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We found a little cafe for breakfast, up more stairs of course, called Cafe Del Mar & Sol. It was just down the block and hanging on the cliff. Again, we were attracted by not only the menu but the music they were playing. Very similar to the Cafe del Mar CD's that we enjoy at home.

American breakfast was eggs, bacon (somewhat undercooked), poundcake, toast, orange juice and coffee for 13 E. Not too bad for being on the cliff. The kids that worked there were happy and hip and we enjoyed them as they seemed to enjoy us.

Diana in the hotel told us to find breakfast in the square instead of along the cliff so we went to the square to check it out for later. The same breakfast was 5.90 E. We decided to come back to see about lunch.

In the meantime we started shopping. We wandered the shops up the hill and checked out the different streets. There is the top street, nearest the cliff, and it is known as the Jewelry street, and for good reason. The next street down ( and these have no cars, just small walking streets) is the Taverna street, appropriate for all of the restaurants, but it also has some great shops. Below that is the main street where the cars go. There we found the market and banks and that is where the square is located.

We wandered and wandered the shopping streets and found a few little treasures and then on the way back we found a shop that had the white cotton shirts like those we purchased in Athens. And the price was even better than Athens, something we had not experienced before. Everything on the islands has been twice as expensive as the Plaka in Athens, so this is very unusual.

We met the owner, another Kostas, and bought a few more of the wonderful cotton shirts that are so Greek. I bought some pants, and Steve eventually did too. Mom bought a blouse but she still couldn't find white pants or shorts that fit her. Hungry from our shopping, we headed back to the square.

As we passed a shop called Nick the Greek Jewelers a voice said that mine was the first smile she had seen all day. I said I thought that was really sad. We started talking and she took a liking to Mom and the two of them hit it off. We passed the shop everytime we went anywhere, as it was just a few doors down the street from our apartments.

Once in the square we found a Creperie. The prices were right and we ordered lunch crepes. None of liked the crepes. The ham and cheese was so bland and skimpy that the entire thing was unfulfilling. It made us rethink getting breakfast in the square.

We headed up the hill again, shopping along the way and were told by a shopkeeper to go all the way to the convention center at top of the hill for a panoramic view of Fira. It was a bit of a hike, but the view was breathtaking, especially if you have acrophobia. I warned Mother to stay back but she followed me anyway. I think she was happy to challenge herself and sorry she did. Steve and I took a few pictures and then I was ready to get away from the edge. We headed back down to the streets.

We past Kosta's shop and had to buy some more cotton things on the way home.We then headed back to have some cocktails. We stopped at the market on the way for ice, orange juice and vodka. Drinks are unnecessarily expensive and we have a great terrace to enjoy the view and drinks at the same time for much less.

We then got ready and headed back up the steps to go to dinner. We decided to try Dionysis restaurant, as Diana in the office said it was really good. We found it and it looked charming. We got a table and had a wonderful dinner. Mom had spagetti, Steve had gyros and I had moussaka - again. (I love it.) We really enjoyed the food, the place and the service.

And who should come to our table at the end of our dinner?? Marcio and Rose, our new acquaintences from Myconos and Delos. What a treat. We visited for a few minutes and took some pics and then headed back to our respective hotels.

It was a long day of walking, mostly uphill, and time for the bed. Steve and I tried to watch TV for about 2 minutes and it was useless. Bed called.

We are leaving for Santorini today. The boat leaves at 3:15 so we have time to kill.

After breakfast with even more Japanese, Steve and I went to town. Mom just wanted to stay and get everything repacked and ready to go. We had some things we wanted to find and I needed to get some Euros (having spent them all last night at the piano bar) We found the the t-shirt Steve spotted last evening. It's really nice. I then got the Euros and we headed back up the hill for the last time.

Mom was ready to go. We didn't have lunch but no one seemed really hungry yet. We waited as long as we felt prudent and then had the desk call for a cab to take the luggage down to the dock where we will board the ferry. No cabs were available so one of the porters for the hotel took the bags down the steps in the back of the hotel all the way to the dock. He actually took them all the way to the boarding area for us. That was too nice, and I gave him an appropriate tip.

