Morning walk and food tour

I enjoyed a simple breakfast at my accommodation, the Cecil Hotel this morning.  It was a leisurely start followed by an unplanned random walk in Plaka, roughly retracing the walk from last night but adding a few more twists and turns.  It was pretty in parts but definitely quieter than last night.

Around my area between Omonia and Monastiraki, I get a very Oriental feeling.  I use the word “Oriental” in the sense that’s used by continental Europeans to include Asia Minor and the Middle East.  It’s just the way goods are displayed outside the shops just like in Asia.

After a rest and I walked to Thisseo to commence my 1300 Food Free Walking Tour.   The guide took us to a bakery and bought some ring bread and ring doughnuts.  We shared these in an alley together with samples of dried figs and pasteli (honey and sesame bar).

We continued to another bakery where we had coffee and cookies.  We were given a beautiful crusty bread to sample too.

Next was a Loukoumades (doughnut ball) place where we bought some as takeaways.  We were then taken around the Municipal Market and its surroundings.  Some people bought herbs and spices at a nearby shop.

Many of the stallholders at the market, especially butchers, looked like they were from the subcontinent (but some could have been really dark Greeks).  The guide confirmed this, saying it’s just the way of the world now.

Lastly we settled into a deli for a late lunch of cheeses, cold cuts, a parsley pesto, rusk, bread, wine and spirit.  We finished off with the Loukoumades.

Overall, this was nothing like the awesome food walking tour experience I had in Madrid.  Here, we had bread, cookies, cold cuts and cheese!  The others seemed to have enjoyed themselves.  Maybe they haven’t got a comparison.

With the intention of skipping dinner, I went to the supermarket near my hotel to get some fruit.  They required that bags be kept in a lockable glass cabinet (you take the key) while you shop.  Somehow, I was distracted and went back to my room with my shopping but not my backpack (which only had water).  But it shows that even though I’m normally quite careful, all sorts can happen … if this had been late at night approaching their closing time, I may not have been able to return to retrieve my bag.