As tradition wants it, we went on our winter thermal spring heist. Which would lead us this time to a place in Hungary, two spots in Romania, one in Bulgaria and many more in Greece located in the northern mainland (Thrace) and the islands of Samothraki, Lesbos and Ikaria. There is a recap of each place and some thermal photography to go along with it. Here are all of them in order by my personal dip rating.
Two more 35ºC soaks just a splash away from Thermopilae!
A soak just as legendary as the ‘300’ Spartans having fought here 2500 years ago.
Bunch of warm pools next to the highway.
Swimming with turtles!
The low key alternative 20km from Loutra Edipsou!
This hotspring town has freeloaders covered with outdoor pools at the shore.
Radioactivity is in the water for you and me!
Time for some ancient hydrotherapy!
Just one of 5 hot springs in the bay of Therma: This is the free open air coastal cave!
Hefty amounts of hot water rushing into the Aegean sea between round boulders!
Why not spend your time in a hotspring as you wait for your flight!
A chapel on the cliff gives the name to this long forgotten seaside hotspring!
Maybe not the often touted “hottest spring in Europe” but Polichintos has plenty of water and hot it is indeed!
If you ever went online for ferry connections you find yourself teleported to the late 1990: Horrible websites, missing translations unclear schedules. Here is the thing that I had to draw because it does not exist anywhere else: A freaking map to get a overview of possible car ferry connections that operate in the winter of 2022/23! I hope this helps someone – happy island hopping!
Abundant hot water in the shepherds wasteland left neglected!
Fancy outdoor thermal pools with Turkish baths!
Scalding water between pebbles on the beach!
Ottoman hotel in shambles, spa is vacated but the hotspring still flowing as ever!
Aging Turkish spa under clandestine reactivation!
Free hotsprings under wings of the headless nike!
The random roadside hotspring!
Literary the fountain of freedom!
Hotsprings and home of a modern day prophetess!
Brutalist spa town with open air hotsprings!
Spa town with roman roots and hotsprings!
A campground with hotspring pools!
some tips to get crisp printouts from your mini thermal printer
In Portugal we got some brioche buns with a ton of nuts. But they needed a litte something since they where a little dry. That’s what I came up with, to make it the perfect late night endulgance poured over that chopped up nutty pastry.
super nice vegetarian chili invented by Raluceta
Maybe you want to play some old games on a not so old computer without floppy and CD drive? I figured out a relatively easy way to install Windows 98 SE on a old Netbook with just a USB thumb drive.
Creamy, cheesy, nutty Pesto experience
🥭+🥥=🍮
Essential sauce for middle eastern dishes such as falafel, humus and baba ganoush. Or just as good with potatoes!
Sometimes referred to as Brazilian cheese puffs or cheese breads. This is a extraordinary culinary contraption. It it very easy and quick to bake if you have the all important main ingredient: Fermented cassava starch known as Povilho azedo.
This is the “original” non-vegan albeit vegetarian version of the recipe. Head over to pão de qué if you want to try the vegan alternative.
One of the few things while living abroad that always made me a little bit sentimental about Germany is a good hearty bread.
Fear no more! This is my official bread for German/Polish expats. As long as you have rye flour and some time on your hand, there is a surprisingly easy way to make delicious bread where ever you are.
You will find plenty of tutorials how to do the opposite. But here is how to use you iDevice as backup drive for times when you have no TimeMachine or other way to backup you Mac locally.
Recommended: Spend half a year quarantined on the island so you can explore the entire island and know all the best hot springs, hikes and beaches! If you have less time this list will help you to pick some natural highlights.
This is a trip down the memory lane for anyone having traveled through the hinterland of the south American continent. Nothing else has the satisfying crunchy yet gummy mouthfeel of the dear Brazilian breakfast item. This particular Pão de queijo replaces queijo (cheese) with quê (what?!). And it’s a long stretch to call it even pão (bread) since it’s not made from any cereal! Unfortunately the clever name is not my own idea but a popular vegan alternative to the even more popular staple.
Good old pumpkin cream with a little twist. Pepper paste can be found in the Azores and eastern European countries.
Delightful spicy pink spread on bread or potatoes. Did I mention it’s pink?
Northern Thai curried noodle dish with crispy deep-fried pasta on top. Contrary to most food stalls on the street, this is the deluxe creamy coconut version with lots of veggies.
Thai version of the thick coconut curry with a distinct taste of fingerroot (Chinese ginger). Traditionally served in a banana leaf. It is not as dangerous as the transliteration of its Khmer name “Amok” might suggest, but it tastes definitely to die for.
Not your regular stir fry! Veggies with all the Thai flavours and an amazing texture. Savoury, without sugar.
A layered cake made from spiced biscuits, apple custard and coconut cream.
Oh, sweet dough!
I just bought a cute little Raspberry Pi Zero W as a toy for myself. I don’t intend to use it with a screen or any other peripherals. Just as a generic linux network device to run some services on. Here is how I set it up only using a SD card reader and my macbook. No screen, keyboard or network cable required.
3 ingredient savory breakfast side dish, also a awesome spread on bread
Dip with a irresistible smokey flavor for flat bread or potatoes.
Thai Hot and Sour Soup with Coconut Milk
Precooked curry paste for Thai soups and noodle dishes, no fancy Thai herbs needed.
Fresh base ingredient for all sorts of delicious Thai dishes
Savory dip for fresh or steam cooked vegetables and spring rolls
Side for oven baked potatoes, falafel, bread or as dip for fresh vegetables
This is a revenge: A foreigners guide through Romanian bureaucracy.
Delicious sticky chocolate indulgence without the eggs and butter.
This Coconut/Veggi dish is part of the south Indian banquet called Sadhya.
Indian staple lentil stew accompanies almost any dish. See also: ashram style sambar.
Fill this into your Dosa and make it Masala Dosa!
A coconut chutney which can be eaten as a side dish rather then a dip.
Pachadi is a side-dish curry similar to the north Indian Raita. Also part of sadya.
Basic vegetable strew with a bit of south Indian twist.
Every cook has it’s own recipe when it comes to curry/chili pastes.
Usually it’s spinach with cheese (palak paneer): Why not have it vegan with Tofu!
Dal. It does not get more basic Indian than that. Hari Om Tat Sat.
Eaten with rice and curry and is also part of the traditional Keralite sadhya. Om So Hum.
Make fresh tempeh from Soy beans!
Make Tofu from soy beans!
Simple non Coconut, North-Indian rendition. Hari Om!
Another South-Indian stew that served as part of Sadhya. Om Namo Narayana.
The stew that powers India. Bum Bholenath! See also: Jairam Cafe Sambar
Yummy mashed potatoes for lots of hungry people; Hare Krishna
Buffet proportions of Peanutty Goodness.
One of the preparations for making Balinese Gadu-Gadu; buffet style proportions.
Simple and mouth-licking-delicious Tempeh preparation
Tony’s chili sauce for his Balinese buffet dishes
Balinese tofu dish in Buffet size portion (maybe use 1/8 for single serving)