The crowds to board the boat to Santorini grea and grew. Of course the Japanese and the Germans wedged their way to the front. Both groups are good at that. I guess it is something in their respective cultures.

As we got on the boat, the crowd was so big and the workers getting us and our luggage on board were so overwhelmed that they just told everyone to "sit wherever you like". We did and it was a big mistake. The Germans were far too regimented for that and insisted on their rightful seats. Then the Japanese didn't understand the concept and demanded the same. That sent others scurrying for their rightful seats and the mess was on. Some people tried to claim the seats we occupied. I told them the guys said sit anywhere and we weren't going to move Mom. They accepted that and found other seats. What a mess. And so unnecessary.

But we finally got to Santorini. We got off the boat and found the driver who would take us to the Asteras Villas Apartments. Oh my, what a trip up the mountain.

I really thought Mom would have a heart attack. Her fear of heights was really tweeked with this ride. I was really hoping that we would take the cable cars, as they are fast and the ride up is ove quickly, but they were not at the docks where we disembarked. So we ended up in a van going right up the edge of the mountain on a switchback road that went for 8 miles! But she made it.

We were dropped off at the top of the mountain in town and met by Diane from the hotel to excort us the two blocks (again uphill) to the hotel. The Asteras Villas is carved into the mountain and hangs on the cliff overlooking the caldera and the beautiful Aegean 1000 feet below. At that point I wondered if I had made a great mistake booking that hotel with Mom's acrophobia. Yikes. I have acrophobia too, but the view doesn't bother me. I didn't think about it bothering her. But she ended up okay with the view. Just not the road.

We had to climb down steps to the rooms. 61 steps to Mom's room and 73 to ours below. That meant of course that we had to climb that many steps to go anywhere from the rooms. Oh well. Another test of our fitness. We soon realized that we needed to rest part of the way up.

The rooms were nice, not great. But the location was spectacular. We hung on the cliff with a view of the entire caldera and the volcanic islands. We could see all the way to Oia on the north end. We had a view of all the cruise ships coming in and leaving. It was great.

We each had a deck and Mom had a bedroom, small kitchen area and a bathroom. We had a large living room with a dining room and kitchen and a bathroom. But beyond that was a bedroom with three beds, a dressing table and a chest of drawers. You could still waltz around that room. It was huge. And beyond that was another bedroom with a queen sized bed and two armoires. The bedrooms were dug into the mountain, as in cave. The ceilings were high and with the dehumidifyer it was perfectly comfortable. We got as unpacked as we wanted and then decided to get some food.

We were all really hungry and decided to eat along the rim tonight even though all the restaurants there were pricey. We chose Archipelago restaurant and were very happy our decision. Mom had a veal chop that she said was delicious, I had penne pasta with chicken and Steve had Spagetti Santorini.

Having food in our bellies, we decided to take a tour of the town for just a little while before heading to bed to start fresh in the morning.

Steve didn't sleep well in the back bedroom and moved into the front bedroom. We decided that we would sleep there from now on. Me - I slept like a rock.

Waiting now to go to the boat.

After another breakfast with the Japanese we headed down the hill to find the tour boat to Delos, the birthplace of Apollo. We found the line and were told the boat would be along shortly. The crowd was growing and we kept shifting position to be out of the line.

We happened to look over and see a girl with San Diego on her hat so I went over and asked if she and her companion were from San Diego. They were a young couple from Sao Paulo Brazil who had just moved to the San Diego area, Point Loma to be exact. That broke the ice and we were pretty much with them the entire trip toDelos. Their names ar Marcio and Rose.

