tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-45496876241610407632024-03-13T20:42:18.148+02:00An Octopus in my OuzoMy life on a Greek Island by Jennifer Barclay - writer and editor living on Tilos in the Dodecanese. Often out walking or swimming with my dog, Lisa. Travels to other islands in the Aegean.
Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.comBlogger178125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-62206255930996816512024-03-03T23:03:00.005+02:002024-03-03T23:34:14.251+02:00Delivery, Small Island-Style<p style="text-align: center;"> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj86UkeHG41kEduu79dZie2saGjogXkYtqieW1N_uA1DTLEsweTUNK4o0YDnpMp-u2D8xsKekeJz9uUo-_0yEgxk4xWbey6UUgKInY0Rf0V3TuC1wptRFb50klDL2UMfRgKjfd1uucZdLY1-XTqc_5-umnBemsjjLgwhvBDPXFnMQ6P-QMwmCGKGCDakzv0/s2000/IMG_20240303_165744_resized_20240303_105132803.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="2000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj86UkeHG41kEduu79dZie2saGjogXkYtqieW1N_uA1DTLEsweTUNK4o0YDnpMp-u2D8xsKekeJz9uUo-_0yEgxk4xWbey6UUgKInY0Rf0V3TuC1wptRFb50klDL2UMfRgKjfd1uucZdLY1-XTqc_5-umnBemsjjLgwhvBDPXFnMQ6P-QMwmCGKGCDakzv0/w400-h300/IMG_20240303_165744_resized_20240303_105132803.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: left;">
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">A dozen years ago – can it really be? I’ve never lived in a
place for so long! – Yorgos Orfanos showed up one day at the Honey Factory to
deliver all my belongings I’d shipped from England. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Now I’ve been in my own house, equally unbelievably, for five
years. When I bought it, I’d agreed to buy it with all the contents and I didn’t
want to change too much about this authentic little island house by the sea.
But my house is finally entering the twenty-first century – which feels OK now
that it’s 2024 and all. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">It started with a trip to Rhodes a few weeks ago to take the
car for its MOT (KTEO), meet my mum at the airport, and take Lisa to the vet;
then since I had the car, we went for a drive out of town. I’m pretty sure last
time I visited the IKEA in Rhodes there wasn’t much of a showroom. That may
have been several years ago. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">This time, it was rather more impressive, and I’d been
thinking a few of my old things really had to go. Maybe I was ready for a new
couch (I have two, both second-hand, or maybe third-hand). And some new outdoor furniture. And a thick rug would be nice under my feet in the winter. Oh, and some lightweight, stackable chairs. And…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The sales assistant at IKEA at first insisted they didn’t deliver
to Tilos. But luckily I knew that they did. We insisted. They checked. They did
deliver to Tilos. We placed the order. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Back in Tilos a few days later, the next thing that happened was
that another hotplate became unusable on my old cooker. This stove was also in
the house when I bought it five years ago, and already very old, but two of the
hotplates and the oven still worked. Why change it…? I even painted over the rust
a couple of years ago with white enamel. Really. And painted little icons to show
which knob was for which hotplate.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">But recently it seemed the oven only had two settings, off or
burning. And there were no numbers left on the knobs, so only I knew how to work
it. To be fair, I have considered buying a new one, but the little hotplate for
the briki, the Greek coffee pot, has been something of a sticking point – and not
because it hasn’t been cleaned. Most new cookers don’t have them, and I didn’t
want an extra appliance. I liked making my Greek coffee on my stove. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Then one night when my mum cooked dinner, one of the knobs
came flying off onto the floor. An accident? I’m not sure… But I did go online
and order a lovely new cooker. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Anyway, so, a few days ago I was in Livadia when I saw Yorgos
hanging out with a group of guys I knew, and as I said hello, I mentioned that
I’d ordered some stuff, because Yorgos is still the man who transports large items
by truck via the big ship from Rhodes to Tilos. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘It might be here already,’ he said. ‘What is it, chairs?’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘Yes, and other things… Call me!’ I said. I was excited; and
then as several days passed, I figured it must have been someone else’s chairs
that had arrived. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Delivery to Tilos is fairly haphazard, at the mercy of boat
schedules plus mysterious other obstacles. Christmas cards from the UK arrive
in February. Last year I ordered something from a company that refunded my money
because it took so long to arrive, even though I told them that was normal.
Yesterday I received an email from another company asking me for feedback on my recent
purchase of a new bag. Don't you get tired of being asked for feedback on everything? But in any case, it hasn’t arrived yet.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">This morning was Sunday morning, as peaceful as most Sunday
mornings at this time of year. Lisa stayed in bed after a big walk to the monastery
yesterday, so I made myself a Greek coffee and a little breakfast. Then I noticed
someone standing at my gate, and heard my name shouted. It wasn’t Nikos the
fisherman, and didn’t seem to be one of the farmers with vegetables…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">It was Yorgos, with a truckload of boxes that he said were all
for me. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘Where d’you want it?’ he asked as he and his helper started
unloading and carrying stuff in. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I suggested they just stack most of the stuff against the outside
wall and I’d sort it out myself, but clearly the cooker at least would need to find
a place in the kitchen to await the electrician. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘If I’d known it was coming,’ I said to Yorgos, smiling, ‘if
you’d called me, I could have made some space and cleaned…’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">But Yorgos perhaps thought that most people would have their
house already in some kind of order and cleanliness, i.e. as a general state of
affairs. Whenever I clean, I think how nice it looks and that I should do it more
often. But then I go for a walk instead, or into the garden to plant some seeds.
And with my front door always open, the kitchen floor seems constantly covered
in mud, dust, sand and bits of firewood.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I hurriedly moved boots, dog food, bags, socks, snorkel, sarongs,
etc etc and swept a space for the cooker, and the guys carried it in.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Yorgos said, ‘Don’t stand on it,’ and grinning, pointed to the
icon on the packaging on top of the cooker that did in fact show a pair of feet
and an X over them. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘Oh, I was hoping to dance on it!’</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">(And anyone who's been to a party in my kitchen knows that stranger things happen.)</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The whole thing had taken maybe ten minutes and then they were
gone, with everything piled neatly. I thought Yorgos probably doesn’t call
people in advance because this way it all gets done quickly, or as
they say in Greek, derived from the ancient Doric I believe, ‘<i>taka-taka</i>.’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">It was a warm, sunny morning, but somehow it felt like
Christmas. I retrieved my coffee and started opening my first package.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4jJg9EHt0SnhyphenhyphenZDqen_MIOqneRaZKqPmmYG3Qmj6sFThiNiGy2CrJEeXjza-0BzFPRAhClVBgOoFGATZ93Po65BQ97ZGEXHBVl9RH9FfRnLOuG2eud1p7q2YSQ_YFrKvjBscBbcMmmnh9RRm798P3RtwA8ishkzsT2Yk5mRJ2wF4cMPovIJK8n_89aGhI/s2000/IMG_20240303_223454_resized_20240303_103943173.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="2000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4jJg9EHt0SnhyphenhyphenZDqen_MIOqneRaZKqPmmYG3Qmj6sFThiNiGy2CrJEeXjza-0BzFPRAhClVBgOoFGATZ93Po65BQ97ZGEXHBVl9RH9FfRnLOuG2eud1p7q2YSQ_YFrKvjBscBbcMmmnh9RRm798P3RtwA8ishkzsT2Yk5mRJ2wF4cMPovIJK8n_89aGhI/s320/IMG_20240303_223454_resized_20240303_103943173.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-77900039535214795262023-10-02T15:17:00.005+03:002023-10-02T16:51:03.648+03:00The Last Anemos Sunrise<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifDjCHA4wcVjg9zapRiaIimM1e_2FM01-18CyH1adJyTHhl2zzleBITPO8HGneML8Y6qOUfsysk25qxYademsP-nme2VVH9sXN0zf-VSYtldTP0gXFX7PfJ30wGLWq6wlts0YDFk_3JRXTj8z27GiwabUsbOP2FLh7TJp1ZF-BjLfGm6WavX6QmEwZKNCP/s4000/IMG_20230919_073842.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifDjCHA4wcVjg9zapRiaIimM1e_2FM01-18CyH1adJyTHhl2zzleBITPO8HGneML8Y6qOUfsysk25qxYademsP-nme2VVH9sXN0zf-VSYtldTP0gXFX7PfJ30wGLWq6wlts0YDFk_3JRXTj8z27GiwabUsbOP2FLh7TJp1ZF-BjLfGm6WavX6QmEwZKNCP/w640-h480/IMG_20230919_073842.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">‘These may be the last days of
the taverna.’ It was a text from Minas on 10 September. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><i><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">What?<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">This was the taverna where I
lived in north Karpathos, helping him out for a couple of years. Anemos
Sunrise: <i>anemos</i> meaning wind; the sunrise from behind the church of
Ayios Minas. I’d been there early in the summer, delivering copies of <i>Taverna
by the Sea</i>, and had hoped to visit again in September. When Minas explained,
it came as a shock. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Since the area is protected, Minas
had created the taverna from an existing agricultural building, re-making everything
inside literally from floor to ceiling, filling it with the necessary equipment
and working to ensure it met every restaurant regulation, some of them hard to
believe. More importantly, he had also created countless memorable meals, sung
countless songs, drunk countless beers and painted countless pictures, making Anemos
magic. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">But the owner of the property wanted
to end the lease. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Minas said a <i>spitaki</i> was
free for me to stay in since his summer helpers had left. Leaving Lisa happily
at home with two of her favourite people – it was still hot for her to be going
on adventures – I left a few days later. <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Luckily, there was a same-day ferry connection via Halki, where I swam, chatted with people in shops, had a sunset beer near the thick old tamarisk tree where the fishermen sit. I had dinner, and finally lay down and closed my eyes for an hour in a hidden spot under the stars. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">The big ferry loomed into view shortly before 1 a.m. and was due to arrive in Diafani in the north of Karpathos just an hour and a half later. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I’d told Minas I was happy to spend
the night on the beach there since he was running the taverna on his own
and needed his sleep. He said it would be windy and insisted on coming to pick
me up. He set two alarms… but the phone wasn’t charged. I reverted to plan A, put on an extra layer of clothes, borrowed a cushion from a nearby cafe and managed
a few hours’ sleep before voices woke me. I saw a red glow on the horizon before the sun rose from
the flat, rippling sea.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD0cpseeGOdy9yYKcGnpA3CTCASgHbLHbMqm_UiCTFiGdH3m9VHChbw7bTRVPz7iA5wKD14a7bCsh8CklzGw6aQZ5bWOfD44gxlj56TxvbWkc6CtHtDU4YFUoK9hrYXsyASr6v18tvEfB3KlQQWdrY0I-N5K6PCNwCwwdNoEvTVNmnAHe9EPQvzH7Y0X9H/s3785/IMG_20230915_063736.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2839" data-original-width="3785" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD0cpseeGOdy9yYKcGnpA3CTCASgHbLHbMqm_UiCTFiGdH3m9VHChbw7bTRVPz7iA5wKD14a7bCsh8CklzGw6aQZ5bWOfD44gxlj56TxvbWkc6CtHtDU4YFUoK9hrYXsyASr6v18tvEfB3KlQQWdrY0I-N5K6PCNwCwwdNoEvTVNmnAHe9EPQvzH7Y0X9H/s320/IMG_20230915_063736.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqDUEntCJc8XtX0jhbIJBr_DSjDRSSoGToAsLIYESxX8fktnGO2UWe0rZiXrV3xU09E8zgCrYXhQKODdz4V8sA7lR31JZHlfccDT3f49-uUb23FCL0Fj4j7x4iXuMo40uDIDz3WRJEHVz8OXumU3BXYmIhcjYQzjLsJMrIaw-lnMbulzF6nYrLpCs5GZGW/s4000/IMG_20230915_071200.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqDUEntCJc8XtX0jhbIJBr_DSjDRSSoGToAsLIYESxX8fktnGO2UWe0rZiXrV3xU09E8zgCrYXhQKODdz4V8sA7lR31JZHlfccDT3f49-uUb23FCL0Fj4j7x4iXuMo40uDIDz3WRJEHVz8OXumU3BXYmIhcjYQzjLsJMrIaw-lnMbulzF6nYrLpCs5GZGW/s320/IMG_20230915_071200.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">In the bright early morning, I
hopped on the bus up to Olympos with a small contingent heading to school. The
light on the pine forest and limestone crags as we ascended restored me, as did
the sight of Olympos, and of Sophia in her café at the entrance to the village making <i>pites</i> in
her kitchen, slender and neat in her dark <i>kavai</i> dress and headscarf. She
made me a perfect coffee with a glass of cool water. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Fy8LqjlaCNi0bc5Atw2zpYPCHyNVJ0EGnEV_TnuKsnaqKYBPoN5nU-t1RA8kPhY05Dx3H7BSbiU32wdlbIFP6T23zgOiBWPDTrpSDkjPzr0KZnzMwRIZFfRAKmhyphenhyphenE73aPLyJmTielc2D-3J6BsnZSlHUe_1yllb7xbg5PF_SquaspESMiOfMqm8gGJY6/s4000/IMG_20230915_075333.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Fy8LqjlaCNi0bc5Atw2zpYPCHyNVJ0EGnEV_TnuKsnaqKYBPoN5nU-t1RA8kPhY05Dx3H7BSbiU32wdlbIFP6T23zgOiBWPDTrpSDkjPzr0KZnzMwRIZFfRAKmhyphenhyphenE73aPLyJmTielc2D-3J6BsnZSlHUe_1yllb7xbg5PF_SquaspESMiOfMqm8gGJY6/w640-h480/IMG_20230915_075333.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Her husband Mike appeared, and we
chatted about a mutual teacher friend who had lived in their upstairs rooms.
Mike said there were now just a few students at the secondary school, and only
one child in junior school, so it’s unlikely they will remain open much longer.
He showed me a picture on the wall from the big class of 1953, when Olympos had
a thousand residents; now there are no more than seventy. But I was pleased to
see Sophia and Mike healthy and smiling. As </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Minas arrived to pick me up. I tried
to pay for my coffee and a pie from Sophia, but she refused. ‘Next time!’</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Minas placed my backpack and box
of books in the cleanest part of the car and we drove away from Olympos. His
hotel there, Anemos, has now expanded to three rooms, plus staff accommodation
– no need for that commute I used to do. But it was good to drive the route
that was so familiar: each bend in the road, each view of mountain slopes and
the sea far below, the smell of the pine trees at the top of the track, the
spring water seeping across the dusty track, the bumps and twists… <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">And finally down to the valley at
Ayios Minas, where a young dog called Voula – sleek black coat, floppy ears and
bright eyes – was very excited to see us. I’d met her in June. Minas’ uncle
Nick had saved her from the street in Rhodes when she was a pup. She’s the only
thing keeping the wandering goats away from the olive trees, Minas said,
especially in September, the driest time of year; the goats had torn the bark
off the fig trees beside the taverna, destroying them. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">The olive trees had been ravaged, lower branches bare.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">He left again to drive to Spoa to
fix a couple of refrigerators, his other profession. I walked through the parched
field to the beach – still beautiful despite taverna signs and an island of sunbeds
and umbrellas. The sea was exquisitely clear and blue. <i>There's still a bit of me that belongs here. </i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">I swam, then unpacked in
the <i>spitaki </i>and slept for a while on a comfortable <i>soufa</i> bed. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVpXnw2Ku-LXRSrUbVSDGY-BFjxtoDk2T6xR9j33ToGwJr8Esjd0Paq2YI5tkE_crjcNDwRxsrfUvEOfyTLRt4lclAZCXwfJ8oy7ukeEIKcuuncRIEvgjS9U3u38mrlWiKe-J5nTkMr2Ep3-dFhjzQy0Dj6QkwtNEcOy8psEu6JxowMIQGHqzr05iEEEns/s4000/IMG_20230915_094811.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVpXnw2Ku-LXRSrUbVSDGY-BFjxtoDk2T6xR9j33ToGwJr8Esjd0Paq2YI5tkE_crjcNDwRxsrfUvEOfyTLRt4lclAZCXwfJ8oy7ukeEIKcuuncRIEvgjS9U3u38mrlWiKe-J5nTkMr2Ep3-dFhjzQy0Dj6QkwtNEcOy8psEu6JxowMIQGHqzr05iEEEns/w400-h300/IMG_20230915_094811.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7SC_kCW-p3jQmC5EdB0DY7ugp5CDOr3RxzHQLvppqrrtNByeHKaJDVg5vHs4S0_XLJm0VIrA0qkKdUFyCblEooAbt-xPv6DNk13xLtAyS-fnFKHKun_2P5EKvIoAuM_DELkD5Mfh8dQJchB-MXEl7qDGyOfQsYlAKnbdCpTgQFtJ-KS9D__vy0A8V4la2/s3889/IMG_20230915_094741.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2917" data-original-width="3889" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7SC_kCW-p3jQmC5EdB0DY7ugp5CDOr3RxzHQLvppqrrtNByeHKaJDVg5vHs4S0_XLJm0VIrA0qkKdUFyCblEooAbt-xPv6DNk13xLtAyS-fnFKHKun_2P5EKvIoAuM_DELkD5Mfh8dQJchB-MXEl7qDGyOfQsYlAKnbdCpTgQFtJ-KS9D__vy0A8V4la2/w640-h480/IMG_20230915_094741.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 24px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_mmnwOLd7K12dMlSIDmSxUvuKnQlAafEcf_zGVjtmDMtw8PGhJ-EJFQO1ZXlZ0tKpj0ltS0_RVttp_T1Ez9L6QJqzVQMnmBC4fNe8ZEollCZAVYUhRqrpX37AcQRdbWoxAXaSF91QTKGBynwiYN5dMVi1TYp3nGjJWEgf1lj0cJrJYXpPJWJ6klLpSEkO/s3837/IMG_20230915_095941.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2877" data-original-width="3837" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_mmnwOLd7K12dMlSIDmSxUvuKnQlAafEcf_zGVjtmDMtw8PGhJ-EJFQO1ZXlZ0tKpj0ltS0_RVttp_T1Ez9L6QJqzVQMnmBC4fNe8ZEollCZAVYUhRqrpX37AcQRdbWoxAXaSF91QTKGBynwiYN5dMVi1TYp3nGjJWEgf1lj0cJrJYXpPJWJ6klLpSEkO/w400-h300/IMG_20230915_095941.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></p></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">When I returned to the taverna after another swim, Minas made me lunch of local
sausages with fried potatoes and tzatziki. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">An Austrian couple had walked
down from the road and were eating a grilled fish and salad. Another couple came
up from the beach, ordered a carafe of wine and started a game of backgammon.
It was very good to be back. I walked Voula and she went wild sniffing out the goats
in the valley, leaping and barking at them as I strained to keep hold of her
lead and not be pulled over. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">In the evening, after everyone
left, we ate dinner and drank wine and talked about what was happening to the
lease, and what it meant for Minas. He seemed sanguine, full of new ideas.
Running the taverna was almost a labour of love, and he could make more money
doing other things. But it wasn’t about that. He talked to me about some of the
special experiences of the summer: mostly about music, friends visiting, connections
with people. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">The taverna was about Minas. If
he had to leave, the Anemos magic would go with him.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWTaDjq_vDVVdtvJjeq79PtyqRC-DRzpTRCq2pDoVrVqO2TecPQ8NgnJwXyUI-XAq1ft8qH8pZJxD3VV7GKN9eNYCyr65YdPlotfheVeOFJPkNgGHjQJLj3VnD0jdXRjbN6YwchwcdrIGYaGRg7fwhP-8-35EviYhZcG4KogVph6YU028siiwRyR1ZEwEn/s4000/IMG_20230915_230126.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWTaDjq_vDVVdtvJjeq79PtyqRC-DRzpTRCq2pDoVrVqO2TecPQ8NgnJwXyUI-XAq1ft8qH8pZJxD3VV7GKN9eNYCyr65YdPlotfheVeOFJPkNgGHjQJLj3VnD0jdXRjbN6YwchwcdrIGYaGRg7fwhP-8-35EviYhZcG4KogVph6YU028siiwRyR1ZEwEn/s320/IMG_20230915_230126.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">*<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">In the morning when I woke up, the
only sound was a sighing wind in the chimney; the wind was unusually loud for September,
building to a crescendo as it blew through the trees, then falling again.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">This little house – different
from the one I’d stayed in before – had a platform bed with carved wooden
balustrade, paper tablecloths serving as curtains to hide the olive-harvesting
equipment underneath; brightly coloured flower patterns on the laminated
cupboards; icons and a souvenir mug from Symi; and – Minas’s addition – a huge,
heavy battery for solar power. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzRw0DUcK3SZoiBlj9hyuIHmDevdpAZ4_vv0w8243Fre1zbKU2MpAKLRe6QYeZUB1JrP8p64M8dLD2_m9bYniznuNj-eaYfevLa8wXo8vsLLFAnv2pRLZVzqUMz1LB9gSgTsebuaEprVLHF5rZ8ESVjOo6pkVDymEsuEQB5asCy2Uz_LwvUT1j_WZ1s2KW/s4000/IMG_20230916_085906.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzRw0DUcK3SZoiBlj9hyuIHmDevdpAZ4_vv0w8243Fre1zbKU2MpAKLRe6QYeZUB1JrP8p64M8dLD2_m9bYniznuNj-eaYfevLa8wXo8vsLLFAnv2pRLZVzqUMz1LB9gSgTsebuaEprVLHF5rZ8ESVjOo6pkVDymEsuEQB5asCy2Uz_LwvUT1j_WZ1s2KW/s320/IMG_20230916_085906.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 24px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfw5HxxDCGUD-XYpfTwDKvp13Wi6HaXV52kOVas-lhOoTYk1PZgKQ7CBnT0cfiUH4oLPlty4Qu5FyqnLFadc1f7aXhW8hL0SsFOld2RpkKVMSjmHXrDDIBpXWuLueO5U7sSFEzS0ffEtW7twsx-NxJ_kLEncctCM_0Up0tpIKeYbA5AiLNwh83HptkVrgj/s4000/IMG_20230916_101125.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfw5HxxDCGUD-XYpfTwDKvp13Wi6HaXV52kOVas-lhOoTYk1PZgKQ7CBnT0cfiUH4oLPlty4Qu5FyqnLFadc1f7aXhW8hL0SsFOld2RpkKVMSjmHXrDDIBpXWuLueO5U7sSFEzS0ffEtW7twsx-NxJ_kLEncctCM_0Up0tpIKeYbA5AiLNwh83HptkVrgj/s320/IMG_20230916_101125.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaVLkBgEEOJB0-boq0V7rS63v0PnXCuf6iq0RsZEHvB7Z5vkAN21SHDwmSykjW-T5szLX4cgryRNfV4HVUvs7pXZzaTkWBewit7pAUKDxtTGnm3ep0d33KachLrIVj2miUghrfrq32ibH0G6sb7k4r8WfmbGaw8o6wiNTPOhsmnd6-xOuevaP-IdCE9JmS/s4000/IMG_20230916_083759.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaVLkBgEEOJB0-boq0V7rS63v0PnXCuf6iq0RsZEHvB7Z5vkAN21SHDwmSykjW-T5szLX4cgryRNfV4HVUvs7pXZzaTkWBewit7pAUKDxtTGnm3ep0d33KachLrIVj2miUghrfrq32ibH0G6sb7k4r8WfmbGaw8o6wiNTPOhsmnd6-xOuevaP-IdCE9JmS/s320/IMG_20230916_083759.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihDf731QrFzHA7crEoOJOBPTxEXfQPfDVMFBoHSd-wMeF2tkA0C3NQTp-pk1eT3hJ479lHCblP_o0xyr2xEkI4kFGEfgDiXIxlxNxTRDsZ9-al_daJ0153V2NL88jYWaevYWES8wMjtVY5oPrUMzyCT0YsOQZHBTzhiW0og8A-B0z_Na1vVZpW5kfNOiwL/s4000/IMG_20230916_101047.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihDf731QrFzHA7crEoOJOBPTxEXfQPfDVMFBoHSd-wMeF2tkA0C3NQTp-pk1eT3hJ479lHCblP_o0xyr2xEkI4kFGEfgDiXIxlxNxTRDsZ9-al_daJ0153V2NL88jYWaevYWES8wMjtVY5oPrUMzyCT0YsOQZHBTzhiW0og8A-B0z_Na1vVZpW5kfNOiwL/s320/IMG_20230916_101047.jpg" width="240" /></a></div></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">He had driven to Pigadia for
supplies and I was alone in the valley except for Voula, her big eyes watching
me, tail wagging faster and faster as I approached. She picked up her toy and
started pulling out the stuffing with determination.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">I’d forgotten how hot it gets in
the taverna kitchen. I quickly made breakfast with some of Vasilis’ goats’
cheese, then when Minas returned I walked to one of my favourite nearby beaches,
a wild place, peaceful, blissful. Voula waited impatiently tied in the shade of
a tree while I swam with my mask, seeing large lionfish. On the way back, she
pulled me up the hill, finding goats. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Down in the valley, the taverna
looked more like a home with its water tanks on the roof, a washing machine out
the back and stacks of bamboo from the dismantled teepees, another old Lada in
the field. In fact, it was a home when I lived there, and it still was a home.
For how much longer? <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">When I got back, fish was
grilling, there were a couple of tables of Czech guests, and a German couple
had bought my book, and Minas was drawing his picture of the bay in it - his special signature. I made
a couple of coffees and did a little washing up – unnecessarily, but it felt
odd doing nothing – then went for another swim. Minas made me a fish cake for
lunch, filled with cod and whole shrimp, and seasoned with fresh parsley and
roasted red pepper, served with crusty bread. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">By the afternoon, several tables
of good-humoured Austrians were in the taverna, some already reading and
enjoying the book, buying copies for friends – what a treat for me to hear that
in the wonderful place where it all happened, and still be friends with Minas.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAKjB08CtWxoy_5HDbc_-GSuwtujfLIzz8ncg-YlHxhoq5q6u31szTlE1Ie_uOdmdgaD2rcK5efhQDgISZ-xIHPIzVJ5tJJUjKM1yEheFdsji-px7rwD_eQiescRPQYdb7KzfBw2KKRtc70IfWfGWw8N2nt04WnyBGCAop1Ah3Jb3SHRozeIYvs5_XKQbu/s4000/IMG_20230916_090146.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAKjB08CtWxoy_5HDbc_-GSuwtujfLIzz8ncg-YlHxhoq5q6u31szTlE1Ie_uOdmdgaD2rcK5efhQDgISZ-xIHPIzVJ5tJJUjKM1yEheFdsji-px7rwD_eQiescRPQYdb7KzfBw2KKRtc70IfWfGWw8N2nt04WnyBGCAop1Ah3Jb3SHRozeIYvs5_XKQbu/s320/IMG_20230916_090146.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; 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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">*<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">The next evening, I got a ride up
to Olympos with Irene from the village. I’d realised at the last minute that I
would freeze wearing shorts, and thankfully Minas had a clean pair of jeans and
I still fit into them seven years later.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">It had been a beautiful day. An Australian couple I’d met in Tilos last year had decided to
visit the taverna after reading my book and were surprised to find me there. We talked, Minas showed a video of a song he’d written and
recorded at the taverna, then he changed into his rock star attire and sang live for them. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4096" data-original-width="3072" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQzh39uMbIw9Kyrmh_44kr1NuLFB_WZfsWpJtgOPy2EdnciZ_mRvUj3RG1rWtk_V3QmpCSeDetLafE5ykrAyfDp75gyTir4MkneV8h8DLe57DBvd2IHX-sDssu6cU-kr7jZzcFHkwlodsdVkgqpVqPqP8E_3_bMRNVcrWGygu6bBcokXna9skiHPCvoRG2/s320/380178505_980197276616501_1606766344502314260_n.jpg" style="color: #0000ee; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; text-align: center;" width="240" /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">His friend Pavlos also visited, and it was great to see him again. In the afternoon I'd taken Voula for a walk up the dry riverbed among the pine trees, the energetic
dog pulling me back into memories and emotions from so many similar
walks. I tried taking a selfie with her before I left.<o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjybhvjOkbNbXGz-icY5mXHNptKdZ8ouTDTxPdipQtIvRG34S5ljcAf8dKgyYAmvdQMUqil7Bs8LgV2lB0uAyieICRQ8NJRyEDQ3ivAMF2DlS4rpqXHtsYdY9V3301mP0FQ_3SOrJjZagYjJyf7xUjLOaS-Rn1GRVqk8alHfBkqHQqujja4x8HyGUdXWTGE/s3264/IMG_20230917_171337.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjybhvjOkbNbXGz-icY5mXHNptKdZ8ouTDTxPdipQtIvRG34S5ljcAf8dKgyYAmvdQMUqil7Bs8LgV2lB0uAyieICRQ8NJRyEDQ3ivAMF2DlS4rpqXHtsYdY9V3301mP0FQ_3SOrJjZagYjJyf7xUjLOaS-Rn1GRVqk8alHfBkqHQqujja4x8HyGUdXWTGE/s320/IMG_20230917_171337.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRCTAn7WZfJ80GBC0NLPK4e2Q1XbogKknJXhyUUMUu4PN_BJDPH9pzRW-yp9WFk36fvTjJ81t3fCAQ-aFJzwsRVpGtiFSsWUXxL6a_rJykVnVvBvpM7lHl1RduvPInmz8tyUKIpB5p7kCVPO5AiBATScw5LTwPTMfK7gZFBhCgjtn98dkTMdTAPxJri4ce/s3264/IMG_20230917_171339.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRCTAn7WZfJ80GBC0NLPK4e2Q1XbogKknJXhyUUMUu4PN_BJDPH9pzRW-yp9WFk36fvTjJ81t3fCAQ-aFJzwsRVpGtiFSsWUXxL6a_rJykVnVvBvpM7lHl1RduvPInmz8tyUKIpB5p7kCVPO5AiBATScw5LTwPTMfK7gZFBhCgjtn98dkTMdTAPxJri4ce/s320/IMG_20230917_171339.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgDftDS2NoeOISSbl2VJN7rtzGYX7VDX6uD-kooauwwg0LhYBz3bBOsNiKkXj6XyDm5wYpyUq5BGPV5O0BAvIntm3EzjhPJgsdY0gJFefknVa1vbt3KTujtOYXcF4fXylNv1FipCtIyRewt3BKNOS0Yr8EuWl3s9peper9O3vSDKszkCh1esiuZwkRtrAW/s3264/IMG_20230917_171340.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgDftDS2NoeOISSbl2VJN7rtzGYX7VDX6uD-kooauwwg0LhYBz3bBOsNiKkXj6XyDm5wYpyUq5BGPV5O0BAvIntm3EzjhPJgsdY0gJFefknVa1vbt3KTujtOYXcF4fXylNv1FipCtIyRewt3BKNOS0Yr8EuWl3s9peper9O3vSDKszkCh1esiuZwkRtrAW/s320/IMG_20230917_171340.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA2vNR_SULBl5D1Kddp7nsbCoMupTiYggCrhQBsP2_wb1-GGOa-9YiOrWOHDf3PY2MB6-Aoyc4AMeI6lXzXbtyt85wkPLoQGXti2jCl9gtAKT7fOVt2VLem_ZrHHFTGg8KggtOGDCM-jOPvPJc9_JOiKImZtSersM4tjcVDuii7DNAEIQvm9uWkIsC3dYX/s4000/IMG_20230917_193427.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA2vNR_SULBl5D1Kddp7nsbCoMupTiYggCrhQBsP2_wb1-GGOa-9YiOrWOHDf3PY2MB6-Aoyc4AMeI6lXzXbtyt85wkPLoQGXti2jCl9gtAKT7fOVt2VLem_ZrHHFTGg8KggtOGDCM-jOPvPJc9_JOiKImZtSersM4tjcVDuii7DNAEIQvm9uWkIsC3dYX/s320/IMG_20230917_193427.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">I was staying in the upstairs room at Anemos, and arrived in time for sunset. I was giving an
informal talk to an Italian walking group about my books and life on Tilos and
Karpathos. The guide, Paola, had invited me to dinner with them at Drosia, the taverna
run by Evgenia and Sophia, Minas’ cousin and aunt. The group had walked 12
kilometres and were hungry and tired; wrapped up in trousers and jackets and
scarves, they shivered to see me in a sleeveless top. ‘We are Italian, not
British, we feel the cold…’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Preparing to speak while they
tucked into their salads and starters, I quipped, ‘I am British, not Italian, I
need a glass of wine…’<o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAdzMmyjftkFHenHsgdmVxEurymIrM5mWo6yUo5Zu2fkFsWuHSousMJvdmpN_dVLrFg-nqg7t4iUuBZa3qF0f3h3qy0yNgd7UyIWK1kJ-QvvBVdlD5-MjCKyiOnTx1UmmzB2HA6fZnbS6auow4RBWxudEsIHmE_AVNPXd50UtPpkFp-5YLyJbwx9P9s854/s1600/379634719_151883217979433_972888603036944761_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="740" data-original-width="1600" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAdzMmyjftkFHenHsgdmVxEurymIrM5mWo6yUo5Zu2fkFsWuHSousMJvdmpN_dVLrFg-nqg7t4iUuBZa3qF0f3h3qy0yNgd7UyIWK1kJ-QvvBVdlD5-MjCKyiOnTx1UmmzB2HA6fZnbS6auow4RBWxudEsIHmE_AVNPXd50UtPpkFp-5YLyJbwx9P9s854/w640-h296/379634719_151883217979433_972888603036944761_n.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTU1dyEcLOqFxRcwVGYtgeBBfSTirYKanciqbHraiVV5yjAzpUBdsMzhXpVsDDvFI_qfRUT8r3zTBx9Ia9KkElJrJh3Ak5qqAQ4pG1iGMvOvUZZTLPdkBR34NH7RCM_wDKMTaki_VIqJ1UtV00fKeRFzfo6b74kIKjuYV_SgBE8G4OYECoB44t537oYSmk/s1600/378101463_861342952269630_8097335711886232373_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="736" data-original-width="1600" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTU1dyEcLOqFxRcwVGYtgeBBfSTirYKanciqbHraiVV5yjAzpUBdsMzhXpVsDDvFI_qfRUT8r3zTBx9Ia9KkElJrJh3Ak5qqAQ4pG1iGMvOvUZZTLPdkBR34NH7RCM_wDKMTaki_VIqJ1UtV00fKeRFzfo6b74kIKjuYV_SgBE8G4OYECoB44t537oYSmk/w400-h184/378101463_861342952269630_8097335711886232373_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Later, when the group departed, I
made my way back to the square, ducking into Parthenon for a quiet drink, to
relax on my own in the corner while the local men watched football on TV. A
message from Ian at home reassured me that Lisa was happy, walking with
him and chasing mice and eating plenty. The football match over, everyone got
up and left, and I did the same, repairing to my upstairs room at Anemos, where
I found the booklet I made to welcome guests years ago.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjly9N2Y3E3elKPO1pF7JxnBimJdZc0HikRwbbL0XI2NLfvOWDCeW2yJyv_3tmCqWGU4S2cm68oWFqBTVUvzxp_hizM3hNemjvXWPlh2iNjFEPLHPcylcMIdsInu-CGpcNC62jYP5f9XbuaBIspHT5bY2WF4-ppFR6Pg0FNseEGigWxmUcMKFNywYXygXzh/s4000/IMG_20230918_090746.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjly9N2Y3E3elKPO1pF7JxnBimJdZc0HikRwbbL0XI2NLfvOWDCeW2yJyv_3tmCqWGU4S2cm68oWFqBTVUvzxp_hizM3hNemjvXWPlh2iNjFEPLHPcylcMIdsInu-CGpcNC62jYP5f9XbuaBIspHT5bY2WF4-ppFR6Pg0FNseEGigWxmUcMKFNywYXygXzh/s320/IMG_20230918_090746.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLNe3mEZ70gzLz8C55vIyYRBFJOYFqUcn3gQMLZcL85s5wLRIZvRzpgQghFCuuMvX76kH6JL8ncTWUQ0ZW0j6w_60kXj-hU00d2WrMnxYSWNziTLU-WWz1P9Jds8iZf-bgBdWFxVdBrE1v5_cj34-mOFT85ktt5sAKcgwNPsypVg1Qd_F5x5pL2V34XO_D/s4000/IMG_20230918_092245.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLNe3mEZ70gzLz8C55vIyYRBFJOYFqUcn3gQMLZcL85s5wLRIZvRzpgQghFCuuMvX76kH6JL8ncTWUQ0ZW0j6w_60kXj-hU00d2WrMnxYSWNziTLU-WWz1P9Jds8iZf-bgBdWFxVdBrE1v5_cj34-mOFT85ktt5sAKcgwNPsypVg1Qd_F5x5pL2V34XO_D/s320/IMG_20230918_092245.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">I woke to clouds, but sunshine was coming. After a short walk, passing Kalliopi’s traditional bakery with its wood-fired outdoor oven and waving at her working in her kitchen, I landed at Archontoula’s for coffee, and told her I’d written about her.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">‘What did you write, that I’m
mad?’ Archontoula in her Olympos dress ushered me to the balcony, indicated the
flight of steps off the alleyway below she’d fallen down that summer. Taken to
hospital in Rhodes, she’d had to spend months recuperating at her sister’s house
there and I assumed the café must have closed – but no, of course not, her
husband had kept it open. After sitting outside with her for a while, I got up
to leave and tried to pay but she refused. I reminded her she’d refused payment
for ouzos in June, and if she never took any money, how would she live? She hid
a smile, then allowed me to leave money on the counter for a few of the plaited
strings she makes to pass the time.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">I walked over to see Minas’ mum,
who was watering her flowers. Minas had made a pergola for the bougainvillaea,
which was thriving more than ever. She’d sold a few of my books and wanted to
pay me, but I said I’d prefer something she’d made herself. It was also
important to me to buy a few crafts from the village, to show appreciation and
support for the people who did and do the same for me. I left with a few bags
she’d put together with bright, cleverly matched fabrics, and I realised how
much creativity Minas inherited from his mother.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">I’d intended to spend my last day
in the village and walk down to Diafani early the next morning for the boat.
But Minas was coming up to the hotel to repair a bed and light fixture broken
by guests (‘I hope they had a good time…’) and could drive me back down to the
beach. The villagers would be busy all day anyway. He'd finish the repair work and wait for me at the car park. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">I returned to the room for
my bag, then saw my friends Georgia and Yianni at Zephyros café. Georgia,
Evgenia’s sister, was now officially engaged to Yianni, a local artist, poet
and film maker, and it gave me a thrill to see them together in her café. I
admitted I’d be going back down to Ayios Minas, then leaving the next day. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 24px;">‘Do you go to the island?’ asked Yiannis. ‘Or does the island come to you?’<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Georgia
said she’d managed to have a few swims that summer. She looked happy, and the
café attractive with new tablecloths and Yiannis’ paintings. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">From the square, I made my way down
the alley already brimming with visitors and received a warm welcome as always
from my other painter friend Yianni, with his wife Rigopoula. I carefully
dedicated one of my books to give to them, knowing that as a former head
teacher he would gently correct my Greek if I got something wrong. I bought a colourful
cotton blanket from them, and Yiannis gave me a wooden icon of Saint Gerasimos
of Jordan he’d painted, telling me he’d chosen it for me as an animal lover
because the saint removed a thorn from a lion’s paw. He had once given me
a painting of Odysseus and reminded me that when the hero returned home after
so many years, the only one to recognise him was his dog.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Minas was waiting for me at the
car, but I needed another stop to see Maria whose little house at Ayios Minas
I’d used years ago. I kissed her and she slipped a piece of homemade soap in my
bag. I bought a little hand-embroidered bag and she gave me a <i>mati</i> to
deflect the evil eye.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Waving goodbye, I made one last
dash into Sophia and Mike’s café to buy some dried <i>makarounes</i>, the local
handmade pasta, to take home. Thinking to use up change, I asked for a slice of
delicious-looking walnut cake – but Sophia refused to take any money. Laughing,
I found the clean space in the back of Minas’ car – on top of a sack of
charcoal – for my bag, now packed full of good things to remind me of Olympos.
To remind me not only of the beautiful place, but of the hearts of the people;
to be more <i>Olympitissa</i>. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">It was an unexpected bonus to
return to Ayios Minas: the hills so green and untouched and dramatic, the aroma
of pine trees, the quiet of the valley. Voula looked with hopeful eyes. The sea
was bright blue, white ripples surging across the bay. Minas was soon cooking
fish and calamari, people were relaxing with wine, good music was playing, the olive
trees waving in the wind. It was hard to imagine it might not always be like
this.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">I swam around the headland, lay
on the smooth flat pebbles for a while, and when I slid into the sea again with
my mask I saw a dozen long, thin cornetfish. A pale blue one looked up at me,
its body straight, eye wide and careful, then reversed slowly, its tail like a
needle. Continuing around the rocks I saw <i>mayiatiko</i> with a jaunty slash
across the eye, and hundreds of little fish like electric blue dashes. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">After the sun went down behind
the hill leaving the beach in shadow, I had a last swim and spotted an octopus
peering out of a pebbly nest, and a pale grouper, then three large lionfish
lingering among the rocks, their colouring varied from reddish-brown to black,
their tails so delicate and dotted with decoration; I dived down towards one to
see coral-pink tips of its mane-like ‘feathers’ rippling like silk in a breeze.
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">A walk up the hill was thwarted
by gusts that threatened to knock me over, but as dusk approached the last light
was beautiful on the friable, khaki-coloured rock flecked with dark green
mastic bush. The pale blue sky was tinged a peachy pink. A jet-black dog
appeared in the gap in the field wall, looking, her ears blowing in the wind. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Minas cooked us dinner and we sat
drinking wine and talking. We set our alarms for early the next morning.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtizHAOY-77wdWPGFhCDyBBSugGtaG6GU4DIlxJ5STPPTVNqEsiuepfMlQ7QoiBk9nzEmWtwmYKqYCNR3T_NMIU2L_9kY3GglbIc5Ja2VmydSNUit7TMNL7-37cD5Q03ib9l096jGYjfOHZZFSfoXIaTnDA_lUdZRREf_3xsAjx1Kgx-DKKgfHW2JB6MUH/s4000/IMG_20230919_073842.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtizHAOY-77wdWPGFhCDyBBSugGtaG6GU4DIlxJ5STPPTVNqEsiuepfMlQ7QoiBk9nzEmWtwmYKqYCNR3T_NMIU2L_9kY3GglbIc5Ja2VmydSNUit7TMNL7-37cD5Q03ib9l096jGYjfOHZZFSfoXIaTnDA_lUdZRREf_3xsAjx1Kgx-DKKgfHW2JB6MUH/w400-h300/IMG_20230919_073842.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">And soon enough the light was
touching the tops of the hills, the wind shaking the dry olive trees, the sun
gradually appearing behind the chapel on the cliffs. Just another Anemos Sunrise.
With my backpack and a box of goats’ cheese, soon we’d be bumping up the dusty
track, disturbing goats from where they were sitting, pine and mastic on either
side and the breathtaking view to the clear blue sea.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Three weeks have now passed, and it’s
clear that despite his best efforts, there’s no chance of extending the lease.
