When the Cheshire emerges...

A year ago today I was at Thessaloniki, Greece, discovering marinara.

My goodness, this meal was divine. Paired with red wine from Nemea, home of relatives on my dad's side, it was one of the best meals I had all trip and since inspired me to eat more seafood. It was so big though, I couldn't finish it. But it wasn't a clear standout within the time I spent in Thessaloniki, Greece's second-biggest city... they're Greece's Melbourne, with good food everywhere. Barely put a foot wrong.

I really liked the place, and was grateful to walk around by myself for most of this particular day to see a lot of the major historical sites. A cool area nearby served well for late-night drinks, and I think it'd be a cool place to live. It's a real university city I think, so lots of young people.

We spent four full days here, including a daytrip out to Ouranoupoli and Agios Oros on the Chalkidiki Peninsula (which I'll explain separately so look out for it). Here's a snapshot or 10.

Ataturk Museum - under heavy guard in the Turkish Embassy which was slightly scary!

The White Tower behind me

A real skull. 200,000 years old. Creepy.

Ending it how it started; another example of the delicious food