The boat was called the Orca, but the letters looked like it was spelled Orga. It was a large boat that did nothing but ferry people to Delos and back. We got seats right away for the 30 minute trip. It was not a great day, a bit drizzly to be honest, but we figured it wouldn't really rain on us. We were tourists after all! And we were almost right. It rained earnestly for about 20 minutes toward the end of our guided tour. The guide was good, but hard to understand at times. The ruins of Delos were interesting and the story of the island was fascinating. Restoration would do wonders here.

Marcio was so cute with Mother. He made sure that she was supported while clamboring over the stone walks and porticos and didn't fall down. He was so sweet to her.

We really enjoyed the time with these two. Rose works as a tech in a veterinary emergency clinic in Mission Valley with hopes of the two of them opening a doggy day care somewhere in San Diego. Marcio is at present a document and medical courrier.

We got back at 2:00 and headed right for a late lunch again. This time we ate in the streets behind the blue domed church on the waterfront. We found a great little taverna wiath some of the best food yet on Mykonos. Lunch was delicious, and after a short tour of the shops again, we headed for the hill and a nap.

Mom decided to stay in as she wan't too hungry after such a late lunch. Steve and I decided to head into town to see if we could find some of the gay life that was legendary there in the past. We had passed what looked to me like a cocktail lounge (instead of a disco like so many others) that had a rainbow over the door. It had always been closed in the afternoon when we had passed it. To our delight it was open and we were greeted with "Hello Boys"!! and we knew we were home. It's called the Mountparnassis Lounge and is a piano bar after 10 at night.

Since it was before sunset they gave us a table at the back near the windows overlooking the bay and the windmills grouped at the other end of the town. Sitting next to us were some friendly English guys that we chatted up. Their names were Colin and his partner Steve . They are from the Manchester area. They were met after a while by two women, also from the Manchester area. and their new friends Gil(pronounced Jill) and Chrissy. The guys had met them on the plane from England and had arranged to meet for dinner tonight. Well we got talking with them too and after a while they asked us to join the group for dinner. We were delighted and we headed off to another taverna next to the one where we had lunch. that is where I first had (at Chrissy's suggestion) Kleptico. It is lamb and potatoes cooked with spices and cream in tin foil. It is served in the foil and is scrumptous. I hope I can find it again somewhere.

After dinner we headed back to the Mountparnassis bar to hear Babe from New York and her pianist. They were singing "Baltimore" from the show Hairspray and we knew we were in for a treat. And she came through all evening.

We stayed till two and would have stayed longer if I could have found an ATM at that hour with money in it. I was out of Euros.
So...sadly leaving the ladies and gents behind, we headed up the hill.

We had breakfast at the hotel. The breakfast isn't bad. Eggs and toast, bacon, cereal, etc. The eggs are okay scrambled, no other way. The bacon isn't cooked well enough for Steve or Mom, but I eat it anyway. The hotel is popular with Japanese and they are eager elbow users, so in the breakfast buffet line you have to be vigilant or they are in front of you in the blink of an eye.

We walked into town and shopped for a while. We found more backstreets. There are so many more shops and shopping streets than 23 years ago. And everything is twice as much on this island. Shirts that in Athens were 20 E are 38 - 40 E on Myconos.

Food is expensive too. Seafood is the highest. You would think that with all the fishing it would be cheaper, but from what I have heard they have depleated the Aegean from overfishing. A seafood dinner along the waterfront would run about 60 -80 E! That is about $78 to $105 US. Per person! We didn't bother with the seafood. The moussaka and spanikopita and the Kleptiko were fine with me. Yum.

Around noon we headed back to change rooms and get the rooms we were supposed to have in the first place. Mom did not llike having to share a bathroom, otherwise the suite would have been fine. Although we do stay up later than Mom.

We came back down thehill to town and had a late lunch and wandered some more then stopped at tour office for info and tickets for Delos. We decided that a tour would be a good thing and a guide was necessary to understand what we were seeing. 35 Euro each, and we were set tomorrow morning at 10:00.

We went to hotel for nap before dinner, then back down the hill to eat at the Pelican. The food was really good and because it was back from the waterfront, the service charge was 1E instead of 5E. It all helps. After dinner we decided to head back up hill for the night. We watched an old movie in English with Greek subtitles and turned in for the night.

