Following the footprints of Alexander the Great: Athens

In the airport, all checked in, papers in order very exited and ready for our destination!
We were about to begin a tour of Greece along with an Aegean cruise to the Greek Isles and Turkey. Mercedes presented me with a couple of travel guides so I could read them during our 17 hour  flight. Fortunately, for me, she had had already read and highlighted every step and all relevant information of our tour. As I reviewed the travel guides I hearkened back one of my professors, Dr. Thomas who taught Greek Plays and History I will finally see places I only read about, I mused.
After a brief stop in Amsterdam, we arrived in Athens, The first person to meet us was,"Christos", our chauffeur. I tried my tourist Greek words with him but he was more eager to try his English, which was pretty good.

We safely arrived at the Divani Palace Acropolis Hotel Athens. The view from our room was amazing, the first photograph I took in Athens was from the terrace of our hotel room. It was framed by the towering  citadel that still commands the center of attention in Athens, the Acropolis.

view from our hotel window

The city of Athens was named for the goddess Athena. It has always been associated as the universal example of Greek antiquity, democratic ideas, philosophy, Greek mythology and fine food.

picture taken with a telephoto lens

On our second day we started early on a self guided tour of the Acropolis about a mile away, perfect for a walk after breakfast. We planned our trip with extra days to be on our own before and after our guided tour and cruise. This gave us the opportunity to revisit several places in Athens which we particularly enjoyed.
We picked up a map from our hotel and headed out. Soon we were at the entrance of our destination, a self guided tour of the Acropolis. We were aware that we would visit this marvelous center again with the whole tour group. Its history and significance to humanity produced deep emotion

view from the walkway

almost there

Welcome to the Acropolis

We arrived at the entrance of this UNESCO World Heritage Center. A universal symbol of Greek antiquity dating back to the 13 th century BC. The cradle of Democracy and Philosophy, we are here!

Grow your own Plumerias from cuttings

I first became familiar with Plumerias during my Navy tour of duty in Hawaii. They come in a variety of colors from white, yellow, pink, red and other variations. Their wonderful fragrance makes them ideal for the colorful leis Hawaii is famous for.
Plumerias  are originally from Mexico and Central America, it is believed that they were imported to Hawaii by the Portuguese where it grow so profusely that people believe its native to Hawaii. You too can have your own garden with flowering fragrances year-round.

The soil
Most people will tell you just plant them in a dry area or use some cactus mix, this could end up in a disappointment for you. There is a certain balance of nutrients needed to successfully propagate this seductive flowering plant. I have found the following popular mixture easy to prepare, easy on the budget and easy to maintain:

One bag of all purpose garden soil what ever is on sale at your
garden store will work fine. Two cubic feet size

One bag of peat moss this is decomposed organic matter.
 It helps maintain moisture by absorbing water. It help maintain a good acid
 ph balance. It remains springy keeping soil from getting dry and hard. I used an 8 dry quarts bag

One bag of perlite ( 6 dry quart bag size) It looks like white round non organic specks used to improve the aeration of the potting soil. It allows water to drain in order to keep
 the proper moisture balance.

.

Pots with good drainage a friend of mine, Bob, never throws out old pots because
 they are very useful when growing new plants from seeds or cuttings.

If you want a healthy plant you need a strong healthy root. Many novice gardener do not use it
 they feel that is just an added expense. But I found it very useful. Plants root faster and stronger,
they also flower sooner. A healthy plant is easier to transplant to a larger pot or garden.

The soil mixture

I put my soil on a medium size plastic storage bucket large enough for the soil, perlite and peat moss fit
loosely. Mix thoroughly the garden soil and the other ingredients one bag a a time. I use a small shovel.
Once you are comfortable with you mix, let it rest while you prepare your cutting.

The cuttings.

When garnering your cuttings insure that you acquiring them from a healthy plant. The branches
should be solid and green, the leaves complete and firm with an aromatic healthy flower.

Select your  cuttings from the bottom or the back so you can maintain proportion
 of the mother plant. Cut then at an angle.

Peel all the leaves and set aside for two or three days in a shaded area. This will give that branch the
opportunity to heal the cut and build a scab.

After the wound has healed wipe the stem of the cuttings with a clean cloth and Windex.
 Dip the stems into the rooting powder and plant them snugly into you pots and water them.

Once in pots keep them in partial sun for about one month, water once week about 1/2 cup.
Move to a sunny side for another month continue watering once a week 3/4cup.
After two months your plant should be rooted and strong enough to move to your desired place.
Good Luck

This in  my first cutting to bloom, two and a half months, see close up on the right side.

