Completely at Rest

I got an email from my cousin Tammy that lives near Arlington VA today. We got noticed last week from the National Cemetery that my fathers headstone was in place. Tammy and her husband Bob were thoughtful enough to take this picture of the headstone, that is now in place.

I think its a fitting tribute for a very passionate patriot. I am sure Dad is satisfied by this and is now resting quite well. If your ever visiting DC and have time to visit Arlington National Cemetery stop by, he loved people and would be tickled to see ya.

Roatan Fishing Tournament

Last Weekend the Roatan Fishing Tournament took place. People brought boats from as far away as the Cayman Islands to fish. The winning marlin was 700 lbs as you can see from this picture. In addition to the 2 day tournament they also have booths in West End selling food and stages with music. Local schools create some floats and a few marching bands perform. Its a great event and a lot of fun. This year there was also a charity raffle for a Harley Davidson to support the Little Friends Foundation.

The only downside is this tourney is not catch and release. They said last year it would be and then this year it was not. The local sentiment is the kids and people on the street like the excitement of seeing the big fish. Hopefully this will be overcome and it can be done a less harmful way in the future.

Parthenon for the full moon

Cindy and I scored nicely on our first evening in Greece. We flew into Athens for 1 night before moving onto Corfu to do some sailing. After putting our things away at the Hotel (Holiday Inn airport very nice and reasonable). We took a bus downtown to walk the Plaka (oldest neighborhood in Athens) and after hitting a wine bar we stumbled (not literraly) to the Parthenon and it was our lucky night.

It was a full moon so the Parthenon was open at night to celebrate and it was free. We really enjoyed walking around and looking at everything. So old and yet beautiful and what a great setting high on the Acropolis. We really enjoyed just hanging out and checking the view.

If your not familiar with the area this snipit from Wikipedia explains it: The Parthenon (ancient Greek: Παρθενών) is a temple of the Greek goddess Athena, built in the 5th century BC on the Athenian Acropolis. It is the most important surviving building of Classical Greece, generally considered to be the culmination of the development of the Doric order. Its decorative sculptures are considered one of the high points of Greek art. The Parthenon is regarded as an enduring symbol of ancient Greece and of Athenian democracy, and is one of the world's greatest cultural monuments. The Greek Ministry of Culture is currently carrying out a program of restoration and reconstruction

Brettos in the Plaka of Athens

On our first night in Athens we found one of our favorite spots of the entire trip. Below is a synopsis from the website of Brettos:

the well known "BRETTOS". The unsuspected visitor of the historic center of Athens can not miss the hundreds of colourful bottles and lights that decorate the walls of "Brettos". They have many liqueur, brandy or traditional Greek spirits, such as ouzo and rakomelo.

“BRETTOS” is the oldest distillery in Athens. It started operating for the first time back in 1909 at the ground level of an Athenian old mansion in the heart of Plaka. At those premises, his founder Mr Michael Brettos, started producing ouzo, brandy and few liqueur flavors, from the old time classics like cherry and piperman to the most distinct ones like citrus and mastiha, using old family recipes from Smyrni. When demand started rising more that expected he had to relocate the distillery to Kallithea and operate the small shop on Kydathineon street only as a liquor shop and at the same time as a bar where tourists as well as local could taste and buy any liqueur they wished for.

Cindy and I tried a couple glasses of Greek Red Wine and found them to be incredible. I also liked the Kum Quat liquer that is popular in Greece. Unfortunately our bottle broke in the luggage on the way home. Our clothes while very Orange did smell nice.

The inside of the small shop is still as it used to be. The first thing you notice is the beautiful décor of a wall full of coloured bottles lit from behind that fill the entire back wall floor to ceiling, providing a colour spectrum in contrast to the 200 year old building. On another wall are the old barrels full of spirits that are still used. Around the shop there is a bar with about 15 stools where you can sample the famous homemade ouzo, brand or liqueurs. Finally, next to the door there is the very first, hand-made, ouzo distiller that Mr Michael Brettos once used.

After all these decades “Brettos” distillery and bar is still the best place to have a few drinks after work, after a good meal, or just before you go to sleep. Without any lifestyle codes, with soft music coming from a small radio forgotten on one of the wooden shelves, “Brettos” is the perfect place is you wish to get away form everyday life and have a chat with your friends. The only thing that could surprise you are the flashes coming from the cameras of all shorts of tourist that visit the store daily. The only thing you should be certain of is the fact that you can easily fall in love with “Brettos” for its special atmosphere, both low-key and attractive, the authenticity and the friendliness of its owners.

Restaurante La Roca

On a recent drive from San Pedro to La Ceiba on the mainland of Honduras I had the pleasure of stopping off at Restaurante La Roca about half way between Progresso and La Ceiba. This establishment is combination Tilapia pond and friend fish eatery. I had a good time checking out the farm and then seeing them pluck my still swimming fish out of the holding tank and straight to the kitchen for a cleaning and frying. The meal was excellent and very reasonable (less than $5).

If your ever going this way try to stop off for lunch.

Our Pal the Pelican

A few weeks ago Gene and I were docking the boat and had a mascot. This fine feathred friend hung out and got really close to both of us. I actually petted him for a second.

As you can tell he just hung out and Gene and him had a staring contest. We did not feed him and we have not seen him since so I guess he found better partners.