Well, they told us to be an hour early to the docks for the ferry back to Athens. The boat left at 7:00AM so we were there at the obligatory 6:00. Of course, no one else was there. The boat wasn't and the fishermen weren't and no other passengers were either. We killed the hour watching others arrive, most at the last minute to board the ferry. Oh well, we made it. We weren't late!

The ferry took about 1 1/2 hours to Athens where we were met by Thonassis again and taken to the airport for our flight to Mykonos. He drove us by the beaches of Athens and the expensive apartments that overlook them. It was nice and he explained as best he could about the development of all the residences and how it affected the population, and the poor.

We got to the airport and checked in and went to our gate. It was only by hearing that another flight had been moved to our gate that we realized that our departure gate had been changed. We made it over to the new gate in time to board the plane and we were off.

An American man on the flight noticed my Gold and Wood glasses and commented on them. He is in the optical business and appreciated their value. (I didn't tell him they were a gift!)

When we got on the ground I realized that we didn't have transportation arranged here, so we caught a cab to our hotel. We stayed at the Porto Mykonos Hotel.

When we arrived and began check in, I was told there had been a mistake and they only had us down for one room. I assured them that they knew it was a double and a single, but they didn't have those rooms tonight, but.... They had a two bedroom suite that we would have for one night and then move us tomorrow into "better" rooms. I subsequently showed them the email that they had sent to confirm our reservations and they acknowledged the error. Still no compensation or rate reduction for the one night of inconvenience. Oh well. Not enough to spoil our time there.

Well, the only hitch in the suite is that it only had one bathroom. Mother really didn't like that, but agreed that it would be fine for one night. We settled in and headed into town.

The walk down the hill was easy, but I kept wondering what the walk back would be like. It wasn't far, but the last part was a fairly steep hill. I wondered about Mom and I wondered about my lungs and how they would fare. Later we found out we were all in better shape than we thought.

We strolled around the waterfront and eventually, of course, a jeweler caught Mom's attention as we looked for some silver earrings. We chatted a bit and Mom tried on some earrings that she really didn't like (I loved them) and we wandered on.

We stopped in a taverna that the jeweler had recommended and had a delicious lunch. Mom had a sandwich, or the Greek equivilent to one. We all enjoyed the food and Mystos beer and ambled around town a bit more. We took lots of pictures of the Pelicans that are famous on the Mykonos waterfront, and a few shots of doorways and other interesting things and then we headed back up the hill to rest before dinner.

Dinner was back down the hill, and yet another taverna along the waterfront. Steve and I had Greek food again and Mom had a grilled pork chop. She just can't get into the seasonings of Greek food to well. Maybe she just hasn't had the right stuff yet. At least there are menu items she can eat.

After a walk after dinner we headed back into the side streets and found a jacket for Mom that went great with some of her other outfits, and then walked back up the hill - again. We called it a night.

This is the second full day on the island. Bored is what we are. There just is nothing to to after you have see all of the shops and eaten or drank at all the tavernas along the waterfront.

We strolled and strolled and then had a frappe and then strolled and had a bite of lunch and then strolled some more.

Mother had been a bit lost earlier in the day looking for the hotel this morning and a really nice Greek man calmed her and told her not to worry, that she was going the right way. We ran into him several times and he treats us like old friends. He invited us for a drink and chatted us up every time we passed his shop, The Blue Dolphin. He is just a really happy guy. Fun to have folks like him, Costas, and Daniella in a place like this.

Mom headed back to the hotel for a nap and Steve and I walked the island some more. We saw a fortress on the other point that we had not seen before so we walked over there. There was a beautiful view from up high and a statue of some Greek explorer (we think), and a museum that, when we had time to get mother and go there, was closed.

So we went back to the hotel and napped again, woke up and watched a Jungle Boy movie.