It’s really over. It makes me sad to write that Taverna Anemos Sunrise at Ayios
Minas will almost certainly close this year. But the taverna is Minas; and he’s
got a few songs still to write.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">And more than ever, I'm glad I told the story of our experiences those years I lived there. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyMGrhyphenhyphenZ81V0nMnoxxcyiL5hCBUsNXu-NA-8TSn2kRIrnuCfkBr78h-U4f7HNglQTRbXS2kSwg5wQcaFUmSWva4XA-14HDwQY8KEBivt1LSju2RXrLf4Yq-MSeNLcQtgxzKBl6K-R8oUVzqOtcTLKD55fQWfotxRG3bZUq8zsvpL91xG0kLstBHC9LroCW/s4096/379658748_331093512915254_4185840042268592510_n.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4096" data-original-width="3072" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyMGrhyphenhyphenZ81V0nMnoxxcyiL5hCBUsNXu-NA-8TSn2kRIrnuCfkBr78h-U4f7HNglQTRbXS2kSwg5wQcaFUmSWva4XA-14HDwQY8KEBivt1LSju2RXrLf4Yq-MSeNLcQtgxzKBl6K-R8oUVzqOtcTLKD55fQWfotxRG3bZUq8zsvpL91xG0kLstBHC9LroCW/s320/379658748_331093512915254_4185840042268592510_n.jpg" width="240" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;">(Minas standing on the step...)</p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzRLY73bzbALvc1Py8q4VmvPhSGX_s7tm3gln4ss1Uj5cI99NlbW6akYuhyphenhyphenGEJHuyZtwM-o9fzgfsLMtTp-iUuVsNYHfGx9ng9bGWQXG3UC1a6j8O9PMbmV7f8WXg1QZSzgSCvQqISZzhVwQsN6kpUauchi-SxoCnNWVkxDR87OFOkhxIEOquuD-OAXUbc/s4000/IMG_20230915_122619.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzRLY73bzbALvc1Py8q4VmvPhSGX_s7tm3gln4ss1Uj5cI99NlbW6akYuhyphenhyphenGEJHuyZtwM-o9fzgfsLMtTp-iUuVsNYHfGx9ng9bGWQXG3UC1a6j8O9PMbmV7f8WXg1QZSzgSCvQqISZzhVwQsN6kpUauchi-SxoCnNWVkxDR87OFOkhxIEOquuD-OAXUbc/s320/IMG_20230915_122619.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA6hy4TVkWHbpsgcvl0oBb5omdEFiXugOkjwWzxTt3TbonVHD_ZoKJ2oI5MEFhxJ9BmBHxMxHkdUBbW3oODeYOmRf-wygQzrGI02udG0Q_7fB2WUg7QpRECi5_aXrx4kuQTkQFYVbgqe8eqfvtvv-1eSFx24b4T8lD1KfvykvrtfnUDMJBek2IW7pXo4FU/s3264/IMG_20230915_124507.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA6hy4TVkWHbpsgcvl0oBb5omdEFiXugOkjwWzxTt3TbonVHD_ZoKJ2oI5MEFhxJ9BmBHxMxHkdUBbW3oODeYOmRf-wygQzrGI02udG0Q_7fB2WUg7QpRECi5_aXrx4kuQTkQFYVbgqe8eqfvtvv-1eSFx24b4T8lD1KfvykvrtfnUDMJBek2IW7pXo4FU/s320/IMG_20230915_124507.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAHmNxI17fkK8DwjWGn_Jbajrj9JOsVdBH9F2HZYZQmi-QgT0fz0SGm7wHojbRkR5l1oZe3eU-Ns1RcumNxL1TizGxVcHa30M4H8PVjX8gal0UIW5yb06ZUznWYCvnwmFx0nwsrN7aXyM7ZAiucQB2pUFsXXxwnheWHzZvOzbd5C5NveAAwZkjlkznOF6Q/s1280/IMG-20231001-WA0002.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="963" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAHmNxI17fkK8DwjWGn_Jbajrj9JOsVdBH9F2HZYZQmi-QgT0fz0SGm7wHojbRkR5l1oZe3eU-Ns1RcumNxL1TizGxVcHa30M4H8PVjX8gal0UIW5yb06ZUznWYCvnwmFx0nwsrN7aXyM7ZAiucQB2pUFsXXxwnheWHzZvOzbd5C5NveAAwZkjlkznOF6Q/s320/IMG-20231001-WA0002.jpg" width="241" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk4g2-eOxdllS3RY7jsoYIiw4IyfrMjRo0pmFtbJ4A4HhnVbHiD7hbECjHiymrIoZRIHC6TGykFvvpwkj7EZN87cNB4GNJss5geOmdwMjsYMMAh_WS8cHvklU5F9YD8awfvLZPWXqGK7y3A5OwxlsgZmulqz06r06JsHkBfombvioI-xFoFqJZUMDAyhhX/s4000/IMG_20230915_162031.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk4g2-eOxdllS3RY7jsoYIiw4IyfrMjRo0pmFtbJ4A4HhnVbHiD7hbECjHiymrIoZRIHC6TGykFvvpwkj7EZN87cNB4GNJss5geOmdwMjsYMMAh_WS8cHvklU5F9YD8awfvLZPWXqGK7y3A5OwxlsgZmulqz06r06JsHkBfombvioI-xFoFqJZUMDAyhhX/w400-h300/IMG_20230915_162031.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikUKi_kYqCvU8y-2CRn1eyBSlob4vBO3WVjnH1O2LWiqgGS10bKApIaNFfBKHlDf_-42c8rXtml-TrXTUCocH4HYHdTIwR9Ar3GNP1xFfQ2KEqmcKoYopxTiSO9kHITq2P6mvwLF1qUJtoqNhQ3MCK3r9Unbr5rdpPmA4_-XP29BTLZJvaby3b8TaOKVCj/s4000/IMG_20230919_073855.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikUKi_kYqCvU8y-2CRn1eyBSlob4vBO3WVjnH1O2LWiqgGS10bKApIaNFfBKHlDf_-42c8rXtml-TrXTUCocH4HYHdTIwR9Ar3GNP1xFfQ2KEqmcKoYopxTiSO9kHITq2P6mvwLF1qUJtoqNhQ3MCK3r9Unbr5rdpPmA4_-XP29BTLZJvaby3b8TaOKVCj/w640-h480/IMG_20230919_073855.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-79143104661546346812023-04-15T15:22:00.004+03:002023-04-15T21:43:44.764+03:00To Partheni<p style="text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmoW9m_l7adSxGSvnuevlpjfyFDWiDU8N_fYmQ39xLOGajl-1rV2eDNKylkt2ZaI3DnHaplR_3VEEvY4QqMBV0Ph0AzqRzNkChcVEypp782J7agCtnBQ_st6L9IyP3Qkj1JJ1jofjQIhT72RC63Y9dthbaP8PYzS_yWNLx2uj3VChZg0wnid0d2GSSdA/s4000/IMG_20230223_154700.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmoW9m_l7adSxGSvnuevlpjfyFDWiDU8N_fYmQ39xLOGajl-1rV2eDNKylkt2ZaI3DnHaplR_3VEEvY4QqMBV0Ph0AzqRzNkChcVEypp782J7agCtnBQ_st6L9IyP3Qkj1JJ1jofjQIhT72RC63Y9dthbaP8PYzS_yWNLx2uj3VChZg0wnid0d2GSSdA/w400-h300/IMG_20230223_154700.jpg" width="400" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">On my third day on Leros in late February, I was feeling drawn to the far
north of the island. Its main settlement was Partheni: ‘Virgin’, named probably
for an ancient cult of Artemis, or an older goddess. The whole area was one of the emptiest spaces on the Leros map, one of the most untouched parts of Leros, cut
off from the bay of Alinda by the limestone peak of Kleidi.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 24px;">It was a warm day and I’d swum in the morning and worked for a while on the shady terrace, my feet in the sun, while Lisa lounged on her bed. The electricians were drilling. One shouted a question and the other responded, ‘<i>Logika!</i>’, meaning something like ‘probably, should be’ – it seemed a vague sort of answer to a question about electrics.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXmIdg9JuWHJeXW68qvQl8D_nxiNRIsqqMXc7jEXwZj8Ovp6nOOnrhW-X2dYMHiDVv53VeY6WQ663xc--eyQD52XoWrm0lKi1_wm6z_F-yTis-vyYIjZ6jMaqyXQo9GWr1SFyof5UI_u2Gf-bhWpX__xtgco4ZqHVZ7Hd6ShDAeSdjnhM8-AfFqKHRfw/s4000/IMG_20230223_120616.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXmIdg9JuWHJeXW68qvQl8D_nxiNRIsqqMXc7jEXwZj8Ovp6nOOnrhW-X2dYMHiDVv53VeY6WQ663xc--eyQD52XoWrm0lKi1_wm6z_F-yTis-vyYIjZ6jMaqyXQo9GWr1SFyof5UI_u2Gf-bhWpX__xtgco4ZqHVZ7Hd6ShDAeSdjnhM8-AfFqKHRfw/s320/IMG_20230223_120616.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguyU5l5u0m1ddB-31lQZr3AltFS84HHPv922LyFPRxSWv9PeZAmJwMQTMw1apJsB9dYxRqzcd2gS4qoGrzOFJ_4i29yqIIE8cJ6pvHeJZheIAH-p-C4x3ynCu9EhYSKDrCEVDd6vh34Syr_8dV_Eephx44loBxEaUA5zSbcVz6loEZsvd8eOQcwN-QAA/s4000/IMG_20230223_135925.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguyU5l5u0m1ddB-31lQZr3AltFS84HHPv922LyFPRxSWv9PeZAmJwMQTMw1apJsB9dYxRqzcd2gS4qoGrzOFJ_4i29yqIIE8cJ6pvHeJZheIAH-p-C4x3ynCu9EhYSKDrCEVDd6vh34Syr_8dV_Eephx44loBxEaUA5zSbcVz6loEZsvd8eOQcwN-QAA/s320/IMG_20230223_135925.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLiOenesRY70_HLJ1ucwaAZ1cE6xQiDBkJh1jPN2oh59EfhlY3YkpOtj3AmMKodNFwP5N--2OWnJmzF9WxANIq3juWBL5RaaqXJ4Wxn3C5vQ6sW6eKG2VFa6WAIwmcyRc7miI_LirNqw2sKrI1a4uY8sjDeM4qeznKgD-njZGwYe5pLP0DH0njKRAA7g/s2719/IMG_20230223_141105%20B.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2153" data-original-width="2719" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLiOenesRY70_HLJ1ucwaAZ1cE6xQiDBkJh1jPN2oh59EfhlY3YkpOtj3AmMKodNFwP5N--2OWnJmzF9WxANIq3juWBL5RaaqXJ4Wxn3C5vQ6sW6eKG2VFa6WAIwmcyRc7miI_LirNqw2sKrI1a4uY8sjDeM4qeznKgD-njZGwYe5pLP0DH0njKRAA7g/s320/IMG_20230223_141105%20B.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">While the road to the airstrip
led all the way north, I decided to take a more winding route over a green hill
topped by the church of Ayios Kyrikos. We passed some new development that
seemed out of keeping with the local styles, but also donkeys and horses with coloured tassels on
their halters. Rounding the hillside, I was stopped in my tracks by the view below:
of course it hadn’t been marked on the map, but there was a huge army base. I
knew part of Partheni was a military zone. I descended on the track, checking
with the armed young guys at the gate that I was on the right path.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">The valley ended at a raised
wall, the dam of a failed reservoir project. The new, empty road curved around
and beyond it was the airstrip, ending at the sea beside a dry dock for yachts,
and more military buildings. The sea beyond – Partheni bay, protected by
Archangelos islet – was completely smooth and calm, like a lake, with fish farms
and a scattering of fishing boats. The whole place felt strangely quiet, which added to the intrigue.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGoB0UN4_RvFdoI6qzpAsFvoXRjeQdC2OMf3iP5hKwxtHuYrqjgpnk79jAoIAPyB2sgsnPWl-3uwXH1plunf_PBfaYIhjOIOYYYGlC1vvHQC7Nu4JTkeFzY0TTyK5Vig9rF8_86gGBMGjvxpmUi6JceOuKuGeI5Ac7nlKHfTMKPscih0ZUWlUy-9qsZQ/s4000/IMG_20230223_145850.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGoB0UN4_RvFdoI6qzpAsFvoXRjeQdC2OMf3iP5hKwxtHuYrqjgpnk79jAoIAPyB2sgsnPWl-3uwXH1plunf_PBfaYIhjOIOYYYGlC1vvHQC7Nu4JTkeFzY0TTyK5Vig9rF8_86gGBMGjvxpmUi6JceOuKuGeI5Ac7nlKHfTMKPscih0ZUWlUy-9qsZQ/s320/IMG_20230223_145850.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">In fact, strange is exactly how
it should feel. Leros has a fascinating modern history – an extraordinary century
that belies its current calm and beauty. I knew a little, but over the coming
weeks that I would end up spending on Leros, I realised just how steeped the whole
island is in its remains. A café owner would say to me, ‘We are known for so
many bad things… When will we be known for good things?!’ <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">A little history is in order,
then. In July 1923, at the signing of the Treaty of Lausanne, Turkey gave up
its claims on the Dodecanese islands, populated by Greeks for millennia; Italy had ‘liberated’ the islands from
Turkey in 1912, and in 1922 Mario Lago was appointed Governor of what were now designated the ‘Italian islands of the Aegean’. The Italians decided the port at Rhodes
was too small for its Royal Navy, and in 1923 started to build up a base around
the sheltered, deep bay at Lakki on Leros. Since the island garrison comprised many
thousands of men, over the 1920s and 1930s they built a new model town with
straight, wide streets and Rationalist art deco architecture, much of it still
standing, called Porto Lago. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">‘Imagine,’ Takis, a business
owner in what is now called Lakki again, told me later. ‘We were five thousand
people then, and there were thirty thousand military personnel on the island at
one time. But this is not written in the Greek history books because then we
were part of Italy.’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">There’s much to tell about this
phase, but crucially, little Leros had a bay suitable for re-fuelling submarines,
a strategic base that would allow aircraft to reach the Middle East, and a vast
number of Italian military personnel. So in the Second World War, when all the Dodecanese
were battlegrounds at one point or another, Leros was a critical target, and there
are military remains in every part of the island. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Someone told me: ‘The Battle of Crete – not to diminish
it – lasted one week. The Battle of Leros lasted fifty-two days. Constant
bombardment.’<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP8KRKfq68nUr6GRdlShaCUyE9xuipy8UEk9W--Or8Tl-SCFR_DC6QwFY7uzM6KtfoICEhDPSroiX_KsUBvJLxLnnvhJRrgVgIA6jmxIXwgV_K9yFzvjnuE72p2GsYzxsSw4OQZsUdoCyUP9jpJUcjG3CoX_h1v3rQqZvctpzF5YH_2CY4-8-XwH74Hg/s4000/IMG_20230223_152213.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP8KRKfq68nUr6GRdlShaCUyE9xuipy8UEk9W--Or8Tl-SCFR_DC6QwFY7uzM6KtfoICEhDPSroiX_KsUBvJLxLnnvhJRrgVgIA6jmxIXwgV_K9yFzvjnuE72p2GsYzxsSw4OQZsUdoCyUP9jpJUcjG3CoX_h1v3rQqZvctpzF5YH_2CY4-8-XwH74Hg/s320/IMG_20230223_152213.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">I followed the road around to the
bay of Blefouti, unprepared for its sheer loveliness: a wide sweep of pale blue
sea fringed by beach, mostly backed by lush fields sweeping up to the mountain. And I seemed to have the whole place to myself, though
alas, only a couple of hours before dusk. I spotted what looked like a
crumbling Italian observation tower on the top of the far headland, and went to
investigate. I hadn’t come to Leros to look for war remains, yet I couldn’t help being fascinated by the abandoned buildings.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNuS2BdHZ9386yaKJs0pTdjD3aJ3AQmvAaiW9RK3oHiYmVKVjXGTuo3To_t1-AX5XWaTVpnMCc2SPATun69WoTZU7N2vUeIslcszmaGfcaeG6rlsNzhDXJ0mTL3FBhwHs4WLFqRbyWWJCEud46QmOMVWIbv7vLypfzXUybaZGyBSPcETfW_UmK-2yqAw/s4000/IMG_20230223_154913.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNuS2BdHZ9386yaKJs0pTdjD3aJ3AQmvAaiW9RK3oHiYmVKVjXGTuo3To_t1-AX5XWaTVpnMCc2SPATun69WoTZU7N2vUeIslcszmaGfcaeG6rlsNzhDXJ0mTL3FBhwHs4WLFqRbyWWJCEud46QmOMVWIbv7vLypfzXUybaZGyBSPcETfW_UmK-2yqAw/s320/IMG_20230223_154913.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaJepA6PxlVuzk9a2c26-7s0KwFaMw1howgqEy_A9XSVSvTwUjsKDHkmT81nHhRQqZToPjAHUP1kzwxxTKq3D0rIi75FhNYMYNgKy8_IVDlf45en_X95Us8wj4UOQCQw14OIWVXxfJghyGUOJ0YOLc-BC_BJ7-lardKURlMdebxLlr5NQW5FSAzLNlHg/s4000/IMG_20230223_155401.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaJepA6PxlVuzk9a2c26-7s0KwFaMw1howgqEy_A9XSVSvTwUjsKDHkmT81nHhRQqZToPjAHUP1kzwxxTKq3D0rIi75FhNYMYNgKy8_IVDlf45en_X95Us8wj4UOQCQw14OIWVXxfJghyGUOJ0YOLc-BC_BJ7-lardKURlMdebxLlr5NQW5FSAzLNlHg/s320/IMG_20230223_155401.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF7o4vc1_15187jBVdKj4hw9hGxKS28E3dX1QDhAHFm4dUOKY7GC49XWyTYjyB7xsV5H6uVtRF0_muy5Ljz-wZ9gVrap_YWHFZN6ZsC8PjYvQyEaPbaum25ND4LyzjJrQAhC0yTT1UkIgYCR-s3PxN4_vNPtYexdJcO6190-AuiaYLGAXWfGk5CvwHNQ/s4000/IMG_20230223_155817.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF7o4vc1_15187jBVdKj4hw9hGxKS28E3dX1QDhAHFm4dUOKY7GC49XWyTYjyB7xsV5H6uVtRF0_muy5Ljz-wZ9gVrap_YWHFZN6ZsC8PjYvQyEaPbaum25ND4LyzjJrQAhC0yTT1UkIgYCR-s3PxN4_vNPtYexdJcO6190-AuiaYLGAXWfGk5CvwHNQ/s320/IMG_20230223_155817.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfNfcKoMO5O6hzYlWIpxlDJZJ1kZCJMI2guQmFVOAcVkIYrIEQX9mz9fZbgXTTCP07mGQAMhzQyVcqbuEujM6bC5swMdkRglYEUQJFLP0F5UlUVNkigeJ42QKHqEoVOQFZa085QSLQV6O6xa2XWDUICL_lf63_ls_kiopHAO_PNGG_aRMkGrEuAbNcuw/s3462/IMG_20230223_161009.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2528" data-original-width="3462" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfNfcKoMO5O6hzYlWIpxlDJZJ1kZCJMI2guQmFVOAcVkIYrIEQX9mz9fZbgXTTCP07mGQAMhzQyVcqbuEujM6bC5swMdkRglYEUQJFLP0F5UlUVNkigeJ42QKHqEoVOQFZa085QSLQV6O6xa2XWDUICL_lf63_ls_kiopHAO_PNGG_aRMkGrEuAbNcuw/s320/IMG_20230223_161009.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">The empty road gradually gave way
to dirt track and on the slope was a large, somewhat grand building with a
portico of tall arches and a large Mediterranean pine outside. This was the
remains of battery Pl.899, shown on a 1940s Italian map as <i>antinavy e
antiaerei</i> – now clearly used by a farmer to shelter his goats. We said
hello as he carried a bale of hay up the hill, his dog at his heels, the sheep
and goats clamouring down the hillsides to follow him.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLx31jvFGVOT6aQ8IbOaMtAkYTW1vAhxbZLpC9SVyfLkdSKKKhAmuvC6X6YhFtfENoiGsbV_88lYrO7ILO9iN9s3q7pco533HYv3jWbk2gdC3VxKbahUWtSpknW9JXd_FyGLkjrFHWzMNa74rog4g8kMr67IMRGCGiIivhi-NVGzVZgZHrgJ18obh73A/s4000/IMG_20230223_155449.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLx31jvFGVOT6aQ8IbOaMtAkYTW1vAhxbZLpC9SVyfLkdSKKKhAmuvC6X6YhFtfENoiGsbV_88lYrO7ILO9iN9s3q7pco533HYv3jWbk2gdC3VxKbahUWtSpknW9JXd_FyGLkjrFHWzMNa74rog4g8kMr67IMRGCGiIivhi-NVGzVZgZHrgJ18obh73A/s320/IMG_20230223_155449.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRluPy7TJQiPwiC2cZ1XtrMVbcLIbZRP-LfhGcI5gElxePQ6jQbNOrtfADN5fvjtO5AsFxRapBKp84iV54dZFlKxMUfrM5xQS0wLDjkvT_CUXvST8kWS92gms5vF-quy8c3TOdLAVWV9wm_emWycEcffoKeI3BlGibC5b8W4d4ZENv0YFnmAKONvcBAg/s4000/IMG_20230223_155446.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRluPy7TJQiPwiC2cZ1XtrMVbcLIbZRP-LfhGcI5gElxePQ6jQbNOrtfADN5fvjtO5AsFxRapBKp84iV54dZFlKxMUfrM5xQS0wLDjkvT_CUXvST8kWS92gms5vF-quy8c3TOdLAVWV9wm_emWycEcffoKeI3BlGibC5b8W4d4ZENv0YFnmAKONvcBAg/s320/IMG_20230223_155446.jpg" width="320" /></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">For now, I had to head back. We
took a shortcut to avoid some barking dogs, and I stopped to chat with a man at
a closed taverna, then we walked down the wide, empty, tree-lined road, pausing
at an old double chapel with beautiful icons between a cement works and
building materials suppliers. A car pulled up so close I thought it might hit
us, then a man with a beaming smile wound down his window and said, ‘I’m
listening! First impressions of Leros!’ It took me a moment to realise he was
one of the guys from the other night at the grill house.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Further down the road, I passed a
young guy on a motorbike leading two ponies on ropes up the road. I stopped to
buy fresh eggs and local beer from Stamatia, and told her I’d walked to
Partheni. She looked at me as if I was mad, then related a long story about her
boyfriend’s animals, the only part of which I really understood was about
slitting their throats… I was loving Leros, and staggered back to the room to read
more about it.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNM67YypVS53z7Kv3FO9czlcAdFN4XLcREzSPuKxpVcJpRCOxt2y6BreG9VDxnC0FK2uqnPKu8qnknhVd0TPSxZUsQ4J9iXLOTjmGnEy6fto50jinkL_7xQE-Qmf0HANOAXbHj6tJrgHZ1dFmoiCmsC_e-j7sLB708cgLU8EEkFDgUBby3lUTYPu2dFg/s4000/IMG_20230223_170416.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNM67YypVS53z7Kv3FO9czlcAdFN4XLcREzSPuKxpVcJpRCOxt2y6BreG9VDxnC0FK2uqnPKu8qnknhVd0TPSxZUsQ4J9iXLOTjmGnEy6fto50jinkL_7xQE-Qmf0HANOAXbHj6tJrgHZ1dFmoiCmsC_e-j7sLB708cgLU8EEkFDgUBby3lUTYPu2dFg/s320/IMG_20230223_170416.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwKvtPoG0s8ivxRjE3cQcNgfGCwue_FNxrAI8LPpHco-ByJUTzIQJXFsUCwyG0rHDE6KGiZIXSyMK3aMVU1TNDxXaG79yVcyVtrqg04TpwDtDmNyqpUVueF_ivrKowYX7iTo__bN2fhqWxbaDM1qweX4E0hjQMm_h8sjezkwphmeYoyChAhpbn8CTyaw/s3143/IMG_20230223_203306.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1971" data-original-width="3143" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwKvtPoG0s8ivxRjE3cQcNgfGCwue_FNxrAI8LPpHco-ByJUTzIQJXFsUCwyG0rHDE6KGiZIXSyMK3aMVU1TNDxXaG79yVcyVtrqg04TpwDtDmNyqpUVueF_ivrKowYX7iTo__bN2fhqWxbaDM1qweX4E0hjQMm_h8sjezkwphmeYoyChAhpbn8CTyaw/s320/IMG_20230223_203306.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">A week or so later, I went back
to Partheni, for two reasons. The first was to pick up my mum, who was arriving
on the 7 a.m. flight from Athens. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I’d just arrived at
the airport and got out of the car I'd rented when I heard the roar of the little plane coming
in overhead. It pulled to a halt just before Partheni bay, then trundled back
to the terminus. The passengers were out within minutes, and the airport would soon be closed again for a few days.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Later, after breakfast at the
bakery in Kamara, I took Mum to see lovely Blefouti. The hills behind the bay
were largely unspoiled; a few houses here and there, an organic vineyard hidden
in a fold of hills with grazing cows. In a little cove, I now recognised a
rusted old bit of metal as some kind of artillery. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYuRCeb1B3aMeFx7K9CGhFi8k8yggGq0VF15hYPpRHQal15VPBRZvpRHN8zyyVpC_xmKnpmXdG8uMqh_2m2AMtGbFZ8EP-F-kADr1jLwbOrFbTek1c63DZReoZAD1W9MyrwX07GLfpk2eFApNVjp2r0mVbjO5hTtKQ6x_UPF1wPxlkuCGivoCoHS7y5w/s4000/IMG_20230303_152126.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYuRCeb1B3aMeFx7K9CGhFi8k8yggGq0VF15hYPpRHQal15VPBRZvpRHN8zyyVpC_xmKnpmXdG8uMqh_2m2AMtGbFZ8EP-F-kADr1jLwbOrFbTek1c63DZReoZAD1W9MyrwX07GLfpk2eFApNVjp2r0mVbjO5hTtKQ6x_UPF1wPxlkuCGivoCoHS7y5w/s320/IMG_20230303_152126.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">But what I really wanted to see
this time related to a later piece of modern history. We left the car at the
start of a headland and walked above the fishing harbour, and I asked a farmer feeding goats with huge, twisted horns if we were heading the right way for Ayia Kioura.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">After the Second World War, Leros
was liberated and with the rest of the Dodecanese became officially part of
Greece, though the country was immediately divided by Civil War, those who had
resisted the Germans now seen as the ‘Communist’ enemy by the right-wing
establishment. Then in 1967 there was a coup by the army, starting the Regime
of the Colonels, or the Junta dictatorship. Many
left-wing intellectuals and artists were sent into exile on little islands. Between 1967 and 1974, political prisoners were detained at the old Italian
barracks at Partheni.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">Among the ‘<i>kratoumeni</i>’ on Leros was Manolis Glezos, politician, author, hero, best known for taking down the
Nazi swastika from the Acropolis in 1941. T</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">he eighteenth-century chapel of Ayia Kioura Matrona, built on the site of an older chapel and situated a kilometre away from the camp, had fallen into ruin</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;"> and </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Glezos organized a few
artists among the prisoners to restore it and paint </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">new frescoes.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">Work began
in 1969 with the support of the islanders. The artists used fellow prisoners as
models. The soft, flowing, haunting figures exude a sense of peace, the
large eyes full of emotions: true sorrow and bright hope, mourning perhaps not only
Christ, but Greece. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmA8XoqqFAUc4UEEq6JR1TvsxhC1DqogQSRhrZTHYuWSMrpsEiRDlxUKsHnnM2n5HCRasCOtYBpukuLWt0JMq_jIYhXxK-fptOpz7CfWPX5XVBgpV_1-rk5BEvI2UwN_KkgVHvSfA5eHH7oe8RapQS93laUIO_aXPJL1w9SeUjhtCQm8EEyeJFvqxl8g/s3264/IMG_20230303_125611.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3264" data-original-width="2448" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmA8XoqqFAUc4UEEq6JR1TvsxhC1DqogQSRhrZTHYuWSMrpsEiRDlxUKsHnnM2n5HCRasCOtYBpukuLWt0JMq_jIYhXxK-fptOpz7CfWPX5XVBgpV_1-rk5BEvI2UwN_KkgVHvSfA5eHH7oe8RapQS93laUIO_aXPJL1w9SeUjhtCQm8EEyeJFvqxl8g/s320/IMG_20230303_125611.jpg" width="240" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">The works are fifty years old, and some plaster has fallen, revealing rusting iron bars in
the ceiling; many paintings had rough patches of gauze stuck to them. I
wondered if the prisoners would not have had access to the proper materials.
Then as I looked for a light switch, I noticed a sign by the door in Greek,
prohibiting something odd: <i>asvestoma</i>. The use of lime.<b> <o:p></o:p></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">I found
out later: after the regime changed, certain conservative islanders decided to
lime over the unorthodox frescoes. But they’re now protected by the state as an
important monument.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">Political activist and poet Yiannis Ritsos was also imprisoned on Leros at that time. One of his most famous works is <i>18 Little Songs
of the Bitter Homeland</i>, later set to music by Theodorakis; sixteen of them,
he said, ‘were written in one day – on September 16, 1968 – in Partheni of
Leros’.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2PfHYrLoxiyt0k97mqUfUYn7fKVOPf4s79lb992AwRrzNuBHAtULlu5eeQVuQisEk9JDEaaX62dqLpOTIQgZGh23q_gsGyp-Q62whLSj-nYzC7dJLUT7176plxUrwo8oj_xK9J8c_KOg4tlHYmU-mwpIXG5XVtBW-gsT00Yrn55AbwH4ShtOLU6_16g/s3264/IMG_20230303_125358.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3264" data-original-width="2448" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2PfHYrLoxiyt0k97mqUfUYn7fKVOPf4s79lb992AwRrzNuBHAtULlu5eeQVuQisEk9JDEaaX62dqLpOTIQgZGh23q_gsGyp-Q62whLSj-nYzC7dJLUT7176plxUrwo8oj_xK9J8c_KOg4tlHYmU-mwpIXG5XVtBW-gsT00Yrn55AbwH4ShtOLU6_16g/s320/IMG_20230303_125358.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; 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text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0SrA88j3O1IMLluPv0_OWduVvm1P2ehUXmwenTplF36-G8tEpPtYFt8XOH7lfAZFj0mdEF2of0nL1nLaL57mP5nTbT3BOvfPwFaeW9XB2TtGSzPkf5CGksjJ3eJUsGIjv_cqqwleAilh4qQNFY-KsMQ2BQpwHfSSHzXefYD3GbCcaKJFTJS-SLLl7Fw/s4000/IMG_20230221_141715.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0SrA88j3O1IMLluPv0_OWduVvm1P2ehUXmwenTplF36-G8tEpPtYFt8XOH7lfAZFj0mdEF2of0nL1nLaL57mP5nTbT3BOvfPwFaeW9XB2TtGSzPkf5CGksjJ3eJUsGIjv_cqqwleAilh4qQNFY-KsMQ2BQpwHfSSHzXefYD3GbCcaKJFTJS-SLLl7Fw/w400-h300/IMG_20230221_141715.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">You may recall that back in late December,
I’d had plans to go to Leros but was thwarted by ferry schedules (the only connections
would have landed us in the port of Lakki late at night, with nowhere to stay) and
went to Symi instead. But in the last week of February, my work schedule eased
up a bit, the ferries were favourable and I was feeling the call of travel
again. I was looking forward to eating some food I hadn’t cooked myself,
and seeing something new.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Packing my stuff and Lisa’s, we boarded
a ferry to Kos on a Monday lunchtime under darkly brooding skies, yet it was exciting to be on the move, passing the coastline of Tilos and then
Nisyros. In Kos we wandered the beach and then town, gorging on delicious bakery
treats in the afternoon and mezes in the evening: oven-baked aubergine loaded
with tomato and feta, sweet potato chips, juicy meatballs and good retsina. The
next day, the weather had cleared, and we continued our journey in brilliant
sunshine, past little Pserimos (thinking I must go back) and up the wonderfully
rugged and untouched east coast of Kalymnos, the sky a deep blue, light
glittering silver on the sea.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Leros, just a stone’s
throw from the north of Kalymnos, is a similar size to Tilos but has a comparatively big population, with several villages. I’ve often heard from Greeks that it’s
their favourite island. Back in the early Noughties, I’d hopped off the ferry there
in September with a bicycle, found the roads around Ayia Marina too busy for
cycling, and left a few days later after getting not much further than the impressive
Archaeological Museum. Arriving with my dog and a backpack on a bright, warm
late February day, I looked forward to discovering more. <o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9vdi-EuHlHhm3e_fNIhBb7_N1UVIgTvkg5oe38Pc-MJCvxWFvZHGuczOxAQDzeGEaCRDuv91BMzQtN4R5u6eFcm91121Khd82uuE-_vwaAI6lVm5zOAxnQOf1-E5f_iOu87bQFQGED5utQLQQDOCB4p61hY40ySWLXwhEbo7HluJ7wMw9sx4PMUbXIw/s4000/IMG_20230221_140822.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9vdi-EuHlHhm3e_fNIhBb7_N1UVIgTvkg5oe38Pc-MJCvxWFvZHGuczOxAQDzeGEaCRDuv91BMzQtN4R5u6eFcm91121Khd82uuE-_vwaAI6lVm5zOAxnQOf1-E5f_iOu87bQFQGED5utQLQQDOCB4p61hY40ySWLXwhEbo7HluJ7wMw9sx4PMUbXIw/s320/IMG_20230221_140822.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">From Ayia Marina port at lunchtime
we manoeuvred through a busy section of street, then made our way in a
leisurely manner for a few kilometres along a broader, quieter road heading northeast
to Alinda, stopping on and off for Lisa to jump in the clear blue sea. For a
while, I sat on a little stretch of beach, laughing at how beautiful it all
was. I was on holiday, it felt as though winter might be over and it felt
great. When you're in luck and have perfect days at the tail end of winter with nobody around, it's the best time to be on an island. <o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQuxAT-QOLfubhHseWqWWRa5w6-sm151dBVZY8CraZnttK8n_X4FT1yjfZr1tAZWED7ktZRGeKz4dYFelcltm_ufbmD7APkvFYYP9VmfccLk6YJqC-OO1ojywLCvSoWBZHwlLQ7PP-4HrTTCzbqVBEK-tYKOB50dmu8kQI6n594DhtTHU4hP3UtELE_g/s4000/IMG_20230221_150558.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQuxAT-QOLfubhHseWqWWRa5w6-sm151dBVZY8CraZnttK8n_X4FT1yjfZr1tAZWED7ktZRGeKz4dYFelcltm_ufbmD7APkvFYYP9VmfccLk6YJqC-OO1ojywLCvSoWBZHwlLQ7PP-4HrTTCzbqVBEK-tYKOB50dmu8kQI6n594DhtTHU4hP3UtELE_g/s320/IMG_20230221_150558.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0AWMJ5GwlWnxdHawaBBYAsiLvXzIYyNi1M3VggBshpgN5cdtA5jQJnsBdXoKoKywlDfpP-NywFyI2o-PGHV1uSkuRzPDcY0X52Wr---wsHkWVoZZgwjOgrwIc1v220v-CvG5C_4TWwKox8Vi-vNgwuj0DHli3dsZ0BAMUchaCguPsIEtv1_YlITuewg/s4000/IMG_20230221_150605.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0AWMJ5GwlWnxdHawaBBYAsiLvXzIYyNi1M3VggBshpgN5cdtA5jQJnsBdXoKoKywlDfpP-NywFyI2o-PGHV1uSkuRzPDcY0X52Wr---wsHkWVoZZgwjOgrwIc1v220v-CvG5C_4TWwKox8Vi-vNgwuj0DHli3dsZ0BAMUchaCguPsIEtv1_YlITuewg/s320/IMG_20230221_150605.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">The dog-friendly accommodation I’d
found online, four rooms above a taverna, was right at the end of the road,
around a few curves of headland with lovely little beaches below, at the foot of
a limestone ridge. We passed a carpenter’s workshop before arriving at
Vareladiko: named for the barrels the carpenter built for the wine the owner’s
father used to make. The owner, Spiros, later told me that he’d first set up a
makeshift place here when it was only accessible by boat. Then the road was
extended, and in summer it got very busy, but for now I was the only guest, and
Spiros and his wife were busy doing maintenance every day on the rooms to get
ready for opening. All around, the grass was filled with bright yellow Bermuda
buttercups. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">The room was beautiful, with a
huge terrace overlooking the bay, and Spiros found a foam mattress for Lisa to
sleep on. As dusk began to fall, I realised the lights weren’t working, and
went downstairs to ask if there was something I was doing wrong. Spiros and his
wife sat watching TV in the closed taverna and, surprised, said they’d look
into it. Meanwhile I walked back along the bay for twenty minutes as far as the
grill-house and ordered a mixed grill to take away for my and Lisa’s dinner,
and wine to drink while I waited, chatting for a while with some local guys, bantering
about whether Leros was better than Tilos.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">When I got back to the room, the
electrician and his wife were just finishing up rewiring the light fixtures
inside and out, and mosquitoes were having a party in my room. In future, I’d be
sure to keep the terrace doors closed at dusk. My double bed creaked and the mattress
springs were prominent, and for hours the bedsprings squeaked as I got up to find
and squash another buzzing intruder. Ah well, I'd get used to it... Meanwhile, I must have </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">sort
of poisoned Lisa. In Kos, I’d managed to get to the vet to
buy an anti-tick pill for her, since spring was coming. But the pill was for
dogs from 25 to 40 kilos, and I put the whole thing in her food, probably a bad idea. What’s more, her dinner was some of the mixed grill
takeaway, was supposed to be a treat but I hadn’t realised that some of it was spiced with chilli. My poor
dog.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2pQhK8003tSwwn7elI8qfgejq-YixNetpGKeO1o_2lOODVceg3eJH0cht8kj0qGi-QVQ3aAkD72BdvHKyHdzmNTq8jZYwViWP0v3pX9S0wEcFUpzYUfSz9-a1hMrpsivLHDvAvsMVU4pYqPbW2vNUvJgzDXQ9FwlsJfo2Gr-9WXriwnYty_1k81KVtQ/s4000/IMG_20230221_182503.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2pQhK8003tSwwn7elI8qfgejq-YixNetpGKeO1o_2lOODVceg3eJH0cht8kj0qGi-QVQ3aAkD72BdvHKyHdzmNTq8jZYwViWP0v3pX9S0wEcFUpzYUfSz9-a1hMrpsivLHDvAvsMVU4pYqPbW2vNUvJgzDXQ9FwlsJfo2Gr-9WXriwnYty_1k81KVtQ/s320/IMG_20230221_182503.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">In the morning, however, it felt
peaceful. A few people walked or jogged to the end of the road for their morning exercise. I worked for a while at the table on
the terrace, listening to the electricians fixing the wiring in the next rooms.
I hadn’t expected such a perfect beach right below, with sand and pebbles and
rocks to snorkel around – and not expecting swimming weather, I hadn’t
brought my mask. I swam, got ready to go out for a walk, then we got as far as
the next beach and stopped again, sitting for a while as three ducks started
quacking, marched out to the water and bobbed over a little way to see us, then
returned complaining to the safety of their tree.<o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9uZT3nAn999cDuwInaejT6lBARbDT7K4zVsyLtxQBQ5NyLhAjdXR61OH73Aib3Xlm_829x3pTrjtvX-dRMUzv8afkd7UUjxgULaU99S0hLl5eaTzumQhnzD85V8zAmcy6ckTU6mndd1cw-u1uaDKk9h7akhCtolXSsVtFCcNqzZmVqoPP0DeDj69NrQ/s4000/IMG_20230222_105430.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9uZT3nAn999cDuwInaejT6lBARbDT7K4zVsyLtxQBQ5NyLhAjdXR61OH73Aib3Xlm_829x3pTrjtvX-dRMUzv8afkd7UUjxgULaU99S0hLl5eaTzumQhnzD85V8zAmcy6ckTU6mndd1cw-u1uaDKk9h7akhCtolXSsVtFCcNqzZmVqoPP0DeDj69NrQ/s320/IMG_20230222_105430.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4R97k6Ke45oyqipYovJ1PXYXMqG7TEU0UcPss1JUydmVPkddeKv75NQ0HpERvxPZvAGzeTHUb7aR6IDIHGhmhJX-9abAmB-c2SmxOAwrXB2ODkiy-3Q4dPWhGzDihLZKtEumXs7R2ymlS8nlI1Qg1jkGSbSBZsfc3OxzGERoAEp9N0EZN0Or6ZI06iQ/s4000/IMG_20230222_121822.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4R97k6Ke45oyqipYovJ1PXYXMqG7TEU0UcPss1JUydmVPkddeKv75NQ0HpERvxPZvAGzeTHUb7aR6IDIHGhmhJX-9abAmB-c2SmxOAwrXB2ODkiy-3Q4dPWhGzDihLZKtEumXs7R2ymlS8nlI1Qg1jkGSbSBZsfc3OxzGERoAEp9N0EZN0Or6ZI06iQ/s320/IMG_20230222_121822.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr2NiGfAY6tY3Ck04mJjjCQV2VRNskkdODkxKJMNJkaczx_BRQ_f7OGxNqc3UY4aIyMF18LZpYejrtIsccIpmWvXInjalgjW8-iOTwcPW2KGzrH7ZflEVz9q4QUdEpNial6UseYLeicvQYC0IrRFCqMtzvpj3dOAvPj9g2amoy4UhDekeaYnnE3aGZPg/s4000/IMG_20230221_153245.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr2NiGfAY6tY3Ck04mJjjCQV2VRNskkdODkxKJMNJkaczx_BRQ_f7OGxNqc3UY4aIyMF18LZpYejrtIsccIpmWvXInjalgjW8-iOTwcPW2KGzrH7ZflEVz9q4QUdEpNial6UseYLeicvQYC0IrRFCqMtzvpj3dOAvPj9g2amoy4UhDekeaYnnE3aGZPg/s320/IMG_20230221_153245.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Eventually we continued to New
Palatino for lunch, where a local woman called Vayia made me a delicious Greek
salad with good vegetables and cheese and herbs. She fussed over Lisa, bringing
her water and talking to me about her own dog, getting quite emotional as she
said the only sad thing is they don’t live long. Afterwards, we continued along
the road and veered uphill on the road leading north to an area called Kamara
with a cluster of shops. I peered in the window of an old-fashioned looking
bakery, and the woman inside started telling me all about how dogs are good and
people aren’t, then gave Lisa a biscuit. I also saw a bedding shop, and
wondered if I could surreptitiously sneak a new mattress into my room.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">We followed the road a little further
then turned onto a lovely rocky track through green hills, and
sweet-smelling yellow broom flowers, and bushes full of white cistus flowers,
and more buttercups… There were wind turbines on the other side of the valley
but it was all gorgeously lush, with the sound of goat bells as we got down to
Ayios Nikolaos beach. A family arrived by car and the little girl asked if she
could pat Lisa. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEee5eskwGZp6tGPiX0hThnBNgfh-t6h8K65EniooCHTSakDM75M6fZj96l6PFq_vYuiTFY52z9U4y1lF6YRdppOGMS7jks29cWvGna6kOEqV5xTNRCqDFXDqKooNWb_qiE0J27P5S2hLMQgpywjeMrcmj6-Slqz8CR7C8haPFHKV-XV0FfR-7sLWaTQ/s4000/IMG_20230222_143656.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEee5eskwGZp6tGPiX0hThnBNgfh-t6h8K65EniooCHTSakDM75M6fZj96l6PFq_vYuiTFY52z9U4y1lF6YRdppOGMS7jks29cWvGna6kOEqV5xTNRCqDFXDqKooNWb_qiE0J27P5S2hLMQgpywjeMrcmj6-Slqz8CR7C8haPFHKV-XV0FfR-7sLWaTQ/s320/IMG_20230222_143656.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZjAZwUZNHA7h0Ca7YMUsV584PorFS9uohCyGSGOb-kBsPJm_UoNACdEVI4byry_6rcqbMXba9TgSJcAqzwA3MHQqo48yjdmt34cFy2zKNqxsxpCc19YjkG3u_kmEJRAZV8kjVEZD9SkHaYynqSGm4vufCnLvSYDXX6I_jiKBX8P2ig2ra3ZJPzEBVNw/s4000/IMG_20230222_143820.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZjAZwUZNHA7h0Ca7YMUsV584PorFS9uohCyGSGOb-kBsPJm_UoNACdEVI4byry_6rcqbMXba9TgSJcAqzwA3MHQqo48yjdmt34cFy2zKNqxsxpCc19YjkG3u_kmEJRAZV8kjVEZD9SkHaYynqSGm4vufCnLvSYDXX6I_jiKBX8P2ig2ra3ZJPzEBVNw/s320/IMG_20230222_143820.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie7snav0RB1sIKYkRu1E8R8oSZVmOkJLZxsxmUB0448GdFDhKcE3-BSuN3SoR2DXypniha5YiNQZ2lOIN8g1ewpur9j30uQjDo1rDCnkMirPkI5xAlAM4aPPFsxizafSg4UW3LuXkSyAHzhAVLJwQhRuxPFeftjLgLIt1c5GlW0S3rT0lIZD6E1Wvd6Q/s4000/IMG_20230222_145113.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie7snav0RB1sIKYkRu1E8R8oSZVmOkJLZxsxmUB0448GdFDhKcE3-BSuN3SoR2DXypniha5YiNQZ2lOIN8g1ewpur9j30uQjDo1rDCnkMirPkI5xAlAM4aPPFsxizafSg4UW3LuXkSyAHzhAVLJwQhRuxPFeftjLgLIt1c5GlW0S3rT0lIZD6E1Wvd6Q/s320/IMG_20230222_145113.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht_CjfC5ZCak_5z0L-Sd-uCLos8M20nmboChi9u5Q1snpbNeCjzOcmqvmbt1ZtTZjLKCJm2vSQM-Sg5RcUQTDB57mgdX2VAzkXdrYX78ntCHaptTn4uLfSQaCcFlz_xytcn1AIIKJrRRa4I-VVN1ltu_A053M4ntl30zNGiA52tSTtLmLQHhvQux456g/s4000/IMG_20230222_143844.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht_CjfC5ZCak_5z0L-Sd-uCLos8M20nmboChi9u5Q1snpbNeCjzOcmqvmbt1ZtTZjLKCJm2vSQM-Sg5RcUQTDB57mgdX2VAzkXdrYX78ntCHaptTn4uLfSQaCcFlz_xytcn1AIIKJrRRa4I-VVN1ltu_A053M4ntl30zNGiA52tSTtLmLQHhvQux456g/s320/IMG_20230222_143844.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBEPGCGk-q-3LOJT9eTd5aSRqaozQ6sqa68BeHpac6qNuioyCje2ChlHvhNC5sbCiuwT7s_Q-28fl7SYMz4NfpzdH3e7Xt7YSwg2s1TlYLnxgRR5i3rj0n966gxQEZoC1gQZodaZUVIsz03d4_dfJj9ozfoCHZsDWNqIT3qtR3IOSgBBewKwZSnUfkbg/s4000/IMG_20230222_155642.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBEPGCGk-q-3LOJT9eTd5aSRqaozQ6sqa68BeHpac6qNuioyCje2ChlHvhNC5sbCiuwT7s_Q-28fl7SYMz4NfpzdH3e7Xt7YSwg2s1TlYLnxgRR5i3rj0n966gxQEZoC1gQZodaZUVIsz03d4_dfJj9ozfoCHZsDWNqIT3qtR3IOSgBBewKwZSnUfkbg/s320/IMG_20230222_155642.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">We continued along a
rough track around a stunning piece of coastline, the hills looking rugged to the
north, while to the south there were hills covered in tractor-tilled fields. I
stopped mesmerised for a while to watch and listen to a shepherd whistling to
round up his goats, his dog running back and forth, the only sound the
whistling and goat bells and the sea crashing in below. <o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9F_x15-K-D8iyWIBI_fcfG_PI05FJ3gB9P7U4Rf6914rralNVHX6jziPzxlbF6UsRqLAvmvvuDZVph3-8EIniSiBbfgjyvV1nXcdKrkIVDQoHAsN4kkFRRNBVuBMeanvcxInNf20nMt-MyzEkhEvxMQXL3kLQUiNzC50zeaUXl5ASFD3XoXD0Ggr1jw/s4000/IMG_20230222_150415.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9F_x15-K-D8iyWIBI_fcfG_PI05FJ3gB9P7U4Rf6914rralNVHX6jziPzxlbF6UsRqLAvmvvuDZVph3-8EIniSiBbfgjyvV1nXcdKrkIVDQoHAsN4kkFRRNBVuBMeanvcxInNf20nMt-MyzEkhEvxMQXL3kLQUiNzC50zeaUXl5ASFD3XoXD0Ggr1jw/s320/IMG_20230222_150415.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSXl4kRzyT2Ky_2AEL06t3dpJHIRlTyRo7qpOU44LnHiZGv_cXIZmq9NChhMRVCfR4BmrEHhHGYfnh8CcThy7-hG_IBD1Ec-xhjro47HsFHpCNG3Koom6cDEgqzwKvrB3GRNXHVkkTKprrriTdx-m4WH3XS2HcaitREFaMsI6fCzCMlsompXi6udBglw/s4000/IMG_20230222_161259.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSXl4kRzyT2Ky_2AEL06t3dpJHIRlTyRo7qpOU44LnHiZGv_cXIZmq9NChhMRVCfR4BmrEHhHGYfnh8CcThy7-hG_IBD1Ec-xhjro47HsFHpCNG3Koom6cDEgqzwKvrB3GRNXHVkkTKprrriTdx-m4WH3XS2HcaitREFaMsI6fCzCMlsompXi6udBglw/s320/IMG_20230222_161259.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilVIpH6N-3lzA6fG2XLSQS4oPvLFB5AXLy4n6ZbJA_6kMNa2m6xEWztTw10VNxq2l7-Ylq57citOj6H7KT59t7XpYSTdlkRk2j8vVqX8Q9RU4nnh6AgzhxGoX_MiR8F_P7FZeYhE1l6Hn5Q77PvDSw4IofGpZO5yLs-rahVJE14tmJj-940bayjMJkqg/s4000/IMG_20230222_163012.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilVIpH6N-3lzA6fG2XLSQS4oPvLFB5AXLy4n6ZbJA_6kMNa2m6xEWztTw10VNxq2l7-Ylq57citOj6H7KT59t7XpYSTdlkRk2j8vVqX8Q9RU4nnh6AgzhxGoX_MiR8F_P7FZeYhE1l6Hn5Q77PvDSw4IofGpZO5yLs-rahVJE14tmJj-940bayjMJkqg/s320/IMG_20230222_163012.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">In the distance, I saw a man on a motorbike leading two horses. Further on, a middle-aged man in
a checked shirt waited patiently for his cows to graze on a lush patch of grass.
We passed through a little settlement with fields and trees and barking
dogs, then back to the road. When I stopped at a little supermarket, the pretty
young girl in charge introduced herself as Stamatia and told me a long story
about how her dog went calling on another dog overnight, then insisted on
feeding a handful of dog biscuits to Lisa. I asked about local wine and learned
instead they had Raven, a locally brewed pale ale. Wow. I might be staying on
Leros a while… <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">‘Are you from Leros?’ I asked,
intrigued by her.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">She was, she said, ‘but from Partheni,
far away…’ <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Partheni was right in the north
of the island, and I decided to go there the next day.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></p>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-62768106677756148982023-01-07T11:57:00.001+02:002023-01-07T11:57:06.023+02:00Symi in late December: Wine, Fridges and Frescoes<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNfaO6zuWMG2jH-8i2BMapOMNzoqVL6t5Ruv-E9J-XTckJKyLPuEz1xFPb2EUH2UyM82F6j4nns7MlbJcGK50IaTq1HEwlVupws350bstAjCLgC9dO_O5BzUM5wou7PxrG1Se9qLT6I8xqTPjYhirexzTQgrSETebgkC9XiBC69c9tHlKwifCeOFGBRw/s4000/IMG_20221228_152526.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNfaO6zuWMG2jH-8i2BMapOMNzoqVL6t5Ruv-E9J-XTckJKyLPuEz1xFPb2EUH2UyM82F6j4nns7MlbJcGK50IaTq1HEwlVupws350bstAjCLgC9dO_O5BzUM5wou7PxrG1Se9qLT6I8xqTPjYhirexzTQgrSETebgkC9XiBC69c9tHlKwifCeOFGBRw/w400-h300/IMG_20221228_152526.jpg" width="400" /></a></p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">There are two souvlaki houses in Symi harbour, but both turned
out to be closed until the New Year. A lot of islanders went away for the
holidays, and you can’t blame them after two Covid years and then a financial
recovery year which was exceptionally busy. A bar had burgers and club
sandwiches, but they said one restaurant was open around the harbour. I wanted a
big dinner as fuel for walking the next day.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The restaurant was open, empty (it was early), didn’t
have any of the oven-baked food I’d hoped for, and was quite expensive. The salad was mostly rock-hard tomatoes. But
it had a nice view over the water, friendly people; gradually other customers
arrived, a group of English people who had a house here, and two frozen-looking
Germans who’d arrived on a boat and ordered tea and fava.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The owner came to talk to me when he wasn’t busy, and I was
pleased to chat in Greek – I don’t get enough practice at home. Asked if I was
staying for New Year’s Eve, I explained I’d like to but would have to find a
cheaper place to stay. By the end of the evening, I was being offered a room, an extra slice of cheesecake and dinner on the house… and a waitressing job.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">So I did wake next
morning with a certain anxiety. How do these things happen? No matter, it could all be resolved later.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">It was 28 December, and outside my windows that looked
straight out onto the water, cars and scooters were zipping about. The sun
briefly hit the other side of the harbour around 9 a.m., then went behind a
small cloud, and everything was still damp and cool, though forecast to get
warm. I made myself a Greek coffee and sat on the lovely balcony, listening to
cockerels crowing somewhere back around the Kali Strata, the steps that lead up
to the Horio flanked by mansions from the late 1800s.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Despite visiting Symi several times – often for its great
hardware shops, I must admit, though with good walks also – I’d never been up
high in the centre of the island on foot to see the old wine presses. These sunny, bright winter days were perfect for it, though I’d
have to set out by mid-morning given it was getting dark soon after five.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We set out inland from the back of the harbour to reach the cemetery at Elikoni, didn’t see any markings for the path from there that was on the
map, but found a way up the dry riverbed a bit and through gates, passing sheep
that approached rather than ran away, until suddenly there was a beautiful old
stone-paved donkey path or kalderimi that twisted back and forth up the hillside,
making the going easy all the way to a church or two and small group of houses.
It was a wonderful start. By then we were already in very warm sunshine – I wished
I’d been able to dip Lisa in the sea before we set off – and lovely countryside.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5Lcj8_BGVaXAcq58SnsyInpDnaiY_q-PfgokcHgSeSDV2DsFtqQ5nBgekUD8jADRW0iZ4KdcnwM16jizMtWc5GUyU3AnW-pg08nhi4dCn3fvG2OQONdN8cARdegb6JNAxiznRdPSTIsbeZOuAn6YPNfAbVFB2LqPQY58KPQuWx3K_wXuiKyvzpvwC6w/s4000/IMG_20221228_113127.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5Lcj8_BGVaXAcq58SnsyInpDnaiY_q-PfgokcHgSeSDV2DsFtqQ5nBgekUD8jADRW0iZ4KdcnwM16jizMtWc5GUyU3AnW-pg08nhi4dCn3fvG2OQONdN8cARdegb6JNAxiznRdPSTIsbeZOuAn6YPNfAbVFB2LqPQY58KPQuWx3K_wXuiKyvzpvwC6w/s320/IMG_20221228_113127.jpg" width="240" /></a></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRKkuxiDLbfgIABA-PGWUJvWzUNdv1PENUges-EZhuozhVkVwYMG94RDIr9fOI1Q1gz9KCH9ttxf1pc6s26pxRgo-CcELuOKeZXLOf6y1FVKvL01FJToMULQZ3X7aFpcwr87EZvpbzqVCZDdc7Rx58z8Oyt3Uziq5OboNDCJgk-5ElWhJ37lUPC6vjRw/s4000/IMG_20221228_114024.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRKkuxiDLbfgIABA-PGWUJvWzUNdv1PENUges-EZhuozhVkVwYMG94RDIr9fOI1Q1gz9KCH9ttxf1pc6s26pxRgo-CcELuOKeZXLOf6y1FVKvL01FJToMULQZ3X7aFpcwr87EZvpbzqVCZDdc7Rx58z8Oyt3Uziq5OboNDCJgk-5ElWhJ37lUPC6vjRw/s320/IMG_20221228_114024.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSk6kYTHFD4-t0n568-of7E9ko65rvNCsO8VLotjEMftTqCpyXuk2_5Js600NiXAY48xUwKQ96lLc1qbp9lVK1ReEbMno0KHnBGd11ZBj7AFvBlfaE6M-ggUcPSaSS4fzRKYfeW0zdMisw03AMANX1QILbyo93g5K8NUFrRP6IB685O6KCL64FLiSU-g/s4000/IMG_20221228_115805.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSk6kYTHFD4-t0n568-of7E9ko65rvNCsO8VLotjEMftTqCpyXuk2_5Js600NiXAY48xUwKQ96lLc1qbp9lVK1ReEbMno0KHnBGd11ZBj7AFvBlfaE6M-ggUcPSaSS4fzRKYfeW0zdMisw03AMANX1QILbyo93g5K8NUFrRP6IB685O6KCL64FLiSU-g/s320/IMG_20221228_115805.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Turning left, we followed the gradually ascending road past
the Xisos turn-off and eventually to meet the main road that crosses over the
top of the island and heads down again on the other side to the big monastery
of Panormitis. Thankfully at this time of year there was no traffic, just the sound
of sheep bells (and a jackhammer far below, of course, this also being perfect
weather for construction work).</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyB1p38FSSZYUBohdn9FmDzqdJbJvp3y9N-JmaxEpWZu4msvuSRUXfvyqSBbrqu6pAzhnQrt8aFbP4uRH23yqu6Xfows_DGZrSAY3VQCPE6Yv5zT5Q0TuJSAuVyI-xaVqH_R8eZWBm9Lol3gbnp3fTuXPhKGQZHOEFcnAhDAhCsQtLb3bCECxFOAgxhw/s4000/IMG_20221228_125008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyB1p38FSSZYUBohdn9FmDzqdJbJvp3y9N-JmaxEpWZu4msvuSRUXfvyqSBbrqu6pAzhnQrt8aFbP4uRH23yqu6Xfows_DGZrSAY3VQCPE6Yv5zT5Q0TuJSAuVyI-xaVqH_R8eZWBm9Lol3gbnp3fTuXPhKGQZHOEFcnAhDAhCsQtLb3bCECxFOAgxhw/s320/IMG_20221228_125008.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">There was a nice little detour on a kalderimi again, beside a
field where someone was burning olive branches, to the chapels of Ayia Katerina and Panayia tis Stylou (tempting to think of the name as a
corruption of <i>tis Tylou</i>, ‘of Tilos’, since there was a view of our
island!). After a couple of hours of ascending, it felt as though we were in
the uplands, the road unexpectedly winding around cultivated valleys scattered
with monasteries, and eagles and crows circling around Vigla peak just above
(617m, the highest on the island), with what looked like a broken wind turbine.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI-ikGG-o9yptbZE38A-afZoJyvjLjMLp72Ms6R7vM8VjgfLXGFAzUssRq5ZPoc4h_lnKBpHL6C1FhLT0zOYZ4MnoeGfSWLq5LwBTKS9nGF4FzYB-042kj64V043Pascp_8vNVl7n4KF-DQ5Ta2cdYMN0D8c030qDhgfbP3yvIocRRoJUu4ZRSqgbwLw/s4000/IMG_20221228_155855.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI-ikGG-o9yptbZE38A-afZoJyvjLjMLp72Ms6R7vM8VjgfLXGFAzUssRq5ZPoc4h_lnKBpHL6C1FhLT0zOYZ4MnoeGfSWLq5LwBTKS9nGF4FzYB-042kj64V043Pascp_8vNVl7n4KF-DQ5Ta2cdYMN0D8c030qDhgfbP3yvIocRRoJUu4ZRSqgbwLw/s320/IMG_20221228_155855.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I had decided to aim for the ‘Pano Krasokelia’, Upper Wine
Presses, following the directions in Kritikos Sarantis’ booklet <i>Discover
Symi on Foot</i> – copyright 2007 but bought here just a couple of years ago so
hopefully it wouldn’t be too out of date – along with an also locally produced
walking map. Blue and red paint dots also marked paths here and there.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Passing the padlocked monastery of Ayios Konstantinos , I continued
to Ayios Nikolas as directed, but there was no sign of the path if I was
reading the instructions right. There was a truck outside and washing hanging
to dry, but nobody to ask. After a few attempts to find the way across rough
ground with gates very tightly wired shut, I had to give up. Perhaps on my own
I’d have tried harder, but it wasn’t worth making Lisa walk through fields of thistles.
