where in the world is steph.... Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life? -- Mary Oliver

Hello everyone,

I have gotten a few e-mails inquiring about my current location. Well I have left the warmth of the Greek Islands and am in Juneau where I woke up to a light dusting of snow on the ground today. I have actually been home a week, had to make sure I got back in time to vote!

My last e-mail I believe I was in the haunted castle. We didn't see any ghosts that night, but neither of us slept that well, we're blaming the ghosts. The sun rise that morning was spectacular as we headed back to inverness to catch our flight. We needed to mail some small boxes and found a tiny post office attached to a woman's home. She was extremely helpful in getting our boxes under 2kg so it wouldn't cost so much. Packed up and ready to head back to London we sat in the terminal where the flight was delayed and delayed and delayed. Apparently the plane had collided with a bird. When we finally took off over five hours later, everyone could smell this horrible burned smell. The cabin crew announced that the unpleasant odor was the bird, I don't think anyone had chicken that night.

We spent two nights in London, one full day in which we did our laundry, went into the most amazing bathroom decorated for Halloween, complete with dark lighting, orange toilet paper, spooky sound effects, spider webs and the highlight, a fog machine. By the time you got out of the bathroom you really could barely find the door. Mid day we finally caught the train into London. We of course saw big ben and parliament, the london eye, thames river, had fish and chips in a pub and watched a big football (soccer for the americans) match, and then headed to westminster abby. On wednesdays it is open in the evening. We walked around, saw Handel's memorial and grave, Chaucer, tons of queens and kings and their brothers and sisters, it was actually quite amazing. On our way out there was a group of men playing the hand bells's. Everyone just lingered around listening until it closed.  After we left westminster we headed to Buckingham palace and then back to Horley where we were staying.......Up at 3:30 to catch our taxi to the airport, we were off to Athens.

Once in Athens, mom of course began to cry, she hadn't been back in 30 years, I can't begin to know how that feels, but I do know how I feel every time I arrive in Greece, as if I have just arrived at my home away from home. With a deep breath and tons of our gear we headed into Athens, we found a small hotel on a "quiet" street with a view of the acropolis. Complete with lectures on how the word OK came from the Greek words Ola Kala, and ending with "there you go" .  Mom and I tried our hardest to keep straight faces. I took mom around the Monastraki and Plaka area, we had lunch/dinner under the acropolis at a place I had eaten just a few months before with my dutchy friends. That night we went up to the bar on top of our hotel to see the beautiful view of the Acropolis lit up at night.

The next morning mom called one of her aunts, who did not speak english. But was able to give mom a phone number for her cousin who did. It was hysterical mom writing phonetically the number, and then we went back to the hotel to have them tell us what numbers they were. (I can't believe I don't remember numbers!). We met up with one of moms cousins and then headed off to her parents house (my mom's aunt and uncle). Background note: my mom's sister visited Greece almost four years ago now, and the family was amazed by the fact she is a vegetarian. So family always asked us if we ate meat. My Aunt Persa was unable to ask us before she cooked dinner, "so she just put in a little meat". That afternoon we spent with Aunt Persa who doesn't speak English but is one of the sweetest people ever, and her son in law, Ted who my mom last saw in California when he lived there, Ted's daughter in law and her baby, who was nameless when we were there because she hadn't been christened yet. We were fed sweets in the afternoon, and another huge meal that evening. This was just a preview of what was to come. The next day we went back to Persa's to meet up with another one of my mom's cousins and aunts.  Of course we were fed, and then we headed to Piraeus to catch our ferry to Crete.