Then the rain started. It rained cats and dogs for enough time to make us cancel our dinner reservations at Vigla and eat at the hotel. We had a really great meal and stayed dry. Plus we avoided the really arrogant owner of Vigla.

I don't know what is going on with our group, but Steve was sick to his stomach in Athens, and today Mother can't keep anything down. I hope I am not next.


I was up at 6:00 so I took a walk by myself around the waterfront and through the back streets. It was nice seeing the place without people, with just the fishermen moving about that early.

We had breakfast at the hotel (included again) and headed out for some shopping. Mom had to head back to the hotel twice and decided to just stay there for the afternoon. I went to the pharmacy and got her some medicine to settle her stomach and she took a nap.

Steve and I wandered through the back streets of the town as he hadn't seen them this AM. We stopped at the waterfront in a taverna and ordered some coffee, then some iced coffee (which is what we wanted to begin with) and watched the people. We went back and checked on Mom and she seemed to be fine.

We decided to take a nap for a while and then come here to the internet cafe and check emails and write this. I'll write more after dinner or tomorrow.

Found time to write some more.

Mom is fine but rested and repacked this afternoon. We wandered around some more, but there really is nothing to do for the amount of time we are spending here. My mistake. One day and two nights is enough for Hydra.

We went out to the Sunset Restaurant at the point tonight for dinner and drinks. The food was the best we have had in Greece. Mom had a veal steak that you could cut with a fork and Steve had ground meat patties of small cow, and I had large raviolies made from pumpkin and cheese. They had only butter and sage on them and they were sensational. The waiter was fun and the view was great.

We then went home, deposited Mother at the hotel, and Steve and I headed back to Amalour for a nightcap. Daniella was happy to see us and we listened to some more great music before heading up the walk to the Bratsera and our bed.

We were picked up this morning by Thonassis and driven to Pireus to catch a boat for Hydra, a small island near Athens. It is an artist colony and the former home of poet/songwriter Leonard Cohen. The Rolling Stones and other rock groups used to hang out there too.

The ride was an hour and forty minutes and mostly calm once we got out of the harbor. We were tired and Mon and Steve slept most of the way. We arrived with beautiful sunshine at a charming port with a busy waterfront filled with shops and tavernas. Very picturesque.

We found a man with a cart to take our luggage to the Bratseras Hotel and got checked in. We then walked the waterfront to check out this wonderful little village. We stopped and had an iced coffee and tried to decide where we would have dinner. After a nap and some more walking and a beer and pizza for lunch, we decided to have dinner at the hotel around the pool.

On the way to the hotel we stopped for a drink at a bar near the hotel because the music coming out was wonderful. The owner said he would make a copy for Steve.

The setting was charming at the Bratsera, and the food adequate. Food here is nothing like in the US. The meat is not the high fat content we have at home and, while tasty it tend to be tough. I didn't mind as the flavor was there. Mom only had a salad with smoked Salmon, most of which was saved for the multitude of cats that Steve has made his friends. Steve and I had the grilled pork.

After dinner Steve and I went back to Amalour, for a couple of night caps and to visit with Costos, the owner and Daniella from Bulgaria, his waitress. Costas had already made the copy of the Cafe Del Mar CD for Steve. The music was still great and we had fun till midnight when it was time to call it a day

We got up and had breakfast in the dining room of the hotel. It's included in the price, so why not. It was adequate, but not gourmet. We didn't care.

Then we headed by cab over to Stadiou Street and the shopping area of Ermous Street. Most everything was not what Mom was looking for, but we did get another travel alarm clock (of course the alarm didn't work). At the end of the shopping area, we found ourselves at the far edge of, where else? The Plaka. OOpah! So we headed in.

The first place we came to had wonderful pictures of Greece and especially Santorini, and Mom got a couple for Pam. We then kept going deeper and deeper. Soon we came to a square, the Monasteraki, where they had a Deisel shop and Mom bought some shoes. We had an iced coffee and headed back for the hotel, through a wondering route in lovely neighborhoods. It's surprisingly easy to just head in the direction you want to go and connect the streets. It's hard to get too lost (though I was glad I had a map to refer to and make sure I was where I thought I was).