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Back to the road, instead I took the turn a few minutes later to
Kokkimidis, following a narrow, pleasant concrete track that ran below those
elusive wine presses into beautiful hilly uplands, with enclosures where again
the sheep and goats seemed to approach rather than run, and there was a
stone-build pond filled with water. I realised I hadn’t seen anything like the
death toll of goats we have on Tilos this winter. Although the fences and gates
here might be limiting, the animals were looked after, fed and watered.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikqBgcv29jk6UCm5GwIj5oxFE-O-MKwdzCoLuQMDjXGOutdL9XBNkR8VY7myqRBld2GYNGmD2ork2HhWNqt9XuPKyjDKNjiNGySndgfXtGc6SxcKPJg4Q6eqowz8NWvd9_f93kLte24BZamG39TDoGea3gljf027QzS8K4Wkl_4lr1sCp1-h52Meod2g/s3264/IMG_20221228_152744.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikqBgcv29jk6UCm5GwIj5oxFE-O-MKwdzCoLuQMDjXGOutdL9XBNkR8VY7myqRBld2GYNGmD2ork2HhWNqt9XuPKyjDKNjiNGySndgfXtGc6SxcKPJg4Q6eqowz8NWvd9_f93kLte24BZamG39TDoGea3gljf027QzS8K4Wkl_4lr1sCp1-h52Meod2g/s320/IMG_20221228_152744.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The track led to a cluster of historic buildings through gorgeous
countryside, and at some point, someone in authority must have thought: what a perfect
place to throw the old fridges down the mountain! For there, lo and behold, was
that scourge of the Greek islands, the edge of the old dump, spilling down the
hillside towards the forest. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHxsVk6NegXaS5D7PM2XNt0atrVe4IcgvdRCQOFnkIm2DaRowAo0jWO3drdXIpoMWFV-Ef0ASw86o2a7uqIxRgXd5WwEV0tT2m3ZYlqeKSs8bF57-xdWxfR7qARf8yuLt7po3V3fjpXHssGs26k1IZ1uQZlFuFe-IdHbaTsNd9jBr4T1dnGjXgzmlj4g/s4000/IMG_20221228_135657.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHxsVk6NegXaS5D7PM2XNt0atrVe4IcgvdRCQOFnkIm2DaRowAo0jWO3drdXIpoMWFV-Ef0ASw86o2a7uqIxRgXd5WwEV0tT2m3ZYlqeKSs8bF57-xdWxfR7qARf8yuLt7po3V3fjpXHssGs26k1IZ1uQZlFuFe-IdHbaTsNd9jBr4T1dnGjXgzmlj4g/s320/IMG_20221228_135657.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">But at Ais Yiannis Tsagrias, the gate wasn’t padlocked, and
the door wasn’t locked, and inside were some of the oldest frescoes on the
island. They were dark, hard to make out, but showed up clearly on my phone
camera and were thrilling to see. Stepping outside again, I felt blessed to
have been able to come to this place and find them, surrounded by spectacular hills
covered in rocks and forests, with a stellar view of our modern-day
contribution, a cascade of rusted appliances.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirLih1BoT7VnYdDKz-GRguRAaRA7a7eNsg3Y4SxDdkShpkfJOy1KzhkyjIEECBXsu60i5706zdNjyHlWGTo0R9VFpSr6wi-wMHtgWtWom30TBg_85QYmPbAetcYcBLbbb6tmANKPogl2lG8xbFrqdRFLHQNcM9lekIauNnV2_Tkns9QvKSDRcO-Q8vTg/s4000/IMG_20221228_135428.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirLih1BoT7VnYdDKz-GRguRAaRA7a7eNsg3Y4SxDdkShpkfJOy1KzhkyjIEECBXsu60i5706zdNjyHlWGTo0R9VFpSr6wi-wMHtgWtWom30TBg_85QYmPbAetcYcBLbbb6tmANKPogl2lG8xbFrqdRFLHQNcM9lekIauNnV2_Tkns9QvKSDRcO-Q8vTg/w400-h300/IMG_20221228_135428.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNQdkX7sOHZcjKm0fsKhtouUyA5jMDjUafH3irCApQWIceWbpY4L5TK9dkXnOxQRYGPU2BHSKRcm0kreuQy8mlGfWS5PrvvIrtRTGOwq26mQAYgadWxHyJD-pBXhNW3IUIY4DgJvoB732Z3-4Y3CUwyv5ubP9RbE5z30n5uqhJHzhhMGoXBMYCe6GHqg/s4000/IMG_20221228_135455.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNQdkX7sOHZcjKm0fsKhtouUyA5jMDjUafH3irCApQWIceWbpY4L5TK9dkXnOxQRYGPU2BHSKRcm0kreuQy8mlGfWS5PrvvIrtRTGOwq26mQAYgadWxHyJD-pBXhNW3IUIY4DgJvoB732Z3-4Y3CUwyv5ubP9RbE5z30n5uqhJHzhhMGoXBMYCe6GHqg/w400-h300/IMG_20221228_135455.jpg" width="400" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW7CvdpAtg1Mbk39ItTc3zwlCaJ8SpOakt2kfgy2Vdj7UIcRaRa50Wx7mx_LnotI2Fqct8T58scRZurjaMsV87ysgTYXu7WJn5sauKqD-pK5WM-oAiUBRFaHx_0yTMOQG8r1fSytjmF4HdkCSkgNg5OFAdbKY0yuaUSpCk5P99PlTQwGsdlNXsPBeVhA/s4000/IMG_20221228_140326.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW7CvdpAtg1Mbk39ItTc3zwlCaJ8SpOakt2kfgy2Vdj7UIcRaRa50Wx7mx_LnotI2Fqct8T58scRZurjaMsV87ysgTYXu7WJn5sauKqD-pK5WM-oAiUBRFaHx_0yTMOQG8r1fSytjmF4HdkCSkgNg5OFAdbKY0yuaUSpCk5P99PlTQwGsdlNXsPBeVhA/w400-h300/IMG_20221228_140326.jpg" width="400" /></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Just beyond were the remains of an ancient hilltop fort (above: Lisa shocked that you could see the rubbish dump from here too?), perhaps
repurposed once as a farm. There was a big stone water cistern, and a</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> little further along a primitive ancient
wine press, just a block of stone with a circular carving, in a padlocked enclosure for animals. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Beyond there, past
some old stone terraces at the end of the road near large old trees was
Kambiotissa, a monastery built like a fortress with tall walls and still
seemingly guarded thus with padlocks and fences all around. I tried following
the fence around to the back and glimpsed what perhaps was a more recent wine-pressing
building, but it was hard to tell.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTFJ2GyW9brPNrE94rxOlt57vzh7FhlIclnkWUE_CN0CU7eCNnth2lqlryGyhVubI1fO0uFB_8VhbKBRACCLQtPY6G2S9IAeuJR2cA-TQ-lTU10ykAqNdhE9UpdbbcD2a7_Cuocf09weviXDUd6phLjgwPPU1g-ragetPSLhMdNEw5N-z8VGDTy4OXWQ/s3264/IMG_20221228_152714.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTFJ2GyW9brPNrE94rxOlt57vzh7FhlIclnkWUE_CN0CU7eCNnth2lqlryGyhVubI1fO0uFB_8VhbKBRACCLQtPY6G2S9IAeuJR2cA-TQ-lTU10ykAqNdhE9UpdbbcD2a7_Cuocf09weviXDUd6phLjgwPPU1g-ragetPSLhMdNEw5N-z8VGDTy4OXWQ/s320/IMG_20221228_152714.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTIdnUXTaw3_L7LuMwvBnJmq1oFBNytfywR8r_AptvJe2szak4Gl2rZf12wNpyewc4XnGUfen63NdwIDEysrZuG6MEWsfw_CSFod1wdnvMhhGzxFUBAOQJddjBlKMUMlV2WKLabjMiVTmqPVqfMtH-ePV-82Nvqlo9T6xKExHyCO1U961dZPcVVxZ7rg/s4000/IMG_20221228_144602.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTIdnUXTaw3_L7LuMwvBnJmq1oFBNytfywR8r_AptvJe2szak4Gl2rZf12wNpyewc4XnGUfen63NdwIDEysrZuG6MEWsfw_CSFod1wdnvMhhGzxFUBAOQJddjBlKMUMlV2WKLabjMiVTmqPVqfMtH-ePV-82Nvqlo9T6xKExHyCO1U961dZPcVVxZ7rg/s320/IMG_20221228_144602.jpg" width="240" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9spxdq-M00eYRtdINMnbCgUlRuyKrBdxR5-rmo28e2FIN9MwQDbsscxut6BFCz6TdL7sqhXiGra7FwWPmDKg-LX1AixXzLdxD0uDAPal-nip4vuyEGpHeLvuJo-_PGRiiiRm9LznjMcju4O57QK_isDyZimbNbkqIPMzw4F2mDUgglP6_zMjncveWQw/s4000/IMG_20221228_144320.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9spxdq-M00eYRtdINMnbCgUlRuyKrBdxR5-rmo28e2FIN9MwQDbsscxut6BFCz6TdL7sqhXiGra7FwWPmDKg-LX1AixXzLdxD0uDAPal-nip4vuyEGpHeLvuJo-_PGRiiiRm9LznjMcju4O57QK_isDyZimbNbkqIPMzw4F2mDUgglP6_zMjncveWQw/w400-h300/IMG_20221228_144320.jpg" width="400" /></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We were tired, and Lisa was keen to head back, but I decided
to take one last detour uphill to the monastery of Kokkimidis, joking aloud to Lisa
that this one would make our day, even as I fully expected it to be padlocked
and fenced. But hallelujah! A car I’d seen earlier, perhaps the only car in
hours, speeding up the road, was parked at the top of the winding track, and
the gate open. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I heard voices inside, but seeing nobody, I left Lisa tied to
the fence and tried the door to the church, above which was an old plaque alluding to a restoration in 1697 – and opened it to an astonishing little church, every inch of walls and ceiling painted
with fascinating, beautiful scenes. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLJZp2UgL0GQ2pQPaMzdmOEZxwnh0y4a-ceOPJQ43a8FV9n-b9D19-ITvaRHiiSOrlE8PPLQ0E5xrlS56MhBHRFWkquV8umtwY3t-0IIjlRKpFLou9NefI_0aqT4QHgGJo2SoJ2lkhQourC5huwoMDE1sJeoSkPKD47GVklacKFroc7arazkognh7yVQ/s4000/IMG_20221228_145630.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLJZp2UgL0GQ2pQPaMzdmOEZxwnh0y4a-ceOPJQ43a8FV9n-b9D19-ITvaRHiiSOrlE8PPLQ0E5xrlS56MhBHRFWkquV8umtwY3t-0IIjlRKpFLou9NefI_0aqT4QHgGJo2SoJ2lkhQourC5huwoMDE1sJeoSkPKD47GVklacKFroc7arazkognh7yVQ/s320/IMG_20221228_145630.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoSb5iLu0LxC1hATwWwlz2SNhWTAG0ejjidu1xBukkXzqk1hTJ2JTRZG6tNmHaC8C1qME8KE2uiuSQDMcAVo80FB31UBUkU9r2scwKzaGioIP8V4uFTdE4VsOkREAGexba3GjBpPwhCuvWENVKm38vobi5BXNo1jPpS2ZmcQ2XXhZJoVB7fcHzSQSmUg/s4000/IMG_20221228_145731.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoSb5iLu0LxC1hATwWwlz2SNhWTAG0ejjidu1xBukkXzqk1hTJ2JTRZG6tNmHaC8C1qME8KE2uiuSQDMcAVo80FB31UBUkU9r2scwKzaGioIP8V4uFTdE4VsOkREAGexba3GjBpPwhCuvWENVKm38vobi5BXNo1jPpS2ZmcQ2XXhZJoVB7fcHzSQSmUg/s320/IMG_20221228_145731.jpg" width="320" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy2PffK8jVeQl9EFsdQSiYM7K-3rk-xESwWEFxrbsL2loWw-bkwr6rqFMA30DIwkcbIN1DNiifrLOS3lBfNlrEy3qQMaEIdzDslUIhrJxfZyrwGh6ClSDZPcMgc22RiAiPnFd8rOMmVfYX-JN_GvewBNbN6Lnzaf45i_YIacurYPEWmJTXGHeRJbdhOA/s4000/IMG_20221228_145803.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy2PffK8jVeQl9EFsdQSiYM7K-3rk-xESwWEFxrbsL2loWw-bkwr6rqFMA30DIwkcbIN1DNiifrLOS3lBfNlrEy3qQMaEIdzDslUIhrJxfZyrwGh6ClSDZPcMgc22RiAiPnFd8rOMmVfYX-JN_GvewBNbN6Lnzaf45i_YIacurYPEWmJTXGHeRJbdhOA/s320/IMG_20221228_145803.jpg" width="320" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmt4Ftekrp0rRg3HpVqZum9D2_lTnltn-KkSZ6HVvOmte9WwK0oRhZ7BRrXgmWafuW2OPe4TILdpzNd3XZ1Pl-pTp7SwdNLAWlogwo_7drDVsY_oe_EvJokqNVeyYacCatWStFPcj7Dfv_qP1_vT0sPj1YLxXxlrteglXkIYnv0zL8oelnE4jvEKDB4Q/s4000/IMG_20221228_145809.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmt4Ftekrp0rRg3HpVqZum9D2_lTnltn-KkSZ6HVvOmte9WwK0oRhZ7BRrXgmWafuW2OPe4TILdpzNd3XZ1Pl-pTp7SwdNLAWlogwo_7drDVsY_oe_EvJokqNVeyYacCatWStFPcj7Dfv_qP1_vT0sPj1YLxXxlrteglXkIYnv0zL8oelnE4jvEKDB4Q/s320/IMG_20221228_145809.jpg" width="320" /></a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb581baP8h80kk7FdD6UPHSju7XmCmFuNs_SuuSGUBjF3O9aBSpbqgLmT3vnqX_1Wwv-meGM-euv4937R9th20V8MlosGW__k2WZoWml7V7PqlZo-8BoDky0HIKGsISKIXy7vFSMPKAfLb7z7RyEQ_jGUsn0BgbBzSzNvEsFVFNvUsXCSidGZYx2uIVA/s4000/IMG_20221228_150154.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb581baP8h80kk7FdD6UPHSju7XmCmFuNs_SuuSGUBjF3O9aBSpbqgLmT3vnqX_1Wwv-meGM-euv4937R9th20V8MlosGW__k2WZoWml7V7PqlZo-8BoDky0HIKGsISKIXy7vFSMPKAfLb7z7RyEQ_jGUsn0BgbBzSzNvEsFVFNvUsXCSidGZYx2uIVA/w400-h300/IMG_20221228_150154.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">The floor was a pebble mosaic, with an interesting bit of graffiti in it: 8.11.1970, Tilos, and some initials, carved into the stone - that must have taken some dedication! Perhaps M.S.S. was the person who made the floor?</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYB4AzpsILBMA83HAo3tg0vJdObNFZMVxNrNR4xi4jnvg7-14Djhb221EmzmiJfoOhKQzO6Le1fnkcTOPGujBSPIMJMWy6l_QdBAtb-zu19eqYj1sbQb64-_O63wu1gR7KlU3WIOoZyUcnQ9LvTG9luOJvTRhE054R8Gw2MTvotUpE27cspKtrywEI2Q/s4000/IMG_20221228_145712.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYB4AzpsILBMA83HAo3tg0vJdObNFZMVxNrNR4xi4jnvg7-14Djhb221EmzmiJfoOhKQzO6Le1fnkcTOPGujBSPIMJMWy6l_QdBAtb-zu19eqYj1sbQb64-_O63wu1gR7KlU3WIOoZyUcnQ9LvTG9luOJvTRhE054R8Gw2MTvotUpE27cspKtrywEI2Q/w300-h400/IMG_20221228_145712.jpg" width="300" /></a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAVgnb3q0-jAzZo_Mcd4Y1Fkg56cf9x65yBRyklBkg-FHbOQeIYXcO0pxtnQU485oVBSZRLEzEsfR_c6pXN-S32i5NZ_0Th_svmOTV3BUAL4wAfN0msDxSnUVX9ly-tRMTCiVfAhsjSr9UGxhufQaw7evnapfdPkJAG24ho7hu4_R2Ne3_JeM1elBu1w/s4000/IMG_20221228_145958.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAVgnb3q0-jAzZo_Mcd4Y1Fkg56cf9x65yBRyklBkg-FHbOQeIYXcO0pxtnQU485oVBSZRLEzEsfR_c6pXN-S32i5NZ_0Th_svmOTV3BUAL4wAfN0msDxSnUVX9ly-tRMTCiVfAhsjSr9UGxhufQaw7evnapfdPkJAG24ho7hu4_R2Ne3_JeM1elBu1w/s320/IMG_20221228_145958.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTFJ2GyW9brPNrE94rxOlt57vzh7FhlIclnkWUE_CN0CU7eCNnth2lqlryGyhVubI1fO0uFB_8VhbKBRACCLQtPY6G2S9IAeuJR2cA-TQ-lTU10ykAqNdhE9UpdbbcD2a7_Cuocf09weviXDUd6phLjgwPPU1g-ragetPSLhMdNEw5N-z8VGDTy4OXWQ/s3264/IMG_20221228_152714.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTFJ2GyW9brPNrE94rxOlt57vzh7FhlIclnkWUE_CN0CU7eCNnth2lqlryGyhVubI1fO0uFB_8VhbKBRACCLQtPY6G2S9IAeuJR2cA-TQ-lTU10ykAqNdhE9UpdbbcD2a7_Cuocf09weviXDUd6phLjgwPPU1g-ragetPSLhMdNEw5N-z8VGDTy4OXWQ/s320/IMG_20221228_152714.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbw0X94sBwYJBUQSaORbVd3yqABoyTQQ2YuT79eEpfpyrNZk6QQwP0QgcZKgFRIYnhXLmc8_J_SidRfbQRJcykdabuR0huP_GYaQQOwttSCkEk2LTgUTs-o_GUh40Qe-mqjKadRpC_z6yyZK_mxa3WxL_I-PWmoIE3giob0EljW3w6QikMx4fK8n648A/s4000/IMG_20221228_152414.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbw0X94sBwYJBUQSaORbVd3yqABoyTQQ2YuT79eEpfpyrNZk6QQwP0QgcZKgFRIYnhXLmc8_J_SidRfbQRJcykdabuR0huP_GYaQQOwttSCkEk2LTgUTs-o_GUh40Qe-mqjKadRpC_z6yyZK_mxa3WxL_I-PWmoIE3giob0EljW3w6QikMx4fK8n648A/s320/IMG_20221228_152414.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">It had been a stroke of luck to find the place open; and I'd have missed that if we'd got to the wine presses. And so, we walked back down, in beautiful light, everything
still and glowing, the sea glassy, Lisa determined that we should go back
exactly the way we came, while I felt we should take the road as dusk was falling. We compromised
by trying a bulldozed track which led to a wonderful old kalderimi, which led
all the way to the Horio.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">From there Lisa guided us down to the Kali Strata, down to the harbour for dinner - and a bottle of wine on special from the old supermarket. '<i>Kalo Pascha!</i>' the owner with the dry sense of humour wished me, happy Easter, and I looked puzzled. 'I'm getting ahead of myself,' he said, 'can't wait for winter to be over.'<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuqGjHMd0tCNL0vCE6JgBG96KrezRwGT8IndbRq6ij_zXJK8IWM4fgDBy9_FKdPo29AjUFl24XGsogJQBLnxvpXWea3bMXpE9HOxZx8gHzqHFA1AIEIqax7OITu7dBLeYCpkeXQG86FDuXw7wlSD0lwC28b6CW1S-1moEnydPlUgd-8RS-hXc4KmOx9w/s4000/IMG_20221228_160311.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuqGjHMd0tCNL0vCE6JgBG96KrezRwGT8IndbRq6ij_zXJK8IWM4fgDBy9_FKdPo29AjUFl24XGsogJQBLnxvpXWea3bMXpE9HOxZx8gHzqHFA1AIEIqax7OITu7dBLeYCpkeXQG86FDuXw7wlSD0lwC28b6CW1S-1moEnydPlUgd-8RS-hXc4KmOx9w/s320/IMG_20221228_160311.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhksZstYr_Tp7PFZqFj_qae4serJpbGWlMGJrQmPYEzqHs0sc1FOVJGl4DTGVDwE4yArGPtK8LUUWeOBq9tx5uOZpks8fgvB-URNAV2fMGoUWhZE2XbttrOYjWaroHgrm_zawV3py66Csl3LhT-4JfKBtc0nrP3_3OdgZWgQuE5MZmvD-IzPaIDw1g13A/s4000/IMG_20221228_163642.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhksZstYr_Tp7PFZqFj_qae4serJpbGWlMGJrQmPYEzqHs0sc1FOVJGl4DTGVDwE4yArGPtK8LUUWeOBq9tx5uOZpks8fgvB-URNAV2fMGoUWhZE2XbttrOYjWaroHgrm_zawV3py66Csl3LhT-4JfKBtc0nrP3_3OdgZWgQuE5MZmvD-IzPaIDw1g13A/s320/IMG_20221228_163642.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY64kKrN27uXfGqxspNS4zRbwGjj4Ffftx0jKP6NAld0hLsTA6JITaa5oUFCWFnVraV4AmzGGW3C9C8yO1xco34HHP_3F28imhWshdWYMuVcAjbWWGkkz-B2x7ALS12viAuiIm5wJCd_4WhXQc_G6SPoTtZ_YHz7vp3H7g5xRrz1hvCT2H63sa3WFb2w/s4000/IMG_20221228_163727.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY64kKrN27uXfGqxspNS4zRbwGjj4Ffftx0jKP6NAld0hLsTA6JITaa5oUFCWFnVraV4AmzGGW3C9C8yO1xco34HHP_3F28imhWshdWYMuVcAjbWWGkkz-B2x7ALS12viAuiIm5wJCd_4WhXQc_G6SPoTtZ_YHz7vp3H7g5xRrz1hvCT2H63sa3WFb2w/s320/IMG_20221228_163727.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-12787406080837584142022-12-31T12:16:00.000+02:002022-12-31T12:16:44.959+02:00A Winter Trip<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzxY9jJHkby4cOQ23xinuM96OZRP4NUVW6b483IM0qQzuz2ihM2Z3vd21_N76sgmixfeyVY3gYRz9jXBWZTWZqevmQORBkRq87PG1TKxC3lG1fZ0fd09GfXYKU_kNyXwC2IfMClvYmeNbcLIXD_7lzXSUEQ6HqDNIIe5aNelLtTOjP5kCgMtoAzEL_HQ/s4000/IMG_20221227_165812.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzxY9jJHkby4cOQ23xinuM96OZRP4NUVW6b483IM0qQzuz2ihM2Z3vd21_N76sgmixfeyVY3gYRz9jXBWZTWZqevmQORBkRq87PG1TKxC3lG1fZ0fd09GfXYKU_kNyXwC2IfMClvYmeNbcLIXD_7lzXSUEQ6HqDNIIe5aNelLtTOjP5kCgMtoAzEL_HQ/w400-h300/IMG_20221227_165812.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In the quiet days of winter, I love to travel to other
islands. Although it’s beautiful here at home on Tilos, for a couple of months
now I’ve been looking forward to going somewhere new and seeing something
different. Since family and friends all left in early December, Lisa’s been
bored, wondering where everyone is. So once I’d finished some pressing work, I
was all set to go to Leros and do some exploring.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">But Leros had other ideas. Suddenly in the post-Christmas week
all the boat connections were difficult, and meant arriving late at night in a
place with no affordable dog-friendly accommodation to be found online. I may
have a reputation for being intrepid but even I didn’t fancy that. At last I
found a lovely place – but the owner said he’d made a mistake and it wasn’t
available at all. Fed up of checking Airbnb and Booking.com, I decided not to
go to Leros.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Still, I fancied going somewhere. Symi was much easier, just a
two-hour (or less) ferry ride away. Accommodation is usually expensive but I
found something that looked decent and booked it, and suddenly was very excited
about going back to Symi on my own in winter, when the weather forecast looked
promising – yet it wouldn’t be too hot for walking up into the hills. I’d
passed Symi often on the ferry to Rhodes over the previous months, and looked
longingly at those empty hillsides.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The sun felt pretty hot as we boarded the SAOS Stavros on
Tuesday lunchtime. As usual with that ferry, it felt like a private taxi with
hardly anyone on the boat, and was idyllic with the view of blue sky, blue sea,
blue islands, sunlight gleaming on the water, until the crew started washing
the deck and we had to move around trying to find a warm dry place to sit or
stand. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The SAOS takes a bit longer than the Blue Star, but it docks
at the old place by the clock tower, not the ugly modern one on the other side
of the harbour. It should have been a short stroll to the room – except of
course, Lisa had to sniff every bit of street furniture very carefully for information
about other dogs. It seemed a lot of dogs had been peeing on the artificial
Christmas trees.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-VpcrAObmkxv6O_98mt4QZdbSGGszbo84Jbu6dg6_B__lHZWd06WSo_nb_YejGSu-6BfetU6TAeaWu60bnB1N0Rn6hQI1AOqAtRiCjEKvg4Pj1f8-IOXK1uBXqPdrtyQUDVqcWRF5V8XMyjaQVJFt4lh8TDXi9gX_pblsnIC4P3_p4mbuwHyS1YL0fQ/s4000/IMG_20221227_150112.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-VpcrAObmkxv6O_98mt4QZdbSGGszbo84Jbu6dg6_B__lHZWd06WSo_nb_YejGSu-6BfetU6TAeaWu60bnB1N0Rn6hQI1AOqAtRiCjEKvg4Pj1f8-IOXK1uBXqPdrtyQUDVqcWRF5V8XMyjaQVJFt4lh8TDXi9gX_pblsnIC4P3_p4mbuwHyS1YL0fQ/s320/IMG_20221227_150112.jpg" width="240" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The room, right overlooking the harbour, was both beautiful
and hilariously odd; the bathroom was reached up steep wooden steps and
to get to the sink you had to duck under a wall that reached down from the
ceiling to about shoulder height; I had no doubt that I’d be walking straight into
it one night half-asleep. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Starving because I hadn’t had lunch, I nipped into a nearby supermarket
and found all sorts of foreign delicacies: you know you’re in Symi when you can
buy smoked salmon and real Roquefort… Then with a very fast turnaround we set
off wandering, to make the most of the couple of hours of daylight left.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">With the Kali Strata to our backs, we crossed the ‘Gefiraki’,
the little stone bridge next to the old customs house, towards some of the grand
public buildings, then Lisa decided we should head straight up some near-vertical
steps, which twisted around houses and then emerged at a plateau with paths
running between smallholdings. I found our way back to the cemetery, from where
I knew the way across to Nimborio Bay, passing the big old stones of Drakounta
and an ancient wine press, and following the stone track down to the water. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgif9uxN79oKfuXAusgk0v-FvRJH0HNpBqSXuotcSgnLphuwJqupMGkyZmmJoFx1cnx6ziAM0A5DItme5akW79KFKzFXnzF-3slb2WPDY3DO8ggHQBt6AqqBsXBdndj94n3WJE_px0X5SNR9FYPOG6Lb4RVaVuJ9qNY9I5FvrFtP-XN1FB2B2dzQqp-ag/s4000/IMG_20221227_163251.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgif9uxN79oKfuXAusgk0v-FvRJH0HNpBqSXuotcSgnLphuwJqupMGkyZmmJoFx1cnx6ziAM0A5DItme5akW79KFKzFXnzF-3slb2WPDY3DO8ggHQBt6AqqBsXBdndj94n3WJE_px0X5SNR9FYPOG6Lb4RVaVuJ9qNY9I5FvrFtP-XN1FB2B2dzQqp-ag/s320/IMG_20221227_163251.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">After Lisa had a swim, we walked around the bay to the beach at the end; I'd been this far a couple of times, and once in the heat of summer with a friend had taken the path up the hillside via the old churches and underground caverns, then over the hill and down to Toli.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I hadn’t
really expected to get anywhere new on this first afternoon, but thought I’d at
least look for the start of a path, following directions given on the local map
by Kritikos Sarantis. The path turned out to be well marked by blue paint,
leading up the side of the hill, the hillsides beyond lit up bronze. It was getting late, but I knew we could walk back along the road in the dark. Lisa didn't know that and was panicking a bit.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoXMC_BQMSnh5qxvgP7E9IqfdPP3F_H4MzCl4OmRxnjxVgGgoNnJgJ9Dz4htr-F-2leQSnwCKC6Bhi2dcdpzgMGW827JKiuJAXpIx6l_Ka3IvigISaB1pcs5w-UQf6vD6TWVgnkR0dkAcakYxMI59mwyjtykcpbj3GdYOo9uWL7CecTmyXQ-ETQM9Frw/s4000/IMG_20221227_165756.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoXMC_BQMSnh5qxvgP7E9IqfdPP3F_H4MzCl4OmRxnjxVgGgoNnJgJ9Dz4htr-F-2leQSnwCKC6Bhi2dcdpzgMGW827JKiuJAXpIx6l_Ka3IvigISaB1pcs5w-UQf6vD6TWVgnkR0dkAcakYxMI59mwyjtykcpbj3GdYOo9uWL7CecTmyXQ-ETQM9Frw/s320/IMG_20221227_165756.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb4kca5tYx3j_jJY5A9dK2Hwj1FT33hO6SKpgSV-WQR3S1zdXM3cGmoJVJB9gg04xQOmz7WIceEaoE8ozSH9OtjZMeZWBaOZmO8Ly5gcNL1iT61LkNqSMHL1ojQID6BfF8RPrVIP3pS9oxzRcwpYqSS7tN2yH4dNvZdfXZ-zYw55xn2saXyeS6MfaSdA/s4000/IMG_20221227_165809.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb4kca5tYx3j_jJY5A9dK2Hwj1FT33hO6SKpgSV-WQR3S1zdXM3cGmoJVJB9gg04xQOmz7WIceEaoE8ozSH9OtjZMeZWBaOZmO8Ly5gcNL1iT61LkNqSMHL1ojQID6BfF8RPrVIP3pS9oxzRcwpYqSS7tN2yH4dNvZdfXZ-zYw55xn2saXyeS6MfaSdA/s320/IMG_20221227_165809.jpg" width="320" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">One thing that would be confirmed on this trip, as we found on our trip to Nisyros, is that often the paths marked on the ground aren't shown on every map. As I check the Skai/Terrain map now, which I bought on the last day when the other map was falling apart, this path isn't on it. In a way, that's part of the adventure - you never know what you'll find.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUu_ZmApUjPc2bsQbwHKwK_2o2iBATdeu--TyktecoSeGfoAiBzod16MJaJujBNbFaIhxNv2m_0J4S066TAzO9T9AKYZ_lQwr3Bo79PnlaPWq6oKCH_p1WNbgXDDOyzgaB-iKm1PUKwLhKKQ1GM_VR7vbzSZIK-GmeDOBuewoUbdTRHcGm16_UUsYu_w/s4000/IMG_20221227_170147.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUu_ZmApUjPc2bsQbwHKwK_2o2iBATdeu--TyktecoSeGfoAiBzod16MJaJujBNbFaIhxNv2m_0J4S066TAzO9T9AKYZ_lQwr3Bo79PnlaPWq6oKCH_p1WNbgXDDOyzgaB-iKm1PUKwLhKKQ1GM_VR7vbzSZIK-GmeDOBuewoUbdTRHcGm16_UUsYu_w/s320/IMG_20221227_170147.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The stone
path led tantalisingly up and up until at last we reached Agios Nikolaos tou
Stenou on the ridge just as the light started to turn paler. Over the other
side, old terraces led down to a bay. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjalEOirXD5MupEsdq-y3Gx7GAPu6b5muFJc5ESDB5IVVpsQ4NgeKesLULEWJTtHWn5FFzybaaRsp241-sr9rakCX8bZqipmjMOwkV6Eg2aQMZxZPWULT05_f-2_iduN6bGGFXQ5B8-Lz6-SKWRhi7s5o0XPKOiZRcLR6YnlAkKmJk1YIrHhc44dbwRFw/s4000/IMG_20221227_170451.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjalEOirXD5MupEsdq-y3Gx7GAPu6b5muFJc5ESDB5IVVpsQ4NgeKesLULEWJTtHWn5FFzybaaRsp241-sr9rakCX8bZqipmjMOwkV6Eg2aQMZxZPWULT05_f-2_iduN6bGGFXQ5B8-Lz6-SKWRhi7s5o0XPKOiZRcLR6YnlAkKmJk1YIrHhc44dbwRFw/s320/IMG_20221227_170451.jpg" width="240" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf1wRE2EpZXScikpznQzAFdc9HQ_vjjiwp_3SNus8_zNj-1vb2wvC_XpSfh_T1yGxMvpxzDIO6_yHnToLHu5QAR_0bsZ4AtQAHDBLq6UByCO-1Mn6FyMBQ9YXu7abWjpDLn6gOM5ZR3X_GnH4XFma1vQTBnrsAI4Hs6-mzyMP4feqN8Nj-r4HHjFDl4w/s4000/IMG_20221227_170254.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf1wRE2EpZXScikpznQzAFdc9HQ_vjjiwp_3SNus8_zNj-1vb2wvC_XpSfh_T1yGxMvpxzDIO6_yHnToLHu5QAR_0bsZ4AtQAHDBLq6UByCO-1Mn6FyMBQ9YXu7abWjpDLn6gOM5ZR3X_GnH4XFma1vQTBnrsAI4Hs6-mzyMP4feqN8Nj-r4HHjFDl4w/s320/IMG_20221227_170254.jpg" width="320" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We just got back down to Nimborio for
dusk, the water still, the air warm, people fishing from boats and throwing
lines from the shore, all so silent except for the call of a bird.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We took the road back, turned inland towards Harani
and the dry dock, and suddenly there was a harrowing, persistent noise, which
spooked Lisa. It got louder, so much so that I laughed when I saw the Karnagio café
open – you’d have had to be deaf to enjoy it. It turned out to be just a couple
of guys hammering and power-sanding the rusty old hull of a boat. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Beyond the clock tower in the main harbour, things were more
peaceful, and all the lovely churches lit up. I stopped in at a shiny new supermarket
to buy dog food, but it was eye-wateringly expensive, perhaps not surprisingly
given that it’s opposite where the shiny yachts moor. I continued around to the
end of the harbour and to the old supermarket hidden down a narrow alley, where
the price of dog food was more reasonable and the friendly owner, whose sense
of humour I’d appreciate over the coming days, wished me ‘Bon appetit!’ <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Having fed Lisa and unpacked a little, I decided to celebrate an
excellent arrival, and although there were several cafes open, I pushed my luck
by seeing if I could sit at the old men’s café without causing a stir. It was beautiful,
old-school, no plastic walls or heating, no cushions or cocktails, just wooden chairs
and iron-and-marble tables and a simple counter inside. Although I got a
strange look from the patrons when I approached, the owner was happy to serve
me a glass of wine in a sort of schooner, and I wrote up notes in peace, overhearing
someone inside giving a long ouzo-fuelled diatribe punctuated by assenting
murmurs from the other table.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">It was a nice start to what was going to be a magical little
trip.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf9G7sD8DPr-f4e9n7SKtNCdSOr9KK5WfelQL-v3FEx_ZKScBclE3TSsgLRW87jEFPwgilf7E2xqvBMfKNZnAnfHcSPh6SXIz4_46KfRbM7ctY4c2bqhYBrbqOW3oMxaz9yrYmJhzLC5Vdsu6gmfpHcxjtSedYNaAr-GGl47rOFJNKOjCoeOsbyzxVOw/s4000/IMG_20221227_170415.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf9G7sD8DPr-f4e9n7SKtNCdSOr9KK5WfelQL-v3FEx_ZKScBclE3TSsgLRW87jEFPwgilf7E2xqvBMfKNZnAnfHcSPh6SXIz4_46KfRbM7ctY4c2bqhYBrbqOW3oMxaz9yrYmJhzLC5Vdsu6gmfpHcxjtSedYNaAr-GGl47rOFJNKOjCoeOsbyzxVOw/s320/IMG_20221227_170415.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC3Xm--xF1s7hUYW9Y89wC2WJsDam0vj4Si1ZBuaij3RMuDCtcZI8wS5W65PalwbnBPKEa3dwla81tgZ229vvNnf5hhyycHZYraULL0fiqJfjHRkBTaQRHP0U8_1T1vlBdGp6tf8zpvMTQy8AsuImk2hrms-9hTg_Rs0HkkMu4dU_d3D_VHQyR17Fl4A/s4000/IMG_20221227_170548.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC3Xm--xF1s7hUYW9Y89wC2WJsDam0vj4Si1ZBuaij3RMuDCtcZI8wS5W65PalwbnBPKEa3dwla81tgZ229vvNnf5hhyycHZYraULL0fiqJfjHRkBTaQRHP0U8_1T1vlBdGp6tf8zpvMTQy8AsuImk2hrms-9hTg_Rs0HkkMu4dU_d3D_VHQyR17Fl4A/s320/IMG_20221227_170548.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-54758106627461750622022-11-06T18:58:00.002+02:002022-11-06T18:58:43.155+02:00The storm is coming<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt-1J-Jm0k-qJXGwkc23WMUON_6mXVF-jBqXW4QjEpYDfT6lKfcqd0zyASXktgP9C2cfr2WDQwJ2uoKNnNrWvgFjsucoeG2mgUy7G-vVLQjHj-q0g_18TMKUG6q1mFkWYqleXVtl7KW89nLNNYtLpPdmUVepCYmF_VZ3WlH0D_3QfNNoBJ7ow9d0zrAg/s4000/IMG_20221031_093711.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt-1J-Jm0k-qJXGwkc23WMUON_6mXVF-jBqXW4QjEpYDfT6lKfcqd0zyASXktgP9C2cfr2WDQwJ2uoKNnNrWvgFjsucoeG2mgUy7G-vVLQjHj-q0g_18TMKUG6q1mFkWYqleXVtl7KW89nLNNYtLpPdmUVepCYmF_VZ3WlH0D_3QfNNoBJ7ow9d0zrAg/s320/IMG_20221031_093711.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It’s Sunday morning, 6 November, and we’re preparing for a storm
– though the sun is still warm and bright. For weeks we’ve woken to perfect blue skies and calm but now dark grey clouds are gathering and a restless
wind blowing from the south. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">A thunderstorm is always hard for Lisa so I’ve
given her an extra-nice breakfast. There’s a comfortable, dry space in the woodshed
for Fishbags the cat. As for the other cat - the one that shows up several times a day meowing for food, however determined I am not to have a second cat - it will fend for itself, I'm sure. That one is 'The Cat Formerly Known as Girlfriend' - the one that acted like Fishbags' girlfriend, until its anatomy developed. I'm not sure if they'll still share the space in the woodshed.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In summer I remove some of the windows to let the wind blow
through the house, and replace them with wire mesh screens; yesterday seemed a
good time to put the windows back on. We rearranged the kitchen furniture – my furniture
is always rearranged with the seasons – to bring in a second couch from outside,
an old bed piled up with cushions. I covered the big old couch outside with a
tarpaulin. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">There was a strange day or two of rain in August and a day in mid-October,
but otherwise the ground hasn’t been soaked for many months. <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">The island’s roaming goats have been suffering with nothing fresh to eat; in a half hour’s walk from home we see half a dozen dead or dying.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDKJtlobSD5L4dQn2hwFXq0jtm3AHWDm_oSi9r3SXOS_5706e2ErCPwbd_RpffLyMcnIpXYzRXehNiUEU7E7FFK9F9NKiPMUe5Y1Yg9AKNCwSXuToz31ahMolvdJG-89Blhcxqp5US17dw9WiJgTWstuUj6uIP6_zRSouQfRO_-pf7X7PkW0f3w156LA/s4000/IMG_20221031_093700.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDKJtlobSD5L4dQn2hwFXq0jtm3AHWDm_oSi9r3SXOS_5706e2ErCPwbd_RpffLyMcnIpXYzRXehNiUEU7E7FFK9F9NKiPMUe5Y1Yg9AKNCwSXuToz31ahMolvdJG-89Blhcxqp5US17dw9WiJgTWstuUj6uIP6_zRSouQfRO_-pf7X7PkW0f3w156LA/s320/IMG_20221031_093700.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Olives suffer from the late rain too – they like a good soaking
in October. This week I gathered them in from my two trees. It seemed a
little early, and others had firmly told me ‘Not before the rain!’ but Antonis,
visiting with some olive oil, said they were ready for <i>alati</i>, salt; he
meant brine, and explained how to test the saltiness of the water by seeing if a fresh egg just
rises to the top. I spent an hour or two later pruning the olive trees, then decided to open the 20-litre barrel of attempted wine from this
summer’s grapes. Excitingly, it smelled and tasted good! Still a little fizzy
and cloudy, but certainly more like wine than vinegar. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQn0SlobBbkEfaWpCymHXkTGhi-stRDFxZerEZKV096k8gDsVPJ41AhilDduKT_npgpM_aSn4dii_poqE9SmJ9zjKVbQMfVs3q0X5F-8D4Lp9_KVBdIAZt6BC8zzZbmxcFDN81hjFzFlN60NTwdDTRv17vTVcvvCQtJLCunRxJkQqUHyq5i2h-2vJU-A/s4000/IMG_20221008_132807.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQn0SlobBbkEfaWpCymHXkTGhi-stRDFxZerEZKV096k8gDsVPJ41AhilDduKT_npgpM_aSn4dii_poqE9SmJ9zjKVbQMfVs3q0X5F-8D4Lp9_KVBdIAZt6BC8zzZbmxcFDN81hjFzFlN60NTwdDTRv17vTVcvvCQtJLCunRxJkQqUHyq5i2h-2vJU-A/s320/IMG_20221008_132807.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I’ve been watering my garden every few days; I’m still picking
a tomato or two every day from my plants, and there’s rocket, the spinach is
coming back, and the radish seedlings are coming up. I’ve been grabbing a
handful of dates from the palm every day; they have big stones, but the taste
of fresh dates for free is a sweet treat. I’ve been planting,
thinning out seedlings, digging new beds, heartened that gradually the garden
is yielding more. The jury's still out on whether the avocado tree will survive.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Some delicious flavours of the new season came this week on Dimitris’
truck: <i>seskoula</i> or chard, boiled and served with a squeeze of fragrant
local lemon, as well as chopped garlic and olive oil; a feast with potatoes,
and salt-cured fish, and feta, and just-ripe mandarins. Dinner tasted great
with retsina, but we also ordered some red wine, white wine and souma from
Embona in Rhodes for the winter.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">During September and into October, if you wanted to go out for
dinner, it was hard to get a table in Livadia. Now, only a couple of restaurants
remain open. The kafeneio in Megalo Horio closed its outdoor terrace, and has a
cosier, locals’ feel; food is available but might have to wait until the card
game is over. The island is quiet, with fewer cars around. The bus stops in
mid-afternoon. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">On the dry paths high on the hillsides we’ve seen mauve
colchicums, a few mauve crocuses and a tiny delicate autumn narcissus. I’ve heard
melodious birdsong while sitting at my desk with the door open to the garden. We’ve
seen eagles circling in the sky, kestrels and owls taking off. The moon and
stars have been very bright at night. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRozqm2Dke902ps-hsirSH6YBOqZ2d3j2iPOzFbLGD99Ug-5wfX4dFe47bPwIt21fEcmgcn1TSo9FQCec-ht6KFv5nlPzlRQlGc2Kvq5vZOHYqpz_yueUnVjR0T_vLQBfKrXjxBjtDp9hzZxpQmuDLlxCXnFuCHci2kJpnA58WagsAJuW7FS-kZNGMRg/s4000/IMG_20221029_170457.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRozqm2Dke902ps-hsirSH6YBOqZ2d3j2iPOzFbLGD99Ug-5wfX4dFe47bPwIt21fEcmgcn1TSo9FQCec-ht6KFv5nlPzlRQlGc2Kvq5vZOHYqpz_yueUnVjR0T_vLQBfKrXjxBjtDp9hzZxpQmuDLlxCXnFuCHci2kJpnA58WagsAJuW7FS-kZNGMRg/s320/IMG_20221029_170457.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2phRHkppG1rdKK4_vWApBU9eBY-C3hghLFn1yDXKapqL9bCYpg1OJUOGNkp4gQTOENI4CezCFtOGndfI3jOkiAWrYBszX21lmI6ME0DmHHeNenCJ9hFBQgvN7YDR9g8rmXcGWBdHRPxXOdv9KUCXLNsaPK2u4UqAoaWjRoAtKfZ65_Zg7aJnFxEAlew/s4000/IMG_20221031_160541.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2phRHkppG1rdKK4_vWApBU9eBY-C3hghLFn1yDXKapqL9bCYpg1OJUOGNkp4gQTOENI4CezCFtOGndfI3jOkiAWrYBszX21lmI6ME0DmHHeNenCJ9hFBQgvN7YDR9g8rmXcGWBdHRPxXOdv9KUCXLNsaPK2u4UqAoaWjRoAtKfZ65_Zg7aJnFxEAlew/s320/IMG_20221031_160541.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoAEA5hVwID2e1AWhSTlMMJX7mLK45zHJd7EesLftzkdllnrhJx9eATNpqcVn6yHfGhzXlr2iCF3TURMNg_yZz3vVjkLtaU7G_iuCDzuX_YjT2epqz9hEqj4zNslnjFrdE9TG9-UfRiF2nsbVzbtn8czaluGljZJcPjg85C1MnwmU1O1gBddF8ma8Img/s4000/IMG_20221030_161417.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoAEA5hVwID2e1AWhSTlMMJX7mLK45zHJd7EesLftzkdllnrhJx9eATNpqcVn6yHfGhzXlr2iCF3TURMNg_yZz3vVjkLtaU7G_iuCDzuX_YjT2epqz9hEqj4zNslnjFrdE9TG9-UfRiF2nsbVzbtn8czaluGljZJcPjg85C1MnwmU1O1gBddF8ma8Img/s320/IMG_20221030_161417.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The sunshine at this time of year has lost the burning heat of
summer and is easier to enjoy; I’ve found it impossible to stay indoors too
long, when the temperature is so good for walking. T</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">he late afternoon light is radiant, golden</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Walking
back from a walk in the warm dusk under a bright moon, you hear the peep of the scops owl.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg69SV4pdSrZEzAk2empdShVMKacFLtxoYX50athzxBjZYNLDmx8EtUx2Y5vdLutKBLFkE3LXzIQQ4lBTAktKtReqr_kB3g4E4_ZlZg1WY7owuKHKqmKtsnoL5hoMvwVJ1j7XYQVFnkqcunPTFFtjFXY7XPhxpT4FLSd99rlE4QFbdPVXuSmwxok9AExQ/s4000/IMG_20221104_165317.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg69SV4pdSrZEzAk2empdShVMKacFLtxoYX50athzxBjZYNLDmx8EtUx2Y5vdLutKBLFkE3LXzIQQ4lBTAktKtReqr_kB3g4E4_ZlZg1WY7owuKHKqmKtsnoL5hoMvwVJ1j7XYQVFnkqcunPTFFtjFXY7XPhxpT4FLSd99rlE4QFbdPVXuSmwxok9AExQ/s320/IMG_20221104_165317.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAlDfY9dFZsWPSUR4P2ItQD45OE2j_U37jtmXtT7cWJxhNEF5PcV7RnZy2lukl4-44dzfBKxMUtDc_uasaKrlwVtCPe2X36FzpO_vk2IZt7URXPNWlrYvxQF1-5nSfVmETEhFn1kLT0Ho-0BPOPFEBGQvTA30-Y319mTT-lwfPRQsgocT3yV1eT9gFoA/s4000/IMG_20221104_165320.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAlDfY9dFZsWPSUR4P2ItQD45OE2j_U37jtmXtT7cWJxhNEF5PcV7RnZy2lukl4-44dzfBKxMUtDc_uasaKrlwVtCPe2X36FzpO_vk2IZt7URXPNWlrYvxQF1-5nSfVmETEhFn1kLT0Ho-0BPOPFEBGQvTA30-Y319mTT-lwfPRQsgocT3yV1eT9gFoA/s320/IMG_20221104_165320.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 17.12px;">Though many </span>beaches are in shadow by mid-afternoon, the sea has been clear, warm and calm, ideal for snorkelling</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">At
Eristos, for the first time, I saw small calamari very close to the surface; I’ve
watched pearly razorfish with their soft, delicate pink and green colouring, pottering
around the seabed alone. A </span><i style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">germanos</i><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">, spotting me, raised all the spines
along its back, its mouth an ‘o’; an octopus hid motionless in a little cave, disguised
by making its head as spiky and mottled as the rock.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYMpQnJBaPemdsX15NahPToT27lJPjBygDHk5yniShSm9ie0bAXfqHNae1zQZIRSZ7MxF7rXd_-0zKGlkjo6a6p5_v993DqzvpFmakmdDCEDfQvqZTyFOu3rDm2Qidb8gqeRyqz63PRjyzNTYsnGdrfqavxzgdPyAaWleybZcceSfIH5ILKRRvJLkumA/s4000/IMG_20221030_154222.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYMpQnJBaPemdsX15NahPToT27lJPjBygDHk5yniShSm9ie0bAXfqHNae1zQZIRSZ7MxF7rXd_-0zKGlkjo6a6p5_v993DqzvpFmakmdDCEDfQvqZTyFOu3rDm2Qidb8gqeRyqz63PRjyzNTYsnGdrfqavxzgdPyAaWleybZcceSfIH5ILKRRvJLkumA/s320/IMG_20221030_154222.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Off the beach near my house, thornback rays have been gliding
elegantly across the seabed with their wings billowing to either side and their
long, pointed tails. I’ve been close enough to see the subdued gold under the mostly
greyish brown, the little point of its ‘nose’ feeling its way in the sand, the
back flipper guiding. A few times I’ve seen flat little flounders crowding the
ray’s tail as it forages in the sand; and a white trevally, striped with
yellow, hovering directly over it, picking at it. Bizarrely, when a ray took
off and sped away at a hand’s height above the seabed, the fish went in
seemingly hot pursuit, hovering either above or below the ray. Funny fish
behaviour.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">And still once or twice in late October I’ve come back from the
beach exhilarated and showered off under the hosepipe in the back garden, looking
over red and pink flowers and through bright green palm leaves to the blue sea
and headland beyond. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Flies and damp evenings heralded the change in the weather. Now
the wind is beginning to get up again, tossing the bougainvillaea around. A
crow caws. The thunder begins, and gets louder, the sky gets darker… The first
drops of rain are pattering.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><br /></div>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-79403958044725586112022-10-31T11:39:00.004+02:002022-10-31T11:39:46.568+02:00Walking on Nisyros - Part Two<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv1lmSaRqdLFto5k5aER8zn-uOAwOMW0GctGvyeSSFiOUIJzPqV4QjWv54k4P32Ni5CHVK9VFxCogiDFIBWRnM9XaH1j_DvF3H8sa6ug1YmALhBpCXjAqPl4DABKuOntL_qCcCB7XXaqtDHScZv9v4SmGyqKVgkKT2YPPSTI7dZH2wXbJ2EmBbkAEIBA/s4000/IMG_20221014_162904.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv1lmSaRqdLFto5k5aER8zn-uOAwOMW0GctGvyeSSFiOUIJzPqV4QjWv54k4P32Ni5CHVK9VFxCogiDFIBWRnM9XaH1j_DvF3H8sa6ug1YmALhBpCXjAqPl4DABKuOntL_qCcCB7XXaqtDHScZv9v4SmGyqKVgkKT2YPPSTI7dZH2wXbJ2EmBbkAEIBA/w300-h400/IMG_20221014_162904.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-align: center;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Looking for Kateros - between a rock and a hard place<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">German friends who live part of the year on Nisyros had told me about an old settlement at Kateros, marked on the map; there was no path but it was just a question of picking your way around the mountain. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Gradually we were piecing together the footpaths. From the top of Mandraki just beyond the upper Temak
machine where the narrow road ends we took the path leading right between fields, then turned right again up old stone steps up to join the stone path to Palaiokastro. We started up the road and veered right at the concrete water tank onto the kalderimi running below and parallel to it. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvu-V4Rdi-wSyc18A1SweLP0wpsIRR3T_xF26ZFttpO0n1y9zZ_9SWMydEB1V68VuBdFxYu-yebs68lJqEJ6Helsw28HrTPctEjKxWyaQXX5k99qnIOcH42uNJQe1tZ-0mbPdtLcWGceBqKsgLwUesO4YQWGytlR34_kFM983j_rVpoTlsrFCG0VQsjw/s4000/IMG_20221014_145243.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvu-V4Rdi-wSyc18A1SweLP0wpsIRR3T_xF26ZFttpO0n1y9zZ_9SWMydEB1V68VuBdFxYu-yebs68lJqEJ6Helsw28HrTPctEjKxWyaQXX5k99qnIOcH42uNJQe1tZ-0mbPdtLcWGceBqKsgLwUesO4YQWGytlR34_kFM983j_rVpoTlsrFCG0VQsjw/s320/IMG_20221014_145243.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">While following the kalderimi the
previous evening, we’d noticed it branched off downhill to the southwest, in the direction we wanted; it turned out to be well maintained and led to a few spiladia restored in
traditional fashion, with fences of natural wood. I suspected they
were foreign-owned, and sure enough we met a German woman.