2017 Eastern Sierras Challenge

It's hard to believe that in just a few hours, our group of avid fishermen would be in the majestic setting of the high Sierras. This year's enthusiasts were pumped-up because the melting snow had replenished the lakes and stream to their former glory. The anglers gathered ranged from age 9, Diego to our very own the renowned trout slayer, Bob, age 75, as well as last year's champion, Jose from Tucson Arizona.
We were all in good spirits and looking forward to a wonderful week of fishing. This was partly because Bob, who unfortunately couldn't be with us last year, pulled out an array of graphs, maps, pamphlets, notes, diagrams of satellite location points and his GPS. Not to be outdone, Javier also had his notes and statistics on fish caught by lake along with a gadget that is supposed to find fishing holes and a bottle of magic dust. He purchased them at a garage sale from an old-timer.
(click on any picture to make it larger)

Bob's fishing hole finder.

 Javier's fishing hole finder.

Javier's magic dust

                                                                                   

Bob was in the lead car, using his GPS and we followed him on a dirt road perhaps a quarter of a mile from Highway 395. He exited the car and, with his GPS, began searching for the creek. Javier walked away with his magical gadget for searching fishing creeks ... Who do you think found this stream?

This stream was found. We all scampered to get our fishing poles, power bait, night crawlers and rat tails into the water. After a short period of time, el perico, Jorge started moaning, "There are too many flies", "It's too hot", "There's no fish"! I turned my head to see what was bothering him.  His facial expression told me what he was thinking; Dude! WTF? Lets get the hell out of here! He didn't realize he was sitting on pile of dry manure.
Meanwhile, Javier, el dormido, as usual at the nascence of casting his line, immediately sat on a rock and started fighting a branch for his fishing line. Suddenly Diego said that more flies were coming. That's when we noticed that Jorge had placed his chair on a pile of dry manure; the more he moved his chair, the more he attracted flies until they began swarming. We all rushed to the vehicles for cover. Apparently, it was just in time: the cattle were returning to claim their drinking hole.

View of the Eastern Sierras from George's Creek in Long Pine

After getting chased out of the creek by flies, manure and cattle, we made our way to one of Jorge and Jose's  (from Tucson) favorite spots.  George's Creek  in the northern part of Lone Pine is where they both caught their limit last year in just a matter of minutes.

Unfortunately we found the place in poor condition and the water was foamy with a dingy odor. With no anglers in sight, we asked Bob, "What spot is next on your list?" 

According to Bob and Javier, their information pointed to  Intake II.  Diego, our 9 year old angler, said,"I have a feeling that's a good place" We arrived and tried our best for three hours but only three rainbow trout were caught, one by my son, Manny, and two by your truly. After a less than successful day, it was time for dinner and a good night's rest.

The next day, we were fishing Lundy Lake and Little Virginia. The brothers-in-law, Jorge and Jose, were nowhere to be found as we were getting ready to depart.  Then, they came waltzing in with their Starbuck's coffee and doughnuts. Apparently they are in a healthy-start program of walking 10,000 steps daily and eating doughnuts. They try to avoid fruits and yogurts which are part of the hotels free breakfast program.
We headed towards Lundy Lake, a beautiful location some 8000 feet high with mountain cabins in an idealistic setting with snow covered mountain tops.

We are driving to higher altitude leaving the town of Bishop towards Lundy and Little Virginia lakes.  At the top of the road, you see the famous Mono Lake, an ancient saline lake which until a few years ago was drained dry by the Department of Water and Power from Los Angeles. It took years of legal battles for the California Water Resources Board to order DWP to replenish the water level, about 6400 feet above sea level. It still has a long way to go.

We were aware that this year's snow run had replenished most of the lakes to their previous levels. The lakes which were completely empty last year are back to their levels. To our dismay, we were not able to access Lundy Lake.   We were not able to enter because of flooding and the heavy machinery was blocking the entrance. So, we turned around and headed to Little Virginia.

When you are in the mountain you
bring TP or use tree leaves

Diego, Manny, Jose, Bob

Little Virginia with no room to fish from of-shore

 As you can tell from these pictures' everyone in our group was ready for a great fishing day. Our friend from Arizona wondered what all that white stuff was in the mountains. In our excitement, we didn't stop to ask ourselves "Why is this place so empty of fishermen?" Half of our group was fishing

 from off-shore and  half from a boat. Three hours later we gave up!

