Donkey Republic Santorini

Dont be surprise to meet some very colourful ... donkeys while in Santorini. In 2010 the open-air-exhibition "Donkeys Republic" is on display at different places of the island. Each one has a name and it has been designed/painted by a Greek artist.

The one below is called"Unstill Life Dreamy" and its the creation of Giorgos Stronis:

The donkey is without a doubt the animal of Santorini. Even nowadays the donkey offers stil a good way of transport at places where no cars can go: due to its rocks .

The "Checkmate"-donkey (below) can be spotted in the village Kamari, some days after next to it the blue-eyes-donkey (see first picture) just popped up:-)

Colours of Santorini...

White and blue are definitely the symbol of the Greek Cyclades...but while in Santorini last week i was just blown away by an unexpected magical rainbow of different colours, flavours and aromas all around the island.

Thira (the way the locals call most of the time their home) is an incredible mix of red, yellow, purple, violet and even sometimes some green:-)

As Santorini is an active volcano and more or less a rock in the Aegean sea one may choose between .... a red beach, a white beach and the normal beach (which is a black-sand-beach)...In June the thyme blossoms transfer the dry and dusty landscape in a painting of Monet!

The local veggies: small tomatoes (drying in the sun) and white eggplants, the yellow-orange nets of the fishermen and the yummy seafood, the over 4000 years old culture...sooo many things to enjoy and discover!

The Seven Rila Lakes/ Седемте рилски езера

A really magical place in Bulgaria is without any doubt the circuit of the seven Rila Lakes, all seven located between 2100 and 2700m altitude.

The Rila mountain is the highest mountain in Bulgaria with its 2973m, each lake carries a name associated with its most characteristic feature. The highest one is called "Сълзата (Salzata)"/(En., "The Tear") due to its clear waters that allow visibility in depth. The next one in height carries the name "Окото (Okoto)"/ (En., "The Eye") after its almost perfectly oval form. Okoto is the deepest cirque lake in Bulgaria, with a depth of 37.5 m.

"Бъбрека (Babreka)"/ ("The Kidney") is the lake with the steepest shores of the entire group.
"Близнака (Bliznaka)"/ ("En., The Twin") is the largest one by area. "Трилистника (Trilistnika)"/ ("The Trefoil") has an irregular shape and low shores. The shallowest lake is "Рибното езеро (Ribnoto ezero)"/ (En., "The Fish Lake") and the lowest one is "Долното езеро (Dolnoto ezero)"/ (En., "The Lower Lake"), where the waters that flow out of the other lakes are gathered to form the Dzherman River.

I was pretty lucky to see the National Park of the Seven Rila lakes(one time) in 2007, when access to them was quiet limited due to the fact that one should just climb up. Since 2 years there is a chair lift bringing all tourists up to the first 2 lakes and made the area more touristic than in the past...I have signed several petitions, as several organisations were fighting the completely illegal construction of the lift in the past years. Unfortunately it did not help...Lets hope and pray that nature stay long untouched and unspoiled there, where one feels like a (tiny) piece of mother NATURE!

Gelato italiano...et Calabrese:-)

Is it me, or does just Italian ice-cream always taste better when one
is on Italian ground? Dont get me wrong, i dont complaint. I am a very
happy person to have right next door a real Italian "gelateria" in the
middle of the Netherlands ("Talamini" in Rijswijk). And I do enjoy to chat in
Italian when the boss serves me, but still...Italian gelato plus
Italian air and ambiente makes the unbeatable mix:-) Nocciola,
fragola, stracciatela, hmmmmm...yumyum!

In Calabria, Gelateria Tonine (in Tropea) I was impressed to found even more creative flavours of ice-creams: such as a gelato with onions, with olives or the black ink from the calamari...

Extremely famous is the "Tartufo"ice-cream, which a round ball of gelato (usually a mix of 2 flavours), chocolate and some (fruity) siryp in the middle...Alora, as summer time is THE ice-cream time: BUON appetito a tutti :-)))

Tropea: blue and beautiful!

The famous bathing place Tropea is located on the top of 40m-high-rock in the Calabrian province Vibo Valentia! This medieval town charmes its visitors while they walk in the tiny streets, between its majestic stone buildings. The cozy cafes invite you for a "gelato" or "cappuccino" in the sun. At the same time the blue-turquoise water colours grabs your sight as a magneet and would not let it.....

The most known place of interest, the church of Santa Maria della Isola, was packed for renovation...

I really enjoyed my stroll in Tropea and stopping by at different small shops with local specialties such as Calabrian honey, aubergines in jars, dried peperoncini...a real must for gourmands!:-)

Universum Bremen im Bürgerpark

Das Universum in Bremen is a modern building in Bürgerpark that works
as a science museum. It opens its doors in 2000.