She said the path didn’t go any further than the houses, but we continued anyway, heading towards Karaviotis mountain.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Soon we were looking over the narrow valley, thick with trees and dotted with stone ruins, that leads down from Ayios
Zaharias (marked wrongly as Ayios Nikolaos on the Skai map?) to the sea. And a
red-dotted trail went down into the valley and up the other side. We took it as
far as a chapel to Ayia Marina; then the dots
seemed to rise a little then disappear. In the absence of any obvious landmarks, we simply headed around the mountain. <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">Eventually we headed up where we probably should have gone down; it was hard to know on first attempt but the views were glorious.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUmO8yqvsdTtH91nZsYaDLXppjJg9JXSluONJwgvibt_t7ed6ocg5JaI0NIezdbsYGWM842ElHy98SIT16xoz_4fZO3m99j1Wo-Qf5UTrRQDoE7682_P0EqV1PwE84WsxeW1vfjYkX1ssr60WRZc6RcnjiPWJ2zhvGNRtzqSxwZ4klsHZctQZaqBo0yw/s4000/IMG_20221014_160651.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUmO8yqvsdTtH91nZsYaDLXppjJg9JXSluONJwgvibt_t7ed6ocg5JaI0NIezdbsYGWM842ElHy98SIT16xoz_4fZO3m99j1Wo-Qf5UTrRQDoE7682_P0EqV1PwE84WsxeW1vfjYkX1ssr60WRZc6RcnjiPWJ2zhvGNRtzqSxwZ4klsHZctQZaqBo0yw/w400-h300/IMG_20221014_160651.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM7C2LmK0UpLj-Ly03wQox2Tq3SsTMpQLA1q0fYpdM3mUmt2fGXGRBX5HN2kXUqBW1yDXAN5bEm1-E7lYG6xDQjl_GyWncmAe4RkBkB7mnzXi8E9F8m5MYALbnn4-eLU8MAk_MRkCPagbEaf8xrCxXxFemcJOMA5tmH9rpMseB5l7iSchGGr9OnTMxJw/s4000/IMG_20221014_160726.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM7C2LmK0UpLj-Ly03wQox2Tq3SsTMpQLA1q0fYpdM3mUmt2fGXGRBX5HN2kXUqBW1yDXAN5bEm1-E7lYG6xDQjl_GyWncmAe4RkBkB7mnzXi8E9F8m5MYALbnn4-eLU8MAk_MRkCPagbEaf8xrCxXxFemcJOMA5tmH9rpMseB5l7iSchGGr9OnTMxJw/w400-h300/IMG_20221014_160726.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtMRx4JdVbJHasxDDdl-VhH8xkn5G9FnP0UF_3-YRKNwvUrAyOCgbpe8aHiYq8hITNxI9BIx5pmR1DQVe5dG-B-ND0cQJlgr8tPgtrgzYQDwGIW6mkUm03wuOObAp9bCpaWPTyJRdIspyt_ZjConFRX90aYkRvbrsqA263NF6ucMHVHPuqlufx4bXdMw/s3667/IMG_20221014_160735.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2751" data-original-width="3667" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtMRx4JdVbJHasxDDdl-VhH8xkn5G9FnP0UF_3-YRKNwvUrAyOCgbpe8aHiYq8hITNxI9BIx5pmR1DQVe5dG-B-ND0cQJlgr8tPgtrgzYQDwGIW6mkUm03wuOObAp9bCpaWPTyJRdIspyt_ZjConFRX90aYkRvbrsqA263NF6ucMHVHPuqlufx4bXdMw/w400-h300/IMG_20221014_160735.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">At last we came to a hidden, rocky valley, with traces of terraces. Trying to get a sense of the lay of the land, Lisa and I enthusiastically climbed up the other side of the valley, and found ourselves on an outcrop of strange, knobbly rocks. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJZdRsVUECSsVaUW0TLZ80ckqf6fCuhxiFLjtFL-J1onrKelEsv9MsmSd4A7c6AN_f8iOoy6vp1lbPpybvKUyfhtZFR3X1IDzjRiqpgiBcNRAiUDo0CSiY6lBInJQd66g7tHkWSIujkwBBry-z7QMm59yj0EsruoKDD1D_jvm4aG2tYoHoXYIVF4B-8Q/s4000/IMG_20221014_162904.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJZdRsVUECSsVaUW0TLZ80ckqf6fCuhxiFLjtFL-J1onrKelEsv9MsmSd4A7c6AN_f8iOoy6vp1lbPpybvKUyfhtZFR3X1IDzjRiqpgiBcNRAiUDo0CSiY6lBInJQd66g7tHkWSIujkwBBry-z7QMm59yj0EsruoKDD1D_jvm4aG2tYoHoXYIVF4B-8Q/s320/IMG_20221014_162904.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This we negotiated for a while but until common sense seemed to dictate a retreat. Lisa, the hero, found a relatively easy way down, </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">which emerged at the top of the valley just
below a ruined building at around 400m.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqaxx_AZ0XxKFpNpUKMOUPpbHKwlZ9Wbcv9-9eBQZPi8OKKqsRll1WGO9qT5Xitfk-HAx-ULXqMyrWNkV7XJNDMmho4WppbCX7ndTnvbi7_LcCcyAHOqLuUZUWFcplvpTXXEfI9xLYT7FrKOqPKg3J-V2qaL8V4YoBWcypZUkx2LtR3jgjJ7qr9SoU-A/s4000/IMG_20221014_171051.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqaxx_AZ0XxKFpNpUKMOUPpbHKwlZ9Wbcv9-9eBQZPi8OKKqsRll1WGO9qT5Xitfk-HAx-ULXqMyrWNkV7XJNDMmho4WppbCX7ndTnvbi7_LcCcyAHOqLuUZUWFcplvpTXXEfI9xLYT7FrKOqPKg3J-V2qaL8V4YoBWcypZUkx2LtR3jgjJ7qr9SoU-A/s320/IMG_20221014_171051.jpg" width="320" /></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">While Ian went to look for a more sensible path
forward, I explored behind the building, finding cave shelters with walls on the inside, notches in the
rock face and post-holes for a gate, and stone troughs; and then, to my surprise, a deep shaft
leading down below the rocks, with steps cut metres below, too far to reach
without a rope or ladder. It seemed mysterious; though someone had been here recently, judging by scattered cigarette filters and a frappe coffee cup.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Then I noticed writing on the rock above: ‘<i>H Dexameni ton
Pyrgon</i>’, the reservoir of the towers. Only the next day, seeing a different map, did I learn that this area is known as Pyrgi because of its ancient towers, part of a beacon system. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Ian returned with bad news about the way forward; given the dwindling daylight, finding Kateros and the way around the mountain would have to wait. We made our way upwards instead, both of us hoping the way back would be clearer…. And
lo and behold, red and blue dots appeared and guided us on carefully laid rocks and over tricky rock
fields, back to the church at the road. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There was a gleam of red in the sky as
we made our way back towards Mandraki, then the sun began to fall beneath the
layer of cloud, bright and pale behind streaks of red, then slowly sank into the
sea. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Of course, it was clear that to
reach our goals we needed to set out earlier, and maybe camp overnight, which
we couldn’t on this trip. Others might drive part of the way, but it seemed much more fun to be exploring as much as we
could on foot, finding things along the way and getting to know the routes - the
journey being as important as the destination. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Back in the room later, there was moonlight on the sea.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Rain and the windmill<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Quiet morning with the power and
water both off, just the sound of the sea in the harbour. I
walked along the coast a short way, over the rocks in their beautiful ochres
and rusts, crimson and brown. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">When sun came through the
clouds I swam and found myself surrounded by a big group of
long, slender fish close to the surface - <i>loutsos </i>perhaps, or large <i>zargana</i>; there were white
trevally and grouper, flounder and flathead mullet and bream. The clouds came
over again and the sea turned greyish and darker. The old guy who’d been fishing off the rocks went past on his
scooter holding his rod, with a paint-bucket he used as a keep-net on the back.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrniIu7vFzKIibQIwj9YzJQib4eVdWyslvQ6ju5heAxmXCqjhPhLgLyapH4k3M7ollnepvkDsV8RWbU2ELtygis3JEFHvEEB-ro72JmCgYvGCLpcGJdbnquw3XLVp3RxLG_vn_X75l2p73svBgFYsT9_BBXD3gnbWpIRZxafYFJRHemLYPm4b9MbdebQ/s4000/IMG_20221017_124933.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrniIu7vFzKIibQIwj9YzJQib4eVdWyslvQ6ju5heAxmXCqjhPhLgLyapH4k3M7ollnepvkDsV8RWbU2ELtygis3JEFHvEEB-ro72JmCgYvGCLpcGJdbnquw3XLVp3RxLG_vn_X75l2p73svBgFYsT9_BBXD3gnbWpIRZxafYFJRHemLYPm4b9MbdebQ/s320/IMG_20221017_124933.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It rained all afternoon, but later
in a pause in the downpour, we risked a walk in the hills. I’d seen a red splodge on a rock on
the road above the village indicating a route to the windmill. It turned
into a fascinating network of old paths that branched and branched between
terraced farms for kilometres. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Each old farm had its stone buildings, its trees
and cisterns and threshing circles, gently curving terraces, sheltered of a
fold in the hillside; amazing that such places were
abandoned. We came upon a chapel with a
wick burning in a bowl of oil – but we saw only goats and sheep. Below on the
coast road there was a blaring of horns from the wedding entourage – the son of
the owner of a taverna was marrying the daughter of the owner of a supermarket. Rain is a good thing, so fingers
crossed it was auspicious.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The path started breaking up; we found our way back along terraces to meet the road that wound down above the village, passing the football
pitch. During a</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">n hour at the archaeological museum this morning</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">, I’d
learned it was when they were digging to build this in the
1980s that they started to find remains of funerary cremations dating</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;"> from the eighth to the fifth centuries BC.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;"> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">People were
buried with sophisticated pottery from around the Aegean and Phoenicia, modern Lebanon, as well as local pottery decorated with lions and
sphinxes inspired by contact with the East. The dead were also left with foods to help on their journey – olive oil, wine, honey, figs, olives. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">Funny that they went ahead and put the football field on top of it, two and a half thousand years later. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As we reached town and descended
the steps to the Old People’s Square, we passed the church with wedding tables
laid out, and guests sheltering under shop awnings from the
rain that was coming down again. By the sea, it was windy and cold. There would be music in the village that evening for the wedding, but –
brrrrrr… I didn’t want wet feet.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzfe3f0DOWUVMktzZKVgSG2iz2qkS_kxgOHdoMMIhM0lySpDiON4bb6L8RRti_DVi9PD8smwO80WBdUT1cbjjzHjUpPAOXiKlpJ5QsGBlmB9HmgIVBIyXs111ZHTz6ixmVlh1i7yHBKvMai8b9GIANDAmiaLeps_XdZ_EDLM06D08Iz-C-C2k6xgFQxg/s4000/IMG_20221011_131315.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzfe3f0DOWUVMktzZKVgSG2iz2qkS_kxgOHdoMMIhM0lySpDiON4bb6L8RRti_DVi9PD8smwO80WBdUT1cbjjzHjUpPAOXiKlpJ5QsGBlmB9HmgIVBIyXs111ZHTz6ixmVlh1i7yHBKvMai8b9GIANDAmiaLeps_XdZ_EDLM06D08Iz-C-C2k6xgFQxg/s320/IMG_20221011_131315.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><b><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Food Interlude<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">With walking so much, we worked
up a huge appetite. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">But most
restaurants were gradually closing for the season or had closed already. Still, less choice made things simpler.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">On the seafront, Issikas was open for a few days
but had wonderful chickpea fritters (known locally as pithia) and
skordalia or garlic dip made with almonds, and herb-infused meatballs, which we washed down with lashings of cold red wine. Then </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">we started going to Hochlaki, with friendly owners and similar very good food, plus local cheese, and vegetables
baked in the oven. Vegos in the Old People’s
Square did a fabulous salad with two different cheeses made by the owner,
sakouliasti and a soft cheese, and good olives that weren’t mass-produced. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">On the night of the cold and
rain, I would have been happy to stay in and have raki and peanuts for dinner,
but in the end we made it out as far as the first place, Aigaio, mostly
a souvlaki and pizza takeaway but with a few high tables just behind the town beach. We ordered salads and souvlaki and chips and it was a feast fit for a king (who'd been walking for a week), and we drank enough cold retsina that we were soon singing along to the good old rock classics playing on the radio. </span></p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdNXVdvcsWtdY9hrZrmL3RCkLtgj0IZg2KRDHUneSb_fxLyL2220_Qa13Vtaiy58TDAq0wanS_AYSVjE1RB9rEGiHAE1zVhCgIi1MnYXPQtSPZ3A24B3N60-A68AvjnrYgtQ2K91I4ulKPAsK2_PPVOpKucuuZGcXsmjnFX2mEoQr39CxPlB2rAWn-Bw/s4000/IMG_20221016_150145.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdNXVdvcsWtdY9hrZrmL3RCkLtgj0IZg2KRDHUneSb_fxLyL2220_Qa13Vtaiy58TDAq0wanS_AYSVjE1RB9rEGiHAE1zVhCgIi1MnYXPQtSPZ3A24B3N60-A68AvjnrYgtQ2K91I4ulKPAsK2_PPVOpKucuuZGcXsmjnFX2mEoQr39CxPlB2rAWn-Bw/s320/IMG_20221016_150145.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Emborio and Lakki</span></b></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">At midday it was breezy and sunny again,
rainclouds gone. Heading up from the Temak on the footpath veering left and
crossing the road, we looked for the continuing footpath. It was marked on the map so we wanted to give it another try, but as Vasilis had warned us it fizzled out fast. So we hiked
up terraces again, not stopping this time but hoping to find Armas quickly and head
across to the road to Evangelistria. We ended up way too high and
had to scramble back down a steep slope...<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">From the clear signpost at Evangelistria, the beginning of the old footpath to Emborio seemed to lead over a mess of rocks through a sheep farm and there were a few unclear sections. But before long, we came to the stone-built cistern and ruin of a house
built of red rock in the side of the hill, and from there on it was clear and beautiful, with some amazing lava formations towering above, and the lush valley below. The little square of </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">Emborio on a sunny Sunday afternoon in October was packed with taverna tables</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTNgoIbcCXdpr4WXL2s7nLdCXQi_pW1MQGSaAr_6qR1bxfwY5XeZ_aqUIVXRGUOssijtZG8hUh-iPr6zL7uROnKFsEsoY7JkSn1nNr5bmKqeTJ77tLt9-40v2olq4IHK2wbl_bpihBAayHp4d-fg-HAMq43hdRCMa4Rfqb1SIRIyrHbMuSW0MPZvZv2w/w300-h400/IMG_20221016_150113.jpg" style="color: #0000ee; text-align: center;" width="300" /> </span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIcC5LInDPRGrKtHjverPLm8hH_Me9PM6Co6eHMYGXzg2Jjaaq3OeK1iy5sYPJC1fwTtZlnyePOVxIqoW9wScpwpDBmkAVqSXO2M8WkxMzM__0ZmCG0k1mFW81keR-HCM3Z0-u35_cbSCAGgeHbNpDwIOl3UBSQl6ewtaQvdoWXqbjflrhOG4MJy86mA/s4000/IMG_20221016_150229.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIcC5LInDPRGrKtHjverPLm8hH_Me9PM6Co6eHMYGXzg2Jjaaq3OeK1iy5sYPJC1fwTtZlnyePOVxIqoW9wScpwpDBmkAVqSXO2M8WkxMzM__0ZmCG0k1mFW81keR-HCM3Z0-u35_cbSCAGgeHbNpDwIOl3UBSQl6ewtaQvdoWXqbjflrhOG4MJy86mA/w300-h400/IMG_20221016_150229.jpg" width="300" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvu7x9wDxpnDOfNvGx-37gc5Kk-7r_wBhOtPqHTXpGLebmXXa2CzVDpVD-UdqsrocL3xxtV9v62pt07Xte50WWTopYCpwy1AiAdSksZ08Po9jlE06N4D2c74JAp6P29t64iZBIk9fV6uRh-lAx3ivndITW-aBKrAW3kFqMr2wYheIuic4dHjxtZ-tqHA/s4000/IMG_20221016_160714.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvu7x9wDxpnDOfNvGx-37gc5Kk-7r_wBhOtPqHTXpGLebmXXa2CzVDpVD-UdqsrocL3xxtV9v62pt07Xte50WWTopYCpwy1AiAdSksZ08Po9jlE06N4D2c74JAp6P29t64iZBIk9fV6uRh-lAx3ivndITW-aBKrAW3kFqMr2wYheIuic4dHjxtZ-tqHA/w400-h300/IMG_20221016_160714.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Instead of lingering, we looked
for the path down to the caldera floor, or Lakki, and found it via an alleyway not
far above the square. Despite some rough sections thanks to building rubble and fallen walls and so on, it was a superb, wide, black-stone
path that wound down gently to the caldera floor, with a few ruined houses and a chapel.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY1aNIqrx3zjvsXXlD8RhKXKeUdqrOBTOQQKorMyn3gaVZkSmCpQpa_h5D-zXYKFV1Eg_IeOI0xsk3RN-MR0p5JiTljA2eC_r9zgVmZBSv5HHVtRZpx3ikU5ROEbjFFC-Bd9wDlBlGS1oX11IZOiWC8hOux8g2BkAJgjM2Vb3SCSCLeYJeSrsLBKb40A/s4000/IMG_20221016_161841.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY1aNIqrx3zjvsXXlD8RhKXKeUdqrOBTOQQKorMyn3gaVZkSmCpQpa_h5D-zXYKFV1Eg_IeOI0xsk3RN-MR0p5JiTljA2eC_r9zgVmZBSv5HHVtRZpx3ikU5ROEbjFFC-Bd9wDlBlGS1oX11IZOiWC8hOux8g2BkAJgjM2Vb3SCSCLeYJeSrsLBKb40A/w300-h400/IMG_20221016_161841.jpg" width="300" /></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It continued beyond the road into farmland, but we were looking for the start of the path that would take us up between the steep hills
of Boriatiko Vouno and Nyphios. This was the path I'd done four years ago from the other direction. Alas, I got the start slightly wrong, misled by an old
Geopark sign which I thought indicated a walking route but actually just
pointed out a geographical feature… However, we scrambled up the scree without
too much trouble, knowing there was a good path on the other side of it, and
followed that all the way back to Evangelistria in lovely afternoon light. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2xSuv93J7c2DuItxE8eLZ5MzZrhIKsZUm02W1VVSQ_FABiTY-TM9d1dkGjKvPDeEUj9BHamklg4KJbu0hnruCBRLwj_bBM7vbhnsXrRko5A5HtBGS1_FRePdsyiQVgedcBqtI4Zfk0BfrRfyF3k2gXZlhMii5Piq_F3KVGIuhnq11f6gZ6WE4x6LKZA/s4000/IMG_20221016_170230.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2xSuv93J7c2DuItxE8eLZ5MzZrhIKsZUm02W1VVSQ_FABiTY-TM9d1dkGjKvPDeEUj9BHamklg4KJbu0hnruCBRLwj_bBM7vbhnsXrRko5A5HtBGS1_FRePdsyiQVgedcBqtI4Zfk0BfrRfyF3k2gXZlhMii5Piq_F3KVGIuhnq11f6gZ6WE4x6LKZA/s320/IMG_20221016_170230.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_T4-6SpPCtqSqhcU-HZUPuat4GUTzN8nXxx7QUclQqgIY2KOFBrula0nyhCAVrvKziABurxtb5o4gG5iH4G35V6ANLM68sKB3nj9fC190jfxYuRplVDOpOQLnqrZ0L5URYUn6yYj2glgBDxmIKN-W_RmW_KsuC1e-lv8XWNJrnGlNXBSgmgupKDI16g/s4000/IMG_20221016_172628.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_T4-6SpPCtqSqhcU-HZUPuat4GUTzN8nXxx7QUclQqgIY2KOFBrula0nyhCAVrvKziABurxtb5o4gG5iH4G35V6ANLM68sKB3nj9fC190jfxYuRplVDOpOQLnqrZ0L5URYUn6yYj2glgBDxmIKN-W_RmW_KsuC1e-lv8XWNJrnGlNXBSgmgupKDI16g/s320/IMG_20221016_172628.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It had been a splendid afternoon of walking in sunshine, and with a little daylight left we tried our luck with a
path downhill marked ‘Man’ for Mandraki. It fizzled out to nothing quite quickly. In fact, the Skai map does indicate that, but often at the
end of the day there wasn’t much time or patience to study it. As we climbed down
broken terraces in the dusk again, sure we'd cross one of the little paths from the previous day, monopati-fog clouded my brain. I'd lost track of what was where. But we made it down to the coast via a
wired-up gate, just five minutes from home.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Big salads and souvlaki were calling again. </span></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Back at Aigaio, the owner was extremely busy but offered us a retsina on the house. He was a Nisyrian who’d spent decades in the US before taking on this business. ‘Four more years,’ he said, before he would retire and spend his days fishing. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoW1r_mQ7wxjWKF9zOjGcYd5Am1wDiZrR9rKELqzUtRVLkBRap2bXIJXGVExYvtlzk_cjI7opgu41XQJdcln4Gc2EriU6tx8OABkAaLE7fw40fTxAb4kPBqYEPwDZ6_aOwk76zQi7-Ac19CWymSEGlBiL1TcvVE2Sd_smtaCnlLsyYmEAhI1I_kHRmKg/s4000/IMG_20221016_182953.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoW1r_mQ7wxjWKF9zOjGcYd5Am1wDiZrR9rKELqzUtRVLkBRap2bXIJXGVExYvtlzk_cjI7opgu41XQJdcln4Gc2EriU6tx8OABkAaLE7fw40fTxAb4kPBqYEPwDZ6_aOwk76zQi7-Ac19CWymSEGlBiL1TcvVE2Sd_smtaCnlLsyYmEAhI1I_kHRmKg/s320/IMG_20221016_182953.jpg" width="320" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDh-qSF1eW5IJWlBM83YMWMvqoIayYrX6zLaKt9ktC__CO_ST8cj_kwphTOoQR_WkQyBcZAqIj8TFxl7ZmB-916hQnVnFf9Eh9Hgnjrwa2smj0wrJeyQS8ESLdeOfc2-CyS9S66rO_pXM49TDBSHUBo867nnOpILU6cKfRGh_-471tCyCGa98FZfwAJQ/s4000/IMG_20221016_183005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDh-qSF1eW5IJWlBM83YMWMvqoIayYrX6zLaKt9ktC__CO_ST8cj_kwphTOoQR_WkQyBcZAqIj8TFxl7ZmB-916hQnVnFf9Eh9Hgnjrwa2smj0wrJeyQS8ESLdeOfc2-CyS9S66rO_pXM49TDBSHUBo867nnOpILU6cKfRGh_-471tCyCGa98FZfwAJQ/s320/IMG_20221016_183005.jpg" width="240" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzBRMbDUy2JGuh31aKlqIbFf3ouBgeLHlCd9QW5CtPSCBfb-jEX6imEIEiAdSWoWYIR7NrUmI0U_Dyzlob2rq7gTIdQgpOzU8KuBYCuJ4RgHKYEHSNsFTkSt5ChjRxlGKH_K9VR-2Tl9xZhosaeQsSKCDUgQovmLoleGy3skLhluGmEXGezlj4TsGocA/s4000/IMG_20221017_161601.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzBRMbDUy2JGuh31aKlqIbFf3ouBgeLHlCd9QW5CtPSCBfb-jEX6imEIEiAdSWoWYIR7NrUmI0U_Dyzlob2rq7gTIdQgpOzU8KuBYCuJ4RgHKYEHSNsFTkSt5ChjRxlGKH_K9VR-2Tl9xZhosaeQsSKCDUgQovmLoleGy3skLhluGmEXGezlj4TsGocA/w400-h300/IMG_20221017_161601.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Profitis Ilias<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In the morning, in the museum I </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">marvelled at the perfection of the Early Bronze Age (2700-2410 BC) cups found in Mandraki and a smooth clay hanging bowl from the fourth millennium BC found in Emborio. Most areas of Nisyros haven’t been excavated. It's only in recent decades that building or ploughing has revealed cemeteries spread over a wide area, spanning many centuries. After the early cremation burials came burials in pithoi jars and later by built graves with marble reliefs.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The nearby island of Yiali, now
mined for pumice used in building materials, was inhabited from the fourth
millennium BC, principally in the areas where obsidian was found – the black
volcanic glass an important material for cutting tools. There’s evidence
of stock raising, agriculture, fishing and seafaring, and crucibles for melting
copper. Yiali obsidian can be identified by the white flecks it contains – as
does the piece I found a piece on a hillside near my house. The smooth hard egg-shaped
grindstones of black and grey andesite identified as Final Neolithic appeared
similar to ones in my garden. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyYygWelAY-dzFZ2cHXvJrxenCWqenfxnaFP-vfhVvublK0aW8OUr4a1PXIqApiXWkOfj1RoTnIBheHVK0mi2Md6Tu9SyEWMckftue2RCtRMdX5AdkjaD7FFGiTjaVYtLZdM9Th7SgluHijAY7mHEaE3956O7S_-nBips9xhe-QwEGfwx4XlvgIbHFEQ/s4000/IMG_20221017_153246.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyYygWelAY-dzFZ2cHXvJrxenCWqenfxnaFP-vfhVvublK0aW8OUr4a1PXIqApiXWkOfj1RoTnIBheHVK0mi2Md6Tu9SyEWMckftue2RCtRMdX5AdkjaD7FFGiTjaVYtLZdM9Th7SgluHijAY7mHEaE3956O7S_-nBips9xhe-QwEGfwx4XlvgIbHFEQ/s320/IMG_20221017_153246.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">We’d been here just over a week and planned to leave the next day. It was time to get to the top of the island, Profitis Ilias.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;"> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">At lunchtime, we walked the road up to Evagelistria, then the same beautiful path up Diavatis we’d
taken when we went to Nyphios, but turning right and continuing
uphill. A Greek man was on his way down - the first person we'd seen on a footpath! - and reassured us it wasn’t far. It was
steep but thanks to the excellent path, surprisingly easy. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">We reached an old chapel and a few ruined buildings with big trees and abandoned terraces, and from there markers vaguely led the way to the trig point at 698 metres.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBu213EkixJ06unn1tkCQ9iH0wctm-DHeqbs82Ms0fFVT5OGKOD2R9-jojcXH_IFVmGPbQz95UlHGfafyEB0Mq7eAZvA2gbDtickfb3LpYIn9-AWBWtrUgsAfDqpZzJHuX1hHZLmseA09Amz8ATW5HAp7p8lz6y2Bu9ddqk1uD_vLpmzDDevWKLfNkfA/s4000/IMG_20221017_161039.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBu213EkixJ06unn1tkCQ9iH0wctm-DHeqbs82Ms0fFVT5OGKOD2R9-jojcXH_IFVmGPbQz95UlHGfafyEB0Mq7eAZvA2gbDtickfb3LpYIn9-AWBWtrUgsAfDqpZzJHuX1hHZLmseA09Amz8ATW5HAp7p8lz6y2Bu9ddqk1uD_vLpmzDDevWKLfNkfA/s320/IMG_20221017_161039.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgBNUfclfi4_8LzvmwfHgUkmCoGSlOYRksSSg8T6OPebE9FYHsgiiQKCNzBZTg6WnRI3nmaSSi7nIAgmyG7is50XDFbJFESQNM6NPi15-g6yykszNow-x21m4uPlhkkexM9bIA2FZs2oIbpl_7NfJ3_Czl2_rSQXkhBah47do-icjgu3hmdO2qkNbJBw/s4000/IMG_20221017_161327.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgBNUfclfi4_8LzvmwfHgUkmCoGSlOYRksSSg8T6OPebE9FYHsgiiQKCNzBZTg6WnRI3nmaSSi7nIAgmyG7is50XDFbJFESQNM6NPi15-g6yykszNow-x21m4uPlhkkexM9bIA2FZs2oIbpl_7NfJ3_Czl2_rSQXkhBah47do-icjgu3hmdO2qkNbJBw/s320/IMG_20221017_161327.jpg" width="240" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZb575huyTGs-tBkjqm34-mwsqtsCjZSiKBOjUJLobXdT8WOEhnanTk1uFSeRUkCg7AVbEtBoFAo25_nTxIaC3D1GA7m9g_LOvR0O6THgJo_14c06DQ1vGrzgUdVBNNzkcESeSxJ4fL1eZAOZLi31GsF5AG6u8hR2nP6lW24Onxrj9DB3KWMYkqVrMUA/s4000/IMG_20221017_161416.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZb575huyTGs-tBkjqm34-mwsqtsCjZSiKBOjUJLobXdT8WOEhnanTk1uFSeRUkCg7AVbEtBoFAo25_nTxIaC3D1GA7m9g_LOvR0O6THgJo_14c06DQ1vGrzgUdVBNNzkcESeSxJ4fL1eZAOZLi31GsF5AG6u8hR2nP6lW24Onxrj9DB3KWMYkqVrMUA/s320/IMG_20221017_161416.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWTOQd05i76ZSkbTO6UX5PakNWDrQDK6IZh8yjQdx5f2oQmWGo6XdwLLc-rm_V5VS5wKphRMhkHxP4aTiqoicYo67GnGJKo9rgMBUj7Igf1-AgEkkGN15ZEiiVnsMn9pMWKVXLzOQvmGTaiHoGVFXX9AQqTVH4eFw9jVy0e0pL0DAdYg9rK_4fC9X35w/s4000/IMG_20221017_161352.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWTOQd05i76ZSkbTO6UX5PakNWDrQDK6IZh8yjQdx5f2oQmWGo6XdwLLc-rm_V5VS5wKphRMhkHxP4aTiqoicYo67GnGJKo9rgMBUj7Igf1-AgEkkGN15ZEiiVnsMn9pMWKVXLzOQvmGTaiHoGVFXX9AQqTVH4eFw9jVy0e0pL0DAdYg9rK_4fC9X35w/s320/IMG_20221017_161352.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZn6NJvLNJVkDxPcghyLrjvILLvODKyDvgiYKC3o3Obx_RjrtTNnIRD06__9Pp7BnKgsgpHetJQCZt6g9ZAerTrwCGvXLRtyVKBsNVLXxQuPpMJWWkkNrdLRTexmPhb00DF8qtk5O8s43l0bRdt2ESY93uPyeSa68EvDEDbvFXDDBcUBdH99WAOOByXg/s4000/IMG_20221017_161332.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZn6NJvLNJVkDxPcghyLrjvILLvODKyDvgiYKC3o3Obx_RjrtTNnIRD06__9Pp7BnKgsgpHetJQCZt6g9ZAerTrwCGvXLRtyVKBsNVLXxQuPpMJWWkkNrdLRTexmPhb00DF8qtk5O8s43l0bRdt2ESY93uPyeSa68EvDEDbvFXDDBcUBdH99WAOOByXg/s320/IMG_20221017_161332.jpg" width="240" /></a></div></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It was a
broad summit covered in once-farmed uplands, the surrounding valleys mostly
hidden; but there were magnificent views to blue sea in every
direction, the waves turning silver when caught by the wind and surging around little islets. Kos was clear to the north, the Knidos peninsula of Turkey to the east and Tilos to the south. The wind was
cold on the peak so we hurried down again, stopping to investigate the
start of an intriguing blue-dotted path leading off in another direction...</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpHNZ-_ub9sbgDPtSs8HncxVEZCEY0d4M3q2XBNJjbviMr1JgBb1GVAIafYofe61dWjKePECsNHxuDwfhpxLlFIUtJ6sArfyAbaaI3MzyFdgyQWIKqbze_jYUcl4FIg9ArIqFBgcZWzv0z91xU0x3IIW2pr1jyaoRMdnk2Jx6FYaQ4QBisBnAot2BV3w/s4000/IMG_20221017_163433.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpHNZ-_ub9sbgDPtSs8HncxVEZCEY0d4M3q2XBNJjbviMr1JgBb1GVAIafYofe61dWjKePECsNHxuDwfhpxLlFIUtJ6sArfyAbaaI3MzyFdgyQWIKqbze_jYUcl4FIg9ArIqFBgcZWzv0z91xU0x3IIW2pr1jyaoRMdnk2Jx6FYaQ4QBisBnAot2BV3w/s320/IMG_20221017_163433.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvZ-bM22IWgL4i91LNj8CHmpUiG-5qD0eIsQl4hDP5VStg7cL7Q9qCClGapbrYjIjdLrpiU66UFF6RdH7CQsPRWHN93Scl1wsVyPcQq0o6APqHK4MVz0oCrZsCU3KR-bd1G8xsh5WoqCFiga3VcEGQQm24HsE7MwAnXi8F8wEb3t3wI8aQHNgTh_Z8Cw/s4000/IMG_20221017_171047.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvZ-bM22IWgL4i91LNj8CHmpUiG-5qD0eIsQl4hDP5VStg7cL7Q9qCClGapbrYjIjdLrpiU66UFF6RdH7CQsPRWHN93Scl1wsVyPcQq0o6APqHK4MVz0oCrZsCU3KR-bd1G8xsh5WoqCFiga3VcEGQQm24HsE7MwAnXi8F8wEb3t3wI8aQHNgTh_Z8Cw/s320/IMG_20221017_171047.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We’d made it to the top and it was a simple walk back down to Mandraki, where waves were crashing on the shore at sunset. But I still had a hankering to spend some time at Lies beach, and the weather forecast
was good for tomorrow. And Ian had a hankering to explore another route
to Profitis Ilias, the one we’d started on the first day. So we’d stay one more day. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH8J7BgqpCgFc4OSBMeX6Oc2vJFPV_awNItaKv0DMQ0DUL3xlC4QCKhUAAGN-1cq9pSlf7wZ47mUz9r_LWu4auQ2CCKAMg1_Z2WR_T158adth0rR91jMiyB5_UQuIMePjMa6DjQUc6occKnDDwgm9iexuWSBmgZImKGvqr1cHU4y7yqZu2HnsK7wE3EQ/s4000/IMG_20221017_185023.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH8J7BgqpCgFc4OSBMeX6Oc2vJFPV_awNItaKv0DMQ0DUL3xlC4QCKhUAAGN-1cq9pSlf7wZ47mUz9r_LWu4auQ2CCKAMg1_Z2WR_T158adth0rR91jMiyB5_UQuIMePjMa6DjQUc6occKnDDwgm9iexuWSBmgZImKGvqr1cHU4y7yqZu2HnsK7wE3EQ/s320/IMG_20221017_185023.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPJ7DtV50r0hZi2yzCD4zW55_QlYzIDrx5KQJmKgOcHSrcvsATFQM17FNaUbM5rFdwGsQWwL-JfcHpg2JWH-4MGjqeRiYXQRFu9E2miLOYwNwJph9JNhQmEFJ8xt44f85zjOaT0QrDal5ckVGGwijwaPld6utvLzuGlfARrX_ufsA3qp1UPLn3a-zGng/s3609/IMG_20221017_192753.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="3609" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPJ7DtV50r0hZi2yzCD4zW55_QlYzIDrx5KQJmKgOcHSrcvsATFQM17FNaUbM5rFdwGsQWwL-JfcHpg2JWH-4MGjqeRiYXQRFu9E2miLOYwNwJph9JNhQmEFJ8xt44f85zjOaT0QrDal5ckVGGwijwaPld6utvLzuGlfARrX_ufsA3qp1UPLn3a-zGng/s320/IMG_20221017_192753.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-align: center;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Lies and Panayia Kyra<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I set off just after
ten, walking along the coast road with Lisa and letting her into the sea for a
dip every now and then as the day was warming up. There wasn’t too much traffic
and it was lovely in the sunshine, though it
was a real pleasure to leave the main road and descend to peaceful Palli. Except
for a handful of people from a yacht having a late breakfast, it was quiet.
Cats were having a late breakfast too, eating whole fish outside the bakery. We
passed the grand old Pantelidis Baths, with the Roman church of Panayia
Thermiani behind it. <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">Up on Cape Katsounis, with Emborio gleaming on the hilltop above, I got my first glimpse of the empty stretch of coast backed by low hills.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil4El702OdQJ5_od5HodMpsFRNJuOUFrzABFdQp8u4DQHvyPO29XrQChpfG5AjxjO7MlRckQN7HfDV_A0-Awlw3sC8WzUcQCqcfUqCJ3IvfM-c0b16BDOnVgQguegJ3cl9rbW2nAwPM41AB2h0ULUOYQBcKAJwqUR2RNGkLeEw_edtLnMv13Xn0wjN-A/s4000/IMG_20221018_113923.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil4El702OdQJ5_od5HodMpsFRNJuOUFrzABFdQp8u4DQHvyPO29XrQChpfG5AjxjO7MlRckQN7HfDV_A0-Awlw3sC8WzUcQCqcfUqCJ3IvfM-c0b16BDOnVgQguegJ3cl9rbW2nAwPM41AB2h0ULUOYQBcKAJwqUR2RNGkLeEw_edtLnMv13Xn0wjN-A/w400-h300/IMG_20221018_113923.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZQIdVUlungbR7UEQOYZDJ0qHBWE3E-07qDVfuqkfCdkRdTqSGK3oENE8xZtnIjhWyc3g0dH6NkwrnEV8rRVRz-dedC7fYe8PmR1KaoatcAAlei7EmAosMPlxf2SLmhF4eIs2IGZ1E_YcAcgRuM4o6w7nPN6iwq3NqywSmNGikYmptt-7rhM7cpxhNYw/s4000/IMG_20221018_122607.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZQIdVUlungbR7UEQOYZDJ0qHBWE3E-07qDVfuqkfCdkRdTqSGK3oENE8xZtnIjhWyc3g0dH6NkwrnEV8rRVRz-dedC7fYe8PmR1KaoatcAAlei7EmAosMPlxf2SLmhF4eIs2IGZ1E_YcAcgRuM4o6w7nPN6iwq3NqywSmNGikYmptt-7rhM7cpxhNYw/w400-h300/IMG_20221018_122607.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg--xmRy8VLkd9iD0ZHiiOXmLF8nMBnfLNe0ZFbzaxNdxf3nqRyW6BiBqfvZNU8qTb5CQAPl1v8ZMbJ_luTV3k7BoWpElRS2nwnSiYv-xBTQhKr6KCf_LavC5-xP1Bc5gXgqUczO3OHJ72ORvVzWhEE93bHtrQgHCJXql5YOocP0hZxmNtdgJUKPHYW9w/s4000/IMG_20221018_140125.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg--xmRy8VLkd9iD0ZHiiOXmLF8nMBnfLNe0ZFbzaxNdxf3nqRyW6BiBqfvZNU8qTb5CQAPl1v8ZMbJ_luTV3k7BoWpElRS2nwnSiYv-xBTQhKr6KCf_LavC5-xP1Bc5gXgqUczO3OHJ72ORvVzWhEE93bHtrQgHCJXql5YOocP0hZxmNtdgJUKPHYW9w/w400-h300/IMG_20221018_140125.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When we reached Lies, after a couple of hours of easy walking around the coast, Lisa rolled in the dry
seagrass, ecstatic – we hadn’t had much beach time this week. I found a
beautiful spot, relaxed (once the flies stopped biting…), and swam with my mask
to see the rising streams of pearly bubbles from breathing holes in the seabed.
There were still a few rental cars around, but the sun was warm and it was blissful to lie there and read, cooling off from time to time in the water.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There was still a chance to walk another route home. From the end of the road, I found a track that came to a stop but I scrambled up the slope to another track, winding my way up to Panayia Kyra in the peace and quiet, elated by the landscape as Pachia Ammos came into view far below and I came across old buildings and paths and scanned the ground for pottery. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRBTXNc7PqzRV-wlj_Zna90jSHr1hj6QUWTyAsTjafWg4oBAyRMKlaC4zHsBl3KCPN3j7jnnoNjSGoY8WUsrIENDa1GFXxkjECnMrF8qHTi7V81t9LsuYUpX9QmGiDb-tI7fGyXhNQHWbdhz7HyHeQvUZ_-ZDlNpbrh2LOO5QODkM_LyQ_GALv1isHnQ/s4000/IMG_20221018_162255.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRBTXNc7PqzRV-wlj_Zna90jSHr1hj6QUWTyAsTjafWg4oBAyRMKlaC4zHsBl3KCPN3j7jnnoNjSGoY8WUsrIENDa1GFXxkjECnMrF8qHTi7V81t9LsuYUpX9QmGiDb-tI7fGyXhNQHWbdhz7HyHeQvUZ_-ZDlNpbrh2LOO5QODkM_LyQ_GALv1isHnQ/s320/IMG_20221018_162255.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; 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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ascending into that old landscape, I thought about the joys of walking
on history. When I reached the monastery and the track turned
into dull white concrete, with no obvious sign of the trail that was marked on the map, I
instead picked my way up gentle terraces until I found an old path, overgrown
in places, that took me most of the way to the road. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">From there it was just a question of following the quiet road - passing a worrying new construction site, alas - until the final bend towards Emborio, were
I veered up the shortcut stone path; from the village we took the path
along the ridge we’d done the other day back to Evangelistria.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr1y7MmQhiHCxzwWSGLdn5bJ3UOHV7FmT3VjZzjc8NJlLg1eUT9CAioyIEA2Qugc3aSbURvPsBX83Rj0Xe1NK6j-8KhAy8vDLaLQ2mmy0o5U6oG9ZzgvMKhZWT1nWC2c-CW59xKygtE_gRPXn45I43u3Ml3gP2tR7NVnW1TneekKLDs-0YoWDyAeRhfw/s320/IMG_20221018_181756.jpg" style="color: #0000ee; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; text-align: center;" width="320" /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Losing the daylight, from there
we took the road zigzagging down, but on the final curve I found the lovely
footpath back around the windmill to town. We were only ten minutes behind Ian,
who had also achieved his goal and found the blue-dotted trail all the way from
near Stavros monastery to Profitis Ilias.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">*</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">The wild and untouched places on these islands are precious. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Once you destroy a place, once you build a road, a hotel, it will never be the same again, it's lost forever. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">It’s something we’ve been thinking about on Tilos, where plans are in progress to concrete the road to Skafi beach, much loved only because of the beautiful route to get there, and the feeling of remoteness. A new</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> road to Mikro Horio has left a big concrete scar across the hillside. There are plans to concrete the lovely, winding dirt tracks to Eristos.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">If only the islanders got funding to maintain the centuries-old paths instead, how valuable they would be. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">W</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">e hadn’t seen anyone else at all out walking except when we went to Profitis Ilias. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I also realised I hadn’t had any interesting encounters with people. It must affect the local population, receiving such a volume of day-trippers every day whom they will see for a few minutes and likely never see again. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When I flick through the book of
photographs by Peter Kuhne showing Nisyros of the previous four and a half
decades, it’s unrecognisable. You’re hard pushed to find a magically cluttered
and quirky old shop or kafeneio these days. Though one morning when </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I asked around for local honey, I was pleased to be directed to the electrical goods shop. All quirkiness is not
lost.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">On the last morning we went to the
ferry ticket office, and there were signs and leaflets for Anaema, the agrotourism organisation which organises walks; I asked about it and discovered the man at the next desk was a partner in it. And when I asked him about the blue-dotted trails that had
helped us so much, he smiled and said, ‘I made some of them.’ He and a few
locals were trying to revive the old paths. Perhaps we should have met him at the start of the trip... But then finding our way had been part of the fun, too.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As we waited for the ferry, Lisa seemed relieved that we were on our way home. But she'd loved her afternoons of hunting for paths, and her evenings of dinnertime treats. Perhaps she'll also be happy when we go back to explore some more.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm6hIX4JhYbepvUXSS_Z8lebGbA_UEvu9BE25XMq4iaUS6YKFUBf1yNbfGyj7r6Cg8V3XxVHhytCS2aeKbMVbFzUlEra5OgWJ54a4sHJ3t7rBke22Z8ovLSahys1F8fU8zDIMkqyn6CvbVFbYJcwRQ3bNF7Kb52ENWosW_EMpQmDVS3GUMxX1b0Hm76Q/s4000/IMG_20221019_133132.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm6hIX4JhYbepvUXSS_Z8lebGbA_UEvu9BE25XMq4iaUS6YKFUBf1yNbfGyj7r6Cg8V3XxVHhytCS2aeKbMVbFzUlEra5OgWJ54a4sHJ3t7rBke22Z8ovLSahys1F8fU8zDIMkqyn6CvbVFbYJcwRQ3bNF7Kb52ENWosW_EMpQmDVS3GUMxX1b0Hm76Q/s320/IMG_20221019_133132.jpg" width="320" /></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-32463875110585384762022-10-25T10:05:00.002+03:002022-10-25T10:10:52.170+03:00Walking on Nisyros - Part One<p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhygri32h86KwEM8NZe1DsjMP6LzNnBGjCVtSW6A35xbT1vwAW5UZ2JNrEoMH2qjeaxf83OOgY553zAHTFFs1eSmlY0VAvKMYFYnWdvQOWVcbBvnHGGOUY1zZA8j3Ii8YQ_CrbTtZySw50sQ1a0RLb7J1cN3QwfKCs-bLtHpH1pe852inOFHbzBqY4GQ/s4000/IMG_20221012_154347.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhygri32h86KwEM8NZe1DsjMP6LzNnBGjCVtSW6A35xbT1vwAW5UZ2JNrEoMH2qjeaxf83OOgY553zAHTFFs1eSmlY0VAvKMYFYnWdvQOWVcbBvnHGGOUY1zZA8j3Ii8YQ_CrbTtZySw50sQ1a0RLb7J1cN3QwfKCs-bLtHpH1pe852inOFHbzBqY4GQ/w400-h300/IMG_20221012_154347.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">October is an ideal time for
walking in the Dodecanese, with the temperatures slightly cooler but the days still
mostly sunny with spectacular light. Here on Tilos it’s peaceful and perfect –
yet I love to explore other places and walk different routes. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">And although it’s barely an hour
away by ferry, the volcanic neighbouring island of Nisyros is surprisingly
different in its landscape and ecosystem and architecture. After a couple of too-short
visits in the past year, I’d promised myself a week in October, and was pleased
that Ian felt like coming too. Mostly for his company, of course, though it
helps that he’s better than me at finding footpaths and can hold Lisa’s lead
when I’m struggling down a steep hillside. He had to work in the mornings but
every afternoon we’d be walking. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">At Three Brothers Hotel on Mandraki
harbour, you can enjoy the sea lapping at the dock, sunrise colours and
moonlight on the water, a quick dip off the rocks. You also get to see all the boats arriving and leaving.
Despite it being mid-October, almost every morning around 10.30 several excursion
boats arrived packed with day-trippers from hotels on Kos, to spend a few hours
on the island and take coaches to the volcanic craters. We’d hear tour buses
coming and going, Vasili power-washing his rental cars, guides shouting instructions…
We were relieved to have a long, relaxed stay on the island.</span></p><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Nisyros doesn’t have many beaches
but the few it has are special.
When I first went to Hochlaki almost twenty years ago, there was just a rough path around the
cliffs underneath the monastery of Panayia Spiliani, and a sign saying it was
forbidden to walk there because of the risk of falling rocks. Now they’ve built
a pretty walkway around where you can admire the ochres and rusts and browns of
the volcanic rock, though the sign warning of danger remains, as do the falling
rocks presumably - though I've never seen one. Hochlaki's big round grey-black pebbles make it a challenge getting in and out of the sea… Yet it’s a magnificent place with the waves crashing
in over those pebbles, sending up a spray. On a calm morning I had the beach to
myself, and a long swim watching big shoals of seabream.</span></p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Still, the best thing was the
walking. There are more kilometres of concrete roads than there used
to be where I walked and cycled on rough tracks years ago – the roads wrecking
a bit more of the surroundings; more shiny new cars, and everyone driving or being
driven. But we discovered a wealth of places to walk on paths that are little
known, sometimes overgrown or tricky, yet always leading to beautiful
or fascinating places. The high you get from setting off every day to explore
in sunshine, feeling your legs getting stronger and building up an appetite for
dinner – well, I reckon you can’t beat it.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMeZJA_pyO6BoGzLoGAUJ8RASv3Yk8457o3cNzJns_zqViGezqH1i1vSKHsgGKpDygimxo_-4NDvB9Mm0lbGkd1k1lOqbnEzu-98apZML_AQd8z6_McBiyu05rS5RfSj0jO4VS8vGrzb6SmVPwCjCQboXMtp7RxW4-u4yg8hDOSIDoZsbsW8QT5mIokg/s1000/IMG_20221025_100655_resized_20221025_100724653.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMeZJA_pyO6BoGzLoGAUJ8RASv3Yk8457o3cNzJns_zqViGezqH1i1vSKHsgGKpDygimxo_-4NDvB9Mm0lbGkd1k1lOqbnEzu-98apZML_AQd8z6_McBiyu05rS5RfSj0jO4VS8vGrzb6SmVPwCjCQboXMtp7RxW4-u4yg8hDOSIDoZsbsW8QT5mIokg/w400-h300/IMG_20221025_100655_resized_20221025_100724653.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I’ve usually not had access to a
decent map, so used the reasonably good one that’s in the free leaflet available
widely. This time we had a Skai/Terrain map, and I was excited to have more information.
Alas, even allowing for a bit of user error, it felt incomplete and one landmark was wrongly marked; I checked for updates on their website, but found none. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Thankfully, blue and red dots would
appear here and there to help us out of a sticky situation (or lure us into one…).
With a bit of trial and error, we started to understand the terrain better and
look forward to going back for more. Maybe we'd take a pair of secateurs for the prickly
oak that has taken over where humans rarely tread.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Having no natural water sources, and
rarely using the traditional household cisterns that survive all over the
island, the island is now supplied by desalinated water. Temak machines, one in
the centre of Mandraki and one at the top (and one in Palli), dispense a better version of this
water and we filled bottles for free daily – though occasionally the machines weren’t working, when water was diverted elsewhere or during a power cut. Still, we avoided contributing plastic bottles to the island's rubbish.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Given the scarcity of information for independent hikers, I thought I’d give a vague idea of the walks we did. Most days we set off at lunchtime and walked four or five hours at
a moderate pace, including plenty of time for taking photographs and looking
inside old buildings; the longest walk took seven hours. All started at Mandraki.</span></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOwLtym71V9THYOJo-TrofcLVpTUnMfEqBui4eeWLbsfeh_tj6h0QeQNPWu3du4qAUngBYMrbOoTWpq9wtsnm-ByJM6GWyMi1SlE-OK0hILQWF4zyTFs_4200EEurRrnUeUtI67cZsDzcwsKx1tLV7H5qlEQmIIm6G8VXbbWua5Exh6se3rhLxrIV-lQ/s4000/IMG_20221011_153059.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOwLtym71V9THYOJo-TrofcLVpTUnMfEqBui4eeWLbsfeh_tj6h0QeQNPWu3du4qAUngBYMrbOoTWpq9wtsnm-ByJM6GWyMi1SlE-OK0hILQWF4zyTFs_4200EEurRrnUeUtI67cZsDzcwsKx1tLV7H5qlEQmIIm6G8VXbbWua5Exh6se3rhLxrIV-lQ/s320/IMG_20221011_153059.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Glimpses of Argos and Trapezina <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">On the first day, the afternoon was a little hot
and sticky with clouds veiling the island's peaks from time to time as we took the
lovely stone path from Mandraki – accessed from the last alleyway in the
village below the medieval monastery of Panayia Spiliani – up to Palaiokastro, the
fortification walls of massive stone blocks dating from the fourth century BC.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Continuing gradually uphill to
the south and Stavros monastery, there used to be a rough track with scattered
abandoned stone houses when I cycled the island around 2005 and when I walked
it in 2015. Alas, it’s now a concrete road all the way – probably a joy to
drivers but fairly depressing to me. Ian had read that before the rough track, until
a few decades ago there was a centuries-old stone track or kalderimi. We spotted
bits of it and although it wasn't marked at all on either map, we agreed to explore another day.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeNQJFq6xdTuFZW3YS1F2mE5JsuCyTWFAtktPvGbbPU_FrVBq4ZpfhtUzFp-o6odCpLEUrqwfk7xis3mW9f8BMICse22xxEWossWy6VIo2VZydubafiQAth0pfqrbYTAlgk0qjqDStJEbGoAduKKiowrYIPKfmhj9c8XT3lmCrnL56btJr96_B477Ofg/s4000/IMG_20221016_144640.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeNQJFq6xdTuFZW3YS1F2mE5JsuCyTWFAtktPvGbbPU_FrVBq4ZpfhtUzFp-o6odCpLEUrqwfk7xis3mW9f8BMICse22xxEWossWy6VIo2VZydubafiQAth0pfqrbYTAlgk0qjqDStJEbGoAduKKiowrYIPKfmhj9c8XT3lmCrnL56btJr96_B477Ofg/s320/IMG_20221016_144640.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The road passed between the peaks
of Trapezina and Karaviotis and I started to see the distinctive euphorbia with its spiky leaves spiralling and turning pink. Beyond there, to the south opened up sweeping views over the
tree-covered low hills of Argos. Seeing a trace of kalderimi heading down, we attempted
to follow but soon found it too difficult to teeter over loose rocks and dusty gravel, so we veered into the smooth terraces instead and investigated an abandoned house with a fireplace, but we knew we didn't have time to explore this whole area - something for another day.</span></p></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLp_p6mtx4K_kWTAdUqYUz9X29inPOPYq9W2UOPXgMgtT2ayxVnhxjiw--dPPs-NDz4Y0zMang6xi_Ux4UaYl3o1Zx43xy2VF9RItpdvE1rFMM-Lrl3t23U_ckJmoeBfiNJp3Z47nMJYJjIv_DlCAdQwf8Y5R16ZF677R0xwmHyc_Zv6qiqNjMKFvDSQ/s4000/IMG_20221011_162325.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLp_p6mtx4K_kWTAdUqYUz9X29inPOPYq9W2UOPXgMgtT2ayxVnhxjiw--dPPs-NDz4Y0zMang6xi_Ux4UaYl3o1Zx43xy2VF9RItpdvE1rFMM-Lrl3t23U_ckJmoeBfiNJp3Z47nMJYJjIv_DlCAdQwf8Y5R16ZF677R0xwmHyc_Zv6qiqNjMKFvDSQ/s320/IMG_20221011_162325.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwWMY6H20kBnv86MEWwSbMj7xLjlANya1axSt2GAxtHJrVfYon4ULg5NSudtP_ESiq9t28ERjlQ5Z-yIbjQxLBccah_lAnucbOswLgMoapWbHJGzfhIJkBJjFwkFTC7QppfNCItjIo2hJLLi5BoH-dP-fbGRorramQNsENEAsImYuOS7HgTXxCmbf2dw/s3264/IMG_20221011_162410.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwWMY6H20kBnv86MEWwSbMj7xLjlANya1axSt2GAxtHJrVfYon4ULg5NSudtP_ESiq9t28ERjlQ5Z-yIbjQxLBccah_lAnucbOswLgMoapWbHJGzfhIJkBJjFwkFTC7QppfNCItjIo2hJLLi5BoH-dP-fbGRorramQNsENEAsImYuOS7HgTXxCmbf2dw/s320/IMG_20221011_162410.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Returning to the road, from where
we could see white-painted Theologos monastery built into steep rock across the caldera, I
suggested we take the path down towards the craters and head back to Mandraki via
footpaths. I’d taken this path once before and there were blue dots marking
the way. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Unfortunately, they were the
wrong blue dots, leading up instead of down. Intrigued, we followed for twenty scrambly
minutes on the slopes of Trapezina until there were sections of rocks jammed
tightly together into a beautiful path, albeit overgrown, with views across the
caldera to Nikia and down into Stephanos crater. Again, we had to turn back –
but would try it another time.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I was hobbling as we retraced our
steps down the concrete road, yet there were sunset colours through misty cloud
on the mountainsides and on the waves far below. It wasn’t our best day, but put it down to reconnaissance. A hot
shower, change of clothes and glass of raki later and we were heading out for a
splendid dinner, then slept deeply.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Evangelistria to Nyphios (aka Nymphios)
plateau</span></b></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Above Mandraki, a road meanders
around the top of the village and its outlying farms as far as Palaiokastro, while
midway another road branches off to zigzag up to the eighteenth-century monastery
of Evangelistria. But there are sections of old footpath still to be found between
zig and zag heading more directly uphill, sometimes indicated by a sign, until
the road levels out for the approach to Evangelistria.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Just before the monastery gates
starts a path to Diavatis, the highest peak, and it turned out to be clearly marked, heading gradually up the hillside and past an old farm until
it opened out into a glorious view of a hidden narrow valley, Steno, with steep
terraces up the sides covered in trees. A short way farther on was a beautiful old chapel with
a cistern and a little house built in the traditional style with mortarless stone arches and stone slabs laid in between.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWi_9OYU4S4y6i_SCGbsrW4pNFHMtdlSe1P5TVsgjNPccjL5shxW0RpsQeZUQhxyAInnDoi8p66jgiP0tN0lMsnsMzTTKRqr_J6YKGnPsj9q2RFMvDEOk8Caf6KxP7ZN1FhBDfTUBV0Kzo1Dn4cJDl6jVzYMKmDRr61q31M4Yro9axBEn252V82EZUjg/s4000/IMG_20221012_155209.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWi_9OYU4S4y6i_SCGbsrW4pNFHMtdlSe1P5TVsgjNPccjL5shxW0RpsQeZUQhxyAInnDoi8p66jgiP0tN0lMsnsMzTTKRqr_J6YKGnPsj9q2RFMvDEOk8Caf6KxP7ZN1FhBDfTUBV0Kzo1Dn4cJDl6jVzYMKmDRr61q31M4Yro9axBEn252V82EZUjg/s320/IMG_20221012_155209.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPqw3rnwl2NKgNQH2sCrLYmUCpH2o6xfqPHPKvrQ5srYaAtrmo-Os549JekEeK3Tgn2_-3is0Tz-p4L2I555ZXf0F6iKqznrX2bRAkQjS8cUxT1mlYXQ6rTlnrLVMXtKipnFMeYfQDTrZ0cszRL-2gJ-wrbk-00l9-GIZpJE9XhKM4ECzF4mzu0sUhIw/s4000/IMG_20221012_153655.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPqw3rnwl2NKgNQH2sCrLYmUCpH2o6xfqPHPKvrQ5srYaAtrmo-Os549JekEeK3Tgn2_-3is0Tz-p4L2I555ZXf0F6iKqznrX2bRAkQjS8cUxT1mlYXQ6rTlnrLVMXtKipnFMeYfQDTrZ0cszRL-2gJ-wrbk-00l9-GIZpJE9XhKM4ECzF4mzu0sUhIw/s320/IMG_20221012_153655.jpg" width="240" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg29LD9IGhqS_pfbcCCz0b71YN7k4GGPKxDAmj5wZ9hq4Bi4gxSG52CbHi4mK5eI6gkG9yZahpUhC3Q2eouEAEFvrMlUw3lEoDd0t9Z3fwS3YNHBw1S-JR9n2he-5yVRiEcsn6DCqC5rLPSBU68XXx4TwjMzXTarkpSgE55Fdt0G7kgSu-1Jiwn3UPL2g/s4000/IMG_20221012_153915.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg29LD9IGhqS_pfbcCCz0b71YN7k4GGPKxDAmj5wZ9hq4Bi4gxSG52CbHi4mK5eI6gkG9yZahpUhC3Q2eouEAEFvrMlUw3lEoDd0t9Z3fwS3YNHBw1S-JR9n2he-5yVRiEcsn6DCqC5rLPSBU68XXx4TwjMzXTarkpSgE55Fdt0G7kgSu-1Jiwn3UPL2g/s320/IMG_20221012_153915.jpg" width="320" /></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Beyond, the path continued
clearly up and up the side of Diavatis, winding on an old stone footpath as
it grew steeper, with masses of ferns and the occasional cyclamen – which we don’t
get on Tilos until winter, and which we'd see here and there all over the high places. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz-dU8SqUDFYRtuXoKr_ncSkrbyD8S92Dn6SrivRFRswpi_7xYcDUql2V4E4QhvEi6PYbqO8IqB6swt4I6Hsof5E3HJi_38NY34l7cUT7_uCSbHZOeNtrN7FLOT5ny_mvYeD9EDlKoYyo7KD5Kpy_FFAcylJ6Ne_tDk_mVYPMUuceDpwBDh4dNBn7v_w/s4000/IMG_20221012_160309.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz-dU8SqUDFYRtuXoKr_ncSkrbyD8S92Dn6SrivRFRswpi_7xYcDUql2V4E4QhvEi6PYbqO8IqB6swt4I6Hsof5E3HJi_38NY34l7cUT7_uCSbHZOeNtrN7FLOT5ny_mvYeD9EDlKoYyo7KD5Kpy_FFAcylJ6Ne_tDk_mVYPMUuceDpwBDh4dNBn7v_w/s320/IMG_20221012_160309.jpg" width="240" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">At about 500 metres high the path
divides: right to Profitis Ilias, which we’d attempt another day, taking the
left turn today to Nyphios. It seemed that quickly we were in another world, the
whole hillside deep green with prickly oak that was set on taking over the old
walls… <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiachvFzQlTFMo2zXAHGvOW20P4D2FbkJ9THhKXkgNnuqr2Bq-xyyPh9i_VhtnwGMOayY6_y5ZaftGlgHIeMpMemUX_ZWyeERRy7lFbL8VsM97GKqek-gLhsJSNx5dqaGsMvSeeemBSemzNRmnaqtEm6QKoulX07tQMXSXkAdOSVD_KZF-vyAsBI-HPJA/s4000/IMG_20221012_162640.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiachvFzQlTFMo2zXAHGvOW20P4D2FbkJ9THhKXkgNnuqr2Bq-xyyPh9i_VhtnwGMOayY6_y5ZaftGlgHIeMpMemUX_ZWyeERRy7lFbL8VsM97GKqek-gLhsJSNx5dqaGsMvSeeemBSemzNRmnaqtEm6QKoulX07tQMXSXkAdOSVD_KZF-vyAsBI-HPJA/w400-h300/IMG_20221012_162640.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy8XqOYex0eu9iBrOKvnD9hCxj0_PF7MVqtyNuSIaNCmSDO5HB9N02V8p8yrv7AhM8m6LEJrOAiOm9RRkUDIpwVW_pqDbToGeETKOZNFkK8aDON2UHPPGf9tpUUrEKt6DtBIjVUEUwh6XwJ1L8IgKawW33jmD8El4jHu7vQGNugP4it0MvkG_ro9G_Kg/s4000/IMG_20221012_163421.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy8XqOYex0eu9iBrOKvnD9hCxj0_PF7MVqtyNuSIaNCmSDO5HB9N02V8p8yrv7AhM8m6LEJrOAiOm9RRkUDIpwVW_pqDbToGeETKOZNFkK8aDON2UHPPGf9tpUUrEKt6DtBIjVUEUwh6XwJ1L8IgKawW33jmD8El4jHu7vQGNugP4it0MvkG_ro9G_Kg/w400-h300/IMG_20221012_163421.jpg" width="400" /></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Then the plateau appeared: believed
to have been a sacred enclave in the early second millennium BC, perhaps with
links to Minoan culture in Crete, it was certainly an atmospheric, hidden place,
and the misty cloud contributed to the aura. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfG5CSJuNkW74QJpBkjFlKJdKJPjeW7owJ7rmUiYITeRTkEmUOQXlHyHMB2CuvbzPk90OYUt0WJ6h8GEWAIK6o8pBhIdWQUkdTuPiZ5nYViXbuIv_iQHf6g4SU6YQOVP1o4RZ7SYQqL_GYWuY059SKRJt_ukcBkETiSSlGavsRb6K-UxPBjWOlQqhsCg/s4000/IMG_20221012_171551.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfG5CSJuNkW74QJpBkjFlKJdKJPjeW7owJ7rmUiYITeRTkEmUOQXlHyHMB2CuvbzPk90OYUt0WJ6h8GEWAIK6o8pBhIdWQUkdTuPiZ5nYViXbuIv_iQHf6g4SU6YQOVP1o4RZ7SYQqL_GYWuY059SKRJt_ukcBkETiSSlGavsRb6K-UxPBjWOlQqhsCg/s320/IMG_20221012_171551.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">A rocky mound in the middle
turned out to have deep chambers and, unusually, a stone house built on the top of it.