We rested a while from the long walk and Then Steve and I scouted the location of a restaurant where I wanted to dine this evening, Taverna Strofi (25 Roverton gali at Propyleon). Steve and I had been there in 1984 and were surprised to find it still there. I guess things don't come and go so much here as at home. It still had the same phone number.

We went to the rooftop bar again for a Cosmopolitan before heading for dinner and at the appointed time we walked the ten minute walk up the hill. We were escorted to our table on the rooftop. Surprisingly again, it was the same table where Steve and I ate 23 years ago. And yes, the place showed the years. But it didn't matter. It wasn't grand even then. But I remember the food was great.

We ordered Dolmades, stuffed grape leaves, and tsadziki as appetizers and they were superb. Mom and I had the lamb chops, which while delicious, were gristly and hard to cut.

Steve had Rooster with okra, and said it was delicious. Unfortunately it got away from him at one point and he wore it home on his shirt and pants. Oh well. A good laugh. I had worn parts of meals the previous 2 days. It was his turn.

After going back to the hotel and changing clothes we headed into the Plaka again for one last shopping trip. I decided that since the only white shirt had spills on it, we needed a couple of Greek style cotton shirts. They might be more expensive in the Islands. We were successful and headed back to the hotel for the night.

In the morning we are headed for the Island of Hydra. Who knows if they will have internet, but hopefully I can keep up the blog.

We were told that we would be met at 9:00 in the lobby by a tour guide Alliki (Alice) to take us on a 4 hour tour of the city. We were supposed to leave at 10:00, but today the transit workers and the government workers have called a strike. Evidently the unions invested in some overpriced securities and the workers want to recoup the money and put the leaders in jail.

Anyway, the trains, buses and cabs were going on strike at 12:00 and the Acropolis and other points of interest run by the government were closing early. Somehow, with the schedule we had, we didn't even notice the difference.

We headed for the Syntagma (Constitution Square), going by Hadrian's Gate and the Temple of Zeus, the government buildings and several wonderful squares. We saw the open meat markets and the fish markets and walked through briefly. It was very interesting and wonderful, but fairly empty according to Alliki, because of the impending strike. No one wanted to be in the heart of town during the demonstrations. We were there too early for the hubbub. Good for us.

We then headed for the Acropolis. It was a warm day but still not too hot. (Yesterday had been 35 degrees Celsius - around 98 F) We walked up, and up, on marble steps. I was worried about Mom but she said she was fine. I remember from 23 years ago how hot it can get at the top, but up we climbed.

Alliki told us so much history about the different eras of the city if Athens and the occupation of the Acropolis over the centuries. It was fascinating, and the last time Steve and I were here we didn't have a doscent so we didn't understand all of the history.

After a while at the top, Mom got really tired, so we headed back down and got some cold water and rested a bit. Then we proceeded into the Plaka and back to the hotel. Mom needed a nap and I wanted to explore the Plaka a bit more.

Steve and I headed further into the Plaka than we had been earlier, and found some great things, including a restaurant that looked charming and promised to have musicians this evening. I took a card and suggested that we go there for dinner.

After a bit of rest for all of us, we headed from the hotel back into the Plaka and found the restaurant. The music played and the Spanikopita was wonderful. The tomatoes in the greek salad were the best I have ever had, and the Moussaka was superb. More rustic than at Daphne's, and that was wonderful.

We then wandered around and looked at T shirts and art and jewelrey and took in the flavor of Old Athens, before heading back to the Hotel Hera.

We went upstairs for a night cap in the Peacock Bar and Restaurant. It's on the rooftop and looks over to the Acropolis. Beautiful at night.

Then, after a long and arduous day, we hit the sack.

The journey begins.

The car from La Jolla Star came on time at 10:00 and Michael the driver took us to LAX. The trip was uneventful, thank goodness, and we arrived with plenty of time to spare.

