Tag: sparta

Catherine Frodsham 1 May 2025

We had visitors!!! After visiting Portugal for 4 days where Ari served his mission for our church, Ari and Alyssa flew into Athens on March 18th! It was so much fun hugging these two wonderful kids of ours!! We drove home because it was in the evening and then we walked to our favorite restaurant near our apartment. GREEK FOOD EVERYONE!!!

We had only two days to give them a tour of Greece. So Wednesday we went to the Metro and went to Athens Monastiraki Square. There you can see the Parthenon on the Acropolis. We hiked up the hill and they were able to see the beautiful ruins of the Parthenon. Then we walked to Syntagma square. I am trying to remember if we saw the changing of the guard? but we did for sure go to the Olympic Stadium where the first international Olympic games were held in 1896! I love that stadium. They have a museum where all of the torches from all of the Olympics since then are hung on a wall. It is so cool!!! They have posters you can buy of many of the Olympics, and I bought about 6.

We then took a taxi to Lykabettus Hill which is higher than the Acropolis so you can see all of Athens and the Aegean Sea. It is stunning. It is so much fun to show off our town of Athens. We ate up on top of the hill at a restaurant. CATS EVERYWHERE!!! Ugh…. It was so beautiful to see all of Athens!

We came home and Alyssa helped me with my Appreciation Event Thank you bags. It was very helpful.

The next morning, we went to Sounio which is my favorite place in Greece. It is at the tip of the peninsula under Athens, and it is called the “Temple of Poseidon” I LOVE THIS PLACE! you can see all around the Sea and so many islands are all around. It is beautiful. We then went to lunch right on a beach under the temple of Poseidon. We had some icky fish that Ari and Tim and Alyssa like. See the pictures. Gag me with a spoon!

But I can always find something yummy on the menu. We then headed to Corinth. We stopped at the canal that was built in 1893. Then we went to the ruins of the old city of Corinth where Paul taught the people for about 18 months. Paul was beaten and tried in Corinth. Poor Paul, wherever he went he was beaten, tried and put in prison.

We came home and might have gone to the restaurant again and bakery right by our restaurant. There is good food here in Greece and good baked goods. The Greeks love honey and seem to douse all the sweets in honey like baklava is juicy and smothered in honey. They have an orange cake that is dripping with juicy sweet honey sticky juice. Not my favorite… I told Tim I can’t wait to get home and have a good donut…..even if it is plain!!! The sweets in Europe so far are not my favorite! They look beautiful but they are just sooooooo sweet. the sugar is very different here. They don’t do cakes like we do at home for birthdays. They have cream or honey or different things in them no frosting its different.

So, every night my Ari would yell from his bedroom. “Good night mom!!” Tim and I would just laugh our heads off. Ari has always been my little boy. My last child, my buddy in crime, my sweet little boy. He has my heart. He and Alyssa were hard to say goodbye to because they are so easy and fun to be around. WE LOVE YOU BOTH! Thank you for coming to see us on our mission in Athens, Greece.

Tim and I drove home and washed the sheets because we had more family coming the next day!! Elise and Mike and their four children , Lydia, Mya, Collin and Emma came to visit. They came from Ammon Idaho. Their visit was much longer. They arrived on Saturday. We showed them around our apartment and then took off to the metro and downtown Athens. I felt so sorry for them, the kids started falling asleep on the metro. It is a very long flight from Idaho to Greece.

We took them to Monastiraki Square which I love and we took them to my favorite jewelry story. My favorite girl that works at the store’s name is Kelly and just for information that was her last day at work. It was meant to be that we went that day. She gave me her phone number and wants to go to our church.

We had fun shopping and took them to the Acropolis and Parthenon and the Agora. Then we got an ice cream at our favorite Divinci’s place. Then Mike had a restaurant that he wanted us to try it had great reviews so we walked 100 miles to find it. It was good. Then we headed back to the metro and home. The next day was Sunday so we all got ready for church and they got to attend our little Athens branch in the Illicia Hotel. Yes, we are meeting in a hotel for now while our building is being renovated. I play the keyboard and Collin helped pass the sacrament and Elise said the closing prayer. Everyone is needed in this little branch. They loved meeting our family. Then we came home and I stayed to cook dinner because we were having missionaries and Kostas over for a missionary discussion and dinner. Tim took his family down to the Olympic stadium and Syntagma square and they got back just in time for dinner. We had a great time with the missionaries. We all LOVE Kostas – he is a favorite of mine here in Greece. He met the missionaries over a year ago and has taken the lessons on and off. He was called as a translator for our ward even though he is not a baptized member. We absolutely love him.

Well on Monday I believe we went to Sounio and Corinth and had a fabulous time. See the pictures. On Tuesday Mike, Elise, Mya and Lydia left for Istanbul. So, they got up and drove to the airport or Tim took them. They spent 3 days in Istanbul. We had Collin and Emma and had a ball. I am sure it was not as fun for them but Tim and I took them to JUMBO which is Greece’s dollar store on steroids. They picked out some games and a puzzle and bubbles and nerf guns. YES NERF GUNS. Nana’s favorite. We still needed to do missionary work. We also had zoom meetings that we attended some in our apartment and some in the car! We have a young man named Dimitrious in our ward that is filling out mission papers. He needed an interview with someone in the Area by zoom so he asked if he could come do that at our apartment. Tim took Collin and Emma out for lunch and to play at a little park by the restaurant near out apartment. So Dimitrious could have his meeting in private. He is a great kid and we love him. (His papers are now in Salt Lake and we are waiting to see where he will be called. His parents aren’t members so it is not easy for him to go.)

