Raki vs Ouzo... get your spirits straight!

Raki vs Ouzo! Can you tell them apart?

Both are anise, or licorice, flavored liqueurs. Both are delicacies of the eastern Mediterranean. And both are most often served with white cheeses and other cold dishes, called "mezes", like tomatoes, fava beans, roasted chick peas, salted almonds, mackerel and other seafoods.

Past flavor and custom, though, they are not the same.

Raki is a Turkish staple rooted in centuries past, but popular for some 300 years! Originally called arak, it is known to treat every ailment from toothache to depression to appendicitis and anxiety. It is flavored with anise but it much stronger (they say it can reach up to 90 % alcohol!). So, the mere concentration of spirit seems to strip the aromatic appeal you'd expect from anise, and instead, Raki goes down more like gasoline.

I tried it on the island of Crete (a Greek island, yes, but on the far eastern side, close to the Turkish territory) but you can find it throughout the Balkan and larger eastern Mediterranean region, all hours of the day and night. We tried it at 9 in the morning!

It is made from the "tailings" of wine production. The residual skin and pulp is boiled up to produce a steam, that, when condensed, becomes this revered apertif.

Ouzo, on the other hand, is Greek! It is the descendent of Raki, and is related to other European anise drinks, like sambucca for the Italians or pastis for the French. Ouzo, though, is acknowledged to be exclusively of Greek origin with deep roots going back to Hippocrates' medical work. In modern times, ouzo is a certified as an exclusive Greek product for marketing purposes, and has become the quintessential Greek tradition!

In the Greek isles, ouzo is typically taken an hour before sunset, served in a skinny tall glass, alongside a glass of water. When you mix the two, the anise seed in the drink turns it a milky white. Its licorice scent, lighter alcohol (35-45%), and cheap price, make it a legendary Greek favorite.

Want to taste the favorite Ouzo? Visit the Aegean island of Lesvos!

DELPHI: the Omphalos of the Greek world

Delphi is perched high on the hillsides of Parnassus, surrounded by deep crevasses and olive groves, some 180 km north of Athens.

It is now a complex of ruins, but was conceived about 2600 years ago as a glorious temple for the Oracles, to make decisions, hold councils, and talk philosophy, here overlooking Gulf of Corinth on the Ionian Sea

-- right in the middle of Greece, where north and south peninsulas meet. It was literally the belly button, or "omphalos", of the ancient Greek world.

The archeology park starts at the marketplace.

The small stone-walled shops and plain doric, rather than fluted, columns indicate that this section was an add-on-- built around 200 AD in a roman rather than greek design, where the omnipresent sign of the cross signified that Christianity was here to stay!

The road, or Sacred Way, winds uphill through 100 or more treasury houses. The treasury houses were the product of Delphi's growing international significance, as the Oracles advice played large roles in colonizing Italy and Asia Minor. It was a period of prosperity, and many countries -- including the Thebans, the Corinthians, and the Syracusans -- built treasury homes here. The most famous is the Treasury of Athens, although all were chock full of precious gifts and jewels in the 7th and 8th century.

Nearing the road's crest is the original site of a huge bronze serpentine column, called the Tripod of Plataea, made to commemorate the Greek's victory over the Persians. Removed by Constantinople in Roman times, it currently presides over modern day Istanbul's hippodrome. It originally was covered in metal, and adorned with a golden bowl supported by 3 serpents heads. Virtually all of this decoration was destroyed during the Crusades and the Ottoman conquest (one of the bowls is at Istanbul's Archeology Museum), or removed to make coins, but the basic serpentine column can still be seen today, though not at Delphi.

The main attraction at Delphi is the Temple of Apollo, who, in greek lore, came to the port below as a blue dolphin.

This was THE destination -- where Kings, Generals, and ordinary citizens would journey, to cleanse themselves in the waters of nearby Kastalia Spring, pay a tax and often sacrifice an animal on Apollo's altar, before seeking wisdom from the Oracles.