There were notches cut into a rock wall. A little way from there was a wall covering
a gap in some rocks, and when I peered inside I saw a chapel built into the
cave, supported by a huge rock pillar. The door seemed to be locked but when I
called Ian over to see, he just pushed a little harder and we were able to descend
the steps. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrP-FZAExXG3tGICaBoPpGRTj5i5TAbsNmHKtkbYAWRmraKpa_FG7Kszd3-ncX6gZN97Ex8dB0sjXq_BVw0uw-Wpbr8sbl3MDn7upvVz_XPJn8BQ2UYnoNGV7KJzMjvBTkk6BLlYwSyzJPdKJQmlf-m0KeTnKq2gj3E9_gQLlzt3iAonQcWAydMFYf7w/s4000/IMG_20221012_165249.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrP-FZAExXG3tGICaBoPpGRTj5i5TAbsNmHKtkbYAWRmraKpa_FG7Kszd3-ncX6gZN97Ex8dB0sjXq_BVw0uw-Wpbr8sbl3MDn7upvVz_XPJn8BQ2UYnoNGV7KJzMjvBTkk6BLlYwSyzJPdKJQmlf-m0KeTnKq2gj3E9_gQLlzt3iAonQcWAydMFYf7w/s320/IMG_20221012_165249.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6C82SEJCwXT16hh2cnOCXCOGaGY8yB8ZNJezfSdCd8W-Ectxov1yhvM6BQaZ1zILmxBKZ7zK1TfUq0I5wVwqvzJR5KaDREtXcjjSBzT9KzgHmmlpyhf6NkJZOo-k_YTX2MyEtaSWxsBq2J2lsoFSOAXE7V8sQdXRDFhXRLiAdhUTrg2H4hLSbvm5FDw/s4000/IMG_20221012_165515.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6C82SEJCwXT16hh2cnOCXCOGaGY8yB8ZNJezfSdCd8W-Ectxov1yhvM6BQaZ1zILmxBKZ7zK1TfUq0I5wVwqvzJR5KaDREtXcjjSBzT9KzgHmmlpyhf6NkJZOo-k_YTX2MyEtaSWxsBq2J2lsoFSOAXE7V8sQdXRDFhXRLiAdhUTrg2H4hLSbvm5FDw/s320/IMG_20221012_165515.jpg" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBkXBZGjPkcLCWXm0uW3cAF2Zx9fl6Ku9X_AcN9SwZ0iz_-4IS2TdXKuwcryHDnHvfhUa5RlJYkmZN6cw1K3yRbMWMtsRs6Bg2TEXaO1yIEePCRgF47dCHsSBizPfIhT7dvX1CdUFfERE9iI5d940ONjxTGRCXDkTOkDPUwhurbaoOw0D9rCPehgwiVg/s4000/IMG_20221012_165656.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBkXBZGjPkcLCWXm0uW3cAF2Zx9fl6Ku9X_AcN9SwZ0iz_-4IS2TdXKuwcryHDnHvfhUa5RlJYkmZN6cw1K3yRbMWMtsRs6Bg2TEXaO1yIEePCRgF47dCHsSBizPfIhT7dvX1CdUFfERE9iI5d940ONjxTGRCXDkTOkDPUwhurbaoOw0D9rCPehgwiVg/s320/IMG_20221012_165656.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Outside again, further down the
plateau was an old stone complex of buildings, rooms hidden
off other rooms, with a chapel in the middle. Almost every stone building on
the island is braced with several stone arches. I've read that volcanic earth from a special place in the caldera was spread on top of layers of pumice and branches over the stone to waterproof the roofs. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">Some have threshing circles on their roofs.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;"> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">And on the roof of a cave shelter was the strange old weathered sculpture speculated to be Minoan 'Horns of Consecration'.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDZ9DBZPw19Ese6conErOrVRqX6HjwMLJ91uety3kWB6EE7Ymgt8v2x0HUbHVEyzXIcPnJWv4kokw1w4ZBGTelHvqP9rVr6xG71S6CHYTEgqYb7Ney-ShRvIduPb9cFkjpHX0JFqheJVrfishPNjaGiGoD2bzW3bED4VzGDdghQlfu37TCF5OcbgHhUg/s4000/IMG_20221012_171815.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDZ9DBZPw19Ese6conErOrVRqX6HjwMLJ91uety3kWB6EE7Ymgt8v2x0HUbHVEyzXIcPnJWv4kokw1w4ZBGTelHvqP9rVr6xG71S6CHYTEgqYb7Ney-ShRvIduPb9cFkjpHX0JFqheJVrfishPNjaGiGoD2bzW3bED4VzGDdghQlfu37TCF5OcbgHhUg/w400-h300/IMG_20221012_171815.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0HvmIvfrasG0zfO9FOFtvwqCqEhUAmoHbKsgLlkAB34pQwJIzsRFkeqSOTYfr1tbuY1JeGWqDcFAHOh50_UyQ4PPMq7-rCOCI2N42M-p4-mN7y9j2n7l3Fvak91bqv8EMjm_ggHyBT8mTQPrTZjWtXM5XbSLE1XHmG_T3x7GsW_qvqD7_diXlY71YIQ/s4000/IMG_20221012_172047.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0HvmIvfrasG0zfO9FOFtvwqCqEhUAmoHbKsgLlkAB34pQwJIzsRFkeqSOTYfr1tbuY1JeGWqDcFAHOh50_UyQ4PPMq7-rCOCI2N42M-p4-mN7y9j2n7l3Fvak91bqv8EMjm_ggHyBT8mTQPrTZjWtXM5XbSLE1XHmG_T3x7GsW_qvqD7_diXlY71YIQ/w400-h300/IMG_20221012_172047.jpg" width="400" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWA4prwVJ4WudyNwtgvMztflPOV7iBEUowBzXHL8aZWCWfnoqUj1syqzGD2tIgT776HuHww9VV9Mc6vNW24vxw3gTPEY6g4YTH1RaDRFMPbiAVYIM9pgOL5Z_zR9I0WqaX362ZYwzDuj-8HCeX-RKRZF1rI7nRMHPZR_CW-ODLHFTHVIh-EVx-QJvJtg/s4000/IMG_20221012_172246.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWA4prwVJ4WudyNwtgvMztflPOV7iBEUowBzXHL8aZWCWfnoqUj1syqzGD2tIgT776HuHww9VV9Mc6vNW24vxw3gTPEY6g4YTH1RaDRFMPbiAVYIM9pgOL5Z_zR9I0WqaX362ZYwzDuj-8HCeX-RKRZF1rI7nRMHPZR_CW-ODLHFTHVIh-EVx-QJvJtg/w400-h300/IMG_20221012_172246.jpg" width="400" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpFDhcAFRzTPZsnrEciHpXDwokJ62X7GIr1XvLw_Nm9LnuDePqkppF7Ntm5jDqn-qcSE05PLvHG9pGjY7cq_46IaVolN_EYiFPZDCezBuT4Q2-A8Rye-wPvxpbOcrH_7Kj1s51HY0tU6Pk7NNR8RYoULkOsMSDzC6xrAF4ZEmuepEhkNhHzB4n-OmXyA/s4000/IMG_20221012_172549.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpFDhcAFRzTPZsnrEciHpXDwokJ62X7GIr1XvLw_Nm9LnuDePqkppF7Ntm5jDqn-qcSE05PLvHG9pGjY7cq_46IaVolN_EYiFPZDCezBuT4Q2-A8Rye-wPvxpbOcrH_7Kj1s51HY0tU6Pk7NNR8RYoULkOsMSDzC6xrAF4ZEmuepEhkNhHzB4n-OmXyA/w400-h300/IMG_20221012_172549.jpg" width="400" /></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">As the sun was going down, we finally
continued down the well-marked footpath that joined up with another good footpath
coming from the caldera, and headed back across the valley of Kato Lakki to
Evangelistria. A spectacular day.</span></p><br /><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Mandraki to ridge above Steno and
Siones<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">At the top of the monastery end
of Mandraki is a sunken chapel in a field of fig trees, and nearby is one of
two Temak water dispensers. Just beyond,
a narrow bit of road goes slightly uphill, then splits into two footpaths heading
uphill between farms, marked on the Skai map. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAkWNY8d1VbbH14VenF6nSu2ZUu8mHnJgOb939NbmRH7idxtIiahy8xwZfSKlphj5K0Bprj0_lJ8QNzdVHz1zyI-ajkD_U17orQgT_kpIxn-KUftN0V4dxyt50KLyHLrQJLLtuiRI042EYLx5E3JQ_rTlYG7EyA01qroy27y8b6mcqmDb3eooYvQfFew/s4000/IMG_20221013_145941.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAkWNY8d1VbbH14VenF6nSu2ZUu8mHnJgOb939NbmRH7idxtIiahy8xwZfSKlphj5K0Bprj0_lJ8QNzdVHz1zyI-ajkD_U17orQgT_kpIxn-KUftN0V4dxyt50KLyHLrQJLLtuiRI042EYLx5E3JQ_rTlYG7EyA01qroy27y8b6mcqmDb3eooYvQfFew/s320/IMG_20221013_145941.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">We followed the left branch until
it crossed the road again and tried to follow it beyond in the direction of Armas,
but it soon petered out with a dodgy gate and nothing much on the other side
but rubble. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">This was a blessing in disguise,
as we diverted instead up terraces luxuriant with oak and olive and turpentine
trees, finding sunken cave shelters with pointed arched doorways, abandoned
houses with their <i>kazanaria</i>, deep bath-shaped structures used for
distilling raki, and elaborate, fascinating systems for filling rainwater cisterns
and troughs, and sometimes a chapel attached to the house with an ancient grave-marker
inside as an altar. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWi31-mwh7YyCKwbe8z9qfCQVlRpKr30qOZk9iki0OSIgW_Swytaa8EDj0bNVak74CTS3Rj5HDT6qkRR6EHceIwQc1FoXlaAYAzrFeIEZBsJw_H6QRo3r5L0Tr4W4SnqZci9aaB_wGhbZFi166fWUFrorsVyLaOQ-nKbEf4bwMf4-rXWSZe7YhaxGtTg/s4000/IMG_20221013_151844.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWi31-mwh7YyCKwbe8z9qfCQVlRpKr30qOZk9iki0OSIgW_Swytaa8EDj0bNVak74CTS3Rj5HDT6qkRR6EHceIwQc1FoXlaAYAzrFeIEZBsJw_H6QRo3r5L0Tr4W4SnqZci9aaB_wGhbZFi166fWUFrorsVyLaOQ-nKbEf4bwMf4-rXWSZe7YhaxGtTg/s320/IMG_20221013_151844.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK0Qrs6mo6tvwVdj0y0mVyCopUYv8dadCI0C-S6ogSkrLfozEZt34qKUMUVvNIu_Z5bO_Ri90Sb90UYQshgRtfuVB_Yr9WAtbnZOufpy2TPZxsF3R2a6O-EZuZpkVnJQBiU5U1ERtKeWqFI6di4VIKc57sXE8wHXOo2UfOLPq1cGKAniOTqw_VozORkA/s4000/IMG_20221013_152513.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFoRY4DseiTH-P3HO_peLx9kL8SJFohSRMyNU5DhHZ9Weo4PLaiz5Hd0psL5jSaYAT5YmeXbRAS1Il8nN_QJ_rDXVBjtJGyqtYDWfmnjnjJTVF3JV1dUUM2ZZZNdarHh0ZSz0rW0x10oIosOXxIY9HzV_tCf0VLIRo6ZFg49OYPEgRBP0hdTp9_bUzzQ/s320/IMG_20221013_160802.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiECtAcfcmjZ5ZMOcM2lfi2pHfWehWWYQYTA8T3aDHslWFwetJ1FLsRGO21cJFWSGvvzuMEDD9KAD_RqlxDZnXWzyKvCXohC_qbXHTituO-0JWHT6zyzN_P4-yRItLkvt6w7SQnxKmW4BV_CrRcgkknxi_uvnjbOqh_vy53Ugd8bJZ_-JUA3qIdCi3Hlg/s4000/IMG_20221013_161043.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiECtAcfcmjZ5ZMOcM2lfi2pHfWehWWYQYTA8T3aDHslWFwetJ1FLsRGO21cJFWSGvvzuMEDD9KAD_RqlxDZnXWzyKvCXohC_qbXHTituO-0JWHT6zyzN_P4-yRItLkvt6w7SQnxKmW4BV_CrRcgkknxi_uvnjbOqh_vy53Ugd8bJZ_-JUA3qIdCi3Hlg/s320/IMG_20221013_161043.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I’ve been aware for several years
of an organisation called Anaema offering ‘agrotourism’ experiences on Nisyros,
and later I found their website offered useful local information. The holding
walls of the terraces are locally called </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">vastadia</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> and the terrace fields
</span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">tavli</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> (like tables), and half the island was cultivated this way,
despite there being very little flat land. They principally grew olive, lemon,
turpentine (agramithia), fig, almond and oak trees – almonds being so profuse
that they made garlic sauce with it, as they still do, and figs being used with
grapes to make a kind of raki called </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">koukouzina</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">. The stone houses,
called </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">spiladia</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">, were usually temporary lodgings to use while working in
the fields, and thus contained tools and places to distil raki and make cheese
and so on.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYNqzxWIu3FbZylg39x9_ObUXz_mpEvMGZqEHTN1Zj-qNzjN_HHHrP0nE_D0w_hbIAU2VlOYqjpU60f-XX8DTk_BNdTF-Qo-_vWebIGDw48bwVqhYgTBpCR2kvumtEKsQ8uIPMMwFqjXUf-fx2AK5To3A39ScObgaSQPUvyhqdDeOFWgcef3_0HZJWUw/s4000/IMG_20221013_163150.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYNqzxWIu3FbZylg39x9_ObUXz_mpEvMGZqEHTN1Zj-qNzjN_HHHrP0nE_D0w_hbIAU2VlOYqjpU60f-XX8DTk_BNdTF-Qo-_vWebIGDw48bwVqhYgTBpCR2kvumtEKsQ8uIPMMwFqjXUf-fx2AK5To3A39ScObgaSQPUvyhqdDeOFWgcef3_0HZJWUw/s320/IMG_20221013_163150.jpg" width="320" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">When I saw a cross carved into red rock above one doorway, I remembered coming here years before from another direction, and recalled an icon to an unusual saint inside – and there he was, Saint Onofrios, the hermit of the desert.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Then we heard a couple of gunshots, presumably a hunter, as we had the previous afternoon. The island is probably no longer a </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">monimo katafigio</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">, a permanent wildlife reserve, despite the many signs. Lisa always gets freaked out by shots. She was glad to move on to safety...</span></p></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6InGjXWEHR4B_xlLEpY5UhhP8bOpbMVaZrLqhY8j7WQf9Ie6g-3fFCJeQrP_DfBoN7xa5xMmSgskRaWk6B7z74Ov7P9_KJoQzU_tjSmyLD-K7PcJwhGf5wVvg2MLdNk6h6a268cRHGlK4-HVWxOFKVHI1WUrQfel16to4_BG2WdYjpBsOKKCfGh3y8Q/s4000/IMG_20221013_163931.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6InGjXWEHR4B_xlLEpY5UhhP8bOpbMVaZrLqhY8j7WQf9Ie6g-3fFCJeQrP_DfBoN7xa5xMmSgskRaWk6B7z74Ov7P9_KJoQzU_tjSmyLD-K7PcJwhGf5wVvg2MLdNk6h6a268cRHGlK4-HVWxOFKVHI1WUrQfel16to4_BG2WdYjpBsOKKCfGh3y8Q/s320/IMG_20221013_163931.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">As we continued higher up the rough
hillside we found a striking ruined chapel with a bright white marble column
base on a black altar. The terraces up here were tall and straight and it was
too tempting not to keep going up, stepping gingerly across low-growth prickly
oak, Lisa leaping from rock to rock, all the way to the ridge we’d seen the day
before above Steno. I’d mentioned the idea of following that ridge: could we do
it?<o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZcy8Wndnl2Lyyu2DZXySBxu6lNC7OmQuS3sNgVYGk7pJJo1Z8CWw5PcGSEwQjlC5Y1mbiePYDK85ehBmXZ2LKYIq5rEp24OqWd2Y286UlNNwrGESff-xHaBeg5SfHVhR8AI2w0JFDKQpdxc6B3U7UsZRYEzalo0_u-mxUaARxeU7mRBKCLSzFnmehTg/s4000/IMG_20221013_172425.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZcy8Wndnl2Lyyu2DZXySBxu6lNC7OmQuS3sNgVYGk7pJJo1Z8CWw5PcGSEwQjlC5Y1mbiePYDK85ehBmXZ2LKYIq5rEp24OqWd2Y286UlNNwrGESff-xHaBeg5SfHVhR8AI2w0JFDKQpdxc6B3U7UsZRYEzalo0_u-mxUaARxeU7mRBKCLSzFnmehTg/s320/IMG_20221013_172425.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibC2kra7a8tStSSBYwJ6smVHS9ggVyZma7fFkeGWZsxuDQCF1CAHrBbiiFWZ0dqXTeOvP8mxfASo4Cnc97JgUZcbbiKqbdXH871KVL_AhRs7E8Ylvx2aZhdo7mN2ylhhyaP2bqixLZjl3z83MAMX5eYf8sTV4dE6_OSEc23rCa8tW7AK2MzWes8PARew/s4000/IMG_20221013_170155.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibC2kra7a8tStSSBYwJ6smVHS9ggVyZma7fFkeGWZsxuDQCF1CAHrBbiiFWZ0dqXTeOvP8mxfASo4Cnc97JgUZcbbiKqbdXH871KVL_AhRs7E8Ylvx2aZhdo7mN2ylhhyaP2bqixLZjl3z83MAMX5eYf8sTV4dE6_OSEc23rCa8tW7AK2MzWes8PARew/s320/IMG_20221013_170155.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; text-align: left;" /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEu0GXnA--VUWdhHboTW1GxMShLEJTL6_u5reccajdroGtUcpSI1fnVWI9PHmwSq1Btv-WSsLGZJ-jmY7dtPhCtQ133gn4EL-IuH0koXeVc1rP0L2zOGYzg3oIrjuy877Mt6B1FcTVGX1VkvQpnkMeHoA6UH_JMnthH8Kr1yYniBxo8hbAbBD0ezbvQw/s4000/IMG_20221013_171438.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEu0GXnA--VUWdhHboTW1GxMShLEJTL6_u5reccajdroGtUcpSI1fnVWI9PHmwSq1Btv-WSsLGZJ-jmY7dtPhCtQ133gn4EL-IuH0koXeVc1rP0L2zOGYzg3oIrjuy877Mt6B1FcTVGX1VkvQpnkMeHoA6UH_JMnthH8Kr1yYniBxo8hbAbBD0ezbvQw/s320/IMG_20221013_171438.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">It might have been a tough slog in
the dying daylight if we hadn’t had the joy of finding red and blue dots to
show the way – not always obvious but it was fun finding the route as they
continued all the way along the rocky ridge, descending gradually towards a
gathering of intriguing buildings around the old Siones monastery. There was no
time to stop and look inside at the frescoes – that too would have to wait.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Finally we got down to the road, turning
right down towards Palaiokastro but still with just enough light to veer off the
concrete on the old kalderimi which, despite not being marked on the map, continued
beautifully for a long stretch, emerging near a modern concrete water cistern not
far above Palaiokastro. Another fabulous day.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOt3tQrHYgxjOFVa6rtoPah99YXK0VIu1TkPeEHC6-M8Hw0FKk9c_ih-w1e43RM_L4a5IeOBXk1al5K45RYQgTAnkar7Rjm33c0SDR2pxLoqyb99vDXYiUXNNfaQdSBGYLiUg4j2PvWNBCqloe8GCxzdn7ecHm0bQMsFcdRQGbc3ea1T8_XQAvDyeZYw/s4000/IMG_20221013_174339.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOt3tQrHYgxjOFVa6rtoPah99YXK0VIu1TkPeEHC6-M8Hw0FKk9c_ih-w1e43RM_L4a5IeOBXk1al5K45RYQgTAnkar7Rjm33c0SDR2pxLoqyb99vDXYiUXNNfaQdSBGYLiUg4j2PvWNBCqloe8GCxzdn7ecHm0bQMsFcdRQGbc3ea1T8_XQAvDyeZYw/s320/IMG_20221013_174339.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSwaKyWVAxvzuHNCRF3xIhP2oLV2lQm8Ipf4ndTZQM_9jGVFeaAcp55Dg8r8mZdG7mPzDHiDWupkANlsKSLxSC_vOnNMnM4f_jtKpiGa33dwS84eMvOH8wMIIXVaKUdF-BNoSnErFwdVOG_mtShyDKaJSRa1TaJdqTzqe721XXQ4zrrLXGNJyYznlaFw/s4000/IMG_20221013_174342.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSwaKyWVAxvzuHNCRF3xIhP2oLV2lQm8Ipf4ndTZQM_9jGVFeaAcp55Dg8r8mZdG7mPzDHiDWupkANlsKSLxSC_vOnNMnM4f_jtKpiGa33dwS84eMvOH8wMIIXVaKUdF-BNoSnErFwdVOG_mtShyDKaJSRa1TaJdqTzqe721XXQ4zrrLXGNJyYznlaFw/s320/IMG_20221013_174342.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">More very soon. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">In the meantime, just a reminder that my new book, <i>Taverna by the Sea</i>, is now out and I'm delighted to say it's had lovely coverage in <i>Wanderlust, </i>the <i>Irish Independent </i>and <i>Kathimerini</i>'s <i>K </i>magazine. If you've read it and enjoyed it, online reviews are always helpful. Thanks!</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWrQP2Ytri0IdWuhKQUiUcqqHkwVVXDnFKw35SUr7O1TV6dqsiC5Y2AhT4sW4XhrxQ9UQUo0NU1jQ_jPWNUxeDI2uteTdpQw8vERUDFJjN04QJ9W6MhsNWrzvPYFqXLaTS84KkwS020jkw1FFDERQrIc8L-JhvbCIC5JoRfkREyYyfRisJj_jNpw9zlA/s2340/Taverna%20by%20the%20Sea%20RGB.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2340" data-original-width="1533" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWrQP2Ytri0IdWuhKQUiUcqqHkwVVXDnFKw35SUr7O1TV6dqsiC5Y2AhT4sW4XhrxQ9UQUo0NU1jQ_jPWNUxeDI2uteTdpQw8vERUDFJjN04QJ9W6MhsNWrzvPYFqXLaTS84KkwS020jkw1FFDERQrIc8L-JhvbCIC5JoRfkREyYyfRisJj_jNpw9zlA/s320/Taverna%20by%20the%20Sea%20RGB.jpg" width="210" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-54144837132918963412022-09-13T11:21:00.007+03:002022-09-13T14:42:35.887+03:00Taverna<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi038Z6Vsnj0Jr9OkJQfGvxK5UNPDJpRg2WTg254KTex5suXn0yNONQu5o7Ezgvd8VEF1-j7W5TH3P1KilOLeYVg2wUmqnVUoIEP9Tt7Eg8ebe9Vf2gp7hvAoe38ISgRyrSygpuyv1Z4ADNwyxzt_K0jQcXXycqoPLTe-PUvITRg2XwcrDw2C74mpVy7Q/s2935/PXL_20220815_102033607.PORTRAIT.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2917" data-original-width="2935" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi038Z6Vsnj0Jr9OkJQfGvxK5UNPDJpRg2WTg254KTex5suXn0yNONQu5o7Ezgvd8VEF1-j7W5TH3P1KilOLeYVg2wUmqnVUoIEP9Tt7Eg8ebe9Vf2gp7hvAoe38ISgRyrSygpuyv1Z4ADNwyxzt_K0jQcXXycqoPLTe-PUvITRg2XwcrDw2C74mpVy7Q/s320/PXL_20220815_102033607.PORTRAIT.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Here in Tilos, the baking summer heat and crowds have gone. Eristos beach</span><span style="font-family: georgia;"> is fringed by white sea daffodils. Sea squills have shot up in the last week too, their tall stems glinting in the afternoon light on the hillside, their bright white flowers making the deep blues and greens on the road to </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Plaka even more vivid. The taverna at Ayios Antonis harbour no longer has enough business to stay open in the evenings - we were lucky to have a last dinner there of goat and imam. Everything feels calmer, except for the sea today - the wind is blowing from the north and the waves are crashing in.</span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Life's been too busy this week - not least dealing with the complexities of receiving books from England now, my copies currently languishing in couriers' depots pending paperwork and payments. So this is a very quick post to say, for those who don't know already, that my new book is out this month and gradually making its way to various points around the globe - what a thought! I'll write a proper blog soon for in the meantime here's a tiny extract from September in the book. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">'For years, I'd thought about sleeping on the beach from time to time, and now I was doing it often. Whatever happened from now on, I'd done what I hoped for, spent a whole summer by the sea. I woke at dawn and watched the blood-orange, peachy clouds as the sun rose...</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">In all the months I'd lived at the taverna, I still hadn't walked the half-hour to Nati, the next beach over the headland to the north. Even before the sun filled the valley I threw on a bikini top, jean shorts and trainers, grabbed Lisa and we headed off, following the track twisting down into a wild valley, where we started some partridges and a lot of goats, to a beach of sand and flat pebbles gently shelving into sea as clear as glass.'</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoJ-FmgNMBK4XrzkGpTi0mj-ObVZ9-KdMQn3OEUvmgGMzSyEeah-ngDiUzFskNQ8sDPMkh-D8RW5JfN619DCuGCAzcoZBBDmbeNpFrO4FXH8VzaXkVM9hSmyzmjrfqKrdQ1KPcybC6Jcy6iLNW2Zg-LYDHu0tpirxz76mp2rOQX8pTQS9AbrGazEKq2g/s2560/P1120002.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="2560" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoJ-FmgNMBK4XrzkGpTi0mj-ObVZ9-KdMQn3OEUvmgGMzSyEeah-ngDiUzFskNQ8sDPMkh-D8RW5JfN619DCuGCAzcoZBBDmbeNpFrO4FXH8VzaXkVM9hSmyzmjrfqKrdQ1KPcybC6Jcy6iLNW2Zg-LYDHu0tpirxz76mp2rOQX8pTQS9AbrGazEKq2g/s320/P1120002.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN0SS43fw-K2LZdbgztInZb72_9Oq_T9Ci3u3L0d9idUUcvoX_b3z8sWwwAVY5hYbbCVKvirVrlv6_7vai3e8O9Of_1_v0-p2zdpeyCgYWZmdfhUE53gd8vKCUt5yL4pXhjrUQYEzaLEAJCQ0xJcG5U4q6MOem3o3oBCSM4T-3N7eLfdt3Z4EczUFbzA/s2560/P1120009.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="2560" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN0SS43fw-K2LZdbgztInZb72_9Oq_T9Ci3u3L0d9idUUcvoX_b3z8sWwwAVY5hYbbCVKvirVrlv6_7vai3e8O9Of_1_v0-p2zdpeyCgYWZmdfhUE53gd8vKCUt5yL4pXhjrUQYEzaLEAJCQ0xJcG5U4q6MOem3o3oBCSM4T-3N7eLfdt3Z4EczUFbzA/s320/P1120009.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9fSwSvlNgJmDw56THhtDHNk56t-F8RueRslGwc0080ALSt867j5JSs-10S5O_DUj3PqEo75U37br1AjH_48FJYqIXrjEFfeolvOKo-G8xHxKo_S7g9_ktyl86tulbso53oWMq1sqQrMmfXR_8q9UoF6mImRtX3i8HM5SK2MZFTfzlR_q9CEIATmezZw/s2560/P1120418.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="2560" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9fSwSvlNgJmDw56THhtDHNk56t-F8RueRslGwc0080ALSt867j5JSs-10S5O_DUj3PqEo75U37br1AjH_48FJYqIXrjEFfeolvOKo-G8xHxKo_S7g9_ktyl86tulbso53oWMq1sqQrMmfXR_8q9UoF6mImRtX3i8HM5SK2MZFTfzlR_q9CEIATmezZw/s320/P1120418.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKIeXrQod9ZGVmBQlrhiaHBzzpxD7Ho07m-RPTdKfBZXxtwWYZYkbt-nPXywmjunkSU-k_L8vBUQ5HLBkaWC3B0LvEu1LVIoBUZLpRkyoEyI9_X8G_VBMf1sHOPAA7DtezRLlz526dQxKcjk1DVxnig1yD55H8-qfs8xrYG5RjKvWLFTAGezlX5kjYdA/s2048/P1130065.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKIeXrQod9ZGVmBQlrhiaHBzzpxD7Ho07m-RPTdKfBZXxtwWYZYkbt-nPXywmjunkSU-k_L8vBUQ5HLBkaWC3B0LvEu1LVIoBUZLpRkyoEyI9_X8G_VBMf1sHOPAA7DtezRLlz526dQxKcjk1DVxnig1yD55H8-qfs8xrYG5RjKvWLFTAGezlX5kjYdA/s320/P1130065.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1UGOKJJbqBaKoausyC_JNOI2KF13uLBfDwiLxe7TS5YnFIozlkzqcuHWA3_JMq_SyvO1p_oH5Y0oEeA3wfwLU5Y3Ds_2_3zATH1BnYG_enMa1v79pz62u9n-FxfCvgBxUxTJO8MoIdqBSE4iz02oeIjYCYxLxapf2umNKybj1oVtsuPCC2v5rs4l-YQ/s2048/20170902_181746.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1UGOKJJbqBaKoausyC_JNOI2KF13uLBfDwiLxe7TS5YnFIozlkzqcuHWA3_JMq_SyvO1p_oH5Y0oEeA3wfwLU5Y3Ds_2_3zATH1BnYG_enMa1v79pz62u9n-FxfCvgBxUxTJO8MoIdqBSE4iz02oeIjYCYxLxapf2umNKybj1oVtsuPCC2v5rs4l-YQ/s320/20170902_181746.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc4-YiDi3BhrJufe5JFXTLHlJ4rqkUxy3CtLNS67l-nR5l97yqH1MjYxrv3iKwHYHfSiAjx2YFg4IqyiGv9RdcTJXYDipoTxU-R0ELym7zDaHLb7fUJV3c6_5Jb77WmzGi-A0bo4sE3mLB9QFa5T1i4U115rtzH433Xs5M523ACbb-EQ3UxQfxb4uYyQ/s2048/P1130099.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc4-YiDi3BhrJufe5JFXTLHlJ4rqkUxy3CtLNS67l-nR5l97yqH1MjYxrv3iKwHYHfSiAjx2YFg4IqyiGv9RdcTJXYDipoTxU-R0ELym7zDaHLb7fUJV3c6_5Jb77WmzGi-A0bo4sE3mLB9QFa5T1i4U115rtzH433Xs5M523ACbb-EQ3UxQfxb4uYyQ/s320/P1130099.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">My book on the Visit Greece website today! <a href="https://visitgreece.gr/blog/visit-greece/1426/taverna-by-the-sea/">Taverna by the Sea (visitgreece.gr)</a></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">And on the Wanderlust Best Travel Books of 2022 (So Far) list!</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.wanderlust.co.uk/content/best-travel-books-2022/">The best travel books of 2022 (so far) | Wanderlust</a></span></div><div><br /></div><div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p></div>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-66243630785033878352022-08-04T10:42:00.007+03:002022-10-31T12:54:56.899+02:00Tavernas by the sea<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRelqRO-HguExYwuW2reiyoJGouhbp_TI6EkbjIRzyOnUezcv8ZraVEauVdog-yEIUfKsF5Ho4feS9a4sU17p-ZKPk8Dc6uhmgLptncA8TafaGrgH9jkqRdGNlvgiETUW8xszRnGTsDe1kf4efOUEAZojqOH7pjZ6rRhiwAQxlevvDd0vcDI4wMxmf8Q/s960/116795979_3103521986383507_5162813671563659943_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRelqRO-HguExYwuW2reiyoJGouhbp_TI6EkbjIRzyOnUezcv8ZraVEauVdog-yEIUfKsF5Ho4feS9a4sU17p-ZKPk8Dc6uhmgLptncA8TafaGrgH9jkqRdGNlvgiETUW8xszRnGTsDe1kf4efOUEAZojqOH7pjZ6rRhiwAQxlevvDd0vcDI4wMxmf8Q/s320/116795979_3103521986383507_5162813671563659943_n.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">My new book, TAVERNA
BY THE SEA: ONE GREEK ISLAND SUMMER, based on the time I spent living at lovely Ayios Minas in north Karpathos, is now at the printer, and I’m thrilled
about it.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTQG5rWm7PjRG8gtgZRknamvYnK5_SXvUHI8QXwhWjEXofgSsEMOFTY_41cDyMYfrZWK55YbIlmlen2bEkbFy3hq6gXWt2N47MGr3ZG-3CJt32KXSw_W9CxrQ596bVOeJNfd0Rtp0uPXDJyMnAUd8218W2E8kzcvZGVxQbuuzQhbuW6xkqW-2Dn05Kfw/s2560/P1120010.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="2560" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTQG5rWm7PjRG8gtgZRknamvYnK5_SXvUHI8QXwhWjEXofgSsEMOFTY_41cDyMYfrZWK55YbIlmlen2bEkbFy3hq6gXWt2N47MGr3ZG-3CJt32KXSw_W9CxrQ596bVOeJNfd0Rtp0uPXDJyMnAUd8218W2E8kzcvZGVxQbuuzQhbuW6xkqW-2Dn05Kfw/s320/P1120010.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I started writing it
during the winter in Karpathos in 2017 when the memories were still fresh but then
ended up being diverted to focus on the more serious WILD ABANDON: THE DESERTED
PLACES OF THE DODECANESE. I’m very glad I wrote that book, but I’m also happy
that I went back to finish TAVERNA BY THE SEA last year and that Bradt decided
to publish it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The book shows the
fun side of how I got stuck in rugged north Karpathos for longer than expected,
but it also reveals what summer is like for the locals who work behind the
scenes non-stop, while making it all look easy and relaxed. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxpb_3QOXK1pLt_mTn_uSZcjvb7X9wNQ4TwZelENrW2E94ZSMdZY6zkwOtDeHwvMdx_sSvvMKdI4MAM5jmqJuHGHBstWXm-v3qj8214lEJOi2D0MHQndY87z67TXxIn6ICwKxNI0q7s6EXv7mm1--yW7NHGo_cZ9aC1nCtFl8tg1J52vkwPNZ-orbk-Q/s2560/P1120020.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="2560" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxpb_3QOXK1pLt_mTn_uSZcjvb7X9wNQ4TwZelENrW2E94ZSMdZY6zkwOtDeHwvMdx_sSvvMKdI4MAM5jmqJuHGHBstWXm-v3qj8214lEJOi2D0MHQndY87z67TXxIn6ICwKxNI0q7s6EXv7mm1--yW7NHGo_cZ9aC1nCtFl8tg1J52vkwPNZ-orbk-Q/w400-h300/P1120020.JPG" width="400" /></span></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">When I posted
something about it online recently, one of my Facebook friends told me he’d
also had a fun summer working at a Greek taverna by the sea years ago, so I
decided to interview him about it – and was delighted by his story. Here it is - complete with his pictures from the time!</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Jen:</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;">So, hello Paul! You
ran a taverna on the island of Aegina in 1996 – wow, that’s interesting. </span><span style="background: white; color: black; line-height: 150%;">How did the
opportunity come up? <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="background: white; color: black;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><b><span style="background: white; color: black;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Paul:<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: black;">I was working with a friend at a restaurant in
Reigate, Surrey back in 1996 and her parents had received a small inheritance
and decided that they would love to buy a </span><span style="color: #201f1e;">little bar/restaurant in the sun
and have a nice relaxing lifestyle. They had ideas of not doing much work: the
wife would be swanning around with a glass of wine in her hand chatting to
customers while the husband served a couple of beers at the bar to the one or
two old local guys, and they’d spend a day or two at the beach.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><br /></span></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The
reality was to be completely different – it was very, very busy! The husband
was stuck in the sweltering kitchen all day while the wife ran herself ragged
around the restaurant. It was not the sort of relaxed retirement dream that
they thought it would be. They ran it for two summers then realised how much
work it was, and decided to rent it out.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="background: white; color: black;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Jen:<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">What
made you take on the challenge?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Paul:<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I
find myself to be a rather restless soul and I have always wanted to do
different things and not get bogged down into a routine. I like a challenge and
to push myself out of my comfort zones and this opportunity was definitely
something that was exciting and slightly scary. My mother is Maltese and I
guess I have inherited her love of the Mediterranean sun and sea so as soon as
I heard about the taverna I just knew I had to do it!<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4mz-inHefAQ3pR4ECOekmkevCtElSqzNvW2V4G3pcCcA69tv2xvsMW2_k78IHUuhCejeyxUNdmiCGZWNsBdsPbn5rRbW5RIsxOYofEO0_cO7Ayr7vYXy4f-8NwAUJE2tbMhhvscxPHbMcqLeST17X9gsOk4Gz0I8CxHvKnKhyXRpVIU-ukM4xdOwaOw/s791/Scan_20220802%20(3).jpg" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="527" data-original-width="791" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4mz-inHefAQ3pR4ECOekmkevCtElSqzNvW2V4G3pcCcA69tv2xvsMW2_k78IHUuhCejeyxUNdmiCGZWNsBdsPbn5rRbW5RIsxOYofEO0_cO7Ayr7vYXy4f-8NwAUJE2tbMhhvscxPHbMcqLeST17X9gsOk4Gz0I8CxHvKnKhyXRpVIU-ukM4xdOwaOw/s320/Scan_20220802%20(3).jpg" width="320" /></a></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Jen:<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">So you set off for a
summer on a Greek island. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Paul:<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I bought a very cool VW camper van, then got two
friends, a chef and a waitress, and we drove down through Europe to Agia Marina
on the island of Aegina, to open the taverna and run it for the summer. It was
a great road trip.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOVFXy6wFqjcAjvExd9pgMICIsbXAuOk74CnhkYszsmb53Bxvq6PQt-1I6afYL8BeWuZ6rtKPNE9aIn-Jq_7UZqVVCvYMjXpjBugdGGS4Mivn30QXt22aWKf2hzKnuDtiDJinyIIlisLL3rNIjHt8Npx2r5vU74OgAIytWttTxmhgLTdw4D0AHDCytHQ/s735/Scan_20220802%20(2).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="487" data-original-width="735" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOVFXy6wFqjcAjvExd9pgMICIsbXAuOk74CnhkYszsmb53Bxvq6PQt-1I6afYL8BeWuZ6rtKPNE9aIn-Jq_7UZqVVCvYMjXpjBugdGGS4Mivn30QXt22aWKf2hzKnuDtiDJinyIIlisLL3rNIjHt8Npx2r5vU74OgAIytWttTxmhgLTdw4D0AHDCytHQ/s320/Scan_20220802%20(2).jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Jen:<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">What was the location
like?</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPCfh1Ko0inQlbL022wsI3Wkr4qGkgb0-kNBLeGVFfTcxB8kc_2mU9Y230sRvyULvm1pv9shuBPNQ3d5UW7Dwf93Ry-rCBbXejLnrQgOugR8SmMaJbrQgFVbGvEP7RoAU-nn7k1ryDfLBlu6vsHt2vMMMS2CIPAPUCxWPZu2IDmkThj-dkdXWTvOENcg/s720/Scan_20220802%20(8).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="485" data-original-width="720" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPCfh1Ko0inQlbL022wsI3Wkr4qGkgb0-kNBLeGVFfTcxB8kc_2mU9Y230sRvyULvm1pv9shuBPNQ3d5UW7Dwf93Ry-rCBbXejLnrQgOugR8SmMaJbrQgFVbGvEP7RoAU-nn7k1ryDfLBlu6vsHt2vMMMS2CIPAPUCxWPZu2IDmkThj-dkdXWTvOENcg/s320/Scan_20220802%20(8).jpg" width="320" /></span></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><b><span style="color: black; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Paul: <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The
“Lanterns Taverna” was situated about a five-minute walk outside the main town
of Agia Marina in a place called Alones which was just a sprinkling of houses,
not even big enough to be called a village, nestled in between surrounding low
hills and about 900 meters from the sea. Although it was a quiet area we were
extremely busy throughout the summer mainly with tourists. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Jen:<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #201f1e;">Did
you speak the language? What kind of food did you serve</span><span style="background: white; color: black;">, and how did you learn how things worked there, where to
order supplies and so on?</span><span style="color: #201f1e;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Paul:<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I
didn’t speak any Greek before I went out so had to learn very quickly. To start
with I managed to get by with lots of gesticulation and a phrase book. By the
end of the summer I found I could converse in Greek – as long as the
conversation was all about catering!<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP4Ioq8URfwG_eIGWbCYTQeFwkUvTt6l_kUBvfvMoR-bSEvvPJLVRcYks2rAWDJs_WPt6Ud4GlxYfbL6rX8qYd4SnU06zX__61InOAFHPZtjqLYmYA5JPIsocBKI1aWYfNazoMvPJPbwJz8fYlzScov1j5hqv7vVtpEcrjIDmY-RTQV7W4fA4o3TY1WQ/s697/Scan_20220802%20(4).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="483" data-original-width="697" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP4Ioq8URfwG_eIGWbCYTQeFwkUvTt6l_kUBvfvMoR-bSEvvPJLVRcYks2rAWDJs_WPt6Ud4GlxYfbL6rX8qYd4SnU06zX__61InOAFHPZtjqLYmYA5JPIsocBKI1aWYfNazoMvPJPbwJz8fYlzScov1j5hqv7vVtpEcrjIDmY-RTQV7W4fA4o3TY1WQ/s320/Scan_20220802%20(4).jpg" width="320" /></span></a></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The
menu was small and mainly Greek but I did try to vary it by doing burgers,
steaks, BLTs and different salads. We also did a Chinese night every Monday
which surprisingly went down very well. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I
did have a little bit of help when I got there to learn how things worked. An
old Scottish guy who lived on the island and was a friend of the owners met me
when I arrived at the taverna with the keys and spent the day telling me where
to buy most of the supplies and introduced me to a few of the suppliers. He was
quite a bolshy and pushy character and right from the start tried to tell me
how to run things and what to do – I guess he saw me as a naive young
whippersnapper and maybe wanted to have a say (and some of the profits) in what
went on. I “sacked” him after about two weeks.</span></span></p><p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgifT86MCZIlG6bvot5GL1G0pX3amaSJ_u7hnVIFBaqQip93Tlh1YnY8Tgh6YCGDAlYx2PYXMx-0mPc9AmH0vtJP87QlLtx7fBcXdoipYgJKRtMJtYD03yUqNBTnAi9xjxBFgOlQvjZXzXDOa7mbNrFrk1I798ZbHkwMAT15GjulPxb2DhL_fls8X4Rg/s640/Scan_20220802%20(9).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="451" data-original-width="640" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgifT86MCZIlG6bvot5GL1G0pX3amaSJ_u7hnVIFBaqQip93Tlh1YnY8Tgh6YCGDAlYx2PYXMx-0mPc9AmH0vtJP87QlLtx7fBcXdoipYgJKRtMJtYD03yUqNBTnAi9xjxBFgOlQvjZXzXDOa7mbNrFrk1I798ZbHkwMAT15GjulPxb2DhL_fls8X4Rg/s320/Scan_20220802%20(9).jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"> </span></span><p></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Jen:<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="background: white; color: black;">You said it was</span><span style="color: #201f1e;"> a great summer and you totally
fell in love with Greece. If </span><span style="background: white; color: black;">you were working such
long days at the taverna, how did that happen?</span><span style="color: #201f1e;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Paul:<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">We
worked all day seven days a week, as I'm sure you'll know. We didn't really
have much money behind us and didn't save anything while we were there – we
just lived off the daily profits paying for our accommodation and spending the
rest on having fun.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">We
opened for breakfast, lunch and dinner and didn’t close until the last
customers left – which, as they were on holiday, would normally be about 2 or
3am. After that the staff and I would walk down the hill back to our apartments
– but due to the Greek custom of ‘philoxenia’ we found that we couldn’t simply
walk past the other bars/tavernas without being called in to have a chat and a
drink. It was a great way to meet the locals and make friends – long days, long
nights but great, great fun! <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLs1uy56Gcnt8VYv-wRyqFXDqZoH7-KC-g4kE8sYLRnbzGHzfzBNrE0pDMmzEgGaLXfhIhBGVmdvw6sncYq526tsTMTKCi_LgizcDlPadKnePnR1g-el-sB0o8ywDrxoRT-W9T31h6fycK5Q9gBp13w3DW-Mx_4Ii0Bdjvovyy4xBXjtFRdxWkIguLdw/s746/Scan_20220802%20(6).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="501" data-original-width="746" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLs1uy56Gcnt8VYv-wRyqFXDqZoH7-KC-g4kE8sYLRnbzGHzfzBNrE0pDMmzEgGaLXfhIhBGVmdvw6sncYq526tsTMTKCi_LgizcDlPadKnePnR1g-el-sB0o8ywDrxoRT-W9T31h6fycK5Q9gBp13w3DW-Mx_4Ii0Bdjvovyy4xBXjtFRdxWkIguLdw/s320/Scan_20220802%20(6).jpg" width="320" /></span></a></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Philoxenia
was one of the main reasons for falling in love with Greece. I did worry before
I went that the Greeks may not like a foreigner in their midst running a
taverna and that I might be shunned but I found that I was made welcome and
felt relaxed from the first day I arrived. The scenery of low scrubby hills
around me was beautiful, I loved the feeling of the heat all around me and of
course the little bays and beaches with the flawless warm Mediterranean blue
sea.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I closed the taverna at the end of the season and
decided to go home as my job was still available at the restaurant in Reigate. I
do still wonder why I decided to come back to England when I loved Greece so
much. There wasn't much work on the island in the winter but I'm sure if I
spoke to my Greek friends they could have helped me and I could have probably
stayed and started a life in Greece.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Jen:<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Thank you, Paul, for sharing a little of your story! Here's to tavernas by the sea... </span></span></p><p></p><p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></p><p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #201f1e;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="xxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin: 0cm; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFjL-NfJMwiZwAH5Y7Wnu9p8nsE9P9qKX8k6_85LaVaO9b_oTIzqZXb_LRgjmt31c6UWzrAclhc08dzkbHKwz7D8LpkoTY3l1uadNmzFbuz2v-WbljbPESgT25LboPtEaHBE742OKzYyCCEttac9asN3oaZbQjk62IeyrUF4MiW_xZL5kq7SoH5p0l4w/s2048/13559094_1022031154532611_9218822896065766382_o.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFjL-NfJMwiZwAH5Y7Wnu9p8nsE9P9qKX8k6_85LaVaO9b_oTIzqZXb_LRgjmt31c6UWzrAclhc08dzkbHKwz7D8LpkoTY3l1uadNmzFbuz2v-WbljbPESgT25LboPtEaHBE742OKzYyCCEttac9asN3oaZbQjk62IeyrUF4MiW_xZL5kq7SoH5p0l4w/s320/13559094_1022031154532611_9218822896065766382_o.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></p>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-42334440275023600482022-06-09T17:27:00.005+03:002022-06-10T16:22:54.359+03:00A New Twist in an Old Tale<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiAUV6B-To10NQOSuYFn4C2L-mMl71ogAZ0H_9jxf7QAPj_KX4taQ8EL5sX6J0AUYxDdGEPcr2EyJdVPKFYgU1i9EIGOgOcze2EbuCwGWhLean3YU7TSb8x4XLJkYMIJpMDMEHOouCKEo4_f6V5tH7QUb9rz6hPgBzKqH4DeP31648NMD0FTFytm_fcw/s907/Falling%20in%20Honey_RGB_small.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="907" data-original-width="591" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiAUV6B-To10NQOSuYFn4C2L-mMl71ogAZ0H_9jxf7QAPj_KX4taQ8EL5sX6J0AUYxDdGEPcr2EyJdVPKFYgU1i9EIGOgOcze2EbuCwGWhLean3YU7TSb8x4XLJkYMIJpMDMEHOouCKEo4_f6V5tH7QUb9rz6hPgBzKqH4DeP31648NMD0FTFytm_fcw/w261-h400/Falling%20in%20Honey_RGB_small.jpg" width="261" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">One morning a few months ago, I woke
up to a message from a woman called Barbara in Chichester, which is where I was
living before I moved to Tilos. I didn’t know Barbara, but she had an unusual
reason for getting in touch. It turned out we have a strange connection. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">In May 2009, six months after turning
forty, I spent the month alone in Tilos and decided to try to live on the
island. Determined to make it happen, in the meantime I returned to my job in
Chichester. I’d known a man around my age called David Cairns as a casual
friend for a couple of years and always enjoyed chatting with him, but one
night that summer we had a deeper conversation which led to us starting a
relationship. If you’ve read my book <i>Falling in Honey</i>, you’ll know some
of this already. In the book I called him ‘Matt’.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">We had simple fun – he read books
and we explored, he was always making me laugh and buying me dinners and
clothes I’d never have splashed out on myself. But we were also serious from
the start about trying to have kids, and we got engaged. He had two daughters –
he kept their photo on him always; he currently wasn’t able to see them but
sent regular maintenance payments, and I encouraged him to work towards having
more contact. Dave had a few properties which were rented out since he often
worked away, he said, but he decided to spend more time at the local factory he
owned so we could be together and moved in with me, which made me happy. After
I introduced him to Tilos, he loved the idea of us moving together, and he put
in an offer on a house here.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYq82w35OqHJlQWGylV3jOA4LciP0dJq11Lytfc2ZOSlainN2mpWFcBdlLwU-QH0nOdiTne1XEL3_3mxOBweKAexLecEeUcqUi5FeCJufpwJkACi2uJ0JP6y3dcm0sQhLSBk9Dt7-sLbvAuMQfT8qBUtEMoxi-AybH1EMnHSaiMLd95pDTru8oZmIWFA/s3072/IMG_2102.JPG" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2304" data-original-width="3072" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYq82w35OqHJlQWGylV3jOA4LciP0dJq11Lytfc2ZOSlainN2mpWFcBdlLwU-QH0nOdiTne1XEL3_3mxOBweKAexLecEeUcqUi5FeCJufpwJkACi2uJ0JP6y3dcm0sQhLSBk9Dt7-sLbvAuMQfT8qBUtEMoxi-AybH1EMnHSaiMLd95pDTru8oZmIWFA/s320/IMG_2102.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">By April 2011 I’d given notice on
my job, confident about going freelance. Dave was spending those days buying things
he’d need for life on Tilos – a new laptop, summery clothes. His purchase of
the Tilos house had stalled but I arranged for us to rent a place. My last day
at the office coincided with our appointment at the fertility clinic – we’d
been having tests to find out why I wasn’t conceiving. Dave called to say he
couldn’t make the appointment but had to talk to me. In tears, he confessed that
he’d been lying to me about everything, every day. I later found out he'd been
stealing money from his workplace and using credit cards. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Thankfully, I had no problem moving
to Tilos alone. The episode was weird, shocking, disorienting, saddening – but I
put it behind me. When it became an unusual twist in the book I was writing
about moving to Greece, I disguised Dave’s identity a little and never referred
to Chichester by name, only as a ‘town on the south coast of England’. In the
media articles that came out around the time of its publication, I wouldn’t use
his real name or photo. I believed he needed psychological help, not public
shaming. The story is much more complex than I can sum up in a few hundred
words.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">All of it seemed well in the distant
past when I received the message from Barbara. She’d found me after a friend
showed her a <i>Daily Mail</i> article, still online, that was published after <i>Falling
in Honey </i>came out. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Barbara’s vivacious, outgoing and
sociable, has children and lots of good friends and works in education. A few years after I left to live in Greece, she met Dave Cairns and
they became a couple. ‘We had an amazing life. My friends and family loved
him,’ she wrote. Dave told her about the property he owned and his job, and it
seemed they would have a happy and secure future together. He explained that he
wasn’t able to see his children but ensured they were looked after.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">‘He wrote down how much he had in
his savings, plus the money he would get from his house plus his pension.’ They
got married and rented a lovely flat together in the town centre. Then he told
her he had sold the property he owned by the canal, and they put in an offer to
buy a house together and had it accepted. They celebrated and put the news on
Facebook. He messaged a friend to ask for help with moving, and another to say
their rented flat would soon be available. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">‘It was the next day when he
should have been at work that he messaged my friend to say that he had packed a
bag and was going to leave because he had lied to me… He was very drunk.’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">When she wrote to me, two days
after learning she’d been deceived for six years, she was devastated. She had loved
him and trusted him, and as well as lying to her, he’d been spending her money.
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">‘He spent £27,000 of my money
that I put in his name in premium bonds, and I took out two credit cards [for
him] in my name.’ He claimed he didn’t want to take out a credit card in his
own name because his ex-partner, the mother of his kids, had forged his name
and racked up huge debts. When he paid Barbara his half of the rent every
month, it came from her own premium bonds – he’d been taking out large sums. He
took about £34,000 in total but the police said she had no case against him. ‘I
want to warn others never to put money or credit cards in any other person’s
name… I can’t believe he has no remorse at all.’ <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">She found out he didn’t even have
children – something I’d always wondered about. One of her colleagues happened
to know his ex-partner and messaged her to find out. She said the children
weren’t his. Barbara met up with Dave a week later and asked him. ‘He admitted
that it was all lies.’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">She was ‘numb with disbelief’, as
if someone she knew had died. It all sounded very familiar. As before, he left
with hardly anything and slept rough for a while. I remembered buying him food
and a sleeping bag. A few weeks later, she wrote to me: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">‘I don’t believe we are going to
be the only people he hurts… I am coping but just very sad… Sold wedding ring
and engagement ring today.’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">I felt guilt that I hadn’t done
more to expose him at the time, but also angry. How did he get away with doing
the same thing in the same town using the same name? <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">A friend who had known me and Dave
when we were together got in touch after she heard he had struck again. She started a new job five years ago and got to know a few female colleagues. One was talking excitedly about their impending marriage to a
man named Dave. It was only when she attended the after-party for the wedding
that she realised it was him. She was shocked and tried hinting to friends that
he was bad news. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">‘They told me people change and I
really thought he had got help and was sorted. I thought long and hard but
decided it was not my place… A couple of times I did ask him outright if [Barbara]
knew anything – he said she did.’ But he was lying. Then he discredited her,
suggesting she was crazy. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Dave is very clever at
manipulating people – getting people to like him. And people do like him. We
all did. But he can’t help himself from lying needlessly. He then contrives to
keep people apart so they can’t compare facts.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Another acquaintance, who has
known him for years through the factory he worked at and stole from, said that
years ago, before he met me, she discovered he was lying to colleagues. ‘He
told us he had just had triplets – my mum even bought them all outfits! He told
us he bought a big house at Southbourne – he hadn’t, I rang the estate agents
to check. He said he went on holiday to Iceland – he didn’t as he didn’t get
his first passport until a year later. I could go on…’ <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">When Dave met Barbara, this
friend asked him if he was behaving properly now, and he told her he was. She
was very sorry she didn’t say anything directly to Barbara earlier. ‘I really
thought he may have changed but sadly not. I think he needs to be stopped from
doing it to someone else.’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">When I got to know Dave, I was a
recent incomer to Chichester but there were people around who’d known him for
years and I assumed someone would have warned me if there was anything to be
concerned about. I’ve now dug a little deeper and spoken to someone who went to
the same high school, Chichester High School, though he hasn’t spoken to him
for years. He said another friend was in the same crowd when they were in their
teens and claimed not to know him that well. But both agreed that Dave, fond of
telling stories about a military past – stories that he also told me, saying
the subsequent trauma explained the self-harming scars on his arms – showed
signs of being ‘a fantasist’. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Before speaking out, I waited for
Barbara to get legal advice and try to recoup some of her losses; he promised
to get a job and start repaying her, but she says that’s no longer happening
and he’s spending a lot of time in the Wetherspoons pub. Another friend wrote:
‘We saw him several weeks ago in town… dressed up like a country gentleman.’ He’s
been spotted having changed his appearance, happily wandering around Chichester
with shopping bags, showing no sign that he understands the severity and repercussions
of what he’s so recently done.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Barbara’s a remarkably strong
woman. She’s found a lodger so she can keep on her flat, has been doing three
jobs to keep her head above water and take the holidays she needed. ‘I am
exhausted and have been really down at times but I have dragged myself out of
those times… I’ve been lucky to have amazing friends and family.’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">But it’s important to reduce the
chances of this happening again. Back when <i>Falling in Honey </i>was
published, a number of men and women got in touch to say something similar had
happened to them. Please talk to people, share this however you can.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">*</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Photos from 2010...</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq6NpaxnQdZNjhU5sI_wqoupwOe5mVlUvigKmfbzWXRZMs9WPbmeZ7V99ouqDR9K5BeqtMWQ29ImyeiJ-imd2KloRyNW7nNpfggbIZl5xnt2nCGIDk0sZLICrYNl9im-qjgEdbk1XW_opkipHu7-iS_zSqhx8R_OJxEkaDqb7Cpz5BrQcweELVzcbRlQ/s3072/IMG_2221.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2304" data-original-width="3072" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq6NpaxnQdZNjhU5sI_wqoupwOe5mVlUvigKmfbzWXRZMs9WPbmeZ7V99ouqDR9K5BeqtMWQ29ImyeiJ-imd2KloRyNW7nNpfggbIZl5xnt2nCGIDk0sZLICrYNl9im-qjgEdbk1XW_opkipHu7-iS_zSqhx8R_OJxEkaDqb7Cpz5BrQcweELVzcbRlQ/s320/IMG_2221.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5cZjgzu7QGdcOUHT6se6h0ZpFiTZld2FwbGINZ8YjaRwIuz_4EpRkDN7GUrvLTqc4Z7ExPxUu7N40jDHTVbxST6htM58TSpF0jJS7Qt0PqM2HcIgFFEA3DRXAWRP27NpXKfHUxRsiXjtt51Klx2Q-ti8IUZ1SzidXwYgIAOV-d3wfgSzJhgSnxvPXWw/s3072/IMG_2163.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2304" data-original-width="3072" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5cZjgzu7QGdcOUHT6se6h0ZpFiTZld2FwbGINZ8YjaRwIuz_4EpRkDN7GUrvLTqc4Z7ExPxUu7N40jDHTVbxST6htM58TSpF0jJS7Qt0PqM2HcIgFFEA3DRXAWRP27NpXKfHUxRsiXjtt51Klx2Q-ti8IUZ1SzidXwYgIAOV-d3wfgSzJhgSnxvPXWw/s320/IMG_2163.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCk9IRzh6CBfkR7YLPANx2SNz9ZVI5FGgAL7g32hLiCs7_2q_XYERDgUAk1Q3wNk_ZyydlzOrjqupv7NuVrv8DyXpuonE46wohywNeKWn86oalunXMZuo7aJV2W6vL46-fN8FXsEDPtB69XfdI6R9b-5333m2-YpoD_YdlHYmy6AafNK_75gG8miV3GQ/s3072/IMG_2180.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2304" data-original-width="3072" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCk9IRzh6CBfkR7YLPANx2SNz9ZVI5FGgAL7g32hLiCs7_2q_XYERDgUAk1Q3wNk_ZyydlzOrjqupv7NuVrv8DyXpuonE46wohywNeKWn86oalunXMZuo7aJV2W6vL46-fN8FXsEDPtB69XfdI6R9b-5333m2-YpoD_YdlHYmy6AafNK_75gG8miV3GQ/s320/IMG_2180.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRWN6Er9fuEA8bNT0DLu48Yum2mULCqsu2nhB9_gIwr90G8xn0LpYgrRFrDtJ3O0DDvcAUBmI1W-HS0V5EIJFGn_wZxNNs42sxOZ20z1-3sqqyvOV2JjmLFKGABCbZjeRJbgsXQV2cwV5DmNmhmeVsvof2AJ7SfnAwERfCsyEIrbvbyRXAJYO1tvMCjA/s604/36065_1401222311947_7125338_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="453" data-original-width="604" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRWN6Er9fuEA8bNT0DLu48Yum2mULCqsu2nhB9_gIwr90G8xn0LpYgrRFrDtJ3O0DDvcAUBmI1W-HS0V5EIJFGn_wZxNNs42sxOZ20z1-3sqqyvOV2JjmLFKGABCbZjeRJbgsXQV2cwV5DmNmhmeVsvof2AJ7SfnAwERfCsyEIrbvbyRXAJYO1tvMCjA/w320-h240/36065_1401222311947_7125338_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-28993086040588284162022-05-13T09:41:00.002+03:002022-05-13T09:41:26.476+03:00Meet the President<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7QXHnk1kugPOwDmLzh7vcxY99rOSh-EjS_nXO28UAn0X1M-v60cdY-c6aRgpb2wdkq81cgcD504aLblqz1V6v2deNYc-0fXwZ5i7o0oRWuKl2MFLnvaz23Jt55varu7FFhJwJexM6JDmG0uYPXQ9rRcvQHkA4kdFFhl9jFyc09FcYReM2YH5zXPdsrA/s1772/IMG_20220507_141828_resized_20220513_091945976.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1654" data-original-width="1772" height="299" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7QXHnk1kugPOwDmLzh7vcxY99rOSh-EjS_nXO28UAn0X1M-v60cdY-c6aRgpb2wdkq81cgcD504aLblqz1V6v2deNYc-0fXwZ5i7o0oRWuKl2MFLnvaz23Jt55varu7FFhJwJexM6JDmG0uYPXQ9rRcvQHkA4kdFFhl9jFyc09FcYReM2YH5zXPdsrA/s320/IMG_20220507_141828_resized_20220513_091945976.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">My life on the little Greek island
of Tilos mostly revolves around my dog, the sea, my garden, walks, swims, nature
and my island neighbours, writing and editing books – which is how I like it
and I feel grateful that is the case. I’d never really paid much attention
before to the role of the president of the Hellenic Republic. And while I used
to do formal meetings for my job a lifetime ago, now I prefer underwater
meetings with moray eels and octopus… <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But for a few days last week, the
first item on my to-do list read: ‘Saturday 1.30, meet the president.’ <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It started when a message arrived
on Thursday morning from Stathis in the mayor’s office. ‘The president of
Greece is coming.’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">‘I know!!’ I replied, excitedly.
