What's new? (Beware:Full of spoilers!)

Greyrocks has been in the village for a month now and the annual rundown on changes is long overdue! So we put to one side the most significant feature - the Greek economic crisis - and offer a list with no claim that it is exhaustive. Readers who would prefer to discover things for themselves should switch off now!

Fixtures and Fittings (but for how long?)

Over the winter a set of new park-style benches has been sited at key viewpoints on both beachside roads. Along with these on the Sandy Beach side Gerhard - the sculptor from Kondouras - has added five more of his oeuvres. This makes for an interesting stroll down from  the Kastello to the Petrakis supermarket. It is not clear whether they will stay or are part of the Art Season which is the development after two annual Art "Weeks".

In an attempt to stop ridiculous parking on the Palm Tree Road a line of small bollards has been placed a short distance from the pavement. It works but a fair few have fallen victim to the legendary local driving habits!

Amina H in Istanbul

And we have had a mystery ship! Since Greyrocks arrived there had been a large cargo vessel anchored some way out from Limnaki beach. In fact was there much longer than that, having left Istanbul at the end of March.The gossip is that it holds grain of some sort and there is an ongoing dispute. It was identifiable on LiveShips as the Amina H; but on Thursday there it was:- gone. Not on the web and not on the horizon! Later it was discovered (online, of course) in Souda Bay. Although not beautiful it had  been useful as a weather-vane, shifting direction with the wind!

And on the subject of wind and things gone, something has been done to the public toilets at the Sandy Beach, which have exuded nasty niffs through as many summers as Greyrocks can remember and now don't! Is this another achievement of the new mayor?

There has been a normal level of retail use changes. Notable additions are a new beauty and massage parlour in what was the video rental place. It is run by Greek Americans, and Ruth let the masseur loose on her knee injury to good effect. Also on the Palm Tree Road there is a rather posh baby- and child-wear shop, a pretty tasteless T-shirt shop, a pavement juice and coffee kiosk as part of the old pool-hall/internet café, a more regularly open 1-Euro shop and the final closure of the very old kafenion nearby. On Fridays a Vodaphone trailer shop sits outside Petrakis. The third and barely-functioning pharmacy near the bus station has closed and is now the site of a funeral parlour. Ruth mistook this for a florists and talked about basil plants! Down on the Stony Prom the amusement arcade has doubled in width, and there is a sort of Play Zone in what was the Sunrise Bar!

Beach Conditions

With so many things awry it is great to report that this vital part of Greyrocks' life is in good nick! The sandshifters - both mechanical and natural - have been at work and the entry to the sea where it matters to us is better than for several years, and the little rock pool near the cantina has once again become a hub for families with children. There is now a relatively smooth wide path down from the centre car park:- a legacy of sand shifting, and Greyrocks has established its lair where it was last year under the tree. This is right next to Yiannis the new sunbed man, and so it appeared at least tolerated - if not official and there have so far been no incidents! Yiannis is in fact a former neighbour and he runs a tight sunbed ship! He supervises almost full-time so there is none of the free-loading and silly reservation that was possible previously with the over-stretched Tony. His domain runs from the kids' rock-pool beyond the cantina to the new path down from the car park. With the exception of two consecutive days in late June there have been ample beds everyday and often quite a few empty ones. He is also open to proper advance bookings! On busy days such as those mentioned and likely to happen as August looms a problem is the absence of Block A:- the twenty or so sets of beds in front of the bungalows! No-one wanted to have the contract at the price and thus there is a wide expanse of clear beach which looks like the cordon sanitaire between the textile community and the rest! Along the back of the beach however a line of trees has been planted giving the prospect of good shade in years to come.

Meanwhile the "town" end of the beach is set up for a very busy summer with - it seems - the density of sunbeds that appalled Greyrocks last year. The very large parasols at the back also now have new luxury upholstered sunbeds, and some of the minor bars have placed tables and chairs at the back of the beach. Last week the Blue Flag was raised. The municipality has three beaches listed for the season but the actual flags have taken time to arrive. The others are the stony beach and one at Gramenon. Nothing for Anidri (Giali Skari) though! As an aside we were shocked to read that our Chania bolt-hole of Nea Hora has had its 2015 one withdrawn!