When Mike, Elise and the girls got back on Thursday night from Istanbul we packed up to go for a few days down the Peloponnese peninsula. Melissa and Brian just arrived today from California. Yay we are all here together. We have 2 blow up beds and 2 couches all being used! The more the merrier! We got up Friday morning and drove to a beach town called Tolo!! That place was beautiful and right on the beach. The kids had so much fun running on the beach and they actually went swimming in the cold sea!!! Yikes!! Too cold for Papa and me. Mike and Elise went in too! Tim and I walked on the beach – so beautiful.

I don’t remember all of the names of the places we drove to but we drove to a Malakasa and stayed two nights at a beautiful hotel. The only thing that was sad was their pool was not filled and they had their beach access closed off. We were just out of season. The kids were not happy but we went to some cool places. We drove to Sparta and Olympia. In Sparta we walked around the ruins and saw the stadium and very cool ruins. We also saw some VERY old olive trees.
I love the Olympics and Olympia is where it all started thousands of years ago. It was so cool to see those ruins. We found the place that the Olympic flame is started for every Olympic game. They get a magnifying glass and use the sun to start the flame.

Then they light the torch and run it in to Athens stadium and then send it to where ever the Olympics is going to be held at. It is so cool to know that history!! We saw some cool castles and whenever we saw something we wanted to look at we would stop. We had a good time. We had our car with 3 girls and Tim and I and then Mike and Elise rented a car and had Melissa and Brian and Collin in their car. We had a great time all together.

Thank you, Mike and Elise, Mya, Lydia, Collin and Emma for coming and spending 10 days with us!! Mike and Elise and family left on Tuesday April fools!! Then Wednesday Melissa, Brian, Tim and I drove to Meteora and stayed up there. That place is awesome. It has to be one of the seven wonders of the world! How did they build those monasteries on top of those peaks?? We had fun there and drove home the next day. Then Tim, Melissa and Brian drove to Napflio to stay on the beach and see that beautiful city. They got home on Saturday and then left on Sunday April 6 – General Conference day! Thank you, Melissa and Brian, for coming and spending 10 days with us! We loved having you with us!!

Then we hurried to do laundry because we were having senior missionaries coming to stay with us for Mission Zone Conference the next week!! Devin and Wendy Lamb came on Tuesday. We love those friends. Devin actually grew up in Newcastle, CA!! Isn’t that funny! Of all of the places! He is much younger than I but we do know a lot of the same people. Frank Delaney who was in my Stake in Roseville and then a Temple Recorder when I worked in the Sacramento Temple Office was Devin’s Bishop! Such a small world. We took a picture and sent it to him!! I will write a different post about our last Zone Conference.

Well, if you all can believe it The Lambs left on Saturday and on Monday morning my Zachary and his wife Rachel came!!! We went to the airport at 9 am and we were waiting at the gate and I get a call and its Zach!! He says where are you mom? I said I am at the airport where are you?? They landed and walked outside?? What??? By the time Tim and I got there, which wasn’t late, actually they were out front! We were both on our phones talking to each other when we saw one another!! I ran to him like a gazelle on a Safari!! He picked me up and swung me around. It was so great to see each other.

But we only had Monday and Tuesday and then they were leaving on Wednesday. My kids don’t stay long? ha-ha! Zach and Rach had first gone to Rome and Florence and had a great time. It is hard to leave littles at home. So, we called my niece Emily and she met us at IKEA parking lot and we picked her up and drove to Sounio. You all know how I feel about that Temple of Poseidon. It is my favorite place in Greece so far. We then had lunch in a little beach town. It is so pretty on the coast. Then we drove Emily to her car and she went home to meet her husband’s family. Then we took Zach and Rach to Corinth. We saw the canal first and then went to the ruins. It is a place where the Apostle Paul spoke and taught the Corinthians. Then we drove way up on the hill above the ruins where there is a huge fortress. It was closed but we have pictures.

The next day we took them into Athens by the Metro. What an experience that is!! We got off at Monastiraki Square and then hiked up to the Parthenon on the Acropolis Hill. Mars Hill is up there as well but they have blocked it off. Tim and I let Zach and Rach go to the Parthenon by themselves because we have been there quite a few times. It is a hike with a lot of marble stairs. We then took them to the Olympic Stadium which is my favorite. Tim and Zach had a race. Tim is a fast runner and I think in the end Zach won but Tim gave him a run for his money. ;-|) My favorite spot there is the museum which houses all of the Olympic torches from all of the Olympics!! So cool. Then we walked to our illicia building where there was a concert for our little branch by a man named ? he was pretty good. It was nice of him to come to our little branch to sing for us. The missionaries brought friends and it was good for us to be there. They got to meet our missionaries we serve with and our friend Kostas. Then the next morning it was time to take Zach and Rach to the airport. My kids come and go so fast!!

Luckily, we are going to see all of our kids and grand kids in a few weeks. We have missed them so. We have great families. Tim and I feel very blessed to be surrounded by so many wonderful children and grandchildren!