Higher still is the 5000-seat amphitheater, and at the top, through a lane of tall pines, is the stadium. Supposedly, there was originally a hippodrome here at the very top, but no ruins have been found.

Of course, many of the most remarkable pieces are protected today in the Delphi Museum, including the site's most famous piece, the Charioteer. It is a larger-than-life bronze statue that is whole, although only parts of the actual chariot ensemble remain. It is so well preserved the hair still is detailed, curling against the statue neck! It is the only remaining bronze from this site, because it was lucky enough to have fallen and been buried, and thus rescued from pilfering. Even the eyes, pure onyx discs, are original!

Decorating the site were countless statues and friezes.

Males, aspiring to be athletic specimens, were shown nude (in fact, the word gymnasium means "nude" because it is where the nude Olympians would come to train and compete.)

A famous pair of nude Twins, kouroi statues sent as a gift from King Hera of Egypt, illustrate a remarkable difference in style: Egyptian bodies were blockier, positioned with the left foot in front, and with long hair or headdresses,

whereas the Greek bodies were more life-like, with softer faces, prettier stances, and curly locks of hair.

If you see a male statue from this period draped in robes, he is likely a philosopher.

And females of this period-- often the sibyls, or enlightened advisors to the Oracles -- were shown never nude, but instead robed and with sweet faces.

There are caryatids (careful inspection shows holes in the hair where crowns and necklaces once adorned these stone beauties)

and sphinx from Naxos that's over 2.3 meters high.

Collected inside the museum are lavish gifts from the ruler of Phoenicia, current day Lebanon. These treasures include gold crowns and chains which often decorated the girl statues (as above), and a huge and wildly precious bull statue, laced in silver with golden horns and yoke.

And, of course, there is a marble Omphalos.

As you drive away from Delphi, you can't help but feel enthusiastic, for, as etymology suggests, En means "in", and Thu means "God", so enthusiasm means to have God in you -- a just sensation from this once holiest site in all of Greece.

Liquid Gold: Greece's Greatest Asset

Many come to Greece in search of glorious ruins, of prodigious myths and legends, of a kind of serenity which may only be found upon the halcyon waves of the Aegean Sea…

I, on the other hand, have come for the olive oil.

Olive oil, so it is said by the locals, is the “liquid gold” that maintains the financial, physical and spiritual health of Greece and it’s warm, magnanimous people. It is the primary means of food, trade, and tradition amongst much of the country, especially in the more remote, barren territory of the Greek Islands. Yet many tourists seem to take this for granted, indulging in Greece’s more conspicuous historical delicacies at the expense of missing out on some of the country’s finest cultural and culinary offerings. Being a traveler who enjoys exploring the hidden alleys, the cracks in the walls, the raw, organic heart and soul of the world, I am following the unparalleled taste of local Greek olive oil, and embracing every adventure along the way, however grand or incidental.

My taste buds led me along the culturally rich (albeit touristy) roads of La Placa, where I spent the evening at a café overlooking the ancient gr

ounds of the Agora - the marketplace of the ancient Greeks - eating in the eclipse of the Acropolis upon the hill (which is donned in changing colored lights).

It led me up the funicular, to the lantern-ed terrace where I dipped liquid gold while Athen's neighborhoods twinkled on, and the mast lights of sailboats illuminated the Sea of Crete.

It led me across the waves into the heart of the Greek islands, to a serene meal perched upon a tiny restaurant deck, the waves crashing beneath my feet and the sun setting over my head, plunging into the deepening orange hues of the sea.

It led me down crowded streets and through basement cafes. It led me to beaches bustling with greased up tourists (with one memorable terrace) and it led me to a band of local musicians hanging around the bars.

Who knows… your olive oil cravings may even lead you headfirst into spontaneous adventures, drinking raki (a local drink made from fermented grapes) and doing a little dance with a Cretian dance troupe. After all… sometimes it is the experiences you inadvertently stumble upon that prove to be the most transformative moments of your life.

So go see the Acropolis. Go hear the tale of the Colossus of Rhodes

and admire the Charioteer.

