Ermoúpolis

After a good night sleep, I have my coffee and breakfast (yogurt, honey, sliced plum and muesli). I head down to the water area to get some pictures of the waterfront. I should mention that Syros is not your typical tourist island. It is actually the Administrative Capital of the Cyclades Islands. Therefore, although there is a lot to see for tourists, this island does not ‘shutdown’ in the winter months. The restaurants and hotels are open all year. There are 25,000 residents that live here year round.

It is hot today and my clothing choices are too hot for here. I spot a little shop with cooler looking cloths. The lady there helps me find a few pieces that are much cooler (linen vs the cotton I brought) to wear. I actually where the pants out instead of the shorts! Now that I’m not dying of heat exhaustion, I continue down to the water and get some decent shots. I stop at a little café for a light lunch and then head home for a nap. I have a cooking class tonight and want to rest up.

The cooking class meets at the Town Hall. Elisa has sent her husband to fetch me and two other gentlemen. Guess what? We get to walk up more stairs! Yes, the 3-minute walk (I have no idea who times this but it must be a 100-meter sprinter!) takes us about 10. I do cave half way through to catch my breath and get some water in me. Once there it is a wonderful house that is also a villa with rooms to rent. Wish I had seen this place before the one I rented!!

There are 6 of us. A couple in there 40’s or early 50’s from London, the two gentlemen, also from London, who are in their 30’s and a food writer from Australia probably in her late 20’s. We have the Commonwealth very well represented!

Elisa has prepared an entirely vegetarian menu. There are two dips, an olive pie, aubergine stuffed with cheese, fava beans with a tomato sauce, a beetroot salad, peppers and tomatoes stuffed with rice and a wonderful traditional Bundt cake. Elisa explains how Greek food is simplistic in that it does not use many ingredients but the herbs used give it a wonderful flavour. The herbs primarily used are sage, mint, oregano, parsley, and garlic. Some paprika, salt and pepper, with cinnamon and cloves round out the spices used. We all start chopping, filling, take turns stirring and generally talking about where we have been and where we are going. Getting to know each other. As we go Elisa expertly guides us to create a meal we will all share up on the rooftop. This meal is delicious and so filling without being heavy in your stomach. An interesting thing about eating in Greece that I didn't really notice until Elisa mentioned it; is that food does not have to be served hot. One of the things I always fret about is timing dinner so everything is hot when it hits the table. Not so in Greece. The stuffed peppers and tomatoes are done first and they are set aside to cool. The olive pie comes out next. By the time we get everything up to the rooftop, have a relaxing toast and appitizers, our meal is still warm but not hot. The flavours have had a chance to meld and merge and everything is wonderful. Perhaps another thing to take back to Canada with me. Elisa is going to send us the recipes for all of these dishes for us to prepare at home. (The kids are never going to know what they are eating!)

Interesting side note here. The picture of the pretty flower is actually the flower of the caper bush. Capers are buds of the flower picked before they bloom. Neat huh?

It takes us about 3 hours to prepare our meal and then another 2 hours to eat and gab. By this time, it is dark and Chris and Clive offer to get me back to the main square. My night blindness is in full swing on the stairs going back down. Once at the main square there are street lights and the route home is just one street and somewhat level (for Greece!).
I make it home safe and sound and am ready for bed. Talk to you tomorrow.Read more