The cantina at our end (Limnaki) has been slightly expanded and is operating much as last year, although Yiannis (cousin of Yiannis!) is now a proud husband and father following Tanya giving birth to a daughter. The baby has not yet been seen at the cantina itself as almost as soon as the forty days had elapsed it became too windy and then too hot.

Food and Drink

"What d'ya want?"

As expected there are some changes in what is on offer by way of tavernas and other restaurants. Dionysos on the main street which was barely open last season is now permanently closed, as is the bar/ pastry shop in the old OTE office. Skala did not open for the start of the season and its prospects looked bleak:- the reason being cited was the loss of trade to the new bakery opposite particularly when Skala had live music. It then did open fairly recently as a bar. (Last night Greyrocks briefly sampled the place when the KKE held a celebration by the harbour of the fall of the colonels, which involved souvlaki, speeches and some very good lyra/laouto  music) The loss of a live music venue  was compounded by the death during the year of Giorgos from Atoli. Although still operating it is not until this week that we have seen signs of the live rock music that was such an attraction. It is serving food but Suzie from there is now cooking at Papagalos, which is on course to be a Greyrocks favourite. It is located where Tassos had his Seagull until a few years ago and renovations started last season with some limited late operation. No expense has been spared with permanent roofing and floor, strong blinds and good planting. There are also about eight caged birds some of which are occasionally at liberty and some of whom can be persuaded to "talk". The main menu is straightforward and there are plenty of varied daily dishes with Suzie's imprint!



An apt name ,but it's Finikas now!

Gentrification of the village continues with two new "wine bar" experiences. One is in the reception area of the Hotel Polydoros on the Palm Tree Road. Whilst the rooms have been there since the year dot there was nothing but space below. Now we have Monika's Garden running through from street to ..yes.. a garden! As yet untried by Greyrocks it is said to be a peaceful haven. The second is not exactly new but an extension:- Finikas is the preferred name now for the Palm Tree. Also a very popular and cheap daytime spot since early days and run by a delightful family it now continues into the evening serving very good wine and food from a short and changing menu. The style and quality of the food is reminiscent of the Anidri Schoolhouse (see several previous enthusiastic Greyrocks references). That means fresh local ingredients with interesting sauces, good provision for veggies and modern presentation. It is rightly getting some good reviews, but failing somewhat in the re-branding!

The newest full restaurant is Angelos, which has opened very recently at the entry to the old town:- next to Aristeas and where old Fotis used to sit with his wood sculptures. It is run by a former partner at Porto Fino, and is -again - on the Greyrocks "to do" list! The development has had a knock-on effect of closing some street seating at Pantelis, which has itself expanded further back up the little lane that is its main territory.

As usual Greyrocks intends to help the village economy more widely by spreading around its dining choices amongst the many possibilities, but ends up going to the same much-loved half-dozen. "Must try harder!"


 

Limping Down the Road Again!



"Not with these knees!"

Here is the retrospective on stuff other than the Greek Crisis that has engaged Greyrocks since landing in Heraklion after dark on 17th June. We had booked in to a hotel close to what is known as Bus Station B and spent the evening in its top floor bar wallowing in cheap(ish) Greek wine, Greek traffic noise and Greek summer night weather. How different from Bristol! Next morning somehow Ruth and the wheelie bags were steered to the bus which was going all the way to Matala and was initially almost empty save for a dozen Matala-type folk a third of our age! The hotel in Matala itself had been booked for almost a year, but to start from Friday - not Thursday, so the plan was to get off early in Pitsidia, which we remember as a mellow and genuinely alternative small village. We had a room booked but little idea where it was. The town of Moires has little to commend it, but it is a major bus junction. We arrived there with a double seat each and the glow of believing coming a day early was very wise. A few festival-bound Italians got on, we waited and a bus arrived with another bunch of assorted nationality from Agia Galini . Some had to stand! Then after another wait another bus (from Rethymnon) arrived and dozens more travellers with tents, cool boxes, all manner of musical instruments, dreadlocks,  bed rolls, etc! Greyrocks slunk into window seats and speculated about how we would ever get out and be united with our luggage in Pitsidia given the state of Ruth's knees; but we did and went straight to the bus-stop kafenion for a much needed beer or two. (It ad been almost three hours!) It emerged that our room was not at all nearby and that no taxi driver could or would get us there so the nice owner came out and got us! Highly recommended for an inland stay - if you have a car! We hobbled to the only real option for a meal and next day were given a lift all the way to our Matala hotel, where we were greeted effusively and given a small but beautifully appointed room, (which we were told we could also have had the previous night if we had asked!)

