The Bee That Stung Me in Zagorihori!
My wake-up call this morning was neither wanted nor pleasant! I was stung by a bee while still in bed! I woke up in Monodentri, a bit chilly, but snuggled in my warm bed. My shoulder was sticking out of the covers and I could hear something buzzing about in my room. Assuming it was a fly, and not wanting it to land on me, I reached up to the pull the covers over my shoulder. When I did so, I was rudely stung!
Now to be fair, maybe the bee felt that it was rudely shoved out of its way by my blanket, but I must point out that it was in MY bed! I tried (unsuccessfully) to ignore the pain for a while, before getting up and going down to breakfast at the hotel. I thought they might have baking soda I could use to make a paste. That usually helps with stings and I’m pretty sure it helps draw out a stinger if it’s left in. I tried scraping it out with a credit card so I wouldn’t squeeze out any more toxin, but I think that maybe the stinger is still in my shoulder, cause this bugger is still stinging, hours later! (Can you believe it’s the same arm as my jellyfish sting, too?) Even with Google translate, however, I was unable to obtain any baking soda. One of the brothers came back with an ointment he said helped with bee stings, but I’m pretty sure it was just a mild numbing and antibiotic ointment. It helped for a very short time, and then went back to normal (fire!).
Guinness Book!
So…I had a bit of difficulty focusing at breakfast and getting organized to go on my hike to Vikos Gorge this morning. Finally, I got everything packed up because after my hike I needed to return to the hotel to collect my bags and catch a 230 bus to Ioannina so I could meet my friend Thomi at our hotel there.
Just outside of Monodentri, literally perched on the edge of Vikos Gorge is the Monastery of Paraskevi. From its vantage point, it is possible to see all the way down to the bottom of the valley, which holds the Guiness Book World Record for the deepest gorge. It is almost one kilometer deep (nearly 1000 meters!) This is deep!!! It’s also narrow, not wide, like the Grand Canyon. It’s just a huge, deep gash cut into the side of the mountains. Gorgeous.
Walk from Monodentri
I really enjoyed the walk once I got going. I was a bit skittish about insects at first, but seemed to be attracting larger and larger animals as I went along. First, a cat followed me for a while, and then after I visited the monastery, a dog attached himself to me and followed me all the way back into the village. I stopped to hang out in the forest for a little while and he even came off the path with me and took a nap while I chilled out. Luckily, he decided to follow another couple before it was time for me to catch my bus!
Hiking Vikos Gorge
The forest was so lush and beautiful, though. I really enjoyed it – there was a lot of diversity. I found four different types of mushrooms within a square meter out there! (I didn’t touch any, in case they were poisonous, so you don’t need to worry, Mom!)
The scenery walking along the gorge out to the monastery was beautiful and the monastery itself was well worth the walk. It was made all of stone (of course!) and built right on the edge of the gorge. Only one monk was there, as it isn’t a functioning monastery, but this one was painting icons, the same type as were painted on the walls from centuries before. It was interesting to see him work. I was also fascinated by the beautiful roof on the building.
View across Gorge
I’d hoped to see a few stone bridges, which the area is known for. Although I didn’t see those, I’m glad I got the chance to get a couple of glimpses at the Epirus area of Greece. It’s a very beautiful, very relaxed area of the country.
Bouzouki Bar in Ioannina
In the afternoon, I took the bus back down the mountain into Ioannina, where I was supposed to meet Thomi at the hotel she and I would be sharing. She had come into the town that week for work. I got to meet her coworker Thanos, and the three of us went into town that evening for some food and drinks. We ended up at a bar with live music, a very traditional and typical Greek type of music called bouzouki, which was great to hear. It was enjoyable and I also got to try a couple of Greek alcohols – one that tasted like black licorice/ouzo (like jagermeister) – yuck! – and another that was a very nice clear wine-like drink. We had a good time.
Tomorrow, I’m going to check out Ioannina while Thomai and Thanos finish up their work in town. Then Thanos has kindly offered to give us a ride to Meteora! Awesome.
Path to Monastery by Vikos Gorge