We found it a bit confusing as to where to go to check in and which line was which, but British Airlines have great help there and a concierge type man helped get us in the proper lines and gave us great advise for food and when to come for mother's wheelchair, etc. (mother gets a wheelchair so we can all get to where we need to be with less hassle.)

The flight to London was fine, with the exception of the women in the row in front of us. They laid all the way back and gave us no room and then talked loudly and kept getting their bags down from the overhead, and just generally being annoying when we were trying to get some sleep. It bothered Mom and Steve more than me, but I overlook too much usually.

London was nothing if not confusing. We had to deal with four different people getting the wheelchair to the gate. None of the three people who required wheelchairs knew what was going on or if we were left in the right place, but it eventually got worked out and we made the flight on time. Strangely disjointed and ineffiencient.

We were exhaused on the flight to Athens, and had little chance of keeping conscious. We all slept sitting up with our heads bobbing. Not too restful. But we made it and were met by efficient Greeks with a wheelchair for Mother. We got our baggage and headed for immigration and off to the car with no hassle at all. How nice that was.

We were met by a handsome Greek, who brought us from the new airport (beautiful) to the Hotel Hera. We got checked in and headed for a brief stay in the rooms, as we needed to get some food and get to bed.

We headed up the street into the Plaka (old Athens shopping area) and decided on Daphne's taverna. It was a wise choice as the food was great and the beer refreshing. Later on we found our it was one of the best, and where Hillery Clinton ate when she was in Athens.
We headed straight back to the Hera and fell into bed. I don't think anyone got too much sleep as our body clocks were too messed up at this point. But we did enjoy the beds and got some needed rest.

Life has been truly busy lately and I have been negligent in getting to the blog. While busy, nothing major has happened other than the party last Saurday. It's just getting ready for our trip to Greece this Sunday. Organizing things with the sale of the house for our housesitter, getting clothes and meds ready, Documents copied, arranging the car for LA, etc. BUSY.

It's all good, just time consuming. Not that I mind the shopping. I got a new bag and some new shirts and pants, shoes. It's all good.

More stuff to accomplish today as it is the last day to get things done. Three more days of work and then we leave Sunday AM for LAX, Heathrow and Athens. I can hardly wait.

After a long day at work, well, and a pedicure, Steve and I got all dressed up and headed for Liberty Station for the annual gala for SDHDF, a great organization the funds many educational and social needs in our gay community. This is one of the only events we support any more, and we are always invited by our friend and former chair of the event Richard Sager.

While I have great reservations about Liberty Station (the developer Corky MacMillan allegedly screwed San Diego on this one) it was a great venue for the gala. It was held outside on the Navel Promenade. There is a grassy area and a fountain surrounded by a large concrete area. The food stations were set up on the north side, the bandstand on the west side and the auction items set up on tables on the east side of the fountain. The flow seemed to work fine except at the bars. The lines were always too long, and the only Grey Goose they had was Vanille. Yuk.

The food was done by the French Gourmet and included roast beef and potatoes at one station, shark on a stick with carrots, and sweet and sour chicken with rice at others. The dessert station had ice cream covered with bananas sauteed in Rum and butter. YUM.

The highlight of the evening is always getting to see people that we only see at events like this. We ran into Bill and David from Will Copy and their wonderful neighbor Janet (Clive was home sick). We saw Larry Baza and Ken Bullock and Raul, chatted with City Council woman Toni Atkins and met one of her possible succesors (she is termed out this time) Stephen Whitburn. It is always great to see folks like Stan and Maurice, Gary Laliberte of City Dog with his partner,and Judge David Rubin with his man.

We had a nice time,and while the event wasn't up to the standard set by Richard Sager, it was an enjoyable evening. We didn't stay for the dance party afterward in an adjoining hall, but as we left, the music sounded like it was getting pretty good.

I hope they raised enough money to make the whole thing worthwhile as I would hate to see and end of this event. It's too important or the community to understand what the foundation does and get the support it needs to continue.