This was the fifth Matala Festival and Greyrocks has been at them all. Its reputation has spread and it is widely advertised. It has been run by a variety of set-ups and the flavour evolves, so that it is now a BEACH festival, rather than a HIPPIE Revival one. This has changed the line-up from bands playing old stuff to anyone that will come! Tribute bans are still there: this year The Doors and Pink Floyd as before, and a brilliant solo Italian Neil Young who was on the village square stage, but the rest was not really what Greyrocks wanted: especially the Saturday night offering  - as last year of Tonis Sfinos whose vast popularity with Greeks of all ages remains a complete mystery! It was good to see a number of new Greek bands who could rock if not with anything remarkable in their repertoire!

There were far fewer street stalls this time and it is starting to become difficult to know where to eat and drink as at peak times there simply isn't the capacity. A further disappointment came when we met up with the Kalyves crowd (which grows exponentially by the year) at The Lions and found Giorgos the mellow waiter had moved on! After several litres of red wine we all came to the conclusion that it was being watered down, so the place lost its long-held status as viewing spot of choice! No good substitute has yet been found! Also as a would-be feminist hippie Ruth finds the interpretation of "flower power" as bands of tarty made-up schoolgirls in bikinis with a bit of body-paint and a commercial artificial garland doing "selfies" a bit galling - but, hey!- that's grumpy old woman for you!


This ATM or the whole nation?

But this was Greyrocks' first couple of days in Greece for the season so it was time to chill out! There is one ATM in Matala so we thought we would pay a casual visit on Friday before it got busy. This is what we found! Not a panic for Greyrocks but the idea of three days of many thousands of visitors and no cash to be spent was
grim. The mayor, or whoever must have thought so too, as relief was soon there in the form of a G4 van, and it kept coming for the weekend! Ruth queued up soon after the first replenishment with German-speakers and forgetting all about "Peace and Love" sounded off about whose fault it all was! Not Greyrocks' finest moment and she was duly rebuked for lack of karma!

On Monday morning tight plans were made for an early arrival at the bus stop to guarantee a seat for the long journey back to Heraklion. These were thwarted by a change of buses at the last minute and Bob had to grovel to join Ruth on the over-crowded bus! That was his karma rather poked for a couple of hours! (And a Greyrocks decision that we are too old for this Malarkey and will definitely bring the car next year!)

We took a cab back to Bus Station A and a bus to Chania passing through some cloud then stayed overnight in a central Chania hotel. Our diligent reader will know that getting a Chinese meal in the city is a treat which has given grief in the past (see last year in particular) but we were sure we knew what to do this time! It has closed! What is the problem??
So we ended up in a very nice place and R enjoyed a perfect kleftiko instead!
Next morning we toured the bike shops of Chania in search of a cheap or second-hand bike for Ruth and failed; but we got the midday bus and although it stopped at every pile of goat dung we did eventually make it to our little paradise of Paleo!

 

 

 

GrExit!

The Kandanos baker's statement on Sunday!

Today we acknowledge two GrExits;- one historic and one that may have to be:

1. First, yesterday was the eighth anniversary of Greyrocks' Exit from the UK! The year has been the most complicated and harrowing of them all! It does not even merit a pie chart to show where we spent the time, and Greyrocks will probably suspend the practice of publishing one, for the last six months has been "all over the place" and often separated! Suffice to pour another glass of aspro krassi and toast tomorrow (avrio) which can - as the song says - "only get better!"


