Had the chance to take a day trip to a nearby monastery dedicated to the Ascension of the Lord with a priest that I know. It was in one of surrounding towns called Panorama. It is a beautiful little monastery with an exquisite view overlooking all of Thessaloniki (thus the name of the town :)). The nuns there make all sorts of ecclesiastical cloths, vestments and paint BEAUTIFUL icons! They were all very hospitable and it was especially enjoyable to witness their natural behavior with the priest. He is a long time "client" and friend of the monastery, and they were very natural and loving with one another.

In other news, the Greek have voted their current Prime Minister (Karamanlis) out of office in the recent elections, and elected Papandreou who lived for a long period and studied in America. Some say that he's not Greek enough, others say he is too liberal etc etc. It should be interesting to try and track the changes that ocurr as a result of the new power-change.

Hope all is well with you! Drop me a line if you'd like!