Javier and Bob went on line to check with their confidential sources on fishing information. It seems that the powers in charge of stocking the lake were caught with their pants down: they did not plant fish as scheduled, fearing that the snow run-off would be lower. It turned out that lakes were over their limit and the currents of the tributaries are too fast for the rainbow trout to hang around in the area. In short, too much water and not enough fish.

The following day, we decided to go to the beautiful lakes in Monmouth. We targeted Lake Mary using power bait and garlic pinch crawlers.  Manny liked this lake. Being a graduate of a particular school of fly fishing, he was ready. He walked up to the shore line, briskly whipped his fly rod a few times as if testing wind resistance, and carefully tied a fly on his line. He swung his arms in circles a few times then with his strong shoulders and neck, swiftly propelled a black/orange bug through the air with precise accuracy into the drift of the peaceful waters of the lake. He repeated this process time and time again with high accuracy, sweeping all points in the lake. Unfortunately, on this aesthetically beautiful morning, they just weren't biting. As a group, we had limited success. We brought in about 9 fish including this beautiful specimen below.

Rainbow trout: 4.5 lbs. at lake Mary in Monmouth using 4 lb. line, with #12 round treble hook and pinched crawler garlic bait.

"¡Sí y que!"

This was the hot bait at Lake Mary in Mammoth.  Most anglers using it had fish on their strings.  

On our last fishing day, we continued the effort in the lakes above Bishop with disappointing results. Well... our fishing trip came to an end. Although we were not as successful as in previous trips, there are a couple of virtues ,we always have success with: our strong friendship of many years. and a strong love for this beautiful part of California.
Here is something that John Quincy Adams composed (yes our seventh president). He was also a diplomat and a writer. We don't have many presidents like him anymore. He wrote the following poem on friendship:

I want a warm and faithful friend,
   to cheer the adverse hour;
Who ne'er to flatter will descend,
   Nor bend the knee to power;
A friend to chide me when I'm wrong, 
   My inmost soul to see;
And that my friendship prove as strong
   To him as his to me.  

Porto "ciudade Invicta"

Porto is a busy industrial city and communications center. The city was built along the hills overlooking the Douro river. It was awarded  World Heritage status by UNESCO in 1996. Architecturally alluring with medieval and modern structures side by side.
After our visit to the wineries we journeyed to downtown Porto, the Ribeira district. A fascinating section, every street is deeply immersed with historical meaning. The city itself invites you to celebrate its history through the maze of narrow, timeless cobblestone streets and snakelike alleys. Our tour guide mentioned, "The city itself is a living, breathing museum".

The network of cobble stone streets guided us to prada da liberdad, The liberty plaza. A large open space the nerve center of town. Surrounded by theaters, the music center, banks, business buildings, museums and more. A number of historical statues and government offices lend importance to the city.

                           

Porto, The great Dame on the Douro.

After about a week of traveling through Spain's great cathedrals and historic towns, we crossed the unattended border into Portugal.  The only sign visible was the Portuguese flag flying high on a flag pole.  Soon we crossed the bridge over the river Douro into the alluring city of Porto. Portugal was one of Europe's largest and richest powers with extensive holdings along the African coast, Eastern Asia and South America.

Dom Luis I  Bridge, an icon of the city of Porto. It spans the river Douro linking
 the port wine houses with the downtown Ribeira district of Porto.

Prince Henry the Navigator is Portugal's greatest son. And the production of fine Port wine its character.The wine in this region has been produced from grapes grown in the Douro province since the 1600's The wine produced is fortified by the addition of a natural grape spirit known as aguardiente. This process stops the fermentation, boosts the alcohol content and it's so good!

Many of these boats bring in their daily catches of fish and other delicacies from the sea
to the restaurants all along the river, What can be fresher?

We were sitting at one of the outdoors tables in a restaurant near the wineries, this was the view high above  Porto and the Douro's cool waters.  As we waited for our seafood dinner, we uncorked  a bottle of green (vinho verde) wine which Portugal is also famous,  the aroma and taste we divine.  Ahh... a rare kind of tranquility.

Because I was traveling with my very own oenophile Mercedes, our first stop was at the very famous Porto winery Sandeman. After a tour through the winery and tasting a wide variety, we asked ourselves, "What would Dionysus do"? We purchased a few bottles to enjoy on the trip and few more to be sent home.

Why am I not there?...someone had to take the picture or maybe I was at the tasting counter.

Well now that we obtained what we came for, we drove back across rio Douro to our hotel
 in downtown Porto.
We had to get ready for a night in the town in this beautiful land of love and romance, Portugal.