I’d heard rumour of it, though maybe for reasons of security I hadn’t seen any
announcement, just a brief mention. The reason seemed to be our official status
as Greece’s first ‘zero-waste’ island, an initiative that aims to recycle and re-use
nearly all the island’s rubbish. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Privately funded by PolyGreen working
in collaboration with the municipality, the scheme seemed very ambitious when first
announced in a meeting in the square. But much happened last year to prepare,
and over recent months young people employed by PolyGreen visited every home on
the island to explain how it works. The element of education is important,
bearing in mind that in Greece, ‘recycling’ bins are regularly filled with
normal rubbish. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Now on Tilos bins have been
removed, electric vehicles collect from each household several times a week,
and everything is sorted to be shipped away for ‘circular waste management’. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But Stathis didn’t mention this.
What he said was that the president of Greece was coming and wanted to meet me.
Strange things happen sometimes, I’ve found, when you write books on a small
island. Still, it seemed very odd. He asked me to come to the square on
Saturday where the president would have a ‘relaxed conversation with citizens
of the island’, which sounded more realistic, although not particularly
‘relaxed’ from my point of view.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It was a good pretext for learning
something about the president of the Greece a.k.a. the Hellenic Republic, however.
The role of <i>Proedros tis Ellinikis Dimokratias </i>was established in 1975
when Greece became a presidential parliamentary democracy; elected by
parliament but with mostly ceremonial powers, the president is the official
head of state and the commander-in-chief of the Greek armed forces. Katerina
Sakellaropoulou, a lawyer and judge, became the first woman president of Greece
in March 2020. Photos showed her sometimes looking appropriately fierce and sometimes with a
kind, wry, rather cute smile. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Amazing! I was looking forward to
seeing her on Tilos, and joked to Ian that maybe she could make me an honorary
citizen of Greece, like Victoria Hislop…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">On Saturday, I woke up listening
to the waves, and the birds; the wind of the last few days had dropped and the
sky was a deep blue. It was a beautiful day. Then I received another message
from Stathis saying I was invited to join the president at her table. I was
honoured but petrified and wanted to learn more. ‘We’ll talk in the square,’ he
said.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I tried to continue my morning in
the usual way. In the garden, I cleared some more of the winter
weeds that grew while we were away in Romania, and planted some seeds. It was hot
and we went for a swim – I tried to read a few pages but couldn’t concentrate.
When we came back a farmer’s red truck was by the gate, and I bought some
vegetables. Then I put on a dress and sandals in lieu of my usual shorts and
boots, and drove off to meet the president. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Other people were going about
their day in the usual way too, it seemed, until I approached the helipad and
saw a Chinook recently landed, a few locals standing around it. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In Livadia, the post office in
the square had got a fresh lick of paint, a peach colour with burgundy trim,
and the scruffy old noticeboard on the harbour sported a new ‘zero waste’ sign.
People were dressed up and bagging tables in the shade – which were covered in
the usual way, alas, with plastic water bottles and plastic frappe cups… <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Time ticked on, and the youngsters
chosen to make a presentation wearing the full traditional dress of Tilos, long
layers of embroidered wool, looked listless… Then dark cars drew up and,
accompanied by a security man and important-looking personages in full military
regalia, there was the petite figure of the president of Greece in a stylish white
jacket. Everyone clapped as she strolled through the square greeting and
talking to people. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk4iHcXqcazH04arPr2pp0RRbn79ZQT4Ki-AuQAxE2k8NxAbrII5X8keI7P_CW1eJJLTNBcQTt8xcd457eR64nXm2Y2y6ahxmJg9X43zR0SjsSugSYWUeyifuoQahW_71Zb_ml7_zp7MunoWTQOM4UBI_uEgSyGHn6Vg06MyQk7SgDDzARODoaJ_pgqQ/s2048/IMG-20220507-WA0001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1638" data-original-width="2048" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk4iHcXqcazH04arPr2pp0RRbn79ZQT4Ki-AuQAxE2k8NxAbrII5X8keI7P_CW1eJJLTNBcQTt8xcd457eR64nXm2Y2y6ahxmJg9X43zR0SjsSugSYWUeyifuoQahW_71Zb_ml7_zp7MunoWTQOM4UBI_uEgSyGHn6Vg06MyQk7SgDDzARODoaJ_pgqQ/s320/IMG-20220507-WA0001.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Half an hour later, at Michaili’s
Taverna, with butterflies in my stomach, I was ushered to a place at a long
table next to our mayor Maria Kamma, and then the president of Greece, Katerina
Sakellaropoulou. I was even introduced to her, and although I was too nervous
to say anything interesting at all, I was able to present her with a copy of my
last book, <i>Wild Abandon</i>, and she was gracious enough to examine it, ask
some questions and ask me to dedicate it to her. I’ve never dedicated one of my
books to a president before. So if you own a copy, you’re in good company…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There were presentations of other,
more official gifts, by our mayor Maria.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">‘<i>Exigiseh to elephantaki!</i>’ - explain the little elephant! - hissed the lawyer of the municipality of Rhodes to Maria as she stood there
with the unenviable task of gifting a cumbersome metal statue of a Tilos elephant.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">‘Eh, <i>vevaia</i>, of course…’ she
replied.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDb__s1OFpA-_ErWIBRWPowcNyNnRlAQRc5eUX3K-pqjB1WjYX8IeDFm7xIH63d5Rgu7zWF4btJMxPNRrvGshCF5dzSpG3DzmjdHO3u_IKhln1FlWDscoYmqaulWalTJOV0TDlaQLbYhhfI9os-GRbeZ9bcC6K6JC5VBGYc_Xp0sN_pEffNx4ldbFfrQ/s836/IMG_20220507_141759_resized_20220513_091946677.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="836" data-original-width="823" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDb__s1OFpA-_ErWIBRWPowcNyNnRlAQRc5eUX3K-pqjB1WjYX8IeDFm7xIH63d5Rgu7zWF4btJMxPNRrvGshCF5dzSpG3DzmjdHO3u_IKhln1FlWDscoYmqaulWalTJOV0TDlaQLbYhhfI9os-GRbeZ9bcC6K6JC5VBGYc_Xp0sN_pEffNx4ldbFfrQ/s320/IMG_20220507_141759_resized_20220513_091946677.jpg" width="315" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The president drank white wine
with ice (‘the colder the better’, she said, because it was a hot day, though
maybe she’d had bad island wine before…). The table was heaped with salads,
courgette fritters, fried calamari, tiny shrimp and huge fresh fish… I’m not
sure if the president didn’t like the tiny shrimp or is just an animal lover, but at one point I spied her
feeding some to the cats. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I listened in to conversations. The
CEO of PolyGreen, Athanasios Polychronopoulos, talked about the zero-waste
programme to the president. ‘We have to change <i>many </i>minds,’ she said
seriously. He explained how he had chosen to implement this initiative on
Tilos because of the
openness of its community to embrace change; there was talk of the first gay weddings
in Greece and how the island had handled the Syrian refugee crisis. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There was also plenty of banter. The
Regional Governor of the South Aegean ordered a plate of goat, and the owner of
Eleni Beach Hotel smilingly declined to taste it because it was from the other village,
Megalo Horio.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Sadly, my Greek felt rusty from
my time in Romania and my nerves kept me quiet (honestly!), afraid to make some
terrible faux pas. That said, when dessert arrived and the restaurant had run out
of plates and spoons and decided to provide plastic ones instead, I felt I had
to speak up and say no thanks to unnecessary plastic!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><img border="0" data-original-height="351" data-original-width="426" height="264" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir-dyNs38bOHwjR3xIVyqjFYFfi0oKL2XIXxJv9-XwX6enT5NnE6ugKZW9Iciuvej5XuDjut876dMF6ReWGzMhwE_7aCTnHqbfE5NXOcOOPOlqBTYe58JXXL0Sq9bUVIHzEThO7QJ77CQTQ4J5BuEjbo0CiU7FocN0pboXtE_N8aAePZp7B8rh00E_1g/s320/IMG_20220507_154415_resized_20220513_091212589.jpg" style="color: #0000ee; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; text-align: center;" width="320" /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">President Sakellaropoulou
demonstrated great poise and knew how to say and do just the right thing. Before
she left, she had some photos taken. She stood on the steps of the taverna
after lunch with the ladies who’d provided it, and made sure everyone was in
the picture. She even asked to have her photo taken with me, but I haven’t
managed to get a copy of it. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And then she was gone, and I went
and had a swim and relaxed.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And now the next things on my
to-do list are the more usual work items, tax return and reading the proofs of
my new book… But I don’t think I’ll ever forget the day I met the president.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Here are the wonderful official photos
of the president visiting Halki and Tilos:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.presidency.gr/episkepsi-sti-chalki-kai-tin-tilo/"><span lang="EL" style="mso-ansi-language: EL;">Επίσκεψη στη Χάλκη και την Τήλο – Προεδρία
της Ελληνικής Δημοκρατίας (</span>presidency<span lang="EL" style="mso-ansi-language: EL;">.</span>gr<span lang="EL" style="mso-ansi-language: EL;">)</span></a></span><span lang="EL" style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EL;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.presidency.gr/en/president/">President – Presidency of the
Hellenic Republic</a><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFZFQBQmY9AOyfDRaXzy3BMy37dcvZ6StPgFL9GqAFQPuTfd3z8VlboRZhsuRa0_LLxSnM1SExb4BhiAx6kRUL71lBWDQA2XZjh4J1Rvl2Z3tEBem4cGPsgOtP5FuEx3GdJ2A1wL6Tq9-QGcDSt5ZO15fSBmoczL12qYiURZJdWwXbaSeObNemgEu6FQ/s1000/IMG_20220507_184642_resized_20220513_091213179.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFZFQBQmY9AOyfDRaXzy3BMy37dcvZ6StPgFL9GqAFQPuTfd3z8VlboRZhsuRa0_LLxSnM1SExb4BhiAx6kRUL71lBWDQA2XZjh4J1Rvl2Z3tEBem4cGPsgOtP5FuEx3GdJ2A1wL6Tq9-QGcDSt5ZO15fSBmoczL12qYiURZJdWwXbaSeObNemgEu6FQ/s320/IMG_20220507_184642_resized_20220513_091213179.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><br /></div>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-64510790078296591552022-04-25T11:20:00.000+03:002022-04-25T11:20:04.484+03:00A Dog in Drapetsona<p> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoHXvZfk4oIRWVYVRcYKGyRwi6VTydF-87tmR1qyLiODi_CZIEYZPX1-waGtJjf2UKq2VkkYXPOmHML0ZaGRXftcgON45hdRCY6k_LbwHRlOvAu8jVfD48dQb1TATMe0wwNp4P8C-oJAi6A4yT2Lj5NwcA6iR9aXoJaZKAuJnVaox6JSz_uPXbqzTICQ/s4000/IMG_20220420_185507.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoHXvZfk4oIRWVYVRcYKGyRwi6VTydF-87tmR1qyLiODi_CZIEYZPX1-waGtJjf2UKq2VkkYXPOmHML0ZaGRXftcgON45hdRCY6k_LbwHRlOvAu8jVfD48dQb1TATMe0wwNp4P8C-oJAi6A4yT2Lj5NwcA6iR9aXoJaZKAuJnVaox6JSz_uPXbqzTICQ/w400-h300/IMG_20220420_185507.jpg" width="400" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">A dog was barking in
Drapetsona. It had been barking for a few hours. It was evening, and I could also
hear the neighbours’ television through the walls, and the engines and
announcements of the ferries.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I’d searched on Airbnb for a
place to stay overnight in Piraeus before taking the ferry home to Tilos. I was
delighted to find a dog-friendly house within walking distance of gate E1, the
dock for Blue Star ferries to the Dodecanese. And it was on St Fanourios Street:
my favourite saint, the finder of lost things. I booked it, and Savvas arranged
a transfer from the airport with Mr George. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The plane had been delayed a little,
and on arrival in Athens there was a vast queue for non-EU passport holders. I
felt anxious thinking of Lisa waiting in her crate. I eventually made it
through, released Lisa and dragged all our things outside. My backpack was
heavy with the winter clothes I’d taken to Romania. Now it was Easter. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Mr George had been circling the pickup
area for a while. He turned out to be driving a very small car, and with an attendant
trying to move us on, I didn’t have time to dismantle the crate. We somehow
squeezed everything in, then Lisa sat happily at my feet with her nose out of
the window, and an hour later I was thrilled to see blue sea. Finally, we
arrived at a terraced house in Drapetsona, on a small hill above the port. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Savvas welcomed me and showed me
around the house which he’d described as ‘old-style’ and ‘homely’; it had been his
grandparents’ house and was now his. Like all the houses on the street, it was
a two-up-two-down terrace with a little garden in the front and the back.
Savvas said there were lots of cats. It smelled a bit smoky but I knew I was back
in Greece when I found in the kitchen cupboard a small water bottled filled
with aromatic olive oil. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I was excited to spend the
afternoon exploring Piraeus. Drapetsona didn’t seem the easiest neighbourhood
to navigate, though, at least with a dog. The pavements were a bit smelly and broken,
and I was abruptly reminded that in Greece pedestrian crossings are
meaningless, seen by some drivers as a challenge to speed up and mow you down. I
was tired from a few days of travelling and I needed to adjust to the city after
six weeks away in a rural, mountainous area of Transylvania.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMXqcf_jnYo2FxRgcTjKQ5HluOSz5fFfG5FUwbvN2xx9PEF-4RmF47OZZTq4VvvDuQVq02D8FSx80px1D1AlFhzi4woTDHcF2Q04kuGeNFUKC7-FSByTCTksaH_1WZWXhMOkDa-exX-QKCpWaqaKwlEBdaMMfWioioaTtLe2wm9_NU8WCnAmb2chmdZA/s4000/IMG_20220415_182818.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMXqcf_jnYo2FxRgcTjKQ5HluOSz5fFfG5FUwbvN2xx9PEF-4RmF47OZZTq4VvvDuQVq02D8FSx80px1D1AlFhzi4woTDHcF2Q04kuGeNFUKC7-FSByTCTksaH_1WZWXhMOkDa-exX-QKCpWaqaKwlEBdaMMfWioioaTtLe2wm9_NU8WCnAmb2chmdZA/w400-h300/IMG_20220415_182818.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIB4lDBaM-Gq7OGSEGenSrT9vsyQyemaxgjHFwN4oqkvCIpIWRO28x_YlsxZFWPGKYDgm5C5omqp5OweYH2sNj_Zc0ykv7LCCLH2yH5p8aPQql7IlyJ1vvdN1IZW8B6i7EdY_Rz-_9_6cCEl1teW0YqmSzeGdW3eU8luTgmBfi5R2_eGWoFltETsFuYg/s4000/IMG_20220410_175739.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIB4lDBaM-Gq7OGSEGenSrT9vsyQyemaxgjHFwN4oqkvCIpIWRO28x_YlsxZFWPGKYDgm5C5omqp5OweYH2sNj_Zc0ykv7LCCLH2yH5p8aPQql7IlyJ1vvdN1IZW8B6i7EdY_Rz-_9_6cCEl1teW0YqmSzeGdW3eU8luTgmBfi5R2_eGWoFltETsFuYg/s320/IMG_20220410_175739.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1p_YbMGlMq2tP4B3-GSqmwg8GlbGJvS949Uyt6KSwou3QIz920EvbqzzukhYfKRi9hDA833S6jRQ7078Qxnok8h1-PtCC9Spt6oWcxjL__dcFjKx3l0YmD-thvveKhqhzYC84oPvbJi9QddFik_2gAnWlt1Hbm2e7og8ha7DBUSHOWynvDzOZsNkk-Q/s4000/IMG_20220415_162432.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1p_YbMGlMq2tP4B3-GSqmwg8GlbGJvS949Uyt6KSwou3QIz920EvbqzzukhYfKRi9hDA833S6jRQ7078Qxnok8h1-PtCC9Spt6oWcxjL__dcFjKx3l0YmD-thvveKhqhzYC84oPvbJi9QddFik_2gAnWlt1Hbm2e7og8ha7DBUSHOWynvDzOZsNkk-Q/s320/IMG_20220415_162432.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiteSt9u15twAd6QbHFAPmHXBw1zL7RB5tOko9giSBWfJl-o-CddYii03nf37JdkqChaS4bzo0YqK4X0iK1A4gJYhpCz4gK6Th6RpCbWsP3vjdA9nG4MeTlFfC_5BQ08NMY7Sg0Lenjms_1V4QJ_ARYhqWN5netnp0Djx00NPQg4zNw6PXrale88N0uAA/s4000/IMG_20220415_182456.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiteSt9u15twAd6QbHFAPmHXBw1zL7RB5tOko9giSBWfJl-o-CddYii03nf37JdkqChaS4bzo0YqK4X0iK1A4gJYhpCz4gK6Th6RpCbWsP3vjdA9nG4MeTlFfC_5BQ08NMY7Sg0Lenjms_1V4QJ_ARYhqWN5netnp0Djx00NPQg4zNw6PXrale88N0uAA/s320/IMG_20220415_182456.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">There, we’d been staying in a wooden
cabin at the end of a steep-sided, forested valley with a monastery above and a
river below that gushed out of a cave. Any livestock in the area were kept
behind fences or protected by shepherds because of the threat of wolves. With
no roaming goats or sheep, Lisa could be off the lead all the time. Seeing her
racing around the hills was a joy for me as much as for her. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Someone told us that in Romania, ‘a
village isn’t a village without dogs’. In our area, some had owners and some
were strays, but they all wandered freely and had tight little communities
which they organised along their own lines. We’d often be joined on walks by
the two strays we fed, but just as often by dogs with owners that just fancied a
walk with company. Lisa thrived on it. People seemed to love animals and the
few cars around slowed down when the drivers saw dogs on the road.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Ian had discovered the place as a
new refuge for his extra-Schengen adventures. For his first month there, the
water in the pipes was frozen and had to be brought from the spring or the
river. Lisa had loved the deep snow when we got there in March. By mid-April, the
days were warm enough that I took a very fast dip in the cold river, I’d
started learning a bit of Romanian and those empty hills and rural places were
beginning to feel like another home. But it was time to leave Romania for now –
Lisa and I to Greece, Ian for now to Bulgaria.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Dogs are welcome to travel on
trains in Romania for a half-price ticket, which costs barely anything. It was around
two hours to lovely Sighisoara, where we stayed in a historic building on the
edge of the citadel and I found a ‘cabinet veterinar’ where a very gentle vet stamped
Lisa’s passport saying she was fit to travel.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUbPLjW8ciG2zfpKyrw3GXmj32xN2LX1TGN4IYXPNml9DpTEhdGc9JfAnjWUNGjnoKRha-uQbNi9J4hWSS-XMIion1vNeJvE18mrJ4lQeLRZ-wIYMn2UxoCG2nEVeWA_-0PnAQZu2Qz9jvIhT3Pigj3MDT0terQoDdloa-NKjvvhfvDZ61W93ed3otxw/s4000/IMG_20220418_142716.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUbPLjW8ciG2zfpKyrw3GXmj32xN2LX1TGN4IYXPNml9DpTEhdGc9JfAnjWUNGjnoKRha-uQbNi9J4hWSS-XMIion1vNeJvE18mrJ4lQeLRZ-wIYMn2UxoCG2nEVeWA_-0PnAQZu2Qz9jvIhT3Pigj3MDT0terQoDdloa-NKjvvhfvDZ61W93ed3otxw/s320/IMG_20220418_142716.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitAcZAXWIMg2WVWWZIOWjc2XjveCshwOvOOoYBBdULnDaJdvzLZ-kdH7uwGd68ZrV1iNti4ZZnPmHytzuzn9Uq0I7cg3vRMz8yCb7sShS79UsUedFVOZbua18BewTYfx9QiL1_UdPCoOxMA3XCMmpZfPM4CwRZTC5y44j1KbA5mvEkXi4_HqVM_YvNbg/s4000/IMG_20220418_191922.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitAcZAXWIMg2WVWWZIOWjc2XjveCshwOvOOoYBBdULnDaJdvzLZ-kdH7uwGd68ZrV1iNti4ZZnPmHytzuzn9Uq0I7cg3vRMz8yCb7sShS79UsUedFVOZbua18BewTYfx9QiL1_UdPCoOxMA3XCMmpZfPM4CwRZTC5y44j1KbA5mvEkXi4_HqVM_YvNbg/s320/IMG_20220418_191922.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">We continued for a long six hours
by train to Bucharest, yet in comfort and with views of lovely farmland and
snowy mountains. Back in March we’d stayed at Old City NF Palace in a vast room
with a chandelier. The exceptional young staff had organised to keep Lisa’s airline
crate in the left luggage of the hotel until the next month, which meant we
could travel across the country unencumbered. Now we were reunited with it and had
one last night there. I almost wished we could stay longer but was excited to
get home. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Because it's not so easy or pleasant to travel by train with a dog in Greece, we were flying. Checking in for the flight to
Athens, I met a Romanian woman who was travelling with her dog back to Greece
where she lived – and speaking to her dog in Greek as he was from there, like
Lisa. They met with much tail-wagging, and hopped in their airline crates together. I
remember how much trouble Lisa used to give me getting in there. Now she knows
it’s OK, and although I still worry for her, I know she’ll be OK too. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">On the short flight, in Aegean’s
in-flight magazine <i>Blue </i>I was pleased to find a feature on Piraeus. I
jotted down the addresses of interesting-sounding shops and eateries. There was
an ‘art hub’, someone making furniture from reclaimed marble, someone making furniture
out of recycling plastic nets and other plastic waste from the sea. When I got online
again and looked up BlueCycle, alas, I was sad to see a coffee table cost 650
euros. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Nice idea, but unlikely to have a
big impact.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">So, by the afternoon, I was in
Piraeus. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">There was something in the name of
the district, Drapetsona, that sounded like something else and made me wonder
about its history. I looked it up and found what might be a link to Trebizond,
now Trabzon, in north-eastern Turkey on the Black Sea. Founded by the Greeks in
the eighth century BC as Trapezunda. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I tried figuring
out the best route to take to the ferry the next day. One way the pavements were narrow
and the roads busy, which would make it impossible to trundle a huge crate and hold a dog safely on
a lead. The other way went past an archaeological site and an abandoned building along a road so
quiet that it seemed to be used exclusively by driving schools, but at the end
was a system of roundabouts where even the drivers seem unsure which way to go,
and when I attempted a trial run with Lisa, aggressive stray dogs dashed in
front of juggernauts to snap at our heels. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">It was a bit intense. Being tired
wasn’t helping. Deciding to leave the discovery of the interesting shops and
art hubs and eateries for now, I did some shopping at the supermarket around
the corner. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I tried taking Lisa for another
walk later but she got spooked by some almighty bang that sounded like a very
loud gun. It was already Easter week, and everything from firecrackers to
dynamite is deployed in the Greek celebrations, making it a time of misery for
many dogs and their owners. I left her in the house to snooze, and went for a
wander down side streets for half an hour until I reached, amidst some abandoned industrial buildings, a park that ran down
to the sea. It would be a perfect place to take Lisa tomorrow. I returned
feeling curious about the area again, opened a bottle of wine and studied the
map.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyEq5uYO73cGLIJ-BbQNMmT3Kd6MbotPbi0GUMqi1y_U57eDuis1Y3JzQjYpv26629yVjMfdU2q_1zXQ3nuSY2soeXrikjYpOXCBLUkoDJQbAjGb6A8-r4nyeDwltDXbAX382GG6CoSyWToN-QlQhHU7itBYrpJAQT-1PiPQBX_ywK3oR1JKLbZkN92g/s4000/IMG_20220421_120034.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyEq5uYO73cGLIJ-BbQNMmT3Kd6MbotPbi0GUMqi1y_U57eDuis1Y3JzQjYpv26629yVjMfdU2q_1zXQ3nuSY2soeXrikjYpOXCBLUkoDJQbAjGb6A8-r4nyeDwltDXbAX382GG6CoSyWToN-QlQhHU7itBYrpJAQT-1PiPQBX_ywK3oR1JKLbZkN92g/w400-h300/IMG_20220421_120034.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">It was a little later when a
message came through from Savva, my host, telling me that the neighbourhood was
one of the poor neighbourhoods of Piraeus, ‘where our grandparents came from
Turkey from where they were kicked off in 1922’. Of course – these were some of
the <i>prosfygika</i>, houses built for Greeks from Asia Minor who came here as
refugees. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">It was a hundred years ago that the
complex and terrible events of war between Turkey and Greece led to what is known
as the Asia Minor Catastrophe, when many lost their lives in Smyrna and other
cities with Greek populations. This was followed by the population exchanges along
religious lines, ending thousands of years of Greek Orthodox presence in Asia Minor,
as well as Muslim presence in Greece. It made refugees of many thousands of people,
who had to leave behind all they had, as so many Ukrainians are doing today.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The people who came from Asia Minor
a hundred years ago doubled the populations of Athens and Thessaloniki. As
Auguste Corteau wrote in <i>The Book of Katerina</i>: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">‘… in Samsun, Turkey … at the
beginning of the 1920s the Konstantinidis pack is practically well-off: the
girls at a good school with piano lessons and foreign languages, meat on the
table every day, and thanks be to God. And then the Asia Minor Catastrophe
happens and they suddenly find themselves in Upper Town, Thessaloniki, without
two pennies to rub together. Gentleman and businessman Dimitrós is overnight a
spawn of the Turk, and young Irini, who used to be at the top of her class, is
suddenly cast amongst smart Greek girls who look down on her and whisper behind
her back: “Her family lives in a shack. Can you imagine?”’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Savvas sent me another message.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">‘Nowadays the area is still poor
but authentic persons are living there.’ He said the people who came from
Turkey were given small temporary houses and in 1974 the state gave them the opportunity
to live in these houses – I guessed he meant to keep them. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">‘In this neighbourhood is born
the rebetiko,’ he said, referring to the underground blues-type tradition of
music. And the film that made Melina Mercouri a star, <i>Never on Sunday</i>, in
which she plays a happy, romantic prostitute, was set here. The song in which
she sings of the magic of her favourite port was <i>‘Ta Pedia tou Pirea</i>’,
the Children of Piraeus.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyA0izKnBxsUyPk8NO8PGi1xgAHu3JrmUssdI1VVZLY9nxvVn2UDf1G6K9_0Tyg2vHzKzEQDcIVaTrlfma3E7QmFqHd_HxNrG1TpWtkdJylxYdSjqWLhYxaCNKdBwtOZRVtrBrzlEU5Ni3ETYVJBZJWXLaBwIAlt0Th1TJQtyEuXODfRTTwTQ6UqLjeg/s4000/IMG_20220421_113225.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyA0izKnBxsUyPk8NO8PGi1xgAHu3JrmUssdI1VVZLY9nxvVn2UDf1G6K9_0Tyg2vHzKzEQDcIVaTrlfma3E7QmFqHd_HxNrG1TpWtkdJylxYdSjqWLhYxaCNKdBwtOZRVtrBrzlEU5Ni3ETYVJBZJWXLaBwIAlt0Th1TJQtyEuXODfRTTwTQ6UqLjeg/s320/IMG_20220421_113225.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Next morning in the sunshine, workmen
were painting next door and neighbours passing one another calling Easter
greetings, ‘<i>Kali anastasi na echoume</i>!’ <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Feeling happy to have learned a little more about the history of the area, </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I walked Lisa all the way along Ethnikis
Antistaseos (‘National Resistance’) Street, past nice neighbourhood shops selling
bougatsa or wine from barrels, to the park covered in wildflowers that led down
to the open sea. There were rusty ships in a harbour, and an abandoned factory.
I’d noticed the name of the area was Lipasmata – ‘Fertilizers’. It was the site
of a fertilizer factory, part of Piraeus’ industrial past, and in recent years
the land has been allowed to re-wild and turned into a park with a couple of
cafes looking out to the big blue and the islands.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Lisa was desperate to find a way
into the water – and she did. An attendant said, ‘All the animals do the same!’
People of all ages were strolling and enjoying the sun and sea breeze. Dogs had
to be on leads, another attendant told me later, but you can't have everything. By then at least she'd had a run around. She'd be more relaxed for our onward journey to our island home. What a wonderful adventure we'd both had.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYMggQGAqITvnEDvsk0H8OYXIRvniSWLJErG1q-t3Gf_0xx7Q3K-IAuhD7byI1FY2On3uKFJbEHAc7JhoJrV3gs7IRHivZchl4d-OLLT4BgYWWW3amHCCE0y-ytriKjopvmofO_S3aLWQ6GQyvYrH3Ehj_P6R2mNkstIHNev8xX5Iml6lwLS3RP2ULEg/w640-h480/IMG_20220421_115631.jpg" style="color: #0000ee; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: center;" width="640" /></p><div><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmDNTe1ojN1WrvyzD6uBmPZKnUwWC1bzxn4cnQXcWFoqNrtnmVj5067G_0LKjcTWRaRlFJJ9PsnSyT_9GG0EV4GbfATgDaErcNXkxbLF8s6PYusFDwKHC5WEQkfxCJoW7d7Xh8JXkeAI3L-scrLJjBeCJwBpFMEi142DRecJlaCrUilHo6ZzXtNfeZEg/s4000/IMG_20220421_121953.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmDNTe1ojN1WrvyzD6uBmPZKnUwWC1bzxn4cnQXcWFoqNrtnmVj5067G_0LKjcTWRaRlFJJ9PsnSyT_9GG0EV4GbfATgDaErcNXkxbLF8s6PYusFDwKHC5WEQkfxCJoW7d7Xh8JXkeAI3L-scrLJjBeCJwBpFMEi142DRecJlaCrUilHo6ZzXtNfeZEg/w640-h480/IMG_20220421_121953.jpg" width="640" /></a></p>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-28714660031509051672022-01-31T12:37:00.000+02:002022-01-31T12:37:03.566+02:00Wine and White Sand in Winter: The Kos Trip<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjwhEuEXqb-XsBmt3vjH1dqQ6SvoilHRzL0vE3AQ-a1vgTjd3Lg_GqYLhSEuCPKiEbB6yxrlpuqodAUD4_5GMGkVOA-7vWgK1f1U05U5dsQecigLZPaRnAUO1VF6dL36c0EX2ovXCYOyZ5ExnP7K9mBCt_szPDp35OLHIc1weZm5GPqJFjtIZuEmaxjHA=s4000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjwhEuEXqb-XsBmt3vjH1dqQ6SvoilHRzL0vE3AQ-a1vgTjd3Lg_GqYLhSEuCPKiEbB6yxrlpuqodAUD4_5GMGkVOA-7vWgK1f1U05U5dsQecigLZPaRnAUO1VF6dL36c0EX2ovXCYOyZ5ExnP7K9mBCt_szPDp35OLHIc1weZm5GPqJFjtIZuEmaxjHA=w400-h300" width="400" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It was mid-November, and I was nervous
as I prepared to leave for Kos on the wine trip. Wine doesn't usually make me nervous, but I’d never driven a car onto a ferry before. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">One evening in Tilos I had been thinking about sourcing
some good organic wine, preferably from a nearby island (as no-one sells it
here). I used to order from Embona in Rhodes, but then I remembered I’d found
good stuff on Kos. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I did a little internet search
and found not one but two organic wineries in the middle of the island. I tried
emailing Mesariano and received a very helpful response in English listing the
different wines and prices; they had no problem sending to another island but the
shipping cost was a little steep. This gave me an idea…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">A couple of years ago, I’d taken
a flight that passed over the western part of Kos, and looked
down to what looked like a long stretch of wild beach. It seemed somehow
unlikely on an island known for embracing touristic development, but there was
no sign of hotels or villas. It stuck in my mind that I’d like to take a closer
look.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">And so, I had two perfect excuses
for a trip. Oh, and a third – my new tent needed testing! I just needed to
overcome my fear of driving a car on and off a big ferry, so that I could get
to the places with Lisa – since dogs aren’t allowed on buses there – and transport
the wine.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">‘<i>Eineh evkolo</i>,’ it’s easy,
said Stelios in the ticket office as I mentioned it was my first time and asked
if there was anything I should know. I was lucky in one respect, though: the
ferry schedule had been disrupted by a strike, so the big Blue Star that would normally
travel late on Friday night had been delayed until 2pm Saturday afternoon, and was
less busy than usual, and certainly less busy than in summer or en route to
Rhodes – less shouting and hand-waving to deal with and fewer vehicles to avoid
as I drove on. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">On deck, my anxiety turned to
relief, I took pleasure in watching the rugged east coast of Tilos with its
very few signs of habitation as we travelled north. There was sun as we docked
at Nisyros, but it was already dusk when we arrived at Kos Town. Heading for Pantheon
Apartments, a cheap and dog-friendly stopover, I got sucked into a vortex of narrow
one-way streets and circled a roundabout three times. I realised I had no idea
about parking rules, but since it was Saturday night I did like everyone else,
and parked on the pavement in between a couple of trees. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I took Lisa for a walk around the
old harbour walls and a medieval gate. I’d been hoping to do shopping in town
but everything was closed, so early Saturday evening saw me at a café-bar I’d
noticed but never visited before: Scholarcheio. It seemed a good sign that they
had little bottles of organic red from Petra Marinou, the second winery I’d
found online. I ordered a lettuce-and-pear salad sprinkled with tiny raisins
and a plate of local sausage which I shared with Lisa. The place was packed by
the time I left, the waiter rushed off his feet. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">In the grey early morning I drove
west, away from the nearby shores of Turkey, parallel to the ridge of Dikeos
mountain, which I see from my house in Tilos. I saw the turnoff to Pyli, where
I’d spent a couple of weeks wandering while writing <i>Wild Abandon</i>. I passed
a little vineyard where the people used palm branches over their fence to shield
it from the road – as I’d now done around my garden. I stopped briefly to pick up
a few supplies in Antimacheia. The road became quieter, the surroundings more rural
as I neared the narrowest part of the island before Kefalos, and randomly
picked a rough track to turn off and leave the car. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">And there it was: the place I’d
seen from above, a long stretch of pure, pale sand, with juniper-covered dunes and
low, sandy hills behind and only a scattering of houses. Heaven! On a cloudy
but warm Sunday in November, we had the stretch of beach to ourselves. The sand
was clean, the sea clear, the sun trying to break through the clouds. With no
sign of sheep or goats around, I let Lisa run, throwing a ball for her to chase.
I took off my boots and we walked far along the beautiful, empty shore. As the morning
wore on, we ran into a few locals: a woman who told me she’d stopped swimming
for the year in October, a couple with a young child and two fishing rods stuck
in the sand, another man with six fishing rods.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiuUouvlya3nZgxnZnv_IJnulmggvCopLFbqPI-YpeFqFCojndyMnHRS-mmkIvOwbpvHYFgL5VL7jdCGc_xHEaTX-ZShFB7ABsnV3dqMQQXjkVzvbwxe84F6WNYTZORexAIh7GkJ0yNe9O9zSgfWy_bO9jt3O2lP4UscnsWbmquUjQl9Dy38uBJuPC48g=s4000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiuUouvlya3nZgxnZnv_IJnulmggvCopLFbqPI-YpeFqFCojndyMnHRS-mmkIvOwbpvHYFgL5VL7jdCGc_xHEaTX-ZShFB7ABsnV3dqMQQXjkVzvbwxe84F6WNYTZORexAIh7GkJ0yNe9O9zSgfWy_bO9jt3O2lP4UscnsWbmquUjQl9Dy38uBJuPC48g=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Beyond to the west, the headland
of Kefalos at the far end of Kos rose </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">up to four hundred metres and was deep
green with trees. In the afternoon, I drove through the resort of Kampos and uphill
to Kefalos village, under which a few caves in the rock were used
for keeping chickens. I filled up my bottles with treated water at the Temak
dispenser in the car park, and continued to see a little of the peninsula.</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The sun came out as the road
wound through hills and brought out all the colours of juniper and olive trees,
heather and thyme bushes. I parked at Ayios Iannis Theologos and wandered along
a track, enjoying a string of beaches with pure white sand and rippling blue
sea, a breeze blowing from the north. There were farmers and the bells of goats
and sheep.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh8bKGXIPsfNYkGJk3fAxslABaq-Sicbuxt3i3xGg6Ywrfs6dnzBMtuHGl12yO_qmRXdJnxmB9v4Exgph3R8_qnKtBjYtneNfivL4tzOzS_mv1vW1vEUfxOxOopcW_-cUZqQvbc_QDLhCPDcC_n0z7Skx7xyoEJuB9z-896D461mOPs126jkNPAXTg0xg=s4000" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh8bKGXIPsfNYkGJk3fAxslABaq-Sicbuxt3i3xGg6Ywrfs6dnzBMtuHGl12yO_qmRXdJnxmB9v4Exgph3R8_qnKtBjYtneNfivL4tzOzS_mv1vW1vEUfxOxOopcW_-cUZqQvbc_QDLhCPDcC_n0z7Skx7xyoEJuB9z-896D461mOPs126jkNPAXTg0xg=s320" width="320" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh31egMNWYsk1jBT8Svlii7YVCbtbO0eHXMxd2T9_w1tTPFdsuLVWJdkbgiKC01fqSdub35nVX2qpcDfkee07S4Abv_NCVROzexENEVW2cxbteA92oJvJvFxuf7PQrsWwaBYkOn9wVEgYaSuXe4KY_CZ3TlqwarYWV84Vj4gMk8xVcB9o6wSEvTF05gpA=s4000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh31egMNWYsk1jBT8Svlii7YVCbtbO0eHXMxd2T9_w1tTPFdsuLVWJdkbgiKC01fqSdub35nVX2qpcDfkee07S4Abv_NCVROzexENEVW2cxbteA92oJvJvFxuf7PQrsWwaBYkOn9wVEgYaSuXe4KY_CZ3TlqwarYWV84Vj4gMk8xVcB9o6wSEvTF05gpA=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjq6US3llekLUpav5_mFHYW_sTBQ1ydtTzgd1ES-NgGAHhPDtEXnHj5hkVbbGABXz680YlCgF3myc8L_ig9sDnaWwf7WKpHCRxMuDvfZLqk5ID40gC46cK4PXDuynTshQ-sQNg2xEUpCnBTXQsi09SSUaWVXwAAXld-qzbcL0FOqL8fYL9-SCqo_SawKg=s4000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjq6US3llekLUpav5_mFHYW_sTBQ1ydtTzgd1ES-NgGAHhPDtEXnHj5hkVbbGABXz680YlCgF3myc8L_ig9sDnaWwf7WKpHCRxMuDvfZLqk5ID40gC46cK4PXDuynTshQ-sQNg2xEUpCnBTXQsi09SSUaWVXwAAXld-qzbcL0FOqL8fYL9-SCqo_SawKg=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhnk2gTFv3xjV5eu5fpMk8G__lSGqPClzRpBZkRt_ncUHwO60hxYzt12jqX8nHvAsGNxQ4uncJIE6QZ1je03JXPj3j63co6swxpfjuVf2OE5-SQUNgJFo_UtstqW_o45kwIx6O6itccNAZeiguDzwNYbygbBZDgyIUdwTNNmLonQJD2aeac5rDL2fNIkA=s4000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhnk2gTFv3xjV5eu5fpMk8G__lSGqPClzRpBZkRt_ncUHwO60hxYzt12jqX8nHvAsGNxQ4uncJIE6QZ1je03JXPj3j63co6swxpfjuVf2OE5-SQUNgJFo_UtstqW_o45kwIx6O6itccNAZeiguDzwNYbygbBZDgyIUdwTNNmLonQJD2aeac5rDL2fNIkA=s320" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Returning to the village, I
picked up dinner, then I drove back down to the protected south-facing beach.
Sunset was magnificent; it was a long, cool night, but Lisa and I were comfortable
in the new tent, and it was wonderful to wake to sunrise and the gently lapping
sea. It felt so peaceful and special to be there at that moment.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhkB30VTm7YO08Y7fc18m4CR3B0IFYxSQ0vd_q9zjsQa4lGq0Mfn4ptvWUhFRg64tnc8df9mp0dXRsXQbC9Oa0AiIQewsV84pLWNEg2tYJ_d2vLJZAnJeer5n1L66wCe-RUFaOtSTNWpyA4IppEUcSlGzlC8mE9-GGqMeViwYFGlWCymgzPuTzpfLVgog=s4000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhkB30VTm7YO08Y7fc18m4CR3B0IFYxSQ0vd_q9zjsQa4lGq0Mfn4ptvWUhFRg64tnc8df9mp0dXRsXQbC9Oa0AiIQewsV84pLWNEg2tYJ_d2vLJZAnJeer5n1L66wCe-RUFaOtSTNWpyA4IppEUcSlGzlC8mE9-GGqMeViwYFGlWCymgzPuTzpfLVgog=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiwEzvh26bLDh4YR8__8lcV1oqK0Q6EBeN8CzGeBrt8uFjV2IqqJJceDxAd_EmBrnJx9FwlOQObJY0DEL3lRaFTCpZBQp7J1_cgDBq88YKqIxPzqnxQb9dD9cwDe8piActJ0bslmVnLNTppShP9BDb86o2a6RwfEdgBEh32WyeIU-c_5_X762XHtaKLaA=s4000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiwEzvh26bLDh4YR8__8lcV1oqK0Q6EBeN8CzGeBrt8uFjV2IqqJJceDxAd_EmBrnJx9FwlOQObJY0DEL3lRaFTCpZBQp7J1_cgDBq88YKqIxPzqnxQb9dD9cwDe8piActJ0bslmVnLNTppShP9BDb86o2a6RwfEdgBEh32WyeIU-c_5_X762XHtaKLaA=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhCMGKBLkQ9fSiWtr6ViHDkqKKCosnwGAKg5tYfhhkkK_ZuUxYLzFRfHXHoAwtd7O98cOOJtwnQ-8tNfMRLz8kSfNT5kT3-4ORj1E72HSO1wnhS59kKLrS81ugK2Lg0jTxwRSne2mRU-S1TEElTDFfHpw6c2TKLj7zgwApCsKpop1l1dpdZOo-14tXpjA=s4000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhCMGKBLkQ9fSiWtr6ViHDkqKKCosnwGAKg5tYfhhkkK_ZuUxYLzFRfHXHoAwtd7O98cOOJtwnQ-8tNfMRLz8kSfNT5kT3-4ORj1E72HSO1wnhS59kKLrS81ugK2Lg0jTxwRSne2mRU-S1TEElTDFfHpw6c2TKLj7zgwApCsKpop1l1dpdZOo-14tXpjA=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhGCyxelVNZjWDBgzSGSZwz5tcfm82pAjVyNvEwoqK5WsafIMQXemIgP570dCn__LsqVaERZz9Q9lRhrSxB5MQQhPSjd1wKQNEM8FJc4a7mZwMGprbfStk1D0Ou59VmdAJVoBQkpLQsSvMbBQGSokrBWX4Ga5YFgffKHSU9aIsgd88MuuXFjs5JPn__Mg=s4000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhGCyxelVNZjWDBgzSGSZwz5tcfm82pAjVyNvEwoqK5WsafIMQXemIgP570dCn__LsqVaERZz9Q9lRhrSxB5MQQhPSjd1wKQNEM8FJc4a7mZwMGprbfStk1D0Ou59VmdAJVoBQkpLQsSvMbBQGSokrBWX4Ga5YFgffKHSU9aIsgd88MuuXFjs5JPn__Mg=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjrawdGDq1Ku42hrJnv-06lFaqgSuZ0ZIq7VZbKk4L52xGi83CfBBXE2SDFnlAUJCsPHLDlIW0JQH2Ek0DoCfCd0iw7up_szuuflgADNUkoZ5pCn4rtvakRiUrLFS2REVBoaE_7yvXAoykFOp_SZ48qCW_4e-XuVMju_uWB8ASm_O5kXLXPTpf0XFkBZA=s4000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjrawdGDq1Ku42hrJnv-06lFaqgSuZ0ZIq7VZbKk4L52xGi83CfBBXE2SDFnlAUJCsPHLDlIW0JQH2Ek0DoCfCd0iw7up_szuuflgADNUkoZ5pCn4rtvakRiUrLFS2REVBoaE_7yvXAoykFOp_SZ48qCW_4e-XuVMju_uWB8ASm_O5kXLXPTpf0XFkBZA=s320" width="320" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Before leaving this part of the
island, I swam next to the ancient ruins on the edge of Kefalos-Kampos where
years ago I swam out to the island. Then I wandered down another track and found
Volcania winery surrounded by a beautiful, wild, open landscape. The sun was
hot, someone was herding goats and their bells were ringing melodiously. In a farmyard
with a few cows and chickens, a friendly man called his mother to show me
around. Maria was around seventy and told me the area had all been farmland,
divided up and given to the <i>tsopanistes </i>and <i>agrotous</i>, but then
tourism came, and the work was easier, and most people gave up farming. She
worked for twenty-five years for the local Club Med (!) and her husband kept
the farm. I bought a few bottles of wine – it wasn’t certified organic but judging
by the surroundings, it should be good – and wrenched myself away and to the
road back east.<o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgn6-iPc6DonEOIR2iKFRLyE9Ap33z0AXDOtohsCsIEXCSn_wGoL03ckBmS4V5cuFEDCevD4dYN5BDZhyZgX2UpTSVbD7lPLrXBUhCXC5TmLRcgvX3XYnEAw6pYOhj1DqqVU4OdMYip0fooQ66nXKoNfDk2z-5JfGlJj7R2L26Mq4tofInj74dTWeTbQA=s4000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgn6-iPc6DonEOIR2iKFRLyE9Ap33z0AXDOtohsCsIEXCSn_wGoL03ckBmS4V5cuFEDCevD4dYN5BDZhyZgX2UpTSVbD7lPLrXBUhCXC5TmLRcgvX3XYnEAw6pYOhj1DqqVU4OdMYip0fooQ66nXKoNfDk2z-5JfGlJj7R2L26Mq4tofInj74dTWeTbQA=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg-QYsnHW73dJQkfhRirCMZZ5JzOs87vGg-RH1CJ-gjgIpglM1sVaJ2Zn3FgtJ1sB5uf4btpTaWuplPjQZTye0HxgcNSPhef3jHABnpaIDn_fj81PCabfq1gMip_H5NJzFBtNZEtCr8NvenZEPRu56aMMsqkVa4nT3o96wp-pmQ4nvML8s4-BN0-zd02A=s4000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg-QYsnHW73dJQkfhRirCMZZ5JzOs87vGg-RH1CJ-gjgIpglM1sVaJ2Zn3FgtJ1sB5uf4btpTaWuplPjQZTye0HxgcNSPhef3jHABnpaIDn_fj81PCabfq1gMip_H5NJzFBtNZEtCr8NvenZEPRu56aMMsqkVa4nT3o96wp-pmQ4nvML8s4-BN0-zd02A=s320" width="240" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">People were collecting olives and
pruning their trees in the lovely countryside. I stopped and climbed a hill for
a distant view of the impressive medieval fortress outside Antimacheia. There
were tracks leading off in all directions and nothing at the end of them according
to the map – I’d love to wander there some day. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">When I saw a sign for Petra Marinou
winery, I turned off the road and parked next to a coop of partridges and guinea
fowl. The showroom was closed for the winter but the garage next door had a
display. I picked up a few bottles of last year’s Chardonnay and Syrah for a
good price as well as some new windscreen wipers and the man fitted them and agreed
to check the radiator fluid for me. They’d have this year’s wine soon.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">At last, I continued among now
busy, fast traffic to Mesariano, finding it hidden behind a big Sklavenitis supermarket,
pulled up in front of a beautiful marble Turkish fountain and was greeted by
Nikos. It soon transpired that the perfect English in the emails was his son’s,
so we spoke in Greek. Although he’d hoped to have plenty of time to show me
around, he was busy with orders that morning as well as visitors at home – it was
<i>o nomos tou Merfi</i>, he said: Murphy’s Law. I had a super-fast visit, and packed
a few boxes of organic Cabernet and Merlot into the car.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Returning to Kos Town, I learned
that most shops didn’t re-open on Monday afternoon. But what more did I need? I
had a car full of wine, and had discovered some wonderful beaches. I ate again
at the same place, where I arrived early and the waiter was making rakomelo and
gave me a glass. I slept well, and early the next morning at the harbour I saw
the orange sun rise from the sea. And what’s more, I was the only car getting on
the Stavros ferry. ‘Tilos!’ shouted the crew to his mate. ‘Where do we put a
car for Tilos?’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I wrote half this blog post while
drinking a glass or two of the delicious Mesariano Grand Reserve (2017) two months later. I think
I’ll need another trip there at some point. In the meantime, I've been finishing off my new book while doing more travels. Stay tuned...</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><o:p> </o:p></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEigMPFg6KmGE9MejkFgrlKGYP_Js4mMD4XGYP97g7QAmCFHsitGkbFHBbY2mH3mwoGQFzxm58su7zNHh805WNe7cpLrboh-G1yTC9wbQuJ_SP1LicqVsp5OUr29EQ4aZY399i5HX_x79C5Cwcsnnjzgkz9Y2P3fN6vPG35yE9lWKbxUc0yaRpoJ9W1e2A=s4000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEigMPFg6KmGE9MejkFgrlKGYP_Js4mMD4XGYP97g7QAmCFHsitGkbFHBbY2mH3mwoGQFzxm58su7zNHh805WNe7cpLrboh-G1yTC9wbQuJ_SP1LicqVsp5OUr29EQ4aZY399i5HX_x79C5Cwcsnnjzgkz9Y2P3fN6vPG35yE9lWKbxUc0yaRpoJ9W1e2A=s320" width="320" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEifIZnI646j3O3WJ9KimpgzoGBH5hDCjZRAYXpBKxV3ws2RficyBaVuAXOuy3XI_03Mm39jH3Nzd_Xzra8ILB0zlz0b9CIPk8Y1TeIMcoz87sPPfl_sx097h9Rp8VF5p-jNKCm4wKHz5tK2fVyTk3K1UROilGMSTQ_vaKF5GknsxpDF7WE6j5e6KoP6_Q=s4000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEifIZnI646j3O3WJ9KimpgzoGBH5hDCjZRAYXpBKxV3ws2RficyBaVuAXOuy3XI_03Mm39jH3Nzd_Xzra8ILB0zlz0b9CIPk8Y1TeIMcoz87sPPfl_sx097h9Rp8VF5p-jNKCm4wKHz5tK2fVyTk3K1UROilGMSTQ_vaKF5GknsxpDF7WE6j5e6KoP6_Q=s320" width="320" /></a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhBqMurQDPUeN0SGT3PEN6rnogm4a0nUefzO3h767W3oiRsoK8axMNoTGLGIiPTgC8eDTUFhNCp1qG0LGvTfHS4frUxZR4EDlrBkHaCS9BZ-U8uRQY6WO2B5ZC7VJUL3c-DkbNLKY5MJa9gQLm6zJ26qojL2Mkbh-G5J4578rhGmvPpiXlbLbE4ZXhKWg=s2342" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2342" data-original-width="1185" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhBqMurQDPUeN0SGT3PEN6rnogm4a0nUefzO3h767W3oiRsoK8axMNoTGLGIiPTgC8eDTUFhNCp1qG0LGvTfHS4frUxZR4EDlrBkHaCS9BZ-U8uRQY6WO2B5ZC7VJUL3c-DkbNLKY5MJa9gQLm6zJ26qojL2Mkbh-G5J4578rhGmvPpiXlbLbE4ZXhKWg=w131-h260" width="131" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiWZwHerIEyUO3ZZd58gIJRFl9BDmQu6-8kWHxP-tfyyD_t2OZsIPi-YAAB6LpzPKePh7GFmCmYZnohQUEGnwKRVmFewYZ182TIGBk26Q8tEZcDTrH80G5iZe495aZufRkCjb5eq52EvV1qywWF59tQ50w3fyjxbaXSb5-DlVYTq1afgv8WrCt1obECTw=s1000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="750" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiWZwHerIEyUO3ZZd58gIJRFl9BDmQu6-8kWHxP-tfyyD_t2OZsIPi-YAAB6LpzPKePh7GFmCmYZnohQUEGnwKRVmFewYZ182TIGBk26Q8tEZcDTrH80G5iZe495aZufRkCjb5eq52EvV1qywWF59tQ50w3fyjxbaXSb5-DlVYTq1afgv8WrCt1obECTw=w198-h263" width="198" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjBtLcpffu0i-m2CeJHorTjdMpYYOGs-81YzxH0Dthj1166HSqd4WHpZeHobVEIVaAWHE0hplnkOUxD0bqNCGUOemFDZ7NR1UaL9FMCNaaXRQHsNk3G6xZ7CZEU2Ndp632pRAK3wnIaDgS2FAwt5aQt7DEP0BlQwkBw2YpUwbvOB8DfavHgXXJboWraaQ=s1000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="750" height="264" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjBtLcpffu0i-m2CeJHorTjdMpYYOGs-81YzxH0Dthj1166HSqd4WHpZeHobVEIVaAWHE0hplnkOUxD0bqNCGUOemFDZ7NR1UaL9FMCNaaXRQHsNk3G6xZ7CZEU2Ndp632pRAK3wnIaDgS2FAwt5aQt7DEP0BlQwkBw2YpUwbvOB8DfavHgXXJboWraaQ=w198-h264" width="198" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></p>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-86561430702073622052021-10-28T12:58:00.004+03:002021-10-28T12:58:48.904+03:00Looking for Agia Pelagia: Halki October Adventure Part 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TIjhEuPonPs/YXpnfk-TbHI/AAAAAAAAHXw/FbIYqMt9KVc-HL8uF2xT6XdDDq2cmpJVACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_075132.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TIjhEuPonPs/YXpnfk-TbHI/AAAAAAAAHXw/FbIYqMt9KVc-HL8uF2xT6XdDDq2cmpJVACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_075132.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></div><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The peak of the hill above Halki’s abandoned village isn’t merely
a medieval castle. Like the one above Megalo Horio on Tilos, this area was in
ancient times - several centuries before Christ - an acropolis. It was exhilarating to wake up within its walls.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">The only sounds were the humming engines of fishing caiques
around the shores of Tracheia three hundred metres below, and a pair of birds
again clackety-clacking and peep-peep-peeping to one another nearby. The sheer
slopes below had the outlines of fields. <o:p></o:p></span>The pink dawn faded, and the clouds above the mountain of Attavyros on Rhodes glowed a fierce orange and then cast a golden pathway across the sea as the sun rose. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fWmaBGdHNgo/YXpnUK_wkqI/AAAAAAAAHXg/2t3A0NnjIp4qg03n5_NZcD3sVfIh_aNMwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_073118.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fWmaBGdHNgo/YXpnUK_wkqI/AAAAAAAAHXg/2t3A0NnjIp4qg03n5_NZcD3sVfIh_aNMwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_073118.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y7C-ZHANZZc/YXpnbC9W9qI/AAAAAAAAHXk/dfglLq-f3GAxpNtSyX8Msv7wIQN23DtrgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_074238.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y7C-ZHANZZc/YXpnbC9W9qI/AAAAAAAAHXk/dfglLq-f3GAxpNtSyX8Msv7wIQN23DtrgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_074238.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XAe_0oSP37Q/YXpnbRhBf3I/AAAAAAAAHXo/E8C-X5pyQYojRJmzkZ-k_XffzVA8ER_PgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_074311.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XAe_0oSP37Q/YXpnbRhBf3I/AAAAAAAAHXo/E8C-X5pyQYojRJmzkZ-k_XffzVA8ER_PgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_074311.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">My head still full of strange dreams of people coming and going, I
wanted to soak up the atmosphere, but had to pack up early in case anyone
arrived. Then we heard distant gunshots: I didn’t know there was hunting on Halki.
