Mother's day 2024

I am happy we gave up scrabble this Sunday and attended the Kiwanis Club Mothers Day luncheon held at Nob Hill Soccer Club in Sunrise.

Camille's brother Dave is a big wig in Kiwanis.

Everything went well.

The decorations were nice, we had a five-course Chinese meal, and really outstanding entertainment, some of which is shared below.

My scrabble partner Camille and I😊

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Anbesa is a fantastic violinist

                          Amari entertains.

Colorful table decorations 

This 8 year old classical pianist Amari is a genius!

The Mayor chipped in to help serving

So did Dave

The main entertainment was supplied by Kool Kasual Entertainment, a one man band. He was really versatile. Here he is joined by Anbesa.

Really talented musicians.

Water taxi, the best bargain

Whenever I go to a new city, I always try to take a Hop on Hop Off bus tour, as that gives me a good overview of the place. Better yet, I can come off if I like a particular place, explore then get back on to any other bus from the same company, without further cost.

 On a recent visit to Charlston, South Carolia, I discovered to my chagrin that they had no such thing, so bought a regular tour through Expedia.

Big mistake, for that turned out to be somewhat of a red neck tour. But more on that anon.

So, I bought a pass on their water taxi which follows the same principle as the hop on hop off bus.

Much cheaper and more enjoyable.

When they promised the possibility of seeing dolphins I was over the moon, as those are among my favorite animals.

I even had illusions of them swimming beside our boat and doing their famous surfacing in unction, beside us as we sailed along.

That was not to be at all!

Not even one jumping up as in the pic above.

We did see about four, but no big jump, just the fins.

Oh well what can I expect for a $17 boat trip?😏

Oh well, for that price I got to see Charlston from the water, Fort Sumpter, an actual retired air craft carrier and the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge.

Built in 1929, this is the third longest cable stayed bridge in the Westen Hemisphere. It crosses the Cooper River and connects downtown Charleston to Mount Pleasant. It has a main span of 1,546 feet (471 m).

It is 2.7  miles long  and we were told that it has a jogging lane, so is a favorite among outdoor lovers in the area.

An actual air craft carrier which once was manned by 3000 sailors.

It is now retired and just a tourist attraction.

The marina

Fort Sumter is a sea fort built on an artificial island near Charleston. It was being constructed to defend the region from a naval invasion, after British forces captured and occupied Washington via a naval attack, during the War of 1812. 

It was however still incomplete in 1861 when the Battle of Fort Sumter occurred sparking the American Civil War, but it was then severely damaged and left in ruins.

 Although there were some efforts at reconstruction after the war, the fort as conceived was never completed. 

Since the middle of the 20th century, it has been open to the public as part of the Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie National Historical Park.

This water taxi trip was definitely a better option than the land tour I took earlier.

 

 

Dion, Greece.

Yesterday, the weather was terrible with all-day rain and the temperature dropping to 54😱.

 

We even had to light the fireplace!

All was not lost though as we stuffed ourselves with delicious Greek food (rain or shine, they deliver,) watched movies and bonded even more.

The next day, the weather was great, so it was off to see the ruins at Dion and climb Mt. Olympus.

(Joan, my views: Magnificent Mt. Olympus (joan-myviews.blogspot.com)

They are still excavating the site!

The ruins of  ancient city of Dion are located at the foot of Mount Olympus in the north of Greece, once known as Macedon.

Houses in modern Dion are close to the museum

Legend has it that Dion was the burial place of Orpheus, the famous Greek prophet and musician.

However, the site was most important under Macedonian rulers, notably Philip II and his son, Alexander the Great as both kings celebrated victories there, and it was at this sanctuary that Alexander conducted sacrifices before his campaigns into Asia.

These marble mosaics were the actual floor of their famous baths.

 It shows the affluence of the period.

Dion is now an UNESCO heritage site, as in the 5^th Century AD, it was an important Holy Place for the emerging Christian philosophy and worship.

In Greece it is the second largest site of ruins after Acropolis and even today when we were there, we saw people still excavating ruins.

Remnants of the solid city wall that once protected Dion.

The stadium is still fairly intact. They held Olympic games here. They lasted 9 days.

Another view of the stadium.

Dion was first made internationally famous through the writings of the Greek poet Homer. It was destroyed by an earthquake in the 7th Century.  

Despite its importance to Greek history and mythology, serious excavation did not begin there until in the 1950’s.

The museum

The museum is only five minutes away and it has a comprehensive collection of artifacts from the period.

If you love Greek history, it's a must.

The mosaics from the baths are well preserved.

The female figures are clad and the males nude.

Busts of Greek philosophers.

A new town has sprung up around the museum. The ruins in the yard and the new homes and businesses in the area, make an interesting contrast.

I thought this was a vineyard but it's a Kiwi orchard

An aged horse gets a morning walk

new homes are right beside the ruins in the museum yard.