Wild Mushroom Soup
PART II

She could not see anything that looked like the right thing to eat or drink under the circumstances. There was a large mushroom growing near her, about the same height as herself; and when she had looked under it, and on both sides of it, and behind it, it occurred to her that she might as well look and see what was on top of it.
~Alice's Adventures in Wonderland~

Last week, Stergos and I headed to the south of the Island in search of more mushrooms. We started our hunt at an area about halfway down the island called “Seven Springs”. No luck. We continued on, searching down the island. No luck. After five stops and coming up short I was much dismayed (to cause to lose enthusiasm) and a bit discouraged. But Stergos, the pro that he is, still had one shot left to fire. We were merely a few kilometers away from our final destination when I witnessed a glorious mountain valley view. The weather was cold and the skies gray. There was a fine mist in the air. I had to pinch myself because I just couldn’t get over how much it resembled the Scottish Highlands. A short-stack of the Highlands that is, but nonetheless beautiful. Upon arriving at the exact location, Stergos cursed all the people who were already foraging the mountainsides. All the time we had spent working are way down the island was lost time on our part. But Stergos didn’t quite see it that way. You see, “our competition” was from our rival village. Our rivals were out in force and had been on the scene for several hours. They had their entire families, husbands and wives, grandparents and cousins, children and pets. Needless to say, things were pretty well picked over. As we fought are way through the thicket, buckets in hand, Stergos cursed, “They destroy everything! MFs!” There were mushrooms here in abundance for certain. The evidence was clear from all the mycelium “roots” left were the caps had been cut. Stergos was determined and knew what I did not. “If you want to find mushrooms here, you must look deep beneath the brush”. We dug up leaves, looked under overgrown vines and roots. We found our shrooms. It was tedious but wonderful work. After several hours we managed to fill a 5 gallon bucked. Satisfied that we had enough for soup and a few Ouzo sessions we headed back to the car for our return home.

Quote of the Week

I will reveal to you a love potion, without medicine, without herbs, without any witch’s magic; if you want to be loved, then love

~Hecaton of Rhodes~

Wild Mushroom Soup

I just finished a bowl, rather two bowls of wild mushroom soup. It was so incredible that had to share it with you. Stergos went to the mountains (more like the Texas Hill Country) a few days ago hunting for wild mushrooms and returned with a few kilos of beautiful salmon colored fungai. Umm Umm good. Valassia cooked up an incredible soup that I doubt you could find in any restaurant anywhere. Like I mentioned before, I love winter here. With the rains come the shrooms.

The Colossus of Rhodes

"To you, O Sun, the people of Dorian Rhodes set up this bronze statue reaching to Olympus when they had pacified the waves of war and crowned their city with the spoils taken from the enemy. Not only over the seas but also on land did they kindle the lovely torch of freedom."

-Dedicatory inscription of the Colossus-

I'm surrounded, or rather engulfed in history here on this ancient island. I live but a few miles from the spot of one of the seven wonders of the ancient world yet hardly give it much thought. Throughout most of its history, ancient Greece was comprised of city-states which had limited power beyond their boundary. On the small island of Rhodes were three of these: Ialysos, Kamiros, and Lindos. In 408 BC, the cities united to form one territory, with a unified capital, Rhodes. The city thrived commercially and had strong economic ties with their main ally, Ptolemy I Soter of Egypt. In 305 BC, the Antigonids of Macedonia who were also rivals of the Ptolemies, besieged Rhodes in an attempt to break the Rhodo-Egyptian alliance. They could never penetrate the city. When a peace agreement was reached in 304 BC, the Antagonids lifted the siege, leaving a wealth of military equipment behind. To celebrate their unity, the Rhodians sold the equipment and used the money to erect an enormous statue of their sun god, Helios. From its building to its destruction lies a time span of merely 56 years. Yet the colossus earned a place in the famous list of Wonders. "But even lying on the ground, it is a marvel", said Pliny the Elder. Although we do not know the true shape and appearance of the Colossus, modern reconstructions with the statue standing upright are more accurate than older drawings. Although it disappeared from existence, the ancient World Wonder inspired modern artists such as French sculptor Auguste Bartholdi best known by his famous work: The Statue of Liberty.

I'VE BEEN CALLED OUT

My buddy the agonist sent me an email stating that "If you do not post about harvesting the olives, what is was like, how it was done, the weather, the scenery, throwing in a little ancient greek poetry, etc. . . I am personally going to come to Rhodes and hurt you!" Ok, so here it is;

We have not yet been to the harvest. We are so busy with the house at the moment. The tiles are going in now and next week we'll have windows and doors. We are really excited about the house. As for the weather, its wet, very wet.