Have Itch, Will Travel

I could tell you about our walking tour  around Athens to see some of its many ruins and the fascinating history or mythology surrounding the ancient structures. I could also tell you about our stay on the Greek island of Rhodes, where we lived on a sunny rooftop terrace and sped around in a tiny Toyota Aygo to visit postcard perfect Lindos , a whitewashed town climbing a hill from the Mediterranean Sea, presided over by a 14th century castle atop an acropolis. I could tell you about all those sites, but it is much easier if you Google them. Instead, I will tell you about the neighbourhood in which we spent three nights: Exarchia, the countercultural island in downtown Athens, home of Greece's anarchists. We were fresh off a 30-hour transit from home and alighted the airport bus service into the centre of Athens. Navigating the way to our accommodation , we were allowed a sample of the hustle and bustle typifying big cities, and as we crossed street after street, we not...

A notion I learned while studying the minimalist lifestyle cited that one's home should communicate one's values and personality. Our homestay in Athens belonged to a kind, middle-aged lady who was not a minimalist. She was a collector of all things, it seemed, and each small collection was housed in purpose-built shelving and displays. Tobacco tins and matchbooks adorned one corner of the hall, while cassette tapes and vinyl records were forgotten on shelves across a loaded bookcase. The tiny kitchen could be likened to an ancient apothecary; scores of miniature jars and bottles of spices, herbs, teas, and oils cluttered the countertop. Even the bathroom was a perfume parlour where a muddle of scents stood in rows four or five bottles deep. Who was our host? We never asked, nor did we desire to. Instead, we imagined she was a Professor of Architecture and Design who consulted from her large office. The books she owned surely were evidence of that. Or perhaps she was writing a ...