Enjoy the Temple of Delphi and the Monestary of St. John.

These are, after all, among the innumerable must-sees of Greece, and some of the finest architectural and historical landmarks on the face of the Earth. When you’re done, however, come join me at the café down the street. I’ll save you a couple grape leaves and, yes, a heaping plate of bread and fresh liquid gold.

This post submitted by Rob Borchert, whose musical adventures around the globe took him to Turkey and Greece this past summer, where he reveled in the culinary as well as cultural treasures! To learn more about Rob's music, go to www.RBorchertmusic.com!

BELIZE: Lobster BBQ on the Caye

We had risen early, to bike the beach trail east towards the town of San Pedro.

At times it was difficult, dragging bikes over seawalls and through deep sand, but it provided a unique seaside perspective, and as we splashed along the lapping shoreline, we saw dive shops open their shutters, young boys arrive to hawk homemade necklaces,and tourists arise from their huts and hostels to embrace another day on the island.

Our day would be more off, than on, the island. We were going on a lobster- BBQ adventure!

After breakfast at the Plantation House (an indulgent affair -- mimosas, juicy mangoes, parsleyed eggs Benedict, all enjoyed on our casita patio overlooking the palms and sea), Juan, our guide, whisked us off the dock and down to the mangroves, to net sardines in the generations-old manner he had learned from his grandfather. His trained eye scanned for the silver clouds and he tossed and scooped with the rhythm of a dancer, until our cache was full and we were off to the reef!

An hour or more we casted and reeled...and roasted... in the tropical sun, pulling in some Jacks, a Snapper, and a single triggerfish which he nonchalantly said, "we'll save that for the sharks later"

Then, we motored over to the shallow reef and we drifted with the current, teasing barracuda onto our hook, and wondering about the stilted fishing huts that dotted these shallow waters.

Owned by local families, these peeling, simple shacks had a cleaning bar that ran along one side, and a rickety covered porch along the other. A few clusters of kids snorkeled with spears, and in the end, took at least a dozen barracuda compared to our 3.

Time to lobster!

Dropping anchor on the north side of Ambergris, Juan handed us each a hooked, 6' pole! Overboard, into 12 or so feet of water, we floated with our snorkels, scanning the lobster "carports" - these 12'x18' wooden and plastic flats that look a bit like a flattened parking carport - for a protruding antennae or flurry of sand from these caribbean crayfish, known locally as Spiny Lobsters.

Turned out, actually hooking the crafty crustaceans was not as easy as it looked! My type-A son slapped the water and cursed the reef gods, until he finally got the hang of it and snagged more than a dozen! I even hooked one, and got an "assist" on a second!

We hyperventilated in the waves, but we'd dive down again, and chase more of them around, making our lungs scream as we pulled at the "carports", trying to force them out of hiding.

Once hooked, they'd squeal and stretch as they were pulled to the surface, but soon, they were in the boat, off the mooring, and heading to the beach, to star in our lunch BBQ.

I had been curious all day, about the bulging sack of dried coconut husks in the cockpit, but what a perfect fuel for our beach bonfire! In a shallow pit beneath some palmetto, the coals smoldered. Juan cleaned and foiled our catch, spiced it up with onions, lemon, and his secret ingredient....mayonnaise! I had turn my eyes from the fat but I couldn't resist the the scents and sizzles that soon came off our fire, and the resulting feast was madefiner only by the isolated cove and mirror blue waters which became our lunchroom.

After our lobstering adventure, late afternoon was anti-climactic. We motored out to Shark Ray alley, where we chummed the triggerfish amidst dozens of nurse sharks, and Doug actually got to barrel-hug one of them! They seem to get in a trance when you turn them over and rub their bellies.....the trick is to get them turned over!

Our boat ride home from the Hol Chan ("little channel") Marine Preserve was quiet and reflective. Ambergris Caye's manicured resorts spread out before us. Did we really spend the afternoon like Robinson Crusoe?