Lisa sought sanctuary inside the tent that was still wet with the damp of the
night, abandoning ideas of breakfast or water. So much for lightening the load.
I stuffed everything back into the pack and eventually coaxed her out. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Leaving no trace and taking only memories, we walked out to a spectacular view as the early sunlight turned the
mountains amber, while in the shadows the rock remained grey. I could
understand why the ancients carved thrones for the gods Zeus and Hecate here.</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4PzahitWyqw/YXpnnUzQHyI/AAAAAAAAHX0/tENap351ZXkomgQjuMHsdnxBmzljUbG_QCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_075157.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4PzahitWyqw/YXpnnUzQHyI/AAAAAAAAHX0/tENap351ZXkomgQjuMHsdnxBmzljUbG_QCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_075157.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RObHX-lbmW4/YXpnnZm7g7I/AAAAAAAAHX4/z909rES3-2w6AX8n9xjme1RtV2RgQ3gwgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_075204.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RObHX-lbmW4/YXpnnZm7g7I/AAAAAAAAHX4/z909rES3-2w6AX8n9xjme1RtV2RgQ3gwgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_075204.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8VI047rrtpk/YXpnpKBrmHI/AAAAAAAAHX8/bDYT8Js9umAu8ecXptcwJu59DeojnLJfACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_075312.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8VI047rrtpk/YXpnpKBrmHI/AAAAAAAAHX8/bDYT8Js9umAu8ecXptcwJu59DeojnLJfACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_075312.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oIE80Hqp1IQ/YXpn1xc2HDI/AAAAAAAAHYI/nbIWFtRqAmQ7z3IGY_wkMpDzqNA7OF1vACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_075701.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oIE80Hqp1IQ/YXpn1xc2HDI/AAAAAAAAHYI/nbIWFtRqAmQ7z3IGY_wkMpDzqNA7OF1vACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_075701.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">On the way down through the ruins of the village, I paused to
look at the stone-built houses, a mixture of huge masonry blocks and careful
stonework with bits of glazed pottery stuck in the plaster, almost all with their
own <i>sterna</i>, a cistern for retaining rainwater. Goats and sheep wandered freely,
and in the distance I heard a pickup truck heading up the road. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pdtpIbyZx44/YXpn33uw3QI/AAAAAAAAHYU/AtBf_-KGcrcfcjst2SHhO_H3ZqUlbMBEgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_075521.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pdtpIbyZx44/YXpn33uw3QI/AAAAAAAAHYU/AtBf_-KGcrcfcjst2SHhO_H3ZqUlbMBEgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_075521.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zDiDKI0vC6Y/YXpqqrEqYKI/AAAAAAAAHYk/H7Mwt0heG_8gV3071DPwfSEOmcm7LcDKQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_080939.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zDiDKI0vC6Y/YXpqqrEqYKI/AAAAAAAAHYk/H7Mwt0heG_8gV3071DPwfSEOmcm7LcDKQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_080939.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TUtkkxUjoCQ/YXpquml9zuI/AAAAAAAAHYo/k0V2-zE78PQj6PwhKLWPk-JO6VYsHhA7wCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_081028.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TUtkkxUjoCQ/YXpquml9zuI/AAAAAAAAHYo/k0V2-zE78PQj6PwhKLWPk-JO6VYsHhA7wCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_081028.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dhJ2DEF4xug/YXpq3IO_7kI/AAAAAAAAHYw/MbLxEMIdXrQW_ifFDGwHXy_nkoDEcBtewCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_081651.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dhJ2DEF4xug/YXpq3IO_7kI/AAAAAAAAHYw/MbLxEMIdXrQW_ifFDGwHXy_nkoDEcBtewCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_081651.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">At the road, by
a threshing circle I looked inside some of the <i>kyfes</i>, the old, stone-built
shepherds’ huts. The outer walls were of smallish rocks, but inside they were
massive, rough slabs of rock yet stacked and interlocking so intricately as
they gradually arced up into a domed roof.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ReJNAioS9fc/YXpse7ATOqI/AAAAAAAAHaY/rAx91f6VdHIOh7JY5kkKfIy2bxUAdeqvwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_084110.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ReJNAioS9fc/YXpse7ATOqI/AAAAAAAAHaY/rAx91f6VdHIOh7JY5kkKfIy2bxUAdeqvwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_084110.jpg" width="240" /></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-r9aO0-C655s/YXpsLXNDTmI/AAAAAAAAHaI/r-hMI149-sIddRkeO5hxlLp7gX0oMJObgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_083743.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-r9aO0-C655s/YXpsLXNDTmI/AAAAAAAAHaI/r-hMI149-sIddRkeO5hxlLp7gX0oMJObgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_083743.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H-zUBeMYeC0/YXpsPGVs4CI/AAAAAAAAHaM/M4H5LleUS6Qkuiyz5JsFcrmp2FpBwtWMACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_084016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H-zUBeMYeC0/YXpsPGVs4CI/AAAAAAAAHaM/M4H5LleUS6Qkuiyz5JsFcrmp2FpBwtWMACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_084016.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-j9AJY4IzJEI/YXpsnrxVQMI/AAAAAAAAHac/o-rp7wF_8FIQXi2gkXgqyIyf7OYo-0LDACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_083811.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-j9AJY4IzJEI/YXpsnrxVQMI/AAAAAAAAHac/o-rp7wF_8FIQXi2gkXgqyIyf7OYo-0LDACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_083811.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dgUyg35_dDs/YXps_dLXq_I/AAAAAAAAHak/LBLaGaIiSAEG6tSYKzbYU-gJfo3vBE8UwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_084343.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dgUyg35_dDs/YXps_dLXq_I/AAAAAAAAHak/LBLaGaIiSAEG6tSYKzbYU-gJfo3vBE8UwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_084343.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">It was about eight thirty and already hot by then, and I still
wasn’t sure exactly how far I would go. A team of men from the electricity company
were replacing the wooden poles and the cables. As I set off uphill, an old man
with a long beard rode past on a donkey, sitting sideways on a wooden saddle; I’d
passed him the previous evening and wordlessly he’d indicated I should hold on firmly to my dog. A younger man rode by on a
little motorbike; it looked like the man who’d told me to take the road slowly.
Further up the road, I looked down and saw him feeding pigs and chickens in sheds
made from reclaimed wood and doors and windows.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pFy5CRbEBfw/YXptP_Y3HgI/AAAAAAAAHas/pEsBXdkcp_c1_dgwb-pjJgUpNRe89m6qgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_093000.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pFy5CRbEBfw/YXptP_Y3HgI/AAAAAAAAHas/pEsBXdkcp_c1_dgwb-pjJgUpNRe89m6qgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_093000.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">If it sounds busy, it wasn’t. For most of the way, it was very
still and quiet, with partridges and goat bells, and the occasional gunshot far
in the distance. I’ve walked this way a few times in different seasons and each
time see a little more – the wonderful circular enclosures everywhere, most
with a fig tree growing in the middle (for shade and food?). The sea was a silver shimmer back east towards Rhodes, a pale blue
expanse south to the abandoned island of Saria very clear on the horizon.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">It was good to have distractions. As the day warmed up a
little and I was still carrying most of the food and water I’d brought, the
road would rise about two hundred and fifty metres over a couple of kilometres.
Already, when I looked back, the castle seemed far below. The road seemed tough
and long, carved into the side of the mountain with
nowhere comfortable to stop, so I’d keep going to the bend at the top. And
there, I was excited to see the ruined windmill already – we’d reached the plateau and the road would level out. So I was already about
halfway across the island – why I’d wanted to camp at the castle. Maybe I could
keep going a while.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6QbA2CYEyY4/YXpthqOAk4I/AAAAAAAAHa0/lLNd9a67lJc5na9O1TIiqwbteWkdjdq-wCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_100923.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6QbA2CYEyY4/YXpthqOAk4I/AAAAAAAAHa0/lLNd9a67lJc5na9O1TIiqwbteWkdjdq-wCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_100923.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I looked out across the stony flat upland, so dry at this time
of year, just an expanse of rocks, some of them piled into walls around fields,
some piled into <i>kyfes</i> that were barely distinguishable except for the
dark mouths of the doorways. I always find it a mysterious landscape – it feels
like happening upon another world where people live in holes in
the rocks.</span></p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Somewhere beyond the slopes to either side were the highest
peaks of the island, according to my map, Profitis Ilias at 578 metres and
Meroigli at 600. Across the dry plateau was the start of the steep path down the
gorge to Ai Georgi tou Riakiou (I mistakenly called it Ai Yianni in my book, I now realised), where I’d arrived scarily dehydrated one May day and been extremely
thankful to find water in an old cistern. I stashed a bottle of water and a tin
of dog food in the windmill to pick up on the way back, and set off again on
the gentle road west.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YqU1Yysf3xs/YXptyz4IoEI/AAAAAAAAHa8/lzSmfUxEr_kyKC7Va6aEnThxdQ3dBGZOwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_101410.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YqU1Yysf3xs/YXptyz4IoEI/AAAAAAAAHa8/lzSmfUxEr_kyKC7Va6aEnThxdQ3dBGZOwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_101410.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zPf7A8UFty0/YXpt4OvpgHI/AAAAAAAAHbA/O2MZbhgplgwPP7YyaW0fSUa8vgf9K9sugCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_101845.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zPf7A8UFty0/YXpt4OvpgHI/AAAAAAAAHbA/O2MZbhgplgwPP7YyaW0fSUa8vgf9K9sugCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_101845.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6dDytsnXbz0/YXpt5fn6NQI/AAAAAAAAHbE/aR_jZZmANqc6Q1UWpGfBXDxX2ShTJL1owCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_102256.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6dDytsnXbz0/YXpt5fn6NQI/AAAAAAAAHbE/aR_jZZmANqc6Q1UWpGfBXDxX2ShTJL1owCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_102256.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IWni0ycM7so/YXpt9oCswBI/AAAAAAAAHbM/p6xkERSP4N8stOSI3Con4j-DmADSz-3lwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_103512.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IWni0ycM7so/YXpt9oCswBI/AAAAAAAAHbM/p6xkERSP4N8stOSI3Con4j-DmADSz-3lwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_103512.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lc3u3T0GxdQ/YXpuHLif5aI/AAAAAAAAHbU/MyP8AfgeJtAWUwYJepiAzV6DZrPVdyi_ACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_103536.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lc3u3T0GxdQ/YXpuHLif5aI/AAAAAAAAHbU/MyP8AfgeJtAWUwYJepiAzV6DZrPVdyi_ACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_103536.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />After a bend or two in the road with spectacular views down
steep inclines and cliffs to the north coast, the land opens out again into
another old agricultural area known as the ‘gardens’ with cisterns scattered
everywhere according to the map – an area to explore another time – the monastery
of Ai Yianni o Alarga, St John the Far-Away, was in sight. <o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The area beyond was what I wanted to explore – an old settlement with the church of Agia Pelagia and some kind of a beach. We stopped briefly for a drink of water and a handful of food at the
monastery gates, where I noticed a sign: ‘Hunters are asked to please leave their
dogs far away from the gate. Welcome.’ <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--qS6awbbuL4/YXpt9fUQ1wI/AAAAAAAAHbI/sugjtDw_5-AJRGJgUfyoK36OV-BhJ-CCgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_104636.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--qS6awbbuL4/YXpt9fUQ1wI/AAAAAAAAHbI/sugjtDw_5-AJRGJgUfyoK36OV-BhJ-CCgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_104636.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Last time here, we’d failed to find the start of the path, but
this time I followed the instructions on the map and found it around the back
of the monastery. From here, I knew I wouldn’t go far today. The paths weren’t
clear enough. I still had enough
food and water, but if I went all the way down to shore, I’d have to camp again
to have enough energy to get back to town again. Doing that alone, when already
tired, would be getting into a risky zone. And by now, Dioni had responded
saying the apartment on the harbour was waiting for me.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">But it was a joy simply exploring for a while, getting a sense
of the dramatic and wild terrain, feeling the exhilaration of being alone at
the empty end of the island. There were little pink flowers growing between the
rocks, and eagles soared overhead. Every now and then, I’d come across a cairn demarcating
a path, but they blended in so well with the rocky terrain, as did so many of
the buildings that should have been landmarks, and were probably mostly knocked
over by goats. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Following the hillside around to the north, I finally saw a chapel
way below – Chrousi? That was probably the way I’d explore next time. We descended
to one group of ruined stone huts – Vokolia? Heading south, we reached the sheer
ridge where, according to the map, gaps through the rocks led to more ruins – so much to see. Too much for me
today. Sometimes just looking for Agia Pelagia is enough.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Po4I-xBXvvs/YXpuf2Wx8bI/AAAAAAAAHbs/Xn0j6IK3YFkJP5c37GHGd0EBWBgVhKNWQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_111051.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Po4I-xBXvvs/YXpuf2Wx8bI/AAAAAAAAHbs/Xn0j6IK3YFkJP5c37GHGd0EBWBgVhKNWQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_111051.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-boWmejdntFM/YXpugN5SzTI/AAAAAAAAHbw/Pu5h2xShEEUok1z_Kj6ktmvUtLhm0xqagCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_112116.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-boWmejdntFM/YXpugN5SzTI/AAAAAAAAHbw/Pu5h2xShEEUok1z_Kj6ktmvUtLhm0xqagCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_112116.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DjYlh-VRlB8/YXpumVkAYUI/AAAAAAAAHb0/WKEOgv0depgCxCFBOXUv4pmQef64mJMiACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_121331.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DjYlh-VRlB8/YXpumVkAYUI/AAAAAAAAHb0/WKEOgv0depgCxCFBOXUv4pmQef64mJMiACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_121331.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2ibkXRrJRyI/YXpuyBHI03I/AAAAAAAAHcE/sipvEuk0vW0QuN0u94Ikb_59kbRvGUtugCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_124510.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2ibkXRrJRyI/YXpuyBHI03I/AAAAAAAAHcE/sipvEuk0vW0QuN0u94Ikb_59kbRvGUtugCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_124510.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BcfurqBBqLU/YXpuxfFBHvI/AAAAAAAAHcA/eIlFOkmYHp8drD8BiTxXPGHRbdGd4aGrgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_124519.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BcfurqBBqLU/YXpuxfFBHvI/AAAAAAAAHcA/eIlFOkmYHp8drD8BiTxXPGHRbdGd4aGrgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_124519.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T32HwyVzOYQ/YXpuzks0lWI/AAAAAAAAHcI/D5uVmgnjaDUq3_z2w8IdCvekVqJngDKHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_125031.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T32HwyVzOYQ/YXpuzks0lWI/AAAAAAAAHcI/D5uVmgnjaDUq3_z2w8IdCvekVqJngDKHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_125031.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-axK98FW0Anw/YXpu4MhuTpI/AAAAAAAAHcU/BaoYRQf-QjESFH6ZkRPFKqrOjWLPtOUswCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_133128.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-axK98FW0Anw/YXpu4MhuTpI/AAAAAAAAHcU/BaoYRQf-QjESFH6ZkRPFKqrOjWLPtOUswCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_133128.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dU22VtKql5s/YXpu3a92agI/AAAAAAAAHcQ/au__wj1dG9QJFow2k4nkiN7VEmXmnAxOgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_133219.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dU22VtKql5s/YXpu3a92agI/AAAAAAAAHcQ/au__wj1dG9QJFow2k4nkiN7VEmXmnAxOgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_133219.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uvqSU8N-p4U/YXpu8Hrn-AI/AAAAAAAAHcY/J_n7CYPeHocop_wpG19gupmCPtE-l98IACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_134348.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uvqSU8N-p4U/YXpu8Hrn-AI/AAAAAAAAHcY/J_n7CYPeHocop_wpG19gupmCPtE-l98IACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_134348.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I made my way back up to the monastery, where the team from the
electricity company were replacing the <i>colones</i>. The olive trees and cypresses
were well watered at the monastery, and it was amazing to imagine what these
uplands might have looked like when all the gardens were watered from the
cisterns. Now it was so dry. Sheep wandered everywhere – what did they survive
on?</span></p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">It was a lovely walk back, eating and drinking as much as
possible, though I still felt a little wistful to be heading back to
civilisation. A taxi driver waved, taking a couple to the monastery. I stopped
and put down my bag to walk up to what looked as though it could be a chapel,
and found what I think was Ayios Lavrentios. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O2WBhUxPW7g/YXpvSY7SmZI/AAAAAAAAHcs/Ly1YZ8Bqd5Qoin9Kaea8IjSAMdHdXMuJACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_140051.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O2WBhUxPW7g/YXpvSY7SmZI/AAAAAAAAHcs/Ly1YZ8Bqd5Qoin9Kaea8IjSAMdHdXMuJACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_140051.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w8Dx5jSVuQ0/YXpvYBdyl0I/AAAAAAAAHcw/3x7uJfj6W3ARATzu2meokpZBstvquMdowCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_142939.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w8Dx5jSVuQ0/YXpvYBdyl0I/AAAAAAAAHcw/3x7uJfj6W3ARATzu2meokpZBstvquMdowCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_142939.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_rIcOSusBzY/YXpvh070TMI/AAAAAAAAHc4/b7MzZRRCAc0LaXvFY2sIA5ToO1cG5-8GwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_142644.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_rIcOSusBzY/YXpvh070TMI/AAAAAAAAHc4/b7MzZRRCAc0LaXvFY2sIA5ToO1cG5-8GwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_142644.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ptyM3i04jwU/YXpviVYQbuI/AAAAAAAAHc8/Y5QrDWqe5X4SF4KavlTDfIHP9dJPuA0XgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_142705.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ptyM3i04jwU/YXpviVYQbuI/AAAAAAAAHc8/Y5QrDWqe5X4SF4KavlTDfIHP9dJPuA0XgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_142705.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></div><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">At the windmill, </span>I saw a kestrel with a reddish-brown body and grey wings, and a flock of falcons were crying and circling high up. Finally Lisa decided to eat something. It was all downhill from here, and by
four in the afternoon, we were back at Ftenagia for a swim.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-I94AVUbuxkw/YXpvndRpb8I/AAAAAAAAHdA/IDXLLN2EaUA6LpD__FHTa-JNHxgEvaToQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_144639.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-I94AVUbuxkw/YXpvndRpb8I/AAAAAAAAHdA/IDXLLN2EaUA6LpD__FHTa-JNHxgEvaToQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_144639.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NCIt8oML6vA/YXpvq1FlD_I/AAAAAAAAHdI/ti2skweJ3XotPKMv8-Zp18ewFBEj2ntIACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_151547.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NCIt8oML6vA/YXpvq1FlD_I/AAAAAAAAHdI/ti2skweJ3XotPKMv8-Zp18ewFBEj2ntIACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_151547.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3PGCB7motRc/YXpvziJsQrI/AAAAAAAAHdU/ziXS4OBbQ_kwfPUV3G4AsBpuFCWauuwjACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211024_114710.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3PGCB7motRc/YXpvziJsQrI/AAAAAAAAHdU/ziXS4OBbQ_kwfPUV3G4AsBpuFCWauuwjACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211024_114710.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;" /></span></p>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-86536447219457749772021-10-26T14:42:00.001+03:002021-10-27T20:18:13.265+03:00Looking for Agia Pelagia: Halki October Adventure Part I<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qR6VMnB4v_o/YXfmbgqNFSI/AAAAAAAAHVs/MIvpL9dyPKcsmwoJHRbyBCW_oh1gTDmIQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211022_122859.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qR6VMnB4v_o/YXfmbgqNFSI/AAAAAAAAHVs/MIvpL9dyPKcsmwoJHRbyBCW_oh1gTDmIQCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/IMG_20211022_122859.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The sea was dark blue and glittering, the land bare grey and
brown as we rounded the south of Tilos. I love seeing my island afresh as soon
as I get on a boat. There’s a different perspective from the sea. It’s good to
get away, too, from the laptop and all the little jobs that I could always be
doing around the house and garden, and just GO.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">There’s something committing about taking a journey from an
island – you can’t just go back. And there would be no boats to or from Tilos
over the weekend. It was either this Friday lunchtime one or the late one if I
wanted to go somewhere, and travelling in daytime is much more pleasant. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">So I had decided to go to Halki with the Stavros, a big old ferry
that currently plies a very useful route up and down the Dodecanese. It’s often
late and puffs out evil-looking black smoke, but it’s a nice boat with plenty
of space, my dog doesn’t have to wear a muzzle, and all for the very attractive
price of nothing but the ticket office handling charge: 2 euros.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DuRygaSK15E/YXfmZ8FEoII/AAAAAAAAHVo/vvtv8L3DMh8ARMWhl2zAtQLKoESvMBlIgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211022_122229.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DuRygaSK15E/YXfmZ8FEoII/AAAAAAAAHVo/vvtv8L3DMh8ARMWhl2zAtQLKoESvMBlIgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211022_122229.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘I’m thinking about taking the car,’ I had mused to Stelios Stefanakis
as he processed my ticket. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘Why? It’s only a little island!’ he scoffed.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘But I’m thinking of going to the other side…’ I started to
explain, but decided not to bother anyway. I wanted a bit of a walking
adventure. This late October weather, sunny and warm but not too hot, is
perfect for walking and I had a place in mind.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F74F9t5YW0w/YXfmcVxqzKI/AAAAAAAAHVw/Akj9jLE1Yk83dlYQlEl5lp8TClhwSG-LwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211022_125819.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F74F9t5YW0w/YXfmcVxqzKI/AAAAAAAAHVw/Akj9jLE1Yk83dlYQlEl5lp8TClhwSG-LwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211022_125819.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jDR7Pv6ii_I/YXfm5BY3y8I/AAAAAAAAHV8/KymrHaF7jqMGhxLlTeUhFrYSOyV2GH4GACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211022_132146.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jDR7Pv6ii_I/YXfm5BY3y8I/AAAAAAAAHV8/KymrHaF7jqMGhxLlTeUhFrYSOyV2GH4GACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211022_132146.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XDmBTW79ILM/YXfm4fNyzLI/AAAAAAAAHV4/JHi6xOmFZPMrPat4E6_-Vy4WZmkaGsCFwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211022_132150.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XDmBTW79ILM/YXfm4fNyzLI/AAAAAAAAHV4/JHi6xOmFZPMrPat4E6_-Vy4WZmkaGsCFwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211022_132150.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><p class="MsoNormal"></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 17.12px;">As we neared Halki, all the details of its north shore started coming into focus, the ridge and cliffs and gullies, some of which I’d walked before. It looked very empty and rugged. We passed the impressive new solar farm and then an hour or so after we’d left, the Stavros arrived at the splendid harbour of Nimborio with all its lovely painted villas, and Lisa and I felt like royalty as the only foot passengers to disembark. I walked straight to the bakery for a<span> </span><i>hortopita<span> </span></i>and a loaf of bread, then to Ftenagia beach to swim and relax for a couple of hours.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Because it had been a last-minute decision to go, I’d only sent
a tentative email about a place to stay that morning. I checked on my phone and
there was no email back yet, hardly surprising; this gave me an excuse to try
my cheeky plan B, which was really a plan A. I had my new, lightweight tent cached
in my bag, after all.</span></p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I stopped at a minimarket to buy two large bottles of water to
supplement the supply I’d brought. There were three people sitting outside, two
men and an older lady. I asked if there was water at Ai Yianni Alarga, the
monastery of St John the Far-Away, towards the other end of the island.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘Not at this time of year,’ said the older of the two men.
Springs need to be fed over the course of the winter.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘There is, but I don’t know if they have it open or closed,’
said the lady.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I told them I was thinking of walking there the next day. The lady
advised I leave some of my stuff behind, indicating my heavy-looking rucksack.
The man said it was OK to carry everything, but I should go slowly. I decided
to take another bottle of water with me, just in case, and thanked them for
their help.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">In my book <i>Wild Abandon</i> about my journeys to deserted
places in the Dodecanese, the short chapter on Halki is called ‘Road to Nowhere’.
Once you leave the harbour village, there are hardly any houses or people. In
some ways, taking the road to nowhere was going against my other aim, to meet
locals and speak more Greek. But I also had a hankering to get away to nowhere
for a while, as I sometimes do.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Soon after we set off, Lisa tried to convince me that the pine
trees around the bay of Podamos would be a good place to stop. But even if it
was tempting, I wasn’t carrying five or six litres of water, camping gear and
food and everything else just to camp in a place with a catamaran moored in the
bay and tourists on the beach. We continued up the road slowly, past scrappy fences
with barking dogs, past the rubbish dump, past a young man making cement who said <i>yeia
sou </i>(and I was so tired already that I weirdly replied <i>yeia sas</i>), up
the slope and then the zigzagging ascent among olive groves. I noticed a little
inhabited house I hadn’t seen last time. There were enough sheep and goats
meandering about to convince me that camping in a field wasn’t an option – we’d
never get any sleep. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Leaving the road at the start of the abandoned Old Village or Paleo
Horio, we passed a few restored but uninhabited houses and continued more steeply,
passing layer upon layer of ruined houses and chapels, to about 300 metres,
where I happened upon a few French tourists heading down. We all mumbled surprised
hellos.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Z935akoG7Ic/YXfnR7ridrI/AAAAAAAAHWI/SMUYchC2IoAx88rkbaAaxAVdIFaxuJQ0wCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211022_174727.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Z935akoG7Ic/YXfnR7ridrI/AAAAAAAAHWI/SMUYchC2IoAx88rkbaAaxAVdIFaxuJQ0wCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211022_174727.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A1a2A_zdGek/YXfnVtcZGrI/AAAAAAAAHWM/E4F7xRSeytceTv6nNBVVEnKLsIqgQW1pwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211022_174749.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A1a2A_zdGek/YXfnVtcZGrI/AAAAAAAAHWM/E4F7xRSeytceTv6nNBVVEnKLsIqgQW1pwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211022_174749.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g-UT7UxnCl4/YXfnaaIvvqI/AAAAAAAAHWQ/FUpJ9qmXJYUUzULdj0QQQyqPYxQZ4onhQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211022_174744.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g-UT7UxnCl4/YXfnaaIvvqI/AAAAAAAAHWQ/FUpJ9qmXJYUUzULdj0QQQyqPYxQZ4onhQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211022_174744.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S9UF6LUlbKk/YXfndiq6z8I/AAAAAAAAHWU/lIZlNnHorfogREaXAcAoW_Qt8G2v8ZBeACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211022_174932.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S9UF6LUlbKk/YXfndiq6z8I/AAAAAAAAHWU/lIZlNnHorfogREaXAcAoW_Qt8G2v8ZBeACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211022_174932.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">What joy to enter the opening in the medieval walls of the
castle and pass through the ancient gate with its huge masonry blocks. The sun
was still a little way above the sea, and the light was glorious. I’m not sure
camping is really encouraged, but there was no discouragement either and it was
unlikely anyone would come here now, so I hurried to choose a sheltered spot
and set up before night began to fall. To the east was Rhodes, but to the south
an expanse of calm, pale blue sea, with the narrow-necked peninsula of Tracheia
below. I watched the sun go down, and at twilight a couple of birds flitted
about calling clackety-clack and then peep-peep-peep.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jOnqWZK8t0U/YXfnvigHTKI/AAAAAAAAHWo/RhCcRdJ-28kXzgHRrzi5pVanUINV3yoEQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211022_181137.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jOnqWZK8t0U/YXfnvigHTKI/AAAAAAAAHWo/RhCcRdJ-28kXzgHRrzi5pVanUINV3yoEQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211022_181137.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WgxmTT62DrU/YXfnvvlUJ0I/AAAAAAAAHWs/ojhtL12DjiwfyLPtx8UqC14fsZWRq_f8gCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211022_181145.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WgxmTT62DrU/YXfnvvlUJ0I/AAAAAAAAHWs/ojhtL12DjiwfyLPtx8UqC14fsZWRq_f8gCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211022_181145.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ob2NhF8AqB4/YXfnxLjB_nI/AAAAAAAAHWw/wB1P60sJryoQj7jnkQ1JoMlaH9s-uaeSQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211022_185036.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ob2NhF8AqB4/YXfnxLjB_nI/AAAAAAAAHWw/wB1P60sJryoQj7jnkQ1JoMlaH9s-uaeSQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211022_185036.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ApTc6Nk4zFc/YXfn37fglDI/AAAAAAAAHW4/A7cG_XTUsgs6nCE8Nu5FvJck9kW-8l0GQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_065456.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ApTc6Nk4zFc/YXfn37fglDI/AAAAAAAAHW4/A7cG_XTUsgs6nCE8Nu5FvJck9kW-8l0GQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_065456.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FXAEggYCUqM/YXfn3g5--kI/AAAAAAAAHW0/t1lf5mtgQTgMyChJM0ahQQagJRpfdD8fwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_065506.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FXAEggYCUqM/YXfn3g5--kI/AAAAAAAAHW0/t1lf5mtgQTgMyChJM0ahQQagJRpfdD8fwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_065506.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Lisa made a very good camping companion on her own camping mat
in the tent. Still, it’s a long night when it’s dark from about seven in the evening
until seven in the morning. I read for a while by the light of a torch, then lay
drifting off, enveloped in the gorgeous silence, the only sound the gentle breathing
of my dog lying next to me. Waking at one point to the sound of fishing boats, I
unzipped the tent to bright moonlight and stars.<o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5mKQ1T33rXY/YXfn5QkIc1I/AAAAAAAAHW8/7yokbdgAgNA_xX1mTCfmBqpftmaeDlb-ACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_065523.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5mKQ1T33rXY/YXfn5QkIc1I/AAAAAAAAHW8/7yokbdgAgNA_xX1mTCfmBqpftmaeDlb-ACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_065523.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dLUjvthlmeE/YXfn7CJQfdI/AAAAAAAAHXA/SeThPQJqhNYJartAqBGrTEXaf-MdFBWmACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20211023_070154.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dLUjvthlmeE/YXfn7CJQfdI/AAAAAAAAHXA/SeThPQJqhNYJartAqBGrTEXaf-MdFBWmACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20211023_070154.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></p>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-41049380789910349152021-08-25T10:29:00.003+03:002021-08-25T10:34:32.324+03:00Last of the Summer Wine<p><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QQSFfZ0Xyr0/YSXwadHYkVI/AAAAAAAAHSw/OFqNaiSJEWERPF-EnuwugRrNsNGtttXaACLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210821_112931_resized_20210824_115350849.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QQSFfZ0Xyr0/YSXwadHYkVI/AAAAAAAAHSw/OFqNaiSJEWERPF-EnuwugRrNsNGtttXaACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/IMG_20210821_112931_resized_20210824_115350849.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">There he was – the man I’d been looking for. Not in the sense
of ‘all my life’, just since my grapes started ripening on the vine (and that
isn’t a euphemism). I wanted to see if I could learn how to make very basic
wine, and I’d heard Yiannis was a good man to talk to about it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">An unassuming man of medium stature, he was standing by his
rickety old scooter. We’d last had a conversation early in the summer when he’d been encouraging me
to pick mulberries from a tree on the road out of the village. A retired
seaman who lives with his wife in Megalo Horio, he’s often out and about
tending his beehives or fishing off the beach.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; line-height: 107%;">I’d gone to his house the previous day but although the scooter was
there and the gate open, and although it wasn’t yet siesta time and I’d shouted
hello in my usual hesitant way, there was no sign of life and I couldn’t get up
the nerve to stride in. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">But now I’d spotted him on the road as I was driving to the
post office, and I pulled in swiftly to the school car park.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">‘I hear you make wine,’ I said, ‘and I want to learn.’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">He smiled cautiously.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">From late July to late August is grape and fig season, and I'd been told the grapes needed another couple of weeks on the vine, but
one day, sick of having hornets buzzing around, I cut down most of them. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: medium;">I’d done the same a couple of weeks before with the smaller,
seedless grapes from a different vine and was drying them into raisins in flat dishes
using 15 denier ladies’ hosiery to keep the flies and ants off while allowing enough
sun to get in. The bigger vine in the front of the house gives good shade and the grapes are delicious. My old pal Antonis had asked if they were for eating or for wine. I had no idea.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NCAw1ljPeOE/YSXwkX5yHOI/AAAAAAAAHS4/pi-2RYWkBJkUYR2G_KtijCSzxtUyRu-vwCLcBGAsYHQ/s847/IMG_20210820_194203_resized_20210824_115351737.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="650" data-original-width="847" height="246" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NCAw1ljPeOE/YSXwkX5yHOI/AAAAAAAAHS4/pi-2RYWkBJkUYR2G_KtijCSzxtUyRu-vwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210820_194203_resized_20210824_115351737.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">The fridge was already brimming with old wine bottles filled with grape juice, and old tahini jars filled with fig compote as well as caper leaves preserved from earlier in the year. Because
I go easy with salt and sugar, I daren’t keep much out of the fridge,
especially when the daytime temperatures in August were rising over forty Celsius
and dropping at night to a mere thirty. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Td5q8YeoE0s/YSXwrDAIz4I/AAAAAAAAHTA/d9JD0VPyTUMx8SASe1wsyj7GQmXd11IjwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210816_161501_resized_20210824_115351972.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Td5q8YeoE0s/YSXwrDAIz4I/AAAAAAAAHTA/d9JD0VPyTUMx8SASe1wsyj7GQmXd11IjwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210816_161501_resized_20210824_115351972.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; line-height: 107%;">I’d been so excited about having my own vines and
fig trees when I got this garden. And really, I am. Everything is getting
healthier now after a few years of neglect and
being attacked by goats. But it does demand quite a bit of time and attention over the
summer. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">I’ve got more advanced this year with the produce, baking
the fig compote and fresh raisins into cereal bars with oats and seeds. I’ve roasted
lamb chops with grapes, figs, tomato and onion. I’ve made pizza with two kinds
of local goat’s cheese, ripe figs and rocket from the garden. And I've regularly had icy fruit smoothies for breakfast.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: medium;">So now I’d been stuffing masses of fat, juicy grapes into the
fridge and hopefully thought I’d try again at winemaking. I’d really meant to go to Embona
on Atavyros Mountain on Rhodes, talk to the experts and get the right
equipment, but somehow it never happened, so here I was at the last minute asking
Yianni.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">He had already squeezed his grapes and started his
wine, he said, having experienced the same problem with hornets. Some people leave the bits of
skin in during the first days, but he removed them and used only juice. He mentioned a <i>piestirio</i>, a press; I’d been using my hands.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">‘So you leave it for three days,’ he said, and although I didn’t
understand what he said happened for those three days, from my Wiki research last
year I know it’s when the stuff starts fermenting. I’d actually already tried a
batch and the kitchen smelled like a bakery when I walked in. ‘You put it in an
open container,’ he continued.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">‘Covered with a cloth?’ I asked.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">‘Yes, a cloth with holes, like the stuff they use for <i>bonbonieras</i>.’
Something gauzy, like the stuff they wrap baptism gifts in, to let the air in
and out. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">‘So what do you do after the three days?’ I asked, thinking I’d
missed something.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">‘Nothing,’ he said, leaving me puzzled. ‘After, you leave it for
forty days. In the house. Then you try it. <i>Ama yinei</i>,’ he said, pausing –
then he made a fist and brought it towards his mouth, the thumb sticking out like
a spout heading for his lips, and tipped his head back.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">When it's ready – if it works </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large;">–</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large;">you drink it.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">I smiled, asked a few more questions, and thanked him. I could give it a try, I supposed, though I wasn’t
entirely surprised when he added that a neighbour had lost his whole batch of
wine for three years running. Maybe Yiannis was cannily keeping the real tricks
to himself. I got back in the car and drove down to Livadia. As so
often happens, a quick trip to the post office was about to take three hours. Picking
up my post took a mere ten minutes – the rest was impromptu chatting, coffee,
and a swim off the rocks. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">Now the wild, soaring temperatures of summer, with biting flies and wind that feels like a hot hairdryer, are waning, and some evenings here at the north of the island can feel soothingly cool and damp. On Eristos beach, the first sign that the busy days of summer are over are the miraculous sea daffodils poking up out of the sand. And the tents are thinning out, with campers heading back to the cities. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8WLBe7b_ZFI/YSXwISWg3TI/AAAAAAAAHSk/ht6GXIX3xdkt2ery_LuSr9uzHy_n_YV0gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210821_112752_resized_20210824_115351048.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8WLBe7b_ZFI/YSXwISWg3TI/AAAAAAAAHSk/ht6GXIX3xdkt2ery_LuSr9uzHy_n_YV0gCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210821_112752_resized_20210824_115351048.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: medium;"><p class="MsoNormal">For a couple of months, Lisa has refused to leave home before late afternoon unless we're going in the car, but now we're beginning to walk again in the afternoon and it feels great. Yesterday we briefly had Skafi beach to ourselves, and when I went snorkelling I saw shoals of miniature versions of mullet and bream. I'd never thought much before about when fish had their babies but it's been fun watching the little ones grow. The damselfish start out bright blue when tiny, in July.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ga8T-75jvCo/YSXwUapTqhI/AAAAAAAAHSo/KQ00S2rVKhUmyHQO_SCg10FRqpZefOYSwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210824_175042_resized_20210824_115350075.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ga8T-75jvCo/YSXwUapTqhI/AAAAAAAAHSo/KQ00S2rVKhUmyHQO_SCg10FRqpZefOYSwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210824_175042_resized_20210824_115350075.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">In my last blog post, I confessed I had no idea how posts
would be delivered to your inbox in future after the demise of Feedburner. But
the </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">extremely</span><i style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"> </i><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">helpful people at </span><a href="http://follow.it" style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">follow.it</a><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"> have solved the problem. You
may have received this thanks to their tiny postal workers slipping it into
your email inbox, but if you didn’t and you’d like to in future, you can sign
up using the little box that should appear somewhere top left of the page. Apparently
there are additional features, though I can’t imagine what they’re for. The helpful people even offered to give me inspiration about what I could
write, or pictures I could use. Maybe they can just produce the whole blog post
in future, leaving me more time to walk to a beach.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">In fact, thinking about it, maybe they know how to make wine…</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZruJOhiLtO0/YSXw9AiZmQI/AAAAAAAAHTM/QS9ayWex_38789mFOa7iFCTlj10e6eZ4gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210824_175204_resized_20210824_115349880.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZruJOhiLtO0/YSXw9AiZmQI/AAAAAAAAHTM/QS9ayWex_38789mFOa7iFCTlj10e6eZ4gCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210824_175204_resized_20210824_115349880.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><o:p></o:p><p></p>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-85952991743207343502021-06-30T11:32:00.007+03:002021-07-12T16:10:55.509+03:00Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention please…?<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sfcWtZC6_J4/YNwo0P9_eEI/AAAAAAAAHLw/gmWmOY5sufoStAZziVkAhRJii9EMazGewCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210623_182048_resized_20210630_110009714.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sfcWtZC6_J4/YNwo0P9_eEI/AAAAAAAAHLw/gmWmOY5sufoStAZziVkAhRJii9EMazGewCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210623_182048_resized_20210630_110009714.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I have a BIG apology to make.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">A little while ago, I received a notification that my blog was
no longer going to be delivered to subscribers via something called FeedBurner
from July. As with most technological things, I tried to ignore it and hoped it
would go away, until I realised that July was almost upon us and I had to do
something about this. There was a list of instructions about how to download the
subscriber details. I needed to click first on ‘Analyze’. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">But where was this word to click on? I started to search the
back room of Blogger, browsing the strange terminology. Fallback subdomain. Enable
custom robots (that sounds fun!).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">And then purely by chance I clicked on Comments, and found more
than a hundred unread comments on my blog posts. Some of them were unwanted
advertising, spam, the very reason I’d activated something a few years ago that
allowed me to moderate comments before they were posted. But I hadn’t also activated
something to notify me of comments that needed moderating. I didn’t know they
were there. So many were lovely comments from you, the readers. Some of them,
especially around the time I bought my house, almost had me in tears.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-muQCMn7wTJg/YNwoqkyFZYI/AAAAAAAAHKA/X8M4V3jpAMwJY_gm_vTqIrSo7vNv0VKgwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210507_111419_resized_20210630_105535168.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-muQCMn7wTJg/YNwoqkyFZYI/AAAAAAAAHKA/X8M4V3jpAMwJY_gm_vTqIrSo7vNv0VKgwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210507_111419_resized_20210630_105535168.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MXzDsVccUl8/YNwoxWOoxKI/AAAAAAAAHLM/tjUMs34hakU_oYZG0x5vjR2L_vvmUY7WACLcBGAsYHQ/s802/IMG_20210617_140740_resized_20210630_110007832.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="802" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MXzDsVccUl8/YNwoxWOoxKI/AAAAAAAAHLM/tjUMs34hakU_oYZG0x5vjR2L_vvmUY7WACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210617_140740_resized_20210630_110007832.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div></div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Please forgive me – I didn’t mean to ignore you! Some of you
had written lovely things about my books, or about visiting Tilos and seeing me,
or had asked for advice. And I had no idea.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">To be honest, I’d stopped posting regularly because everyone
had gone quiet and I thought you weren’t so interested in the blog any more. A
few of you had commented that it was a shame I didn’t blog so often these days…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I still don’t know how I will deliver this blog in the future
as I still haven’t figured out how to download the subscriber details. Perhaps
if you would like to continue to receive it as an email, you can send me your
email address in a message. Otherwise, please continue to check in from time to
time, and I’ll try to keep posting.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I have, of course, been busy, as always – and only partly with
writing and editing work. With the abrupt change to a hot, dry season, suddenly
the lovely wildflowers and long grass that had filled the garden all winter and
spring turned to straw and needed cutting down so as not to be a fire risk. The
head gardener (my mum) then arrived from England, and as if alerted of her presence,
the travelling plant-sellers started arriving by ferry with trucks full of
lovely plants to sell to us. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ykEAu5MAI6s/YNwowt2KvaI/AAAAAAAAHLE/ibNKulLx_SMNxhGKo4AAwgbcYJ0bN71iACLcBGAsYHQ/s750/IMG_20210613_220133_resized_20210630_110007682.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="540" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ykEAu5MAI6s/YNwowt2KvaI/AAAAAAAAHLE/ibNKulLx_SMNxhGKo4AAwgbcYJ0bN71iACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210613_220133_resized_20210630_110007682.jpg" /></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Moreover, since the new era of freedom began, it’s been
wonderful to travel again, and to have family and friends visiting. Our first trip was to Rhodes to start the process to
convert my residence permit into the infamous Brexit-prompted biometric pass. So
what if the SAOS ship Stavros takes five hours, going via Halki and Symi? It
was a journey, on a ferry! And can you imagine a more beautiful journey, moreover
taking in a coast of Symi that is so rarely seen, with its magnificent cliffs?
And then once we were there, the shops and restaurants were open again...<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5yWAlBwul8M/YNwrnFUbrnI/AAAAAAAAHMQ/0uzJkYssKz8T9ZD5w7mOWLQ60P6a_sVngCLcBGAsYHQ/s2000/IMG_20210603_111707_resized_20210603_062319603.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="1500" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5yWAlBwul8M/YNwrnFUbrnI/AAAAAAAAHMQ/0uzJkYssKz8T9ZD5w7mOWLQ60P6a_sVngCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210603_111707_resized_20210603_062319603.jpg" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-izZ7G9QO-K0/YNwotAV-xTI/AAAAAAAAHKY/ay1ttbGzmXkTtz9joATZSYyVgT9y25RAQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210525_101028_resized_20210630_105536233.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-izZ7G9QO-K0/YNwotAV-xTI/AAAAAAAAHKY/ay1ttbGzmXkTtz9joATZSYyVgT9y25RAQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210525_101028_resized_20210630_105536233.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YFL9gw5aKhc/YNwotW006YI/AAAAAAAAHKc/z1Lz8UIP3l0ChRgorG9E-77K7YV-30k8ACLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210525_113329_resized_20210630_105536431.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YFL9gw5aKhc/YNwotW006YI/AAAAAAAAHKc/z1Lz8UIP3l0ChRgorG9E-77K7YV-30k8ACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210525_113329_resized_20210630_105536431.jpg" width="320" /></a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-txHj-whWf-U/YNwovl84UsI/AAAAAAAAHK4/hiWmecsv71U-sI2477tEal4PrCfvLYuEQCLcBGAsYHQ/s740/IMG_20210528_201810_resized_20210630_110006910.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="697" data-original-width="740" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-txHj-whWf-U/YNwovl84UsI/AAAAAAAAHK4/hiWmecsv71U-sI2477tEal4PrCfvLYuEQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210528_201810_resized_20210630_110006910.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2wypWWwyGTs/YNwovKIBKgI/AAAAAAAAHK0/YuwrbvD_y5gTKQqIF686QF1gua-UuD3dgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210528_200509_resized_20210630_110007046.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="750" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2wypWWwyGTs/YNwovKIBKgI/AAAAAAAAHK0/YuwrbvD_y5gTKQqIF686QF1gua-UuD3dgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210528_200509_resized_20210630_110007046.jpg" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;" /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LZSCYmTvQeM/YNwou5tOaxI/AAAAAAAAHKw/9AWrmRjExzIqbma5YK9D_il35duquiqUQCLcBGAsYHQ/s750/IMG_20210528_181222_623_resized_20210630_110006612.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="750" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LZSCYmTvQeM/YNwou5tOaxI/AAAAAAAAHKw/9AWrmRjExzIqbma5YK9D_il35duquiqUQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210528_181222_623_resized_20210630_110006612.jpg" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;" /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Bc5Cu3LhHbE/YNwou3pzFjI/AAAAAAAAHKs/LNmoulNAid49hL-l-j86Il_Xo9fjfdiJACLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210526_194741_resized_20210630_105537214.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Bc5Cu3LhHbE/YNwou3pzFjI/AAAAAAAAHKs/LNmoulNAid49hL-l-j86Il_Xo9fjfdiJACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210526_194741_resized_20210630_105537214.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;" /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SaKlHXQ_240/YNwoufFarnI/AAAAAAAAHKo/HTL7x-5qSKYmfcoH-IgyJHYrlemXd_dyACLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210526_194017_resized_20210630_105537010.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SaKlHXQ_240/YNwoufFarnI/AAAAAAAAHKo/HTL7x-5qSKYmfcoH-IgyJHYrlemXd_dyACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210526_194017_resized_20210630_105537010.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;" /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QJO48M_Shgc/YNwotydJHhI/AAAAAAAAHKk/36Ye01tY1C4AZg_yS9WWhb0KefiCHj-SQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210526_193936_resized_20210630_105536850.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="750" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QJO48M_Shgc/YNwotydJHhI/AAAAAAAAHKk/36Ye01tY1C4AZg_yS9WWhb0KefiCHj-SQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210526_193936_resized_20210630_105536850.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">It was a year and a half ago in winter that I was last in
Astypalea, failing to meet the cheese man. So last week we arranged for people to look after the garden and Fishbags the cat, and took advantage of a
new route on the Dodecanese Seaways catamaran and were on the lovely westernmost
island of the Dodecanese in three and a half hours. Two days later, our return
via the same route looked compromised by a predicted 6 Beaufort, so we took
that as a perfect excuse to stay longer. Everyone on the island seems to be a
dog-lover and the animals are mostly kept away from the village, so Lisa had
some wonderful off-lead freedom too.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mVDS1BAmgoI/YNwozo97KUI/AAAAAAAAHLo/qPWQJNNqrrkWCi6Mg2O01mOKis0g9kyzQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210623_070548_resized_20210630_110009340.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mVDS1BAmgoI/YNwozo97KUI/AAAAAAAAHLo/qPWQJNNqrrkWCi6Mg2O01mOKis0g9kyzQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210623_070548_resized_20210630_110009340.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;" /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PhwyqrHWfbs/YNwozWzNHQI/AAAAAAAAHLk/maUz0Ey7wFMJBqz084CzmBEoUuFEudxDQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210623_065658_resized_20210630_110009165.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PhwyqrHWfbs/YNwozWzNHQI/AAAAAAAAHLk/maUz0Ey7wFMJBqz084CzmBEoUuFEudxDQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210623_065658_resized_20210630_110009165.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q4rltIDeAbI/YNwoz-ZCGZI/AAAAAAAAHLs/UOJ0s_4PRQILtYPKB0sR15QYxh1tpbwIgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210623_072202_resized_20210630_110009484.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q4rltIDeAbI/YNwoz-ZCGZI/AAAAAAAAHLs/UOJ0s_4PRQILtYPKB0sR15QYxh1tpbwIgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210623_072202_resized_20210630_110009484.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;" /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rnQCyMe-LJA/YNwozHtH_7I/AAAAAAAAHLg/QL-htks4RNY2BhE5fXA4cdd6zNlkrmE5gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210622_194500_resized_20210630_110008969.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rnQCyMe-LJA/YNwozHtH_7I/AAAAAAAAHLg/QL-htks4RNY2BhE5fXA4cdd6zNlkrmE5gCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210622_194500_resized_20210630_110008969.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;" /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RX9zB6cbMN4/YNwoypT1KwI/AAAAAAAAHLc/ITa96GHGJJ0NiVdPHGtpjHZSJskPAnr8gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210622_194216_resized_20210630_110008810.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RX9zB6cbMN4/YNwoypT1KwI/AAAAAAAAHLc/ITa96GHGJJ0NiVdPHGtpjHZSJskPAnr8gCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210622_194216_resized_20210630_110008810.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">And so it was that on Sunday night and into the early hours of
Monday morning, we were trying to catch a little sleep on the hard benches of
the Blue Star Chios back to Tilos, with incessant announcements blaring through
the loudspeakers in some form of torture, perhaps designed to make more people
pay for cabins. All we’d hear was: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention please… <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Followed by a minute indecipherable gobbledegook. It’s
wonderful to travel, but I think we’ll stay at home for a few days.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6N42MjTIiXI/YNwoyY3WKHI/AAAAAAAAHLY/Bg36dRUKtp8pHR4Koaixov0M6WOIKVSJQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210621_072041_resized_20210630_110008630.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6N42MjTIiXI/YNwoyY3WKHI/AAAAAAAAHLY/Bg36dRUKtp8pHR4Koaixov0M6WOIKVSJQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210621_072041_resized_20210630_110008630.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;" /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AmnFYdcQpCE/YNwoyMIu4II/AAAAAAAAHLU/LbxDmzZ0yhodXaE9eJsy3TiK1I6LfyWyQCLcBGAsYHQ/s745/IMG_20210619_095657_resized_20210630_110008480.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="652" data-original-width="745" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AmnFYdcQpCE/YNwoyMIu4II/AAAAAAAAHLU/LbxDmzZ0yhodXaE9eJsy3TiK1I6LfyWyQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210619_095657_resized_20210630_110008480.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;" /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-idxPCs-CFN4/YNwoxw2QvaI/AAAAAAAAHLQ/7zCV8-Xcm1Iak6L5XBsOLIy7dqUwvlTvACLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210617_165047_resized_20210630_110008260.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-idxPCs-CFN4/YNwoxw2QvaI/AAAAAAAAHLQ/7zCV8-Xcm1Iak6L5XBsOLIy7dqUwvlTvACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210617_165047_resized_20210630_110008260.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AWWoKxSfkPY/YNwov6zBoTI/AAAAAAAAHK8/UslpR2AV1R8WzaM440V3SHJbeCPIXhUnQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210601_201810_resized_20210630_110007205.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AWWoKxSfkPY/YNwov6zBoTI/AAAAAAAAHK8/UslpR2AV1R8WzaM440V3SHJbeCPIXhUnQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210601_201810_resized_20210630_110007205.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #231f20;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #231f20;">Enjoyed this post? </span></span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="color: #231f20; font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white;">I've now figured out how you can subscribe!</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #231f20;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #231f20;">Never miss out on future posts by </span><span class="green-text" data-v-4a2badd8="" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://follow.it/octopus-in-my-ouzo?action=followPub" rel="nofollow" style="color: #00b04e;" target="_blank">following</a>!</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span class="green-text" data-v-4a2badd8="" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span class="green-text" data-v-4a2badd8="" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box;"><br /></span></span></div>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-65998183883189431642021-05-13T10:10:00.003+03:002021-05-13T10:27:34.573+03:00A Novel About Mental Illness, Family and Love: The Book of Katerina<p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Georgia, serif; text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.parthianbooks.com/products/the-book-of-katerina?_pos=1&_sid=b68f4849f&_ss=r" imageanchor="1" rel="nofollow" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="300" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jnX9Rg11VR0/YJzLaVmVWGI/AAAAAAAAHDs/N1Zkc6KASi8Cbd4mz5OVtSO49MrKNUw2QCLcBGAsYHQ/w200-h320/TheBookofKaterinafinalcover_web_1_large.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Georgia, serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">During his childhood, <a href="http://www.corteau.gr/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Auguste Corteau</a>, born Petros Hatzopoulos,
remembers his mother descending further and further into psychotic despair. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">She
tried setting fire to the house with him in it, and tried to kill herself with alcohol
and pills, yet the hardest thing ‘was the stoniness of her depression, her
utter unreachability, the feeling that, no matter how madly I loved her, I
couldn’t make her smile, much less get her off the bed.’</span></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When he has suffered his own bouts of clinical depression, he
has had to remind himself of the love of those around him.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">His novel </span><i style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The Book of Katerina</i><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">, a fictionalised account
of his mother’s life-long struggle with bipolar disorder, was first published
in Greek in 2013 and became a huge success, selling 50,000 copies. It’s now
being launched in English (translated by Claire Papamichail) by Wales-based Parthian Books as both a paperback and
an audiobook narrated by </span><a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0767947/" rel="nofollow" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;" target="_blank">Anna Savva</a><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">, otherwise known as Lugaretzia of </span><i style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
Durrells.</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">It was a great pleasure for me to be the editor of the English translation, and so I thought I'd write something about it here to coincide with the British mental health awareness week.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Acclaimed British author Glen James Brown has called <i>The
Book of Katerina</i>: ‘a gleefully sardonic novel about illness and family, and
how we can never quite cure ourselves of either.’<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ifcXsXE0eJs/YJzM7UGj25I/AAAAAAAAHD0/7S368ersWm87nUNj9nC-uMU-ATMnuDIjACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Auguste%2BCorteau%2B-%2BPetros%2BHatzopoulos.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ifcXsXE0eJs/YJzM7UGj25I/AAAAAAAAHD0/7S368ersWm87nUNj9nC-uMU-ATMnuDIjACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Auguste%2BCorteau%2B-%2BPetros%2BHatzopoulos.JPG" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Although it’s an attempt to understand Katerina’s torments, it’s
an unstoppably energetic and entertaining read as with earthy, no-holds-barred
humour she observes the saga of her extended family’s ups and downs in the city
of Thessaloniki over three generations.</span></p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There are fascinating glimpses of the backdrop. At the dawn of
the twentieth century in Turkey, Katerina’s poor Jewish grandmother ‘with hair
as red as the beard of Judas’ meets a Greek merchant who, a good Christian, agrees
to marry the ‘Christ-killer’ but asks her to forswear her true name and lineage
‘or rather <i>demands</i>; men rarely <i>asked</i> for things in those days’. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Thanks to their hard work, at the start of the 1920s they are
practically well-off, the children at a good school with piano lessons and
foreign languages. ‘And then the Asia Minor Catastrophe happens and they
suddenly find themselves in <a href="https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=SeKulllg&id=855A716C2E0B2D8CF453D5C8086262B65E321A34&thid=OIP.SeKulllgBD8ksxIC47UCUQHaI0&mediaurl=https%3a%2f%2fi.pinimg.com%2f736x%2f71%2f0d%2f79%2f710d790d9ee81bfbd04d2d24dfdcfc76--thessaloniki-greece.jpg&cdnurl=https%3a%2f%2fth.bing.com%2fth%2fid%2fR49e2ae965960043f24b31202e3b50251%3frik%3dNBoyXrZiYgjI1Q%26pid%3dImgRaw&exph=876&expw=736&q=upper+town+thessaloniki+1920s&simid=608054304195346646&ck=B6E24367FDB719CC05980E585975FE70&selectedIndex=6&FORM=IRPRST&ajaxhist=0&ajaxserp=0" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Upper Town, Thessaloniki</a>, without two pennies to rub
together.’ <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">After their family dreams are blighted in an instant, the next
generation pursue material wealth above everything else – including genuine
love. While there are already signs of the hereditary illness that will haunt
the family, the narrator also holds the lack of love between parents and
siblings accountable for many of their problems.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">‘When four siblings out of four end up on medication by the
age of forty,’ says Katerina, ‘something very bad must have happened during
their childhood.’ <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">She then seems to take things to the other extreme, smothering
her own son with love as he is growing up, to the detriment of her marriage.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It was years after his mother’s death that Auguste decided he
had to write the book as a kind of love letter to his mother, recreating her as
a fictional character. It opens with the scene when he found her dead, stark
naked on her bed, having committed suicide. He was in his early twenties when
his mother took her life following years of struggling with mental health
issues.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">She says, ‘I’m giving Petros the biggest gift within my
powers: I shall release him from the lifelong duty of nursing a mother who’s constantly
deteriorating, spare him the years of dementia that are sure to come… I know
this will destroy him, that he’ll need years and years to recover from the blow…’
And then she takes 400 pills.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">No wonder that when the book was adapted for the stage, the play
left the audience in tears.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When he decided to write the book, he says:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">‘I had to recall the exact timbre of her
humour, the fieriness of her fury, her tenderness and her despair. It was
indeed cathartic, but also painful – which is why I wrote the book in white
heat, over a couple of frantic weeks.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">‘Back when I wrote the book, it seemed to me way too bleak to
be enjoyable. But it turns out I was wrong.’</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.parthianbooks.com/products/the-book-of-katerina?_pos=1&_sid=b68f4849f&_ss=r">The
Book of Katerina – Parthian Books</a><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The author will be presenting the book at the <a href="https://www.manilitfest.com/participants-2019" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Mani Literary Festival </a>in October.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://greekreporter.com/2021/05/09/greek-author-auguste-corteau-breaks-into-world-market/">Greek Author Auguste Corteau Breaks into the World Market (greekreporter.com)</a></p>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-12138441189928885912021-04-24T12:48:00.004+03:002021-04-25T22:20:06.303+03:00From my winter notebook<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9c5E5BVsB-4/YIPmF3W8XdI/AAAAAAAAHA8/kK81LRXQNSQ4G9zEFm8O7zbalINqMDm8wCLcBGAsYHQ/s2000/IMG_20210310_072435_resized_20210423_100209571.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="1500" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9c5E5BVsB-4/YIPmF3W8XdI/AAAAAAAAHA8/kK81LRXQNSQ4G9zEFm8O7zbalINqMDm8wCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210310_072435_resized_20210423_100209571.jpg" /></a></div></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lbcw8WNe6Sg/YIPmCjVtrkI/AAAAAAAAHAs/uuMW1U6MES4mnQJWZt5V3VKzeg4_h7qfgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1632/IMG_20210304_161244_resized_20210423_100034514.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1224" data-original-width="1632" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lbcw8WNe6Sg/YIPmCjVtrkI/AAAAAAAAHAs/uuMW1U6MES4mnQJWZt5V3VKzeg4_h7qfgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210304_161244_resized_20210423_100034514.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">It was about this day in late April that I first came to live
on Tilos ten years ago. Ten years! That amazes me, but w</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">hat’s really amazing is that the joy and excitement haven’t
worn off. I no longer see things the way I did as a newcomer, but perhaps more
than ever I feel awe and contentment with my life on a Greek island. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I’ve been
especially grateful this winter that I made it a priority to find a place I
love, and one where I can continue learning every day. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It has felt like a true taste of small island life. With travel
impossible, this has been the first winter that many of us have spent entirely
on the island. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">But it’s hard to believe I’ve done so much within this little area of land. It just shows, 64 square kilometres can be plenty, particularly when you have much of it to yourself.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">My last trip off the island was thanks to the ongoing Brexit-related
paperwork saga exacerbated by Covid. I needed passport photos, and the nearest option is Rhodes. At first I leapt at the excitement
of travel, though of course I could only go for the day. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">With the end of December deadline looming, I had to take a ferry
that left at 3am during such a fierce storm the ferry couldn’t dock on first
attempt. The rain turned the streets to rivers and it was still dark when I
arrived, and even the harbour cafe wasn’t allowed to have people stay inside.