2. Second, we are still basking in the "no" vote delivered on Sunday! Many is the heated debate Greyrocks has had with everyone from a Cretan waiter to the BBC Radio correspondent in Athens! For those who don't know (Come on, catch up!) the Οχί shown here means "No!" and our summer nome of Chania  in Crete voted 72per cent for this! Greyrocks' position is that:

• Greek oligarchs and high-earning professionals have - for decades - evaded taxes with impunity
• Working Greeks have an understandable tendency to relatively minor financial and legal  infringement on the back of this which gets them a bad reputation
• Germany has never paid reparations for its evil during WW2, and has lent money for reckless defence projects for its own benefit. It even helped pay for post-war reconstruction of Germany! (and Merkel is a bully!)
• Greece was admitted to the EU too soon and to the Euro-zone at a silly entry date and level for political reasons
• All sorts of institutions have continued to lend to Greece irresponsibly
• Austerity as a mantra throughout Europe is a discredited invention of the neo-cons and will in time be exposed as such. Greece has suffered particularly badly from it!
• Greek politics has been dominated by self-serving - and nigh-on corrupt - people on both sides who have failed to address all these issues (The saddest case being PASOK whose resemblance to the UK Labour Party in terms of moral weakness and nasty former leader is striking!)
• Greece is at the front-line of immigration and getting precious little help from the EU
• The USA ignores the sins of Turkey for its own reasons
• Greece has a proud ancient history with incalculable contribution to Western culture and is being humiliated by philistines. (Did someone mention the Parthenon marbles?)

Three contributions have warmed the hearts of Greyrocks in this respect:

• The UK Independent newspaper's article using an old Monty Python sketch
• A German homage to the late-lamented Yanis Varoufakis recommended by Olga
• A Dutch rap we encountered by accident  - Enjoy!

We were so incensed by a pre-referendum report from Athens by Mark Mardell that we have entered into a complaints procedure with the BBC. So far just platitudes back but watch this space!

Here the atmosphere is strange! As yet Greyrocks as (albeit long-term and loyal) tourists can get cash and spend it on almost anything we might want, but there is less tourism than usual for this time of year - perhaps as people with hire cars are not coming this far off the North coast given some pressure on fuel. The fishermen are not going out as much - if at all- so there is less fresh fish around but this has always been a bit of any issue here with some pretence over what is, indeed, fresh and or/really local! Some brands of cigarettes and some medication are allegedly in short supply, and for Greeks the cash economy is less fluid day by day.

  This is a waiting game! Siga, siga!








 

The Seagull has Landed and the Balloon has Gone Up!

Yiassou from Greece in the interregnum between bank closure and referendum!
Life here isn't rosy for all but the blindest tourists, but to Greyrocks it has aspects of Heaven on Earth! We arrived in Paleochora a week ago and can at last unpack after the departure from Fuerteventura on 20th April. And a lot has happened in our political environs in that time:- most of it tragic!

The post for May failed to mention the UK election! Greyrocks must have been trying to forget! Of course, we weren't expecting to be in the country, but circumstances meant we were! Stuck in the South of England outside London we were never going to feel surrounded by liberalism and communitarianism, so we took advantage of a week more or less to ourselves (and the need to have a day to go uptown for new passports) to go to Brighton. Phew! We watched the results pour in, and this graphic slowly emerged. (Just one Green and one Labour seat in the whole of the region - two of the three seats in Brighton and Hove and an overall outcome worse than the worst predictions!) Ruth spent time over the succeeding days writing a eulogy and buying black clothes:- the symbolism is there!
So Greyrocks tried to be optimistic, feeling a very strong desire to leave the country. Soon  after though, we were able to facilitate this with a visit to the Passport Office near Victoria in London to renew at extortionate cost for both of us. Remarkably we can report that the process was efficient and fairly swift. We had to kill a few hours before collection and did so largely on the South Bank, and in the early evening we made a trip to Balham for post, then back to Brighton on a fast train, thus experiencing some of UK at its best.

 At this point we can pick up on June, to record that the weather in East Sussex got no better and no significant cycling took place before a return to Hants overnight and a dash to Bristol on Ruth's birthday. In glorious sunshine we met up with Chloë and Jack for a fine meal at The Cowshed, but it was an early night for all as next day was the Big One:- Chloë  became a home owner! We drove down to Easton from our hotel to help. It was a day of chaos and frayed nerves as completion itself was delayed, the idiot vendor procrastinated and various deliveries did and didn't arrive as expected, but the sun shone, a next door neighbour visited with card and wine, Jack's Dad worked for hours assembling a bed and other items and we came to understand why Chloë likes the community so much!




