Katalokon, Greece
There are some places in the world that never grow stale no matter how many times you visit. The ruins of Ancient Olympia, near the port of Katalokon, is such a place. A 45-minute bus ride takes us to the entrance of the site, where our guide will lead us through a three-hour walk, including a visit to the Museum, whose central room contains the four sides of the original frieze from the Temple of Zeus. The proportions of the room are exactly the same as the temple--whose footprint still remains nearby--so that you stand in the center and experience close to what the Greeks saw when the Olympic games were first established.
Outside the museum, the big plus today are the blossoming Judas trees--redbuds to us--in vast profusion, interspersed with the occasional red poppy, white honeysuckle, and other colorful wild flowers. Today is almost exactly 22 years to the very day I first visited here. And Will and I were here in October 2010, although the weather was not quite as obliging during that visit.
After a walk through the grounds, I buy some cream-puff-like pastries to sustain me until a late lunch back on the ship. The pastry is close to perfection and I am sure the gods of obesity are quite pleased.
There is little I am tempted to buy so far (although you already know that will change in Kusadasi), except for a couple of small notebooks as souvenirs.
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