summer's here...

It's that time of year again! The year-end in Greece is usually the end of July. They don't really stop for Christmas - maybe a couple of days off - but you don't really feel that psychological break as we do in England or the US. August is the time when pretty much every Athenian buggers off for a month, while the tourists come in (not so many this year of course). I could never figure out how industry could just sort of shut down for a whole month (they do it in Italy too), but that's exactly what happens, and everyone is in holiday mode from about the end of June! During August, most Athenians will go 'back to the village' where they usually have a country home. This may sound grand, but it's anything but. The notion of actually coming from Athens is pretty new, maybe by only one generation or so. If you ask most Athenians in their 30's and 40's where they come from, they will usually name the villages or islands where their parents are from. As property is very much kept in the family here, most will still have maintained a property there, which will eventually be passed on to their children and so on and so on. It's where most will spend their holidays and maybe escape to for the odd weekend here and there too.

This year, as George and I have no money whatsoever, we are putting a tent in the back of our 13 year-old Nissan Almeira (The Beast of the Asphalt) and driving round the north of Greece. This will happen next Friday. In the meantime, I am off to Crete to stay with a dear friend for a few days and George has taken off to an island this morning with his mates for a bit of male bonding time. I am no big fan of camping, but I will throw myself into the spirit of things this year. Even though I haven't been working, I desperately need a break from the house and the city. Just to switch off, relax and forget about it all for a while. Everything will spring into action come September, I just hope I will be able to too.

Thanks to all of you who have followed along so far, have a great summer and look forward to catching up again in a few weeks!!

just a perfect day

Sometimes I can't believe I actually live here. Yesterday, George had to go for another one of his business meetings, 4 hours drive from Athens. The notion of conference calls don't really exist here and business is still very much conducted on a face to face basis. Which is no bad thing sometimes. Again, despite a very early start, I joined him for the ride. Most of the landscape we drove through looked like this...


sadly a lot of it is still burnt from the terrible forest fires, trees standing like ghosts...


but sometimes it even reminded me of the hedgerows of England...


We ended up in a place called Pylos in the south-west Peloponnese, and while George went for his meeting I had my coffee and then climbed up to the castle at the top of the town...


wandering through the shady grounds, I discovered secret little entrances and gateways...


which you would walk through and suddenly come upon a view like this...


and then turn around to see this...


I found a bench under a shady tree, sat down and breathed a deep satisfied sigh. This was my view for the next 2 hours...


I sat and read my book and looked far out to sea, the only sound the wind in the trees, the occasional sound of children's laughter, and a choir of a million cicadas. They're ugly little beasts... a bit like giant flies, about 2" long...


but they sound like this...

I realised after a while I couldn't hear another soul around, perfectly blissful. Eventually I wandered down to the gate to leave and found it locked. The castle had already been shut for an hour! Luckily somebody let me out, but I was almost sad about it. I'd found a little peace of heaven.

And then, if that wasn't enough, we went for a swim here!

market day

I live in a wonderful neighbourhood right in the centre of Athens called Gyzi. It's an old working-class neighbourhood, where women of a certain age still wear aprons, sweep their steps and talk to the neighbours across the street from their balconies. I love it! And one of the best aspects is the weekly street market on a Wednesday. I can see the orange canopies of the stalls from my balcony. The produce is wonderful and it is as good as any of the best markets I've visited in Provence. I will let the images speak for themselves.

daytripper

The image in the previous post is not, sadly, where I live. The place in the picture is Nafplio, a beautiful, picture-perfect town on the coast about two-hours drive from Athens. I live in Athens. A huge, sprawling, filthy, hot, crowded city, not without a certain charm in parts. For now, I am happy here. One day I will live in the picture. With some babies and chickens and beehives, plenty of cats around, a few fruit-bearing trees, maybe a room to let, baking my own bread. This is my dream.


I had the opportunity to visit Nafplio last Friday, where George had a business meeting. He took me along for the ride and let me roam around the town while he talked the talk. I had a wonderful time mooching around with my camera. The banner image for this blog was taken there. A simple scattering of jasmine flowers on the steps up to the castle. There was also a wonderful folklore museum full of amazing textiles and costumes... lots to inspire there! On the way home we went for a swim in crystal clear waters and ate fish by the sea. It's better than Milton Keynes.

live your myth

I live in Greece. A country of contradictions - rich in beauty, culture and history, yet politically corrupt, where blackmail and nepotism is commonplace and the cost of living is far higher than the average wage. The divide between rich and poor is wide. It has suffered hundreds of years of oppressive reign and division, mass displacement of its people and civil unrest. This is probably why the Greeks are one of the most forthright and frank populations on the planet. Every Greek has an opinion and you will hear it. But Greeks are also one of the most hospitable and genuinely friendly of the planet's nations. And for two years now I have called this place home.

I met George in London in 2004, a place where I spent 20 years of my life and I have absolutely no desire to return to. Always certain that he would return to his country, and always sure that I would leave England, Greece seemed a natural choice. I love Europe and the Mediterranean - this is my little corner of the world - with its wonderful sea, climate and food. Throughout my blog, I will hopefully share some of the best aspects it has to offer.