The next day we were down there again (having found a much better driving route) and it was all hands to the pump - now including Jack's Mum as well! It was coincidentally also the day after Ruth's father, sister and brother-in-law had scattered Viv's ashes in the hills near Dursley in Gloucestershire, so they dropped in on Clare and family in Bristol. (Her partner being our electrician!) They were due to visit to see the new house, so Ruth eschewed another trip to IKEA and got on with cleaning and archaeology in a freezer that had been left behind. This was not a good idea for an old lady with two severely arthritic knees, and the repercussions are still with us! By the time the visitors had come and gone and the others returned she was almost immobile and is still not right!

Later that afternoon the IKEA delivery expected next day arrived, and Greyrocks left C and J to their extensive assembly job. Getting Ruth to a restaurant was a daunting task, but the simplest option was one of the range at The Venue - part of the huge Cribbs Causeway retail area adjacent to the Premier Inn hotel we call our own! Somehow, taking ages and using a big umbrella as a walking stick we made into Las Iguanas and had happy hour cocktails and a good value Mexican meal.

On Sunday we stayed away from the new house but met C and J for Sunday roast at their local pub. It was excellent food, with good ale and jolly service. It has opened in this form fairly recently as an off-shoot of two other trendy Bristol pubs, and in conversation with us a member of staff said that a local had thanked them for opening and adding GBP20K to his house value! Nice!




The Bournemouth Eye

With Chloë back at work we set off for some rest - this time four days in Bournemouth -  being within range of strategic points, but Ruth's injury ruined most plans for interesting trips! Bob cycled to Poole harbour and Ruth joined him there by bus for fish and chips, and we also, by accident,  had an afternoon in Christchurch instead of a planned cinema trip. We did a fair amount of sitting inside and outside pubs and bars in The Square,  opposite the Bournemouth Eye - which was grounded by high wind and saw a remarkable number of stag and hen party groups, including ten cowboys outside Wetherspoons!

Greyrocks decided it was worth going to Bournemouth again in a better state of fitness! When time was up we drove back to Horndean and saw Ruth's Dad and other family for the last time this season and got in our last British Indian meal before heading back to Bristol again. We took Jack's parents out to say thank you on the first night back and Chloë chose a Greek restaurant on Whiteladies Road - as if we were not anticipating three months of Greek cuisine; but it was fine food from a Corfiot family and we got on well with the other half's parents finding we had a lot in common! On Tuesday we dropped round to the house where the electrical work was in full flow and it was not a place to hang around in and we went back up to Cribbs to repack the car and then for a very long and pleasant meal in Café Rouge, and that was it for UK Migration 2015!

Yvette is spending the summer on a farm near Bristol Airport, whence we flew to Heraklion on 17th. It was Greyrocks' first time out from there and we were pretty impressed! Certainly the most polite and swift security check and all parts nicely close together,  but the most irritating forced route through a Duty Free Shop since Milan! And bar prices are a bit grim - made worse by a sudden "last call" announcement when we expecting a delay. Abandoned bottle and very fast hobble!

Sad events forced this protracted stay in UK - our longest in eight years - and we hope not to have to do it again. The weather was 90 per cent awful, the roads seem poor after France, popular TV and press stink, manners are rude and prices are high. And as for how people vote...!!!  Only the beer,  quality TV, unspoilt bits of countryside  and some restaurant food hold any attraction in themselves, and of course we have family and friends to see! We are truly fortunate to be European pensioners with freedom of movement.

The next post will deal with Cretan japes thus far - including Matala - and what we found when we arrived in Paleo last week.

May: A Moving Month!

"Moving" definitions:
1. mobile.. transient.. nomadic:
Since Bob's arrival from France on 1st May Greyrocks has spent the 31nights in;

• Two different Travelodge's (Brighton, Emsworth)
• Three different Premier Inns (Horndean, Bedhampton and Bristol)
• Two nights with J & A in Rotherfield
• The remaining five nights in a perfect country apartment near Rye

A whole month (and it will be seven weeks by the time we leave) is the longest time Greyrocks has spent in its native country in eight years. The reason -of course - is the death of Ruth's mother on 28th April as outlined in the last post.