Family met the ferry in Crete, and offers were made to stay with them. To give names gets really complicated because everyone has the same names, there are numerous Joachim's, Eleni's, Vasillis,the list goes on, and they all have the same last name Lagoudakis. It gets really confusing after a while, so does all the first cousins to my grandfather. After a while your head is just swimming with family relations. On my birthday we went to the village, Karinas to see family and EAT! It was fun and funny. Earlier in the day one of my cousins teased me that last time I was here, he remembers the men kept yelling, "stephanie, eat the meat". Well they did this time too, the only difference was they continued to put meat on my mom's and my plate long after we were full....That and most of the time Stephanie became Stephania (that I could write it in greek amazed some at dinner another night). We walked around the village, ate walnuts from the trees along the side of the road, visited the cemetery where my Great Grandma and Great Grandfather are buried along with one of my Great Uncles. That night some of my family got me a wonderful chocolate cake for my birthday, and translated the song they sing in Greek to English. The next day we went to another village where on of my mom's cousins live to have lunch. We were served not one piece of Patisia but three, along with greek salad, meat and potatoes......We walked around that village and to the next before heading back to Karinas where we ate some more. We had a desert, and then we helped cook (sort of, I think I was more of a hindrance) my mom's aunt Eleni kept pushing around the dough in my hands. We then went to dinner at another cousins house, still full from lunch, but "stephanie eat the meat" was repeated numerous times......we had home made feta cheese, olives from our village, lamb can't forget the lamb, the most amazing fried potatoes, and greek salad a welcome staple to most meals during the summer months. The tomatoes in Greece are by far the best. And for desert we had yogurt with honey. I told my mom that I don't think I will ever need to eat again after leaving Greece. We spent the night in the village. And my mom got the brilliant idea to open the door for some fresh air. But that isn't what we got, instead the wonderful smell of goats filled our room, we just had to laugh. The next morning we went to feed the goats and sheep with a cousin and his wife, and then to Petra. Petra is the fortress where my grandfather was born, it is in a beautiful location, not much is left, but there are still walls standing, and the church that my great grandfather built is still taken care of by the family. George's wife and I sat in the back pointing to things she teaching me greek and I teaching her english.  It was a wonderful morning. We then went to Spilli which is rather well known for its lion heads fountains. George went to do some errands, and we were left to wander for a while. We ran into an older women carrying a bucket of fruits and vegetables. Mom offered to help, and she let us. Leading us through a maze of small walkways to her house, where she invited us in for coffee. We thanked her, but refused so instead she gave us apples and handful's of walnuts. It was hysterical, and we had no way to tell my mom's cousin george as he didn't speak english........ We went back to Karinas to have lunch at yet another cousins, were I took a picture of george putting meat on my plate, we were given bags of walnuts, and had a wonderful meal. We walked through the village to meet more cousins and people in the village who know my grandfather, and stopped at the Raki distillery in the middle of the village. It was hysterical, we were given Raki (essentially moonshine) with everyone watching to see what faces I would make. When we left the village, we had not only tons of memories, and pictures, but walnuts and almonds, and honey....the list goes on but includes a bell taken off the goats and polished for mom.

We had a wonderful time in Greece with family, and I know I am forgetting tons of stories here, but I have told you so much that I am sure you are on overload much as we were. The day I was to leave not only Crete but Greece, there was an air traffic controller strike. Our flight was delayed to Athens so much that I missed my connection to London. After I got off the plane, mom went to baggage claim and I off to talk to British Air to figure out a solution, the flights out the next morning were sold out.....But as luck would have it a flight from Santorini came in at the same time carrying 6 other who had missed their flights, and BA finally let us on another flight that had been delayed. It was a big mess, no one would help me get a message to my mom who had no way of knowing i made a flight, and I arrived in London with no bags. (but I had a jar of honey in my carry on.....) I spent the night at a friends place, she is working in the British Parliament, but I know her from Seattle and have slept on her couch there too. Then off to San Francisco, and Seattle. Still no bags, but still have that jar of honey. I spent that night in Seattle, and left for Alaska the next day. When I arrived at home it was snowing, I couldn't believe it. One bag made my flight to Juneau and the other took days to show up.....but by golly the huge jar of honey from Karinas made it.

So where am I off to next, I don't know. I am looking for a job, in Juneau as well as else where............but for now my next plan is to go vote.............

cheers,
~steph