If there's something this site obviously needs, it's more pictures of me!
Or, using the side view of Terry Gilliam's autobiography:
Even though, realistically, I don't do that many selfies.
Of course, if I'm involved in some unusual activity, such as standing on top of an airplane, going skijoring or hanging on a zipline, then there's likely to be pictures of me doing that.
Partly because the point of mentioning the activity is that I am doing it (the web page is not about someone else, somewhere in the world, doing something) and partly because pictures taken in that situation that don't have a person doing the activity aren't that relevant.
If I am canyoning, the interesting thing to see is someone going down the ropes. Otherwise, it would simply be pictures of a few waterfalls, which could have as well been taken from any sightseeing spot.
So, in most cases, the point of me being in the pictures is to show me doing something specific.
What I don't do much are 'traditional selfies' with me doing mundane stuff for the main purpose of posting a picture of me. There's rarely a picture of me eating dinner, sitting in a cafe, waiting at the airport, posing in front of some landmark or standing in line for a concert.
Yes, examples of all of these exists on this web site, but not that many. I didn't count them, but I assume that there's fewer than 5% of all images on the web site that have me in it.
But this page will certainly mess up that statistic...
The reason for this is that in January 2024, I was in Thessaloniki again. (For business reason, which is why I'm wearing a shirt and a jacket.)
As the weather wasn't that great, I looked for some indoor thing to do.
And Thessaloniki has a 'selfie museum', providing an excuse to do (and post) lots of selfies.
The museum consists of a few rooms in a basement somewhere, containing different props and backgrounds.
You walk around, attach your smartphone or camera to one of the ring lights, look silly, mug for the lens and take pictures.
So, without further ado, here are, with varying level of embarrassment, some pictures of me. With no other justification that they are pictures with me in it.
If you are not a native German speaker, this would be a good moment for looking up the meaning of "Fremdschämen". :-)
(For the record: The pictures I find most embarrassing are the ones in 'romantic' settings, especially the one with the roses 'hanging from the trees' (which looks like a promo shot from some sort of cheap dating show) and the one in the 'french cafe'. Somehow flowers and me don't work together well. The picture I like most is the broody one with the green and purple neon lights. Generally, the locations are well lit, giving everything an evenly illuminated look, while this one works well with part of the face hidden in darkness. The other one that I (unexpectedly) like is the last image, as the tip of the toy windmill behind my head looks like I'm wearing some sort of elven ear. Complete coincidence, but it kind of works, even though it looks more impish than elvish.)
I didn't intend to spent most of the time in Thessaloniki indoors.
As I've been to Thessaloniki a couple of times before and went towards the North (Kilkis), South (Potamos Beach), South-West (Mount Olympus area), East (Nestos River) and the North-East (Serres), so it seemed like a good idea to head towards the North-West this time, heading roughly to the point where Albania, North Macedonia and Greece meet.
First, and, ultimately, only place to visit was Edessa.
It's a small town on top of a cliff.
Edessa has two large waterfalls, but I assume that on that day most visitors did see only one of them.
It was a windy day and a lot of the water spray didn't end up directly in the basin below, but on the footpaths, making them soggy and slippery, with small 'waterfalls' running down the stairs.
As a result, most people remained on the upper viewing platforms or took the path that goes behind the waterfall.
For the other large waterfall, it was necessary to walk down and then across a bridge to get to a point where you could see it.
The second waterfall was a bit more impressive then the first one, but the place from where it could be seen best was right where a lot of spray from the waterfall ended up. So the camera lens got a bit wet (and me as well), so the pictures aren't that good.
Behind the waterfall is also a little cave. Not very long (I think it was at best 20 meters long) and obviously all interesting stalactites have been removed ages ago. But it is nice and dry.
(And note that none of the pictures from Edessa features me at all...)
I had planned to continue to a small mountain village after that, but, somewhat unexpectedly, especially as the previous day in Thessaloniki had been sunny and warm, a snowstorm started.
Driving the country road towards the mountain was already tricky - it seems that winter tires aren't mandatory in Greece. The rental car didn't have them and there wasn't a lot of traction on the slush covered street. But at the beginning of the small mountain road that covered the approximately last five kilometers the village, a police car was waiting and making sure that everyone put on snow chains before entering that road.
Which I didn't have in the car.
I turned around, drove back to Thessaloniki and had a nice dinner instead.
As a result, I didn't do much touristic in Greece this time (but then, I only had a Saturday available in any case), although I did get a lot of silly selfies out of the trip.