2. emotional.. sad.. gruelling:
The first two weeks were dominated by all the stuff necessary after a death. The earliest date available for a funeral was 15th May but with a 10 am slot, so we took this, and working with Vic Ruth's father) and her sister and brother-in-law we arranged what would be a small but very well received event. With the main bookings and meetings addressed Greyrocks disappeared for a week in Brighton and returned for last minute jobs and for Ruth to stay over with Vic on the eve. As funerals go this was a "good" one:- helped naturally by the fact that all knew that Vivienne had "had enough"! The Co-op offered us a choice of crematoria and celebrants and both were ideal. They own a brand new place - The Oaks near Havant - and Vic was insistent it should be there. (At his age he has become very familiar with funerals and found the alternatives "like conveyor belts"!) This was spacious, green and comfortable. We were assigned Moira Dadd  as celebrant. She visited us at home and together we planned the largely secular ceremony with just a touch of the  non-conformist tradition from a recorded hymn and short prayer. She helped us get it just about perfect.

The audio-visual side was handled discretely from a mixing desk at the back. The photographs (some dating back to about 1935) were projected on a big screen like a PowerPoint presentation. Ruth's "eulogy" went down well! The attendance consisted of eighteen family, eight members of Vic's Air Crew Association branch and  Viv's gardener and hairdresser with their spouses. Afterwards we went for a very early buffet lunch at the Brookfield Hotel in Emsworth (also known to Vic for past wakes!)
The opportunity for a family photograph was too good to miss, and matched pretty well with what might have been possible in June for the proposed Sapphire Wedding party (just missing two very young great-grandchildren, their father and - of course - Vivienne!). Family and friends who would like a copy can email us, as for a copy of what Ruth wrote for Moira to read as a brief biography of Vivienne.

3. noun: relocation, house removal
In parallel with this major life-event Greyrocks has been helping Chloë acquire her first home! She found her little "Blue House" whilst we were in Goa in February. Since then we have had dealings with very capable and helpful surveyors and structural engineers, and complete drongos at the Halifax and Aviva. The web-based solicitor comes in somewhere between the two under "you get what you pay for"! There has been a sequence of misinformation and unnecessary procedures. The vendor himself has thrown spanners in the works over visits to the property. Greyrocks has been Skypeing, ranting, emailing and wrestling with IT issues from Goa, Fuerteventura, France and hotels all over the south of England. Meanwhile Chloë had had to move out of her medium-term house-share and has had six weeks of sofa-surfing. But there is light at the end of the tunnel!  (or is it a moving train?) We may have completion this week, Ruth's niece's partner will be overseeing the necessary works, a vanful of stuff from the Balham loft should arrive and Greyrocks' offspring may soon have a settled and comfortable home. Fingers are firmly crossed!

That's enough about May - although a gastronomic and meteorological account would be interesting and might appear when the whole UK thing! Next stop one night near Vic, then Ruth's birthday and the big move in Bristol! (Maybe!)
















 

And April was a shower, too!

As the month ends Ruth is again in Hampshire, in what is now just the home of her father!
Bob is near Calais ready to cross the Manche tomorrow and come to join her.
With her Mum's deteriorating state in hospital Ruth had spent a week in UK in early April, went back to Fuerteventura for six days to do various health things and perform the pre-migration rituals, and flew to Barcelona with Bob on the 20th.Not much of interest happened in those six days except that Ruth caught a cold (blaming it on the UK trip!)

Greyrocks did also, however, do what it does best and plan the next trip. This was to entail two spells at the usual South of France spots (Canet and Lattes), visit George in his new home near Poitiers, and have a few days on the Canal du Nivernais in Burgundy which we had seen during one of the second series of Timothy West and Prunella Scales' wonderful programmes about canal trips.

