previous post, I mentioned the oldest theatre in the world – here it is. The Theatre of Dionysius was build around 500BC, with a capacity of about 17000 people. Imagine sitting here 2500 years ago, watching the latest theatre productions.
They say that the best camera in the world is the one with you. I took this shot using the panorama feature on my iPhone. This is the little harbour in Vagia, Aegina. Vagia is a tiny town where we spent a few nights. If we liven in Athens we would be very tempted to buy a holiday house in Vagia and use it as a base to travel around the island.
In my previous post, I posted a picture of Temple of Olympian Zeus with the Acropolis in the background.
This is the same picture, but taken from the top of the Acropolis. It gives you a much better idea of the scale of the temple.
Lois and I (quite literally) stumbled upon this temple while walking from the Olympic Stadium to the Acropolis. The Temple of Olympian Zeus in Athens was build around 6 century BC.
If you look in the far distance, you can just make out the Acropolis on the left of the main columns.
This lovely little church is right at the end of the quay in the Port of Aegina. The walls are covered in lovely paintings of St Nicholas (the patron saint of sailers). The paintings are not in the best condition – I am sure being so close to the water does not help, but the colours are wonderful, and you are welcome to take your time to wonder around and look at the artwork.
It is really small, so it won’t take very long. Worth visiting.
Outside the church
The lovely artwork inside the church
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