This blog is about my adventures in Greece. It has a lot more photos than usual which is kind of what happens on holiday. I had a mind to look out for the different ways in which animals fitted into Greek life as I have heard quite a few tales from friends in Liverpool who had travelled to various places in Southern Europe. I had seen plenty of photo's of strays in Turkey via my friend Mo who took to feeding the canine population in from the left-over’s of his hotel meals. I have also met a couple of dogs, from Zante and Cyprus who have been re-homed here in Liverpool.
Our first day out in Athens brought me into contact with strays who milled about in any number of high profile places within the city as the photos show. Al explained that in the run up to the Olympics in 2004 the suggestion to clear the capital’s streets of such dogs had been met with a massive outcry. The dog lovers clearly won the argument.
In the suburbs near Al’s place I found some interesting features for dog owners, little sand pits, the signage illustrating their use.
As we went out into the rural areas by bus it seemed that every way station had its resident stray dog lolling about in the shade. Our heart jumped a beat at one point when we spotted a dog trotting across the three lane highway opposite ours. If you have ever navigated the roads in Greece you will understand such behaviour is not for the faint hearted.__
In the small seaside town of Nafplio were we stayed for three nights the story was the same. In the day there was a fair few dogs lolling around searching out the coolest spots and when we were eating out in the evening at pavement cafe there was a dog acting as a maitre de , making his way between the tables , tale wagging, chin uplifted, ever hopeful. No one batted an eye which was great for me who was missing Betty and felt this little character was like a stand in for her.
The hotel where we were staying, the Amfitriti-Palazzo was very relaxed and friendly, we were feeding sparrows with our bread crumbs during breakfast on their patio cum dining area. The family run hotel had a very friendly staff team, their spoken English was generally excellent and I just happened to mention I loved the animals contribution to the towns vibe. Before long we were swapping pics of our own dogs and hearing that they welcome dogs at their hotel, 'only a bit of extra cleaning'.
As I mentioned in my previous blog my experience of other cultures has been quite limited so I am extra excited at all the new experiences that have filled the 9 day visit. It seems safe to say that Greece is a very interesting and different culture to what I am used to. The language is mind achingly difficult to follow, even the letters of the alphabet are different half the time. If I come back and I fully intend to I think I will have to do a bit more prep in this quarter but with the dogs the language is universal, a nudge, a sniff, a sigh and all their other little ways are there for me to get and what these dogs told me is how happy they are to meet all manner of new people for their strokes and attention. And finally an observation from a Greek lady who I made acquaintance of called Christina who looked after a number of strays nearby a cafe she was working at-they are just so clever and wise-I think that was what she said, sounds good to me.
Our first day out in Athens brought me into contact with strays who milled about in any number of high profile places within the city as the photos show. Al explained that in the run up to the Olympics in 2004 the suggestion to clear the capital’s streets of such dogs had been met with a massive outcry. The dog lovers clearly won the argument.
In the suburbs near Al’s place I found some interesting features for dog owners, little sand pits, the signage illustrating their use.
As we went out into the rural areas by bus it seemed that every way station had its resident stray dog lolling about in the shade. Our heart jumped a beat at one point when we spotted a dog trotting across the three lane highway opposite ours. If you have ever navigated the roads in Greece you will understand such behaviour is not for the faint hearted.__
In the small seaside town of Nafplio were we stayed for three nights the story was the same. In the day there was a fair few dogs lolling around searching out the coolest spots and when we were eating out in the evening at pavement cafe there was a dog acting as a maitre de , making his way between the tables , tale wagging, chin uplifted, ever hopeful. No one batted an eye which was great for me who was missing Betty and felt this little character was like a stand in for her.
The hotel where we were staying, the Amfitriti-Palazzo was very relaxed and friendly, we were feeding sparrows with our bread crumbs during breakfast on their patio cum dining area. The family run hotel had a very friendly staff team, their spoken English was generally excellent and I just happened to mention I loved the animals contribution to the towns vibe. Before long we were swapping pics of our own dogs and hearing that they welcome dogs at their hotel, 'only a bit of extra cleaning'.
As I mentioned in my previous blog my experience of other cultures has been quite limited so I am extra excited at all the new experiences that have filled the 9 day visit. It seems safe to say that Greece is a very interesting and different culture to what I am used to. The language is mind achingly difficult to follow, even the letters of the alphabet are different half the time. If I come back and I fully intend to I think I will have to do a bit more prep in this quarter but with the dogs the language is universal, a nudge, a sniff, a sigh and all their other little ways are there for me to get and what these dogs told me is how happy they are to meet all manner of new people for their strokes and attention. And finally an observation from a Greek lady who I made acquaintance of called Christina who looked after a number of strays nearby a cafe she was working at-they are just so clever and wise-I think that was what she said, sounds good to me.