A kind taxi driver insisted he take me somewhere, so I spent an hour or so
walking very slowly around a supermarket that opened at 7am to kill time and
stay dry, my glasses fogging up thanks to the mask. I finally got the photos – though
have since been informed there’s an error and because the deadline has now
passed I have to start again following a different procedure. Perhaps it’s a
blessing in disguise, given how I look in those photos…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">And of course, since then I’ve been on Tilos. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KCOLZdc4YVY/YIPmGTtKCPI/AAAAAAAAHBA/FpqxX4p2lqcYuq3CHpUD59hJefdU2qcTgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210322_071350_resized_20210423_100832035.jpg" style="color: #0000ee; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; text-align: center;" width="320" /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hGcyWNgCoKk/YIPmDV-t_EI/AAAAAAAAHAw/Kq1RvR5dVEIFAMbwFIwGoza_ZhXIlQxHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2000/IMG_20210213_125400_resized_20210423_095728410.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="1500" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hGcyWNgCoKk/YIPmDV-t_EI/AAAAAAAAHAw/Kq1RvR5dVEIFAMbwFIwGoza_ZhXIlQxHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210213_125400_resized_20210423_095728410.jpg" /></a></span></p><div><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Looking through the photos I've taken since January, I’m reminded of so many joyful
moments… The bright moon about to come up over the mountain, seas varying from
flat calm to crashing waves, flowers from narcissus and anemones and cyclamen
to irises and Bermuda buttercups and freesias, my hair blown about in fierce
winds, my skin red from cold seas, the spanakopita I made, the fig and vine
leaves starting to return.</span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I’m thankful that all those years ago I started working for
myself from home, and I had some nice editing projects to keep me occupied. One
of my challenges over the winter was writing an
article for <i>The Guardian</i> to promote <i>Wild Abandon</i>, re-writing and re-writing it as the circumstances surrounding travel changed, until I was sick of it - then being delighted when I finally got it right and it came out. I also did some new writing, and re-released <i>Meeting Mr Kim</i> on Kindle, and had an exciting email
exchange with its new Bulgarian publisher. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sgxvCaR1Id4/YIPmG_ibszI/AAAAAAAAHBI/IukP0cUjOpsxw6xQf6zHJA6wnlvAr8_TwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1024/IMG_20210323_111112_resized_20210423_101015627.jpg" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="942" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sgxvCaR1Id4/YIPmG_ibszI/AAAAAAAAHBI/IukP0cUjOpsxw6xQf6zHJA6wnlvAr8_TwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210323_111112_resized_20210423_101015627.jpg" /></a></span><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yDC-OMo3pUY/YIPmGrQOJ1I/AAAAAAAAHBE/Z32aUUrb5rcnowESh-qujgft0t1hU55bwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_20210318_200413.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1830" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yDC-OMo3pUY/YIPmGrQOJ1I/AAAAAAAAHBE/Z32aUUrb5rcnowESh-qujgft0t1hU55bwCLcBGAsYHQ/w179-h200/IMG_20210318_200413.jpg" width="179" /></a> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GM9z0ag1sOg/YIPmL_deADI/AAAAAAAAHBg/-laCzXvzy04mMjDQFG4WkLYkRcuCf8JeQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210408_174241_resized_20210423_101834700.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="150" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GM9z0ag1sOg/YIPmL_deADI/AAAAAAAAHBg/-laCzXvzy04mMjDQFG4WkLYkRcuCf8JeQCLcBGAsYHQ/w200-h150/IMG_20210408_174241_resized_20210423_101834700.jpg" width="200" /></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Exploring the old terraces on the hills around my house several
times a week with Lisa when the weather was cool or cloudy, I learned more about the flowers, especially the bee orchids. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">One afternoon, I found an injured hoopoe, a tiny bat and - thanks to Lisa leading me in a direction I wouldn't have taken otherwise - a tortoise.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;"> </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9SsWyGDgKaA/YIPmLc2b_II/AAAAAAAAHBY/AcLO_aNqszMc2ze6IQS7blz9soU7dGHcwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210404_170812_resized_20210423_101707715.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9SsWyGDgKaA/YIPmLc2b_II/AAAAAAAAHBY/AcLO_aNqszMc2ze6IQS7blz9soU7dGHcwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210404_170812_resized_20210423_101707715.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lGBNvirW4mk/YIPmKENLJYI/AAAAAAAAHBM/bpD6G_o96vwv4cKurkEvvSaxaA2pnBiBgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210404_154108_resized_20210423_101639754.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lGBNvirW4mk/YIPmKENLJYI/AAAAAAAAHBM/bpD6G_o96vwv4cKurkEvvSaxaA2pnBiBgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210404_154108_resized_20210423_101639754.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I’ve also become more
familiar with the scattered ruins: cave shelters and houses and cisterns, the
various chapels with their crumbling frescoes and ancient marble and wall
markings. While Lisa hunted for rabbits, I kept my eyes to the ground for fragments
of pottery with interesting markings. And one day I found a fine cup
half-buried in earth, which was confirmed as Hellenistic – third century BC – by
our visiting archaeologist and excavated for the new museum that’s still being
built. (I’m not allowed to post a photo of the finding.)</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p5y26suEseE/YIPmMl8FhgI/AAAAAAAAHBo/r3KzSuuensMQYhEAAJEuZL1cx889DYVeACLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210412_183730_resized_20210423_102024345.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p5y26suEseE/YIPmMl8FhgI/AAAAAAAAHBo/r3KzSuuensMQYhEAAJEuZL1cx889DYVeACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210412_183730_resized_20210423_102024345.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="750" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QLQtQbOMrb0/YIPmKU4P4OI/AAAAAAAAHBU/GfLhEauxDuYlE91pxfiwM8zzR0DFHFojgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210330_173305_resized_20210423_101443361.jpg" style="color: #0000ee;" /></div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I remember back in February walking a little way up the hill
with Lisa, but turning back after a short time because the winds were too fierce
and cold. When I returned to my house, I saw something unusual on the road. It
was the heavy, iron, bird-shaped device that is usually attached to the top of
my neighbour Sotiris’ chimney, and apparently it hadn’t been attached well
enough. I wondered what might have happened if it had come flying at me. I told
him it could have dented his car, and he took to parking the car in the field
behind my house. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Another day, the winds were so wild and cold, they stripped the leaves off plants and young trees here at the north end of the island. The snails and caterpillars meanwhile have done a fine job of removing the leaves off many of the vegetables. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">More recently we had a few days of Saharan dust covering the
sky, along with plagues of insects, power cuts, and earth tremors – ‘moderate’
rumblings and shakings from a point between here and Nisyros, continuing for much
of April. Antonis said in his seventy years on Tilos he’s never known anything
like it. It's getting so I can tell how big they are (I think that last one was only a 3). There’s never a dull moment.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iDy-zHcrAoU/YIUenGReeiI/AAAAAAAAHC0/UBUOOR9wMz8PewE2XplIu_oakU2CcGBLQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1632/IMG_20210422_191454_resized_20210425_102003989.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1224" data-original-width="1632" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iDy-zHcrAoU/YIUenGReeiI/AAAAAAAAHC0/UBUOOR9wMz8PewE2XplIu_oakU2CcGBLQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210422_191454_resized_20210425_102003989.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">A couple of days ago, the sky was so clear, Nisyros and Kos and
Kalymnos and Turkey were all visible on the horizon. Turning to take the road
south, I walked past fields of blue cornflowers and oregano almost ready to
flower. A thin black snake rippled across the road. Then I heard a distinctive
breathy whistle, like a whip cutting through the air – bee-eaters? Sure enough,
as I followed the track above the lush fields of Eristos, one flashed past me,
close enough to see its black beak, its bright yellow and orange and metallic
green-blue feathers. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The hillsides all had a bright yellow sheen amid the deep
green from the spiny broom flowers. Halki and even Karpathos were clear on the
deep blue horizon as I walked down to Ayios Petros. I swam with mask and
snorkel and saw a small group of needlefish hanging in the water, curving their
bodies into sickle-shapes and changing colour. When I looked up, a cormorant
flapped away. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">We’re heading into Greek Easter week and towards the celebration
of May the First. Attempting a late afternoon walk on the familiar hillsides,
it felt too hot to wear the long trousers necessary for wading through the thorny,
prickly bushes – and I no longer needed to gather kindling for my woodburner,
which I lit every night of winter. Bees were buzzing around the flowers, and I
felt my chest tightening in what must have been an allergic reaction to some
plant, so I came back, and instead went for my second swim of the day and watched
a small moray raise its head and neck out of a hole in a rock. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Then I sat outside and watched a glowing sun sink towards the lower
slopes of the mountain.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 17.12px;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_7WkvpjHaN0/YIPmMZC9D0I/AAAAAAAAHBk/6phEt1nkGXINv2KXPdz_UeWh6Ncc2U8wACLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/IMG_20210412_172651_resized_20210423_101949633.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_7WkvpjHaN0/YIPmMZC9D0I/AAAAAAAAHBk/6phEt1nkGXINv2KXPdz_UeWh6Ncc2U8wACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210412_172651_resized_20210423_101949633.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Gg6K4M6Hnw4/YIUemlcXk9I/AAAAAAAAHCw/I8itZulbTJItwlEZg9WvoevRCGiV8R5qACLcBGAsYHQ/s2000/IMG_20210422_180649_resized_20210425_102002794.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="2000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Gg6K4M6Hnw4/YIUemlcXk9I/AAAAAAAAHCw/I8itZulbTJItwlEZg9WvoevRCGiV8R5qACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210422_180649_resized_20210425_102002794.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZkgcZFFx_QU/YIUempR5-JI/AAAAAAAAHCs/Dt_28MgrodUXltzMXBeNyKVEHfm2rVLCQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2000/IMG_20210422_181342_resized_20210425_102003200.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="1500" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZkgcZFFx_QU/YIUempR5-JI/AAAAAAAAHCs/Dt_28MgrodUXltzMXBeNyKVEHfm2rVLCQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210422_181342_resized_20210425_102003200.jpg" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JfgJXrKJvpI/YIUekbvMP2I/AAAAAAAAHCo/4SZTJMIa1JAZTh2lEggD1nua26dOWKRCACLcBGAsYHQ/s2000/IMG_20210422_185325_resized_20210425_102003697.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="2000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JfgJXrKJvpI/YIUekbvMP2I/AAAAAAAAHCo/4SZTJMIa1JAZTh2lEggD1nua26dOWKRCACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210422_185325_resized_20210425_102003697.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FtWQdm8x5TA/YIPmQccovXI/AAAAAAAAHCI/4RVS3ODCDoYCsYrbzR0m2LanndYurrFxQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1632/IMG_20210420_165738_resized_20210423_102334091.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1224" data-original-width="1632" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FtWQdm8x5TA/YIPmQccovXI/AAAAAAAAHCI/4RVS3ODCDoYCsYrbzR0m2LanndYurrFxQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210420_165738_resized_20210423_102334091.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q8Fv54llM24/YIUen1y4xFI/AAAAAAAAHC4/kf_XyBVTRxMrocKkegyiUtTOlKPdnM9aACLcBGAsYHQ/s2000/IMG_20210422_194204_resized_20210425_102004329.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="2000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q8Fv54llM24/YIUen1y4xFI/AAAAAAAAHC4/kf_XyBVTRxMrocKkegyiUtTOlKPdnM9aACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210422_194204_resized_20210425_102004329.jpg" width="320" /></a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><br /></div>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-32636727425217249672020-12-26T09:25:00.006+02:002020-12-26T13:52:03.881+02:00The Day the Blue Palm Went Down<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GjZ7SDNmyic/X-blHxVhZcI/AAAAAAAAG6E/XWtLsQWSzp4sIghOSRYc4o28ZkKteY2ywCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20201215_075921.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GjZ7SDNmyic/X-blHxVhZcI/AAAAAAAAG6E/XWtLsQWSzp4sIghOSRYc4o28ZkKteY2ywCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/20201215_075921.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Early in December, the days were a dose of pure tranquillity. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I worked until late in the evening, the wood burner with its
new chimney making the kitchen cosy. When I stepped outside before going to bed,
I noticed it wasn’t really cold, and stars shone brightly in the sky. It was
completely quiet. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Sometime after seven in the morning, my dog Lisa tiptoed
through to my bedroom to say hello. The cat, locked in the kitchen overnight as
it still couldn’t be trusted not to leap up and scratch or bite, started crying
for food. There was plenty of food in the house for them and for me too, apple
cake, fresh bread, a brick of feta and a cornucopia of vegetables, so no need
to go shopping. At lunchtime I had a long walk to Eristos with Lisa, meandering
in sunshine down tracks with the mellow greens of bushes and trees in every
direction. At the beach, a few other people were enjoying the balmy day, but so
distant I couldn’t even make out who they were; at this time of year, there are
no strangers. Most locals were in various stages of the olive harvest. On the
way back I waved to anyone I passed, and otherwise let my thoughts wander. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I worked late again, finishing off the edit of one book in preparation
for starting another. My work is editing books, often travel and adventure, and
I’d taken on more than usual since I’d have to stay at home rather than travel
to other islands as I like to do in winter. This year, I was very happy on my
little island, travelling through books. In the morning, the client hadn’t yet
sent the file I was due to start on, giving me a blessed excuse for a lazy
morning. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">After coffee and emails, I went out into the sunshine in my
wellies to do some weeding of my vegetable patches and thin out some seedlings.
Maybe I’d get a few jobs done around the garden and enjoy the day. I noticed
the fishing boat that had been out at sea had now come into the harbour. A
little while later I heard a truck pass, and then reverse, and knew that a
moment later I’d hear Nikos the fisherman shouting, ‘Jennifer!’ while Lisa erupted
in a cacophony of barking. I bought a couple of kilos of fresh sardines. I’d
grill a few later in a little olive oil.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">It wasn’t long after, around midday, when I heard a vehicle
approach from the other direction; I looked up and saw a flatbed truck loaded
with logs. A week or so earlier, I’d heard that Yorgos was offering good firewood,
and said I’d take a truckload. Yorgos, in his late fifties, usually lived on
Rhodes and worked in tourism, but given the lack of work this year he’d come to
Tilos and started taking care of his parents’ long-neglected land, which had
hundreds of trees, some very old. I was happy to see the field being worked and
the little house restored, and Yorgos was always very friendly. The firewood
would top up my supply and prepare me for January and February. I was therefore
delighted when Yorgos arrived with Kostas and the wood. They told me to open up
the gate so that Kostas could back his truck in. It wouldn’t open all the way because
of the palm tree, but I did my best. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I inherited several palms when I bought my house two years earlier,
and three of this shorter type, which grow to just over the height of a person,
originally stood by the gate. Because the house had been empty for five years,
they’d encroached onto the path and gate, causing some damage. I’d managed to
wrangle the smallest out of the ground, which had taken me several days of
battling half an hour at a time. The trunk of the largest one had assumed a
surreal shade of bright blue since Dinos spray-painted the gate. Because of the
blue palm, I didn’t think Kostas’ truck could get very far, but Yorgos gave
expert instructions and, with just a whisker of spare room on either side as I
held the gate, Kostas managed to back the truck into the garden. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Kostas has dark hair and eyes and a cheeky boyish smile that
lights up his face. Not that I would normally have noticed, of course, but he’s
quite alluring to watch when showing off his traditional dance skills at summer
festivals. An opportunity to help out his mate on a sunny day by making a
delivery to an appreciative female was probably too good to miss. And there I was
in dirty old clothes and wellies and probably mud on my nose or grass in my unbrushed
hair, more likely both. It was amusing as together we all threw logs and banter
here and there. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘In the winter we work! In the summer we dance! Have I danced
with you yet? How’ve you escaped me? You’ve probably always got company…’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I retorted wryly that he was the one who always had plenty of
company. He grinned and then, ducking under the overhanging palm branches, changed
the subject. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘That needs pruning,’ he said, and when I agreed, he whipped
out a saw from his truck and cut the palm branches back, nonchalantly sliding
the pruning saw into his back pocket afterwards. I thanked him and added,
smiling, that maybe he could cut down the whole tree. It probably needed to go
at some point.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘You need a chainsaw for that. Stelios has got one. He’s got a
big one,’ he said, winking at Yorgos. He walked back to the truck, grabbed a
few heavy logs and added emphatically, ‘We work with our <i>hands</i>.’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The innuendo was being laid on with a trowel.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">As they unloaded the last few logs, I went inside to get some
cash, but realised I didn’t have the right change. Neither did Yorgos, and
while both of us were happy to sort it out another time, Kostas suggested that instead
of change, they could bring me some more wood, another half-load. That sounded
a great idea.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘We’ll be back!’ they said. They weren’t sure when. I continued
working in the garden and as the sun got warmer and I started on some messier
jobs, I changed into a paint-covered shirt and similarly paint-covered pair of
shorts. I was just thinking I’d call it a day and take Lisa for a walk when the
guys returned.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">We opened the gate again and Kostas backed in. We continued
the unloading and the chat, and then as we were finishing up, Kostas looked at
the palm tree and said, ‘You’re right, that needs to go.’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">At this point I started thinking, ‘Well, it doesn’t really... It
gives the house some privacy from the road. It needs to go one day, but not
yet.’<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">But of course, it was too late. Kostas grabbed a long rope
from his tuck and tied it around the trunk, and I was despatched to the road to
check for cars coming around the corner as the truck was put in gear. It pulled
the tree a little and then the wheels span. Again. And again. The tree was
rocking and the concrete driveway lifting slightly and I worried for the
gatepost. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘Don’t scratch your head!’ mock-ordered Kostas, seeing me do
exactly that. ‘You see all the work we do for you?!’ <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘Be careful of the gate, I need it…’ I said but my words were
lost.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘Have you got another rope?’ asked Kostas. I fetched one that
had been rescued from the beach, and that was attached.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘Again!’ shouted Yorgos as the wheels span. Then since the
tree roots were beginning to emerge from the ground, another strategy was
mooted by Kostas.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘Stand on top of it! All together!’ <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Soon two grown men were standing on the trunk of a leaning palm
tree, now at 45 degrees but firmly hanging on as they rocked up and down,
hanging onto the top of the gate. I didn’t join them. I was quite worried about
my gate and gateposts, all essential for keeping Lisa safely in the garden
apart from the fact that they’d cost me a fair bit.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">When Kostas asked for some kind of garden tool, I thought that
was an excellent idea, retreated to the <i>apothiki </i>and brought out various
– an axe, an old pickaxe and some other thing with a serious blade, which they
found very impressive. They set to whacking the roots with glee. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Then one of them thankfully realised we were wielding heavy-duty
blades with gay abandon within centimetres of the main water supply to the
house.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘It’s OK, we’d better stop,’ I said, ‘let’s leave it for now.’
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘What, halfway?!!’ laughed Kostas with a determined look. Of
course. It was as if they were drinking whisky. This thing now had to run its
course. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I suggested it might be a good idea now to push the tree the
opposite way, but that idea was instantly dismissed. More pulling with the
rope, more standing on the palm tree, more bashing with implements… <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘It’s going! The tree’s going,’ said Kostas, grinning, ‘the
gate’s going, the driveway, the house…’ <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">At that point Dimitris, friend and neighbour, drove by on his
way back from working at the doctor’s surgery and paused outside the gate. I
was laughing but my nervousness must have showed when I explained what was
happening, as no sooner had he disappeared than he was back to join the team. Despite
his more controlled, serious demeanour, the situation had by then reached such
a point of frenzy, a crazed level of violent activity that Lisa was barking and,
probably afraid, she bit him on the bottom.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Dimitris stepped in and assessed the situation, then calmly said
the tree needed to be pushed the opposite way now. Three, two, one… And it
worked. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">For better or worse, the tree was down. The gate and the post
were still intact. Yorgos sat back, looking very red and dazed. Kostas was
barely able to speak. With bits of palm tree strewn all around, it looked as if
a hurricane had passed through. Which in a way it had.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Dimitris gradually walked back to his car. Then he called
over, and I heard him say something about the car window. It was stuck.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">‘Have you got a screwdriver?’ shouted Kostas.<o:p></o:p></span></p>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-28316433075093984972020-10-18T11:41:00.000+03:002020-10-18T11:41:08.664+03:00Snippets from my Notebook
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wdzJUgLqxGY/X4v8wC44zgI/AAAAAAAAGwk/4fPrT15iHsUfHWsd3W-OvsGXnOt7xCXywCLcBGAsYHQ/s1024/20201016_082153_resized.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wdzJUgLqxGY/X4v8wC44zgI/AAAAAAAAGwk/4fPrT15iHsUfHWsd3W-OvsGXnOt7xCXywCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/20201016_082153_resized.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-li_Oryl1CLU/X4v8xdyQLaI/AAAAAAAAGww/qTIRZhWSfqUZk2B14_SP3y0LOOMaopcSACLcBGAsYHQ/s1024/20201016_082217_resized.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-li_Oryl1CLU/X4v8xdyQLaI/AAAAAAAAGww/qTIRZhWSfqUZk2B14_SP3y0LOOMaopcSACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/20201016_082217_resized.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I haven’t been blogging very much
recently, because it’s so much faster and easier to add some words and pictures
to Facebook. But fast isn’t always the best, is it? My fast laptop has, once
again, stopped connecting to the internet and will need servicing, so for the
time being I am back to my slow, cheaper backup laptop, and perhaps it’s a good
opportunity to slow down for a bit. </span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Life has been full and fulfilling
as ever, with my lovely Lisa waking me up in the morning for her breakfast, and
the new kitten a.k.a. Fishbags seeming to attack everything except the small
creatures he’s supposed to; with major work happening on my house finally thanks
to Dinos and Stelios, including a bathroom floor being entirely removed because
tree roots had grown through the old lead pipes; with my work on other people’s
books, and my own new book needing to be promoted; with a garden that needs watering,
and of course beaches that need walking to and sea that needs swimming in.</span></p><p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Rfh1OO6aJrY/X4v8pMYEbWI/AAAAAAAAGwM/5-03h4Pt-GAYcGOCitftbIJF_uuXSyc9ACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20200917_182447.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: #0066cc; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Rfh1OO6aJrY/X4v8pMYEbWI/AAAAAAAAGwM/5-03h4Pt-GAYcGOCitftbIJF_uuXSyc9ACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/20200917_182447.jpg" style="cursor: move;" /></a><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br /></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Since I’ve only been blogging when
I have a long story to tell, I’ve found no place for those lovely little
snippets of life that otherwise remain as mere scribbles in my notebook, e.g. ‘Savvas
licking the stamps,’ which I wrote one of those mornings when I’d gone down to Livadia
to the post office so I could send some parcels to people who had ordered books
from me. </span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I had done my best to re-use envelopes,
some of which were already re-used envelopes. After all I’ve written in my book
about the things we leave behind on the earth today, it wouldn’t have felt
right to use a load of unnecessary new bubble-wrap. I even used the non-plastic
tape I’d ordered from &Keep. I hoped the post office would be open because I
live on the other side of the island from Livadia, 10 km or so. I used to be frustrated
when I got there and it was closed, but I’ve come to appreciate that on an
island where there’s just one postmaster, and he has two children and a dog, if
the family need to go to Rhodes then Savvas can’t work.</span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">But he was there, and as I stood watching
him weigh the parcels and figure out the postage, I noticed he then licked all
the stamps – sometimes about six per parcel.</span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">‘Isn’t it horrible,’ I asked, ‘having
to lick all the stamps?’</span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">‘No. But it does make me mad,’ he
said, pulling a crazed expression. ‘But they don’t stick on properly otherwise.’</span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I was very grateful, if I did
feel a little guilty. </span></p><p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WiKy6ksbU5g/X4v8v8_XT3I/AAAAAAAAGwg/w6C-QXqfBjwmrMKEgSLvLcKcJvICiWhOgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20201009_140051.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: #0066cc; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WiKy6ksbU5g/X4v8v8_XT3I/AAAAAAAAGwg/w6C-QXqfBjwmrMKEgSLvLcKcJvICiWhOgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/20201009_140051.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br /></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Another incident of island life
made it into my notebook as ‘car story’ and made me even more grateful. It went
something like this. </span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I don’t own a car, because I don’t
like to use one all the time (and who needs extra expense, not to mention
paperwork?), but it’s very useful to share a car with my Dutch friends who can only
spend a few months a year on the island. I was due to leave it at the harbour
in Livadia in late morning the next day for Rob’s arrival, but in the meantime
I thought I’d use it for a walk to Lethra.</span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The Lethra walk is one of the
best for Lisa during the warmer months because close to the start, as you pass
by all the gnarled old olive trees and delightful old stone walls, set amongst
the pink rocks is a constantly flowing spring with a trough under it, which is
just the right size for a medium-sized dog to lie in and cool off before we make
our way through the valley.</span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Having parked the car at the
start of the path, I walked with Lisa to the beach for a relaxing hour, around
the headland to Livadia, then back up to the car, and had just set off driving again
when I realised from the curious sound that I had a flat tyre.</span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I’ve never had a flat tyre before,
and rather than start messing around learning what to do, I called our island
mechanic and asked if he could help. He said he could, but the best person to replace
a tyre would be Zafiris at the petrol station the next morning. I wasn’t far
from the <i>venzinadiko</i> so I slowly drove back and left the car there, and
set off walking, calling Eleftheria along the way. She said she would call her
brother Zafiris, and he’d take a look the next day. I sent an apologetic
message to my Dutch friend Rob, explaining that he would have to take the bus. </span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Bright and early the next
morning, Zafiris reported through Eleftheria that the new tyre would take a
day to arrive on the boat; however, five minutes later, he found a reconditioned
one for a very reasonable price and fitted it – and I was just in to catch the
bus down. </span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">‘Your car’s ready!’ shouted
Pavlos the bus driver as Lisa and I embarked. I collected the car, thanked
Zafiris profusely, and drove down to the harbour to pick up Rob – and even had
time to sit and have a coffee at Rementzo while I waited, where Annie told me
to call her if it happened again, as she had a tool for fixing punctured tyres. </span></p><p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GRPfK05Vkzs/X4v8s6OEaFI/AAAAAAAAGwY/x-pfyOSTaXc1uqugT48qlU8goMIeIhFVwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20201004_174801.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: #0066cc; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GRPfK05Vkzs/X4v8s6OEaFI/AAAAAAAAGwY/x-pfyOSTaXc1uqugT48qlU8goMIeIhFVwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/20201004_174801.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br /></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">This month has been a wonderful
time for appreciating the strength of this island community, and the ingenuity
of its inhabitants. The final story I’ll mention is ‘Mavis’s glasses’.</span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">My mum and her friend Mavis come
to Tilos at least twice a year for several weeks, and this September they
really needed the break. Not only had they been stuck at home all year, like most
people, but they’d had more than their share of challenges to deal with. So to
say that we were good customers at the kafeneio in Megalo Horio in September is
something of an understatement. After the first couple of nights, as soon as Telis
saw us walk through the door, he’d immediately reach for a litre-jug and fill
it with cold white wine. </span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">A kafeneio is traditionally more
than just a café; it’s a gathering place, a centre of village life. In Megalo
Horio, the kafeneio’s upstairs terrace looks out over Eristos valley to the
sea, and up to the castle above the village, and down to the church and its
pebble-mosaic courtyard, and to mountains all around, and is a favourite place
to sit and eat mezes for many – Greeks and Europeans who live here or visit.
Just below on the enclosed terrace sit the men of the village every evening
with their drinks, with not such a good view of the surrounding landscape, but
arguably a better one of the ladies’ legs as they walk up the stairs. Not that they would.</span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Telis was busy in the kitchen every
evening since he no longer had his summer help, and so tolerated me wandering in
and re-filling our wine jug or grabbing another beer or retsina from the
fridge. At the end of the evening, he had to ask me what we’d had to eat and
drink. But he hadn’t forgotten that Mavis had broken her glasses, having lost
the little screw that holds them together. He sent us back out onto the terrace
with a last jug of wine on the house as he set to work with some pliers,
instructing Antoni to find a bit of wire he was sure he had somewhere… Lo and
behold, even if we couldn’t see very well by the time he kicked us out, Mavis
had no excuse because her glasses were fully functioning, and remained so for
the duration of her stay, until she passed by an optician’s in Rhodes on the
way to the airport.</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><br style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;" /></span></p><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><div class="separator" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; clear: both; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--LXDel6Wph0/X4v8yFk_uTI/AAAAAAAAGw4/nxq7vWLi5eUo6D14nwnBQYKfCDn4r4Z9QCLcBGAsYHQ/s1024/20201017_100127_resized.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--LXDel6Wph0/X4v8yFk_uTI/AAAAAAAAGw4/nxq7vWLi5eUo6D14nwnBQYKfCDn4r4Z9QCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/20201017_100127_resized.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a></div></span><p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I said that was the last story,
but just one more: as I started writing this, early this Sunday morning, a red pickup truck arrived at my
gate and started beeping its horn, prompting the usual barking from Lisa. It
was Nikos and Rena. Yesterday evening, when I stopped at the village shop to
buy fresh eggs after spending a couple of hours on Eristos beach, they didn’t have any left. Nikos said I should go and get them
direct from Rena as she was down at the smallholding where she keeps her hens,
and it’s on my way home. But it was hot and sultry evening and I didn’t pass
that way, as I took the mountain path instead for the breeze.</span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">So this morning, that’s why Nikos
and Rena were here: to bring me a handful of fresh eggs.</span></p><p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4Km-MDhUXGc/X4v8zkwRKSI/AAAAAAAAGxE/1fasAtMCVns4VVevJ3wpE2TNEa2DF8FIQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20201018_090518.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: #0066cc; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4Km-MDhUXGc/X4v8zkwRKSI/AAAAAAAAGxE/1fasAtMCVns4VVevJ3wpE2TNEa2DF8FIQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/20201018_090518.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br /></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Thanks to all my friends and
neighbours on this little island.</span></p>
<p style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">And thanks to all who have bought
and read my new book, <i>Wild Abandon</i>. It would help me out if you could
post a review on Amazon (or Goodreads if you’re not on Amazon). The more reviews
posted, the more likely it is that others will discover it and buy it and then perhaps
my publisher will let me write another one. Of course, if you’d rather I didn’t,
that’s quite understandable… And I do have plenty of other things to do, so I'm not in any rush...</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></p><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><div class="separator" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; clear: both; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qj5b0r9ipA4/X4v8oIS8MkI/AAAAAAAAGwI/IFqTBNfqPboDKV9fTvZGlSHrG6PAURKJgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20200910_094006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qj5b0r9ipA4/X4v8oIS8MkI/AAAAAAAAGwI/IFqTBNfqPboDKV9fTvZGlSHrG6PAURKJgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/20200910_094006.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a></div><p style="line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q4UiMomj4JI/X4v8mEuVhMI/AAAAAAAAGwA/2FzKMeRsZCAmDVI0tSxzgKSetNWxV_nLgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20200910_094041.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-32778451366729265492020-08-28T17:38:00.001+03:002020-09-06T13:01:39.844+03:00Voyage to Nisyros<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZmEW1CtRgXE/X0kUaRTDmiI/AAAAAAAAGrs/oRspeIoxFz00OW2Yd7UBT65BwQY-m2FYwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20200815_124445.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZmEW1CtRgXE/X0kUaRTDmiI/AAAAAAAAGrs/oRspeIoxFz00OW2Yd7UBT65BwQY-m2FYwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20200815_124445.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">The plan to sail to Nisyros –
Georges, Mark, the salty dog Lisa and I – was thought up over beers on the
rooftop of Mikro Kafe, and decided over a good dinner of tiny shrimp and
courgette fritters at Blue Sky. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Georges’ partner Mona, being American,
is restricted from travelling to Greece at present, so Frenchman Georges was at
a loose end alone on his yacht. Mona gave us her blessing to go to Nisyros
without her, as long as we didn’t have too much fun. I’m usually happy
travelling by ferry and taking my time, without having to worry about what to
do with ropes and sails. But it seemed too good an opportunity to miss – and it’s
hard for me to pass up a chance to go to one of my favourite islands.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">After a busy morning preparing, we
set off just before midday with the sea a glorious clear blue, Georges giving
Mark instructions on how to help with the anchor and leaping about to deal with
the dinghy and various ropes. It felt exciting to be so close to the sea. A
brisk cool wind was against us, so the engine did the work and we crashed
through waves in an exhilarating way for a few hours, along the east coast of
Tilos and then six miles to the south of Nisyros.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UCxuBjyxPsg/X0kUcBImX9I/AAAAAAAAGr0/HH5ma3tJCxQisafZNEKqVheFDa11P9_vwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20200815_142955.jpg" style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UCxuBjyxPsg/X0kUcBImX9I/AAAAAAAAGr0/HH5ma3tJCxQisafZNEKqVheFDa11P9_vwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20200815_142955.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Furvl6LZTrM/X0kV4lJU6OI/AAAAAAAAGs8/aW7WOa0aCi0N-ncyf-53TGGsU0uQKW3FQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG-20200817-WA0002.jpg" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Furvl6LZTrM/X0kV4lJU6OI/AAAAAAAAGs8/aW7WOa0aCi0N-ncyf-53TGGsU0uQKW3FQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/IMG-20200817-WA0002.jpg" width="640" /></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Pachia Ammos beach had a line of
tents evenly spaced close to the shore, and shelters were dotted along Liess
beach too, Greeks taking advantage of the free camping. We glimpsed Emborio up
on the ridge before mooring up in Pali harbour. I’d been there with my dad the
year before and seen locals gathering at Aphrodite taverna, so we headed there
for lunch and found it already full. We feasted on chick peas baked in the oven
in tomato sauce, stuffed vegetables and beetroot and the best chips any of us
had ever tasted.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">The hillside above Pali looks
amazingly green, even in the middle of August when the islands are at their
driest. Mike, the owner of Eagle’s Nest Car & Bike Rentals, where we went
to find transport, explained it’s because the pumice soaks up moisture in the
air. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Mike, a native of Nikia village,
is a someone I definitely should have spoken to before writing the Nisyros
chapter of my new book. Having lived in the United States for 30 years, he
returned in 1999 and not only became involved with the local government but
worked hard to protect the island’s eagles. He also raised funds, mostly from
Nisyrians who had emigrated to New York, to restore monasteries around the
island, the old school and the mayor’s office in Nikia. He raised most of the money
to build the chapel high above the caldera where I first started thinking about
the abandoned places in these islands, the people who left and those who came
back. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">At Mike’s suggestion, that’s
where we headed first for a panoramic view. I offered to be the driver because
I know the roads, though I immediately took us the wrong way, and stalled once
or twice while getting used to the gears. As we headed around the rim of the
caldera, Georges went quiet when I got distracted by cows browsing from the
trees at the roadside, reminding me which one was the brake pedal as we took
the precipitous track to the chapel. But it did have an incredible view
straight down into the caldera and the craters, and for once there were no tour
buses at all.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hiWYuGbhby4/X0kUwTSbNsI/AAAAAAAAGsE/ksphI6g79Ess8qp-8S1xmpibo-AX14DxgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1024/IMG-20200816-WA0007.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="768" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hiWYuGbhby4/X0kUwTSbNsI/AAAAAAAAGsE/ksphI6g79Ess8qp-8S1xmpibo-AX14DxgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/IMG-20200816-WA0007.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">I’ve never experienced so many
vehicles on the roads of Nisyros as I did that afternoon and evening, though –
the island was full of Greeks, not least because it was 15 August, the festival
of the Panayia, although the nights of dancing have been forbidden this year. We
drove to Emborio and stopped at Apiria taverna, where a dozen tables were
already set up outside by the ruined buildings for the evening’s celebrations.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-flszMFbNF8Q/X1SzbajYxZI/AAAAAAAAGtw/A9bz0YXGBjUpkz-XUPcbnaFTSOky58KcACLcBGAsYHQ/s1024/IMG-20200816-WA0006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="768" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-flszMFbNF8Q/X1SzbajYxZI/AAAAAAAAGtw/A9bz0YXGBjUpkz-XUPcbnaFTSOky58KcACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG-20200816-WA0006.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We were all wilting in the heat,
and in need of a swim, and perhaps Georges needed to forget for a while that we
were nonchalantly wandering around an active volcano. We drove down the winding
road to the coast again, parked at the entrance to Mandraki, then followed the
sea to Hoklaki beach just in time for a sunset swim. Then it was time for an ouzo,
the waves sending spray over us as they crashed up on the sea wall.</span></p></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZvLwa5LL72Q/X0kU4G_USFI/AAAAAAAAGsM/ztLJxTj9nCAX6HnEC2h2ZbbiGl4Afnj9QCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20200815_202529.jpg" style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZvLwa5LL72Q/X0kU4G_USFI/AAAAAAAAGsM/ztLJxTj9nCAX6HnEC2h2ZbbiGl4Afnj9QCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20200815_202529.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZBd5lOR1Tok/X0kUzCivFQI/AAAAAAAAGsI/GC9uBrfcpaoHeKWJEhxOz_JIpmepWvreQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG-20200817-WA0009.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZBd5lOR1Tok/X0kUzCivFQI/AAAAAAAAGsI/GC9uBrfcpaoHeKWJEhxOz_JIpmepWvreQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/IMG-20200817-WA0009.jpg" width="640" /></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">After a dinner of horta, goat
cooked in the oven and veal in lemon sauce, Lisa helping us out to finish it
all, we made our way back to the car, full and content. But hark… Music? I told
the boys I’d be back in a moment, and followed the sound to a terrace, where I found
some people I know sitting around a table, while a man played the laouto and
sang. We were invited to join the company – two brothers with their wives and their
90-year-old father, friends celebrating a birthday. We had cake and raki and
partisan songs… When we drove back to the boat in the early hours, we stopped
to watch a group of young people dancing across the road.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">The raki must have been good
because when I woke in the cabin in the morning as it got light, my head wasn’t
actually hurting. I went up on deck and slept some more in the cool air until
people were up and about, then went off for a swim. Maybe the raki was still
having an effect, though, because I felt slightly anxious about being followed
and surrounded by a group of large bream… I got out swiftly and found some
breakfast at the bakery overlooking the sea.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">When we went to check that we had
parked the rental car intact outside Eagle’s Nest the previous night, Mike was
there and as we chatted, he told me more about the Pantelidis Baths a little
down the coast. The reason for the abandonment of the thermal spa was a freak
storm in the 1920s, destroying half of the building; in an effort to try to
save it, the founder, Hippocrates Pantelidis, got sick and died. His children,
not disposed to take over his grand venture, auctioned off the fittings and the
land piece by piece. In the 1980s, a grandson spent 10 million euros restoring
it, buying everything back, and was in the process of building wave breaks in
front to protect the building from any other freak storms when a disgruntled
neighbour decided to cause trouble, and the restoration had to be abandoned again.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JG88cs2um64/X0kVVVnAwVI/AAAAAAAAGsY/5Otu_ccvjYAHuSwbHcL3SyUATUIqz14eQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Nisyros%2B-%2BPantelidis%2BBaths%252C%2Ba%2Bfunctioning%2Bspa%2Ba%2Bhundred%2Byears%2Bago%252C%2Bnow%2Babandoned%2Bfor%2Ba%2Bsecond%2Btime.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JG88cs2um64/X0kVVVnAwVI/AAAAAAAAGsY/5Otu_ccvjYAHuSwbHcL3SyUATUIqz14eQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Nisyros%2B-%2BPantelidis%2BBaths%252C%2Ba%2Bfunctioning%2Bspa%2Ba%2Bhundred%2Byears%2Bago%252C%2Bnow%2Babandoned%2Bfor%2Ba%2Bsecond%2Btime.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We left at midday, hoping for
just enough of a wind to let us sail swiftly back to Tilos. The sails were
unfurled and we went up to five knots, six, seven… We detoured around the south
coast to see the cliffs and rock formations, and the wind dropped and picked up,
dropped again: five knots, then three, then two... There was manoeuvring of ropes
and sails, until at last the engine had to be deployed, and the hoped-for
crossing of an hour or so turned into three. I lay down and slept, lulled to
sleep by the rocking of the boat… Lisa slept too, sliding around on the deck.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QJfO0yrRClQ/X0kVj4UFg9I/AAAAAAAAGsc/Y-UuAvLNbUI4Uo-OZhqw2kXcxgIggy82wCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20200816_122413.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QJfO0yrRClQ/X0kVj4UFg9I/AAAAAAAAGsc/Y-UuAvLNbUI4Uo-OZhqw2kXcxgIggy82wCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20200816_122413.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xiDZpOFHa1M/X0kVpcPmd3I/AAAAAAAAGsk/a5zwwZG-F1AtWi0zoTHrJKPGhDsvlZGrgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20200816_122511.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xiDZpOFHa1M/X0kVpcPmd3I/AAAAAAAAGsk/a5zwwZG-F1AtWi0zoTHrJKPGhDsvlZGrgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20200816_122511.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uTCRuNjwvMQ/X0kVpjh-WLI/AAAAAAAAGso/585QCupXDAwNsE5iNNswXatfZwr7x2KAACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20200816_122650.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uTCRuNjwvMQ/X0kVpjh-WLI/AAAAAAAAGso/585QCupXDAwNsE5iNNswXatfZwr7x2KAACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20200816_122650.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Z9IqBia9cPA/X0kVq9UPAwI/AAAAAAAAGss/iqgryMw9V04ysIYVs0bWBVxU8cZiksILwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20200816_122741.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Z9IqBia9cPA/X0kVq9UPAwI/AAAAAAAAGss/iqgryMw9V04ysIYVs0bWBVxU8cZiksILwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20200816_122741.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RoCYHOgtpyM/X0kVw4iKBjI/AAAAAAAAGsw/LTq_PihebCk21CN70jke1Z4g5Jfkh2zNQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20200816_123346.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RoCYHOgtpyM/X0kVw4iKBjI/AAAAAAAAGsw/LTq_PihebCk21CN70jke1Z4g5Jfkh2zNQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20200816_123346.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zgOWOtfKgxM/X0kV1n_-3OI/AAAAAAAAGs0/JhosvvT874UunhvZIT0m5U8OQjnDfQIigCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20200816_131912.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zgOWOtfKgxM/X0kV1n_-3OI/AAAAAAAAGs0/JhosvvT874UunhvZIT0m5U8OQjnDfQIigCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20200816_131912.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4zN3smKGQ8o/X0kV1jkq23I/AAAAAAAAGs4/eEQ-hpEDCmswd2LHENit9S6jYC45kRKXgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20200816_144805.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4zN3smKGQ8o/X0kV1jkq23I/AAAAAAAAGs4/eEQ-hpEDCmswd2LHENit9S6jYC45kRKXgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20200816_144805.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rOyZUQ_C0Wk/X0kV8WszFGI/AAAAAAAAGtE/cuRYQEInRDwhxD78LqhYuf6y6QQTRqVdQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20200816_145108.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rOyZUQ_C0Wk/X0kV8WszFGI/AAAAAAAAGtE/cuRYQEInRDwhxD78LqhYuf6y6QQTRqVdQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20200816_145108.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span><p></p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;">Finally the wind picked up again
and Georges decided we should do the final stretch in style, so the sails were
unfurled again magnificently and we swept into the bay. Reaching the marina, Georges
opted for a narrow space with inches to spare. ‘Oh, I made a mistake,’ he said
somewhat unnervingly. But it didn’t matter: he had been a splendid and generous
captain, it had been a unique voyage to Nisyros and back. <o:p></o:p></span></p>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4549687624161040763.post-85016300744462555902020-08-24T17:28:00.003+03:002020-08-24T17:31:21.395+03:00From Autonomy to Absolute Dependence<p> <a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QL4Ed-iEfIY/X0PKhHJxDhI/AAAAAAAAGqs/1-TgwUbqxNwJjLKnVsN30n1ql1FrRbVHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/P1070733.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QL4Ed-iEfIY/X0PKhHJxDhI/AAAAAAAAGqs/1-TgwUbqxNwJjLKnVsN30n1ql1FrRbVHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/P1070733.JPG" width="640" /></a></p><p><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">A few months ago, I came across a Greek <a href="https://www.efsyn.gr/nisides/246495_i-apaxiosi-ton-ellinikon-nision">article</a> that fascinated me. It concerned something I've explored in my new book about the deserted places of the Dodecanese: the fact that the islands were once self-sufficient and supported thousands, and the evidence of that way of life can be traced on the empty landscape today.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">I took some Greek lessons in June and with my teacher’s help I started translating the article for my own interest. Then I realised the author was the director of <a href="https://archipelago.gr/en/">Archipelagos</a>, the Aegean-based Institute of Marine Conservation, which I’ve also mentioned briefly in the book.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">The organisation agreed to let me post an extract from it here, and when the full piece is published in English I’ll add a link. I’m happy to say that here on Tilos, the situation is not as extreme as that described in the article, but Tsimpidis’ arguments are enlightening.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Wild-Abandon-Deserted-Dodecanese-Literature-ebook/dp/B087X5NCFZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2G9M8SOYPFD8W&dchild=1&keywords=wild+abandon+jennifer+barclay&qid=1598279423&sprefix=wild+aban%2Caps%2C229&sr=8-1">Wild Abandon</a>: A Journey to the Deserted Places of the Dodecanese</span></i><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;"> is being published in paperback in the UK on 1<sup> </sup>September, to be distributed worldwide over the following months. Advance copies are available now on Tilos and by ordering direct from me. Thank you to anyone who’s already ordered it and to those who’ve already read and reviewed it!</span></p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ssgTQqSqv-0/X0PI6o-_EPI/AAAAAAAAGpo/1b4AxIZ1lJ8B9r6lHUZYoVDxIOkv-Rq5wCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20200823_175319.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ssgTQqSqv-0/X0PI6o-_EPI/AAAAAAAAGpo/1b4AxIZ1lJ8B9r6lHUZYoVDxIOkv-Rq5wCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20200823_175319.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2w5-HJNOfE8/X0PJBGp-IoI/AAAAAAAAGps/PR9KNvP_u58-qtE9DoCG1ZpMk7BzAn_0QCLcBGAsYHQ/s1024/20200814_140907_resized.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2w5-HJNOfE8/X0PJBGp-IoI/AAAAAAAAGps/PR9KNvP_u58-qtE9DoCG1ZpMk7BzAn_0QCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20200814_140907_resized.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-X74iDlAgLTs/X0PJW2erA1I/AAAAAAAAGqU/PmIChoF3KrY185_43UXuVs4E9bc7ADbHQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/20180116_155959.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-X74iDlAgLTs/X0PJW2erA1I/AAAAAAAAGqU/PmIChoF3KrY185_43UXuVs4E9bc7ADbHQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20180116_155959.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div> <i><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">The story of a catastrophe – from autonomy to absolute dependence</span></i><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">Thodoris Tsimpidis<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">Have we ever asked ourselves how, within a few years, our islands were transformed from exemplary models of management and self-government to utterly dependent places, no longer productive, most without even drinkable water? It’s worth noting that in the old days, often ships did not stop at the islands for many weeks, a fact that had no negative effect on the availability of goods and the daily lives of the islanders.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">Those of us who lived on the islands in the decades 1960 to 1970 and earlier, even if we were young at the time, experienced the end of a period of autonomy that for thousands of years had characterised the Aegean.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">I remember how in my village, Raches in Ikaria, in every home people took care each season to store what they had produced so that they had something to live on in the following months, therefore giving them a form of self-sufficiency and independence.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">The few things that the islanders did not produce, such as sugar, rice, coffee and the indispensable kerosene for lamps, were sourced from the few shops that existed with what little money they had at their disposal, or by means of exchange of goods. The ship from Piraeus would come to the island sporadically, whenever the weather conditions allowed, unloading not only few passengers but also few goods on the island, because the locals had little need for consumer goods.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">Conversely, when the ship travelled towards Piraeus, usually they despatched many different types of local produce, either for sale or for relatives who lived in Athens and Piraeus.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O1DcQ3vaT5c/X0PKu-3Ch9I/AAAAAAAAGqw/ELGt3hSQ9AIOSDSHoggICDPKKXWt3VsKQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/P1070751.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O1DcQ3vaT5c/X0PKu-3Ch9I/AAAAAAAAGqw/ELGt3hSQ9AIOSDSHoggICDPKKXWt3VsKQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/P1070751.JPG" width="640" /></a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">For centuries, all the islands lived from what they produced themselves, not only for local consumption but also for export. The bigger islands, such as Lesbos, Chios and Samos, were for centuries important regions of production and export for all type of agricultural and animal products, with important small industrial units (e.g. tanneries and soap-makers).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">Ikaria exported raisins, the famous <i>kaisi</i> (a type of apricot), almonds and many other agricultural products. Kythnos even up to the end of the 1970s produced the equally famous ‘Therma’ barley, which covered the entire production of the beer FIX, occupying through contract farming the majority of the island’s residents. Paros exported large quantities of wheat and Naxos exported potatoes, fruit and vegetables. Many islands exported also primary materials (e.g. charcoal, lime or mineral kaolite – the basic ingredient of porcelain).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">There was equivalent production and export of different products on all the inhabited islands, while small trading boats travelled between the islands throughout the year to sell or to exchange products. The last trading boats remaining in the Aegean stopped their voyages around fifteen years ago.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KpQsswWjm8A/X0PLWdwzZpI/AAAAAAAAGrA/9yklNlLb4OcoPh_-gPsiqGcX3BvkokGkgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20180208_134653.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KpQsswWjm8A/X0PLWdwzZpI/AAAAAAAAGrA/9yklNlLb4OcoPh_-gPsiqGcX3BvkokGkgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20180208_134653.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">In previous decades even the small islands had a plentiful supply of water. They made use of the springs and the groundwater, while there was also a system for collecting rainwater.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">The question, then, is this: How in the space of 40-50 years we managed to go from complete autonomy to complete dependence, disdaining a wise system of management which should have become a teaching model in all the environmental schools on the planet?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">Many times we search for the causes in financial interests, but I fear that in this case the cause of this loss is not only financial interest. The state of the islands today reflects not only the policies of the previous years but also the displacement of the political persons who were chosen to manage that unique place. And in doing so they devalued the culture of management. The only thing which they had to recommend and apply was to transform the islands into a monoculture of tourism, which gave the final blow to the culture of self-sufficiency and wise management of the natural resources.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">Most of the cultivated lands were deserted and replaced by small and large tourist units. The systems for preventing erosion on the islands were abandoned, increasing the incidence of erosion on most of the islands. Thus, along with the fertile soil of the islands, the groundwater is also lost.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">The traditional method of raising animals was also destroyed, which incorporated through experience the understanding and knowledge of how many cattle should graze in an area, in which seasons and when they should transfer the animals elsewhere to avoid the negative consequences of over-grazing.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">These were not ecological practices but based on common sense, the knowledge and experience of many years (which today we place no value on) and naturally on the necessity of survival. They did not exhaust nature because they knew that they would be harming themselves in the end. The remains of this traditional method of raising animals we see even today on all the islands, with the dry-stone walls and the stone pathways which they used to divide up the grazing areas.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;"> </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k0aMIJXhTWg/X0PMFTMLG6I/AAAAAAAAGrQ/zIlnNwNHVBEE2cZ2TsJvsUrM-nROC9oeACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20190723_185220.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k0aMIJXhTWg/X0PMFTMLG6I/AAAAAAAAGrQ/zIlnNwNHVBEE2cZ2TsJvsUrM-nROC9oeACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20190723_185220.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H8k-IwESRik/X0PMENMDsBI/AAAAAAAAGrM/8k6BExTmBrYz-Y3fpv-BQRLYtHFAYCCZgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20190723_191531.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H8k-IwESRik/X0PMENMDsBI/AAAAAAAAGrM/8k6BExTmBrYz-Y3fpv-BQRLYtHFAYCCZgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20190723_191531.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G0D62w7VQ3Q/X0PL3gdgyrI/AAAAAAAAGrI/LCmD8br3M5YBANCVxGaQp8xyOCpvibeqACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Halki%2B-%2Babandoned%2Bfarms%2Bon%2Bthe%2Bplateau.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G0D62w7VQ3Q/X0PL3gdgyrI/AAAAAAAAGrI/LCmD8br3M5YBANCVxGaQp8xyOCpvibeqACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Halki%2B-%2Babandoned%2Bfarms%2Bon%2Bthe%2Bplateau.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HFj6Xp2uHMo/X0PJBy2OtBI/AAAAAAAAGp0/0Q62qyqhyPwqZR8lch1QBhrEstngJUzbgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/20200814_141137.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HFj6Xp2uHMo/X0PJBy2OtBI/AAAAAAAAGp0/0Q62qyqhyPwqZR8lch1QBhrEstngJUzbgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/20200814_141137.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>Jennifer Barclayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791285838910091918noreply@blogger.com0