Dearest F has eaten at Dionysos a few times and based on her recommendations (always flawless of course) we ate a little bit on the early side at Dionysos Zonar’s with a spectacular view of the Acropolis marvelous during the day somewhat more magical in the evening.
The cuisine and service were five stars. Notably spectacular was the tarama with bottarga (smoked grey mullet roe). The tuna ceviche, seabass with risotto and superb roast potatoes were excellent not to mention the movie star baked Alaska. My favourite Greek sparkler a rosé Akkakies Xinomavro was eagerly consumed.
A Baked Alaska in Athens? Yes indeed and very tasty!
A perfect meal with a matching view.
More tourists than you could shake a stick at here.
I find that most Greek restaurants have a dearth of washroom facilities. My favourite seafood eatery in Thessaloniki can seat close to 300 people yet for all these people there is one raunchy WC rather hidden in the rear of the restaurant. Not so with most of the “higher end” restaurants such as Dionysis Zonar’s.
‘When an old man takes a young lass, the devil rejoices, for he’ll be the one to profit,’ declared the old beggar sagely, scraping the bottom of his bowl loudly.
The Canadian documentary “Bot Love” is guaranteed to invoke (or may provoke) emotional responses amongst viewers.
If you are an AI novice dip your toes into “Bot Love” and glean some its issues in a non overly technical manner.
Some adjectives describing your reaction coming to mind are pathetic, sad, tragic, disgusting, dangerous, exploitative, life saving, humane and useful. What series of responses it may invoke/provoke will be varied depending on each viewer. Some may be positive. Some may be negative.
Bots can assume anywhere from animated figures to Westworld humanistic robots.
We hear from Bot users, AI experts, AI researchers, Bot creators, AI programmers, AI gamers, AI companion educators and an AI safety researcher who cautions Bots are not malevolent but malevolence is not always required to harm their users as Bots may encourage preexisting behaviours particularly dangerous for those suffering from mental illness. If you listen to the Bots carefully it is as if they are telling their users what they want to hear.
Surely after watching “Bot Love” one must realize Bots are increasingly used for loneliness, unhappiness, grief, companionship and sexual titillation. Guess what Bots the company Orifice has created! In other words some uses are worthy but even more very dangerous.
One US user chats with her Bot saying she wished her boyfriend had meaningful conversations like she has with her Bot. Who requires those difficult humans!
The danger one expert warns of is creation of a population that is unable to properly function in a less than perfect world. What friction and negativity exist in Botdom?
A mother of a Bot obsessed son says she would never have a relationship with a Bot as it just seems so sad but for her son of a different generation……
Professor EP creator of a popular Bot influencer states he would never enter a Bot relationship and that would be sick as it prevents people from entering a real relationship.
Bots are evolving into big business meaning they must turn a profit by subscription fees or selling their users’ information perhaps not an issue to the unthinking app obsessed where personal information flows from their phone like a rushing stream to facilitate their exploitation and diminishment of privacy.
If we do not deal with the threats of Bots will Yul Brenner aka the Gunslinger in high eliminatory fashion be hunting us around the world.
“Bot Love” will receive its world premiere 21October2026 on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and CBC Gem as part of The Passionate Eye.
No doubt you may have heard about the Plaka District in Athens. The main shopping drag is a drag for me. Overrun by tourists drawn in by its proximity to the Acropolis and yes the cruise ship gangs poking around the touristic shops. T shirts, coffee mugs, postcards and over Greekified nick-nacks. Plenty of uninspiring restaurants and cafes.
But veer off the main drag heading eastward towards the Ancient Agora of Athens and the Plaka becomes, shall we say, more “authentic” and less polished meaning the touristic swarms have disappeared. There are a few renovations or restorations of old buildings hinting at a former grandeur. A better flavour of Athens if you like.
While I have visited the Acropolis three times over a space of five decades how did I miss the Ancient Agora of Athens? It is an archeological site located beneath the northwest slope of the Acropolis. “Agora” applies to an assembly of people or a “gathering place”. In modern parlance it means “marketplace”.
The Ancient Agora of Athens was a market, a meeting place and the social and political and commercial hub of the ancient city. Initially developed in the 6th century BC, the Ancient Agora of Athens was destroyed (and rebuilt several times) by the Persians in 480BC, the Romans and by a Scandinavian tribe known as the Herulians in 267BC.
Its importance revolved around religion, a very sacred place in which holiness is laid out in the architecture of the ground in which it lay upon. But it was also an important meeting ground for Athenians where affairs of the state were conducted, a place to socialize and watch performers and listen to famous philosophers.
Having encountered so many ruins throughout Greece one must acknowledge “ruins fatigue” which I haven’t contracted yet. The attractions of archeological sites are rarely the ruins and partial structures but the imagination which veers towards “what was this site like in its prime”! The historical overcomes the visuals and the imagination can run amok here at the Ancient Agora of Athens. Due to it being not overtly overrun by tourist perhaps I will venture to say more enjoyable than the Acropolis.
‘God rest her that I think on of an evening; now that were a wife, a proper housekeeper! Aye, a curmudgeon maybe, and a shrew, never a good word for anyone and always at loggerheads with the other women…but a wife and a housekeeper!’ And here he sighed piously in her memory, and even greater regret choked him as he remembered how things used to be…
He’d come back from work dog-tired. There’d always be a hearty meal, and time and time again she’d slip him some sausage, hidden from the children…And how everything flourished! There were calves, and goslings, and piglets…every fair there’d be plenty to take to town, and always cash to hand, put aside from livestock she raised…As for her cabbage-with-peas no one could match it….
