Autumn in Greece

The large palms commonly planted along the Mediterranean
coast are Phoenix canariensis, a relative of the date palm.

Traveling to Greece in November, I didn't expect to see a lot of wildflowers.  Summers are dry and hot in this Mediterranean country, but rains throughout the winter bringing green hillsides filled with wildflowers in the spring.

There had already been some rain a few weeks before we arrived, however, and that brought some interesting surprises.  Some plants bloom early after those first rains, and others begin to put out their new leafy  growth.

Bougainvillea is popular in Greece, often grown
in balcony tubs, as here in Mykonos.

Dandelions survive between rocks on the Acropolis
archeological site.

The Parthenon, on the Acropolis in
Athens, Greece, is being restored.

In Athens we visited the famous Acropolis, where dandelions were blooming.  I thought that was all I was going to see, but when we moved to Olympia, and then to Delphi, I had my surprises.  Fall crocus and cyclamens were in full bloom.

A wild Crocus, probably C. boryi, blooms in early November, at the
site of the original Olympic games in Olympia.

A wild Cyclamen graecum blooms at the Olympia archaeological site/ 

A giant wild fennel stalk, Ferula communis, from last year
 remains among the ruins of the ancient city of Delphi.  A
 fresh leaf is sprouting at its base. 

Wild "English" ivy straggles over rocks at
Delphi.

A wild cucumber is blooming and setting fruit at the Delphi
archaeological site.

The fabulous landscape of Meteora, home of half a dozen medieval monasteries, features smooth, deeply cut rocks covered with mosses and other herbs.

At St. Stephans Monastery, now occupied by Greek Orthodox nuns,
begonias and chrysanthemums decorate a walkway.