kalamata- it's not only olives

"so, i'm greek, right?"

one of my most favorite lines from 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding'.

being a Greek means that if your family had the means, you've had summers in Greece at least once in your life.
I've had about 20 summers in Greece, give or take.

being a Greek means that you have to travel to Greece at least once after you get married...be it to another Greek (which is preferred by most hardcore Greeks, or wanna-be hardcore Greeks) or to a xeno (which means a non-Greek).

have fun trying to bring a Greek who doesn't speak, read or write Greek down to Greece to meet your family- especially if you're married. Fortunately, we didn't have that problem.

Our only problem? Where will we pick up our breakfast before we get to the beach?
LML and I had two requisites for summers in Kalamata- constant access to the beach and some R&R throughout the day.

done and done.

I remember that there were days we would go to the beach twice- in the morning and then during sunset. It was beautiful to watch the sun setting high in the sky while swimming...floating in the arms of your one and only.

The 45 minute walks to get to the beach, and back were also crazy worth it- probably because of our never-ending conversations. We loved walking by cafenia (cafes), watching the tourists (haha), snapping pictures (me- and LML telling me not to because we'd look like tourists)... and the amount of exercise we got between all that walking and all the swimming would lead ultimately to...

gelato.

Now, i don't have any pictures of the gelatos we would get. Why? Because the last summer we were there, my camera decided to kick the bucket about one day into our one month vacation.

Oh, Gelato.

Our nights consisted of: waking after our ciesta- getting all dolled up and hitting a different cafe for coffee or a beer (we'd sampled all the beers in kalamata during our last summer there)...or hitting the hookah cafe on the beach and watching the bellydancers... or going for the most incredible pizza in the world at Pizza Roma.

Ho. Ly. Cow.

Holy Pizza.

food...beach...swimming...r + r...what else is vacation all about?

love me,
the globetrotting gamine

warm weather menu

dear bloggie loves,

i have not, by any means

given up my cooking...

though i will say that my baking

has fallen to the wayside!

i figured that i should post up pictures

for you to know

i am still experimenting

and keeping an extensive portfolio

on what i've created

as well as ideas...

above is a photo of my (organic) fried tofu...

pure extra virgin olive oil from the mountains of Kalamata..

organic bread crumbs and shredded parmesan cheese substitute

made from rice (ORGANIC!!)

it was flippin' awesome!

ah...

brocolli rabe sauteed

in that olive oil from Kalamata

and roasty, toasty garlic

and a pinch of sea salt

(adjust to flavor)

don't be afraid to experiment with different recipes...

how else are you going to learn, right?!

stay healthy, my friends!!

love me,

the globetrotting gamine

Visions of Kalamata, Greece

I had a friend once who told me, "There's nothing in Kalamata but olive trees!"
I asked her if she got off the cruise ship she'd been on and she told me no.

How are you to know what is ANYWHERE unless you explore?

I didn't know then that I was going to marry someone from Kalamata. (well, i KIND OF did, because I'd been crushing on LML since I was 13 and i just *knew*)...so for our "honeymoon" we went to Greece again but for the first time together.

I fell in love with Kalamata.
It's part city, part country and part awesome beach vacation.

Not that we were able to go swimming the December we went.

see, that's the town square. during tourist season, it's filled with little tables and chairs in front of the coffeehouses, all the shops are open and people are just spilling around on the way to some appointment or the other. It's a hop, skip and a jump from the country OR beach. Love it.

That's me in front of the train station. Though I haven't been on it, I've heard it takes you to Olympia...where I also haven't been yet, though LML has.

I can't wait to go!

Welcome to the beach/boardwalk/marina area. The beaches are awesome.

These pictures really make me want to whip out that camera again.

Anyone want to teach me how to use a darkroom?!

LML's Grandfather's old bicycle on the rooftop.

Though I don't tell LML all the time, I can't wait to go back

but at the same time

there's so much world to see!

is there anywhere in the world that is the most special to you?

i'd love to hear your stories <3

Kalamata, ( Greece )

Overwhelmed

Often times, I am convinced that everything comes full circle. What goes around, comes around. Sometimes, faith and hope should take over... at least when you fly by the seat of ones pants. Wish I could fly by the seat of mine.

Today, without my camera which LML has chosen to take to work with him- my 'office' (dining room table) is a mess. What does that mess include?
* Piles (5 different ones) of envelopes to various locations.
* A pile of to-do lists and paperwork
* 5 v. different magazines
* A half drunk cup of coffee

( As I write this, I am listening to Martha Stewart saying that she's been to Kalamata. I miss Kalamata, Greece)

Continuing on with my list:
* an empty vase now filled with pens
* a box of new envelopes
* glue and mod podge
* a picture frame I am on the second phase of crafting
* my doggie-apparel prototype
* lemon juice (for the water i have finished as per my nausea. No, I'm not pregnant. Why do people always believe I am pregnant when I am nauseous?!)
* Pictures to scan

This is nothing compared to what my desk looked like an hour ago. Researching is hard work, especially when you need an assistant. I was thinking of hiring my sister as one, but that would be a total nightmare.
Why?  I know we would never get anything done. ? There is always so much to be done that it is too overwhelming. Being nauseous doesn't help, waiting on pending paperwork does not either. Ridiculous. I envy the people who are more productive throughout the course of the day than I am. I am off to sketch and piece together a pre-prototype for my next piece.

Still have not done anything for the business except getting my first prototype done, while the dog next door, barks barks away.

More later on, lots to say! Hope you're well and having a good day!

MG