At Home

 

A bunch of oregano hanging out to dry

Morning coffee 

Orpheus the gentle giant

He goes walkabout now and again when his master is at work

He's named after Orpheus, in ancient Greece a poet and musician whose lyre could charm trees and animals

Our guardian of the gate

The last rug hanging out to dry

It didn't take long in this summer heat

Now rolled up and stored in plastic till November

My solar summer fountain

Framed by geraniums and a wild grape vine which grows bigger and stronger every summer.  No grapes yet though 

A Tight Fit

 The car ferries are busy especially on weekends.  There is a queue of cars on the Galatas side waiting to cross to Poros and often a queue on Poros with cars waiting to go onwards to Athens or Nafplio

It's a 10 minute ferry ride 1,30 euros for foot passengers, 7.40 for car and driver

If there's a queue the cars and trucks are packed on tight

The parking guys are good. You're stopped literally at the last minute before you bump into the car in front

Packed to the gills

Bikes and scooters fill in any spaces

If one trucks jolts a few inches forward there'll be a chain reaction and we'll all end up in the water

The doors can't be closed of course

Thankfully this day the ride was smooth and uneventful. It's a 10 minute crossing. 

Visitors all get out and climb up to the top deck to take photos and chatter excitedly about their holiday. 

 

Sometimes we are held up waiting for the ambulance taking a patient to a hospital on the mainland.  We don't complain about that.  

If the big oil tanker turns up full of fuel for the 2 Poros petrol stations there's an extra sailing. The tanker goes on by itself.  No other cars or foot passengers allowed.  So we all wait while it takes the tanker over and returns. 

Sailings are every half hour from 7 in the morning till 10.30 at night, in the summer

Navy Dining

 Our Navy taverna beside the sea has opened for the summer season

We went one evening to see what's new 

Red wine, not Ks favourite. That's all they had that evening. 

 We did get real glass tumblers 

They're economising

Plates are made of paper

Cutlery is nasty bamboo stuff

Bamboo knives won't cut meat and the forks feel rough on the tongue

'Date night' said Poppi when she saw the photo

Sorry Poppi, I hate that expression 

We went out together to eat and socialise 

It's still very cheap. 

We are sure to find some of Ks old Navy mates

Mid summer there's usually a breeze, the full moon lights a silvery path along the sea.  

A couple of pork skewers, a small plate of tzatziki, a bowl of greek salad and we enjoy a pleasant night out. Under 15 euros for the whole experience . 

I've prepared for our next night-out. In my capacious *Sport-Billy bag I have a container with a small shaker of salt, 2 small, metal, forks and a knife which cuts.  Cuts souvlaki.   

*Sport-Billy and his magic bag

From Where ???

 Local summer fruit is just appearing in our markets.  Meantime our  grocer has an abundance of fruit from all over the world

Grapes from Egypt

Expensive at 6.20 a kilo. They're out of season here

Expensive lemons from Egypt

At least they're not from Turkey

Our own lemons this year haven't done well at all

I bought 2 lemons, pieces, not kilos, as a stop gap

Apples from Italy

The variety is kikou

I don't buy these because

Apples from.. 

 Poland are the cheapest and full of flavour

Variety Jona..... Maybe Jonathan in English

Pineapple from Costa Rica 

Not a bad price for a genuine exotic fruit

Pears from Chile

Variety Packham

I didn't get the price but I wouldn't buy them anyway. Next to them was a case of perfectly good Greek pears

The best potatoes are from either Cyprus or Egypt and the price is right

Greek apricots are now in season for 2.50 a kilo

Nectarines are just appearing as are

 melons and watermelons

Grapes and figs are in season late July and August

Summer fruit is greek

Tomato prices have come down from 4 euros to 2.50

Zucchini and aubergines are now a reasonable price.  Our garden is producing these as well.

 

I'm cooking stuffed tomatoes and peppers, Briam (Greek ratatouille), Imam (aubergines with tomatoes and onions), fried zucchini and moussaka 

Gun Shots

 Our crazy neighbour has been shooting up the neighbourhood again, celebrating with his girlfriend. We could hear the loud music and then came the rifle shots.  5 very loud reports then 3 more and another three. A few minutes later another barrage. Very close by. 

There's that tremor of fear. Celebration?  Pot shots at goats?  Or someone on a rampage? 

This on the day when a shooter in Athens  received a life sentence for a similar 'celebratory' volley which took the life of an innocent child.  A stray bullet hit 11 year old Marios while he was enjoying  festivities at a school 2 kilometres away.

Bullets which go up must come down. Shooting in the air used to be a tradition at weddings and baptisms and this isn't the first time it has ended in tragedy. Years ago at a wedding in Crete it was the bride who died.

Here I go inside, close the door and hope it's not  a rampage. 

 

Granddaughters Rule

 So what's Poppi up to these days? 

She's in the middle of end of year exams

Studying hard

At a cafeteria

Good coffee stimulates the little grey cells

She's studying for the written exams. She also has to prove she can shoot a bow and arrow, leap over a high jump bar, play a game of soccer and heaven knows what else the esteemed Athens Gymnastics Academy demands. 

Poppi is also still rowing, competing with the National Women's Rowing team.

She will be back on the island at the end of the month to spend her summer as a Lifeguard at a local pool

Her sister Nels is spending the summer working at a big Resort on the island of Corfu/Kerkyra in Greek

She is near Kalami where English author Lawrence Durrell lived and wrote in the 1930s with his wife Nancy.  He lived in the 'White House'  where you can now book your own holiday. 

Lawrence and his brother Gerald described the place as Paradise

Paradise in the 1930s

Still paradise almost 100 years later

Granddaughter Luli finished her University exams and is finally relaxing and holidaying with a group of friends on the islands of Ios and Paros

She will be back next week to spend the summer working on Poros

Stunning

Sunset on Paros

Kalo kalokairi

Good Summer

That's my girls

Athens By Night

 You don't have to drink expensive cocktails at the rooftop bar of a 5 Star Hotel to enjoy the lights and sights of an Athens night

These are photos taken by grandson Jamie from the cafeteria at the Athens Metro Mall and the streets below

City lights

The Parthenon atop the Acropolis

It never fails to take my breath away

You turn a corner, lift your eyes

And there is the Parthenon

Towering above city apartments and the noisy bustle of Athens streets

Another view of the city and there, standing out as it has done for centuries, the Acropolis and Parthenon

Even a busy avenue leading into Athens centre has a certain beauty