But it didn't materialise! The Barcelona bit worked like clockwork - even the Line of Fear! Lattes was sunny for a day, but Ruth was unfit, and then it rained and rained. We stayed four days and then moved to Lattes on Saturday. The journey was dry and we were welcomed back but the forecast was poor so we looked up the V.O. films available in Montpellier and hatched a plan for a wet Sunday:- tram from the hypermarket, lunch opposite the cinema where they offer discounted tickets, "Second Best Marigold Hotel" (which has a bizarre French title), drink in a bar on the "Ouef" and tram back.  A reasonable film, but whilst we were watching the heavens had opened, so it was running for cover to get back to a soggy mobile home, and Monday was not much better! By now though weather was not the biggest worry as the news from UK was very bleak. We booked a flight for Ruth to Gatwick on Tuesday, cancelled what we could and Bob planned his three leg journey up to Calais with the car.

As Ruth waited to check in the call came to say the her Mother had died peacefully that morning. Just a few hours later she was at the family home and is there now.

R.I.P. Vivienne 

November 1929 to April 2015

The long March!

Not our most enjoyable Carnival!

Ruth headed home on March 7th. Bizarrely at Gatwick in Weatherspoons for breakfast she spotted her former Science Education colleague from Greenwich who was on her way to Iceland. (The nation - not the supermarket!)
Ruth was travelling on hand baggage only having left a load of things at the parents' and expecting to be back there soon. This soon turned out to be a  vain hope! After four hours of sharing insights with her Francophile and similarly aged neighbours  ("So, what don't you like about the UK?") she landed very early, saw the sun and met the other half. Greyrocks was back in Corralejo in no time at all and was dropped just outside "The Rock" where some old acquaintances were resumed and some welcome beverages consumed!
The first few days back were sunny, but soon what everyone agrees is bad, bad weather returned, and that is one of the ways this March will be remembered. The local paper Fuerte Extra wrote of the time since New Year:

".. it may seem to have passed quickly, it has not

done so in the most pleasant of manners, given the atrocious weather! There is no

doubt about it; this winter has been one of the coldest and longest for many years.

Thankfully, experts have forecast above average temperatures this spring, ensuring

a return to sunny days and pleasant evenings. In previous years the seasons were

definitely not so diverse, but now there is a marked difference between winter and

summer."

However, as this post is composed on 31st March (last minute again!) we are enjoying the third consecutive day of gloriously sunny afternoons. Still:- mustn't grumble!

Our back balcony:- the nearest we got to display!

Greyrocks will also mark it down as the month of the Health Centre. Ruth had been back less than 48 hours when she received a call about an appointmnet the next morning at 8.30 with the orthopaedic specialist in Puerto del Rosario. This meant the 7am bus, but we discovered it doesn't leave from the port, so we missed it and had to take a taxi from the Puerto bus station up to the new building. Amongst the outcomes of a long session with a very nice specialist was the need for new X-rays n Corralejo, so that was Wednesday! Then on Thursday we both went for a routine nurse appointment and spent several more hours waiting for ECGs and follow-up. Then there were blood tests, results, the follow-up from orthopaedics (Ruth is now on the (long) waiting list for the first knee), and a wait for an appointment for Bob. This last came through as two days after our booked migration flight causing havoc in planning! And then the lurgy struck!

Greyrocks missed the opening procession of Carnival by eating out with Rita and Mel, but aimed to get its act together for the second Saturday big one! The plan was a magic carpet and lamp salesman in djellabah and fez, plus a generic genie/ snake-handler. As the stapler, sewing machine and scissors were brought into action so the sinuses seized up, until it became clear we wouldn't be venturing out (in hideously cold conditions) for any sort of carnival fun! Bob went (in mufti) to wait for

Chloë to arrive from the airport - delayed, of course, by closed roads for carnival. She was herself streaming and voiceless. It was omelettes and early nights all round!

By Sunday we were sufficiently recovered to venture out for the afternoon, but five minutes out it poured with rain and we sat dodging roof leaks until it was time for a very good meal at Marquesina with views of the Sardine burning and fireworks, This was Chloe's first encounter with this peculiar ceremony and she was intrigued! Her eight day stay scored five days foul and three days good enough for sunbathing. In amongst them were some good meals both out and at home and some serious property-related transactions and planning. She left on the first good hot day!

Meanwhile Ruth's family situation in UK continues to cause great concern, with her mother re-entering hospital on 30th. Things can only get better!