Geez woken up so very “gently” at 07:42 with hammering noises and a drill. Apparently they are constructing a few more additional rooms at Anthology of Athens. Not exactly the way to be woken up at a five-star hotel!
Tap tap drill drill at Anthology of Athens
I noticed from the rooftop terrace the hotel’s “swimming pool”. It doesn’t strike one as a swimming pool if you can do 100 laps in eight minutes!
A beautiful sunny day on the terrace so much so you required sunglasses. Dearest F had quite a tasty eggs Benedict and me a glass of water, a croissant and Greek marmalade and a piece of orange cake all from the minimal buffet. The fruit looked a bit brown on the edges.
A 10-minute walk from our hotel Anthology of Athens we are at the foot of the Acropolis and as luck may have it no human swarms. Probably beat the cruise ship locusts that destroy “touristic hot spots”. Passengers must not miss all you can eat post breakfast pre lunch buffet “with authentic Greek hamburgers and watermelon with hot chocolate sauce”.
We have timed admission so with a bit of time on our hands we visit the nearby Acropolis Museum a beautifully designed building with ample natural light making any museum less serious and depressing. I won’t attempt to explain the impressive artifacts many of which have been excavated from the Acropolis (and not stolen by the British) but the impact of such a visit may be to trigger your imagination to contemplate what the Acropolis might have been when “functional”. What an incredible civilization! What marvels! What you see before your eyes is not the entire story so it is up to your imagination to complete your “touristic experience”.
We take a water break at the restaurant in the Acropolis Museum to behold quite a sight! A cruise ship group taking a break. An American family of five including a grandfather. All three adults are obese in the range of 375 pounds. The husband had two beers and a soft drink on the go (Coca Cola no doubt). Two obese children, a daughter having food in both hands stuffing away and the son stuffing his face like a squirrel with nuts. Vulgarity amid such beauty. Tourism is much more than “taking in” the sights as it affords excellent people watching opportunities. Who are visiting the site? Their nationality? Well behaved? Loud and boisterous? Respectful? Ignorant?
Aside from the Yanks being herded by a guide with a flag on a pole or an umbrella there are people from all corners of the earth here.
Then just a short walk to the Acropolis and up we climb and be careful of the polished marble footsteps and stones. Slippery in parts and with rain look out. Up at the foot of the Acropolis, I see an elderly man sitting on a tilted piece of marble. As he placed his posterior on the stone he slipped right off and “hit the dirt”!
What a view of Athens!
Again imagine what it once was.
Unfortunately, the foot is acting up so taking 500mgs of Naproxen twice a day to avoid any inflammation. A very effective prescription drug but slows you down. But not taking it and suffering would be worse.
Dearest F so knowledgeable about restaurants in any city suggests one called Kuzina and as it is a Friday night in Athens we luckily manage a table outside overlooking the subway line with “ruins” throughout the rail lines. If you are a foodie you’ll know about Kuzina in an area of Athens with a series of restaurants. Hip and cool and to some degree local clientele. Laid back and friendly service.
We had sea bass filet on a bed of vlita and zucchini. A superb entrée of loukamides stuffed with feta cheese and olives. We had a bottle of forgettable Malagousia. Worth a return visit.
Grabbed a taxi back to the hotel.
A plenitude of taxis in Athens but just try to flag one down!
There is a frozen yogurt and gelato shop at the corner from our hotel but avoid sitting close to the sidewalk grate with its gaggingly “unpleasant aromas”. And don’t face that damn leaking garbage bin outside Anthology of Athens!
Aroma: A tsunami of raspberry and blackberry wallops the nose and not flabby and over expressive as tightly knit.
Palate: Chalky tannins restrain the fruit but do not deaden it. Perhaps this is why it might be appropriate to refer to it as tightly knit. Predominately red but a touch of black cherry. Moderate finish.
Food Match: Grilled Argentinian tenderloin with crispy roast potatoes and boiled Amaranthus or vlita as the Greeks call it.
Cellarbility: The wine is a bit tight now. Decant for an hour and it becomes a good sipper but better yet wait until the end of 2027 for it to smooth out and become a real glamourpus. The winery says consume between 2027-2032. They may know better than me, but I say do not keep beyond 2030.
Price: $23 CDN. Given its quality who’s complaining?
RKS French Wine Rating: 93/100 (tasted 12October2026). Roger Voss, Wine Enthusiast 91 (tasted 31December2024).
Château Guillou 2022, AOC Montagne-Saint-Émilion, Jean-Bernard Saby & Fils, Saint Laurent des Combes, France, 750 mL, 13.5%
The abilities and potential of our women are enslaved to the typewriter, the bar or the beds in those hotels we have put up in every corner of the country for the pleasure of tourists. How insulting to our national dignity that our women should have become mere flowers to decorate the beds of foreign tourists, so when they go back home to their own countries, they can praise the generosity of our women in bed? Is that real praise or contempt?
People love to denigrate the intelligence and intellectual capacity of our women by saying that the only jobs a woman can do are to cook, to make beds and to spread their legs in the market of love. The Warĩĩnga of today has rejected all that reasoning that because her thighs are hers, her brain is hers, her hands are hers, and her body is hers, she must accord all her faculties their proper role and proper time and place and not let any one part be the sole ruler of her life, as if it had deserted all the others. That’s why the Warĩĩnga of today has said goodbye to being a secretary and has sworn that she will never type again for the likes of Boss Kihara, bosses whose condition for employing a girl is a meeting for five minutes of love after a hard drink.
