Penguins off Piste and one Girl short of a Calendar!

This December is the 20th anniversary of Greyrocks in Corralejo. No need to lay out again what we have been attempting to escape about British Xmas, and the relentless move here towards something nearly as commercial and gawkish here! Suffice to say that increased access to UK TV has convinced us that it is still miles worse there! Nonetheless it is always a delight to discover what Claire and helpers at Blue Rock has come up with as festive decoration, and this year it is a beauty:- lots of snow white that looks glorious in artificial light, and hosts of penguins performing various feats on skis - it might well be the best yet!


Here is a coven you wouldn´t want to tangle with! We started at Los Compadres with excellent tapas and Ruth still on  Dukan diet rules and fizzy water! Rachel´s late arrival brought down the average age considerably and took us nearer to a dozen. It also amused a Madrileno known to Ruth who had been drunkenly and repeatedly pointing out that Eileen up to that point was the only non-blonde (or silver perhaps!) We then moved to the sidreria on the front, and then to H2O in the plaza and finally to the bar that was Suzo´s. Somewhere along the line the first daytime wine for weeks passed Ruth´s lips and things went downhill. There were many casualties, including Ruth who needed both Sandy and summonsed Pete to get her home! The next few days passed with little sign of Christmas cheer chez Greyrocks!

 But Chloé arrived on the 20th to inject some! We cycled down to the port to see if she had managed the long shot of catching the 12noon Princess Ico. This is the new (foot passenger only) service from Playa Blanca on Lanzarote which is also cheaper and slower than existing ferries. She had done so, owing to being the only booked transfer off of her Amsterdam flight, so all had worked well for her since setting of on her bicycle with rucksack at about 3am. She has brought a lot of academic work with her, but the weather is glorious so she will go back with a tan and having consumed many of her local favourite foods. (She is not impressed with Dutch cuisine!)

Imagine there's no Imagine - and other changes!



November has been dominated by Ruth's knees - the state of which has reduced socialising and task achievement; but relief came at last on Tuesday, and normality is almost resumed. First, however, here is some news of what we have found to have opened and closed in Corralejo since we left at the end of March. (There is probably more change than this:- a full survey not having been on the cards!)
Saddest of all is that Imagine is no more! A fortnight ago we were honoured to be at the last night. The famous Eric was giving up the premises just as we were leaving. Since then the owner has tried to keep it open with Eric making an occasional apperance and a range of other artists, but to no avail. It was a glorious evening with numbers from just about everyone on the live music scene - including neighbours Dave and Pete. It ended - of course - with Eric singing "Imagine", and the end of an era. (Eric is now a regular at the Brisamar, where we have yet to go!)

Silliest arrival on the town scene is this - and there is one in Caleta de Fuste and one at the airport as well! This stands on the plinth where once there was a tasteful water feature. It has something to do with an islandwide ecological campaign, but is now unlabelled. Within a week the plaque was pulled from its support which was daubed with "Feo!" (ugly), and now the support has gone. Spanish families love it and there are frequent stops for photos, but it is completely incongruous with the highly regulated design quality and uniformity of the former "cobbled street" that it faces.

The town seems busy, particularly with Scandinavians and Poles; but businesses claim still to be suffering and there are casualties! As usual a handful of Italian restaurants and cafés have opened, closed or changed hands, without making much difference! La Chalana, Castaway, Cafe Lounge and the Creperie have not re-opened, and there are some small changes around the Music Square and Old Town. The improvements to the Main Street have made very little progress, but there is more going on at the top of the street than before, and  - praise be! - they have at last started to demolish the monstrous unfinished hotel on the outskirts of town. There is a new passengers-only ferry service to Lanzarote.

This year we decided not to go to Gran Canaria for Bob's birthday, but to have three nights of luxury at the Barceló in Caleta de Fuste. We stayed on a half-board basis in a superior room for a very good (residents') price. The two main days were gloriously sunny, the food was excellent and we fixed up the laptop to the TV and enjoyed some good films, but we didn't walk very far (other than around the huge site itself) and we didn't get to the spa. The birthday dinner was at "15" - a new one for us, but we will go again! They operate with 15 mains on every night which are ranked for popularity as a new one is added each week. Venison with haggis was exquisite! Ruth had a partial respite from the killer diet, and we managed to cadge a lift back with Eileen after her welcome meeting, arriving back home  just as it started to rain.

The month has seen a lot of rain, and some days of strong cold North winds:- no beach sunbathing yet!

Finally:- the health bulletin! It took two weeks to get an appointment with a specialist at the hospital in Puerto, and a miracle was immediate! No operation until the weight is dramatically down, but if to be done it would be on the island and only one knee at a time - but would Ruth like cortisone  injections? Insomnia and a headache followed but within 24 hours she was leaping about like a mountain goat, so watch this space for news of a more active Greyrocks! Amazingly the specialist and the student with him both said they would like to work in the UK NHS.Mmmm!

 

 

Spanish paper-chases: Don't you just love 'em?

We have been in sunny Fuerteventura for over two weeks, but first we nearly didn't get here, and second we have spent a lot of time on what was a simple task just a year ago! This little film came up on the local forum and says it all:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wtbQUaC9mE 

 

So - the full Monty on our journey:

Back in the summer we saw a great deal with Ryanair, which along with our Canarian residents' discount would get us both here from Barcelona with big bags for a total under 60E. Our credentials for the discount were accepted, but there was a notice about what would (after Sept 1st) have to be shown at the airport. We thought our special green things were OK and arrived at the airport just after 5.15 am.

We waited in the queue for check-in watching all the normal Ryanair ritual humiliations confident of a smooth ride, but no! "Where are your travel documents?" We offer the green things. "No - the ones from the Town Hall!" We try something else . "Too old - wrong thing!". Off to the Ryanair office to offer to happily pay the discount. NO - only a new ticket! Before we got to the horror of asking what it would cost to buy again the seats we couldn't use she points out that this would have to be done online - in Terminal 1 which is a 10 minute ride on a shuttle bus, and we were now about  50 minutes from take-off! This is - of course - all administered with the charm for which Ryanair is so famous - not! (They - of course - can just pocket the takings from such events!)

So we had to start again. We went to Terminal 1 and looked at possibilities. The details of what Vueling could do to get us to GC or Lanzarote are now a confused mass with 4-figure sums associated, so we set up the laptop and began a hunt. (At one stage a young German woman asked if she could use it to look for fresh flights to Tenerife following the same rejection - and she had a dog!)

The best thing we could do was Air Europe via Madrid later in the morning, so we paid up, and have been mumbling about swings and roundabouts ever since. Barajas airport transfer was easy as it was the same plane, and our pick-up by Dave was re-scheduled. We were in the apartment by 5.30 (It had been beautifully cleaned by Sandra!)

After a day of recovery we went to the Town Hall outpost to see about getting the documents in question. The employee said there had been many problems associated with the new law. It seems the intention is to cut down on discounts for people who have residencia  but are no longer actually living on the islands. We were issued with PINs so that we can print our own, along with a general proof of address. This all works very efficiently!

 Time, then, to use Ruth's recent UK state pensioner status to get a Canarian Health Service card. Notice the colours in the logo. This does not bode well - (The Greyrocks Theory of  Perverted Customer Loyalty) - but it had been so simple for Bob. Stage 1: Take a bus to Puert del Rosario. On the way we passed Elaine the Hairdresser chatting to a client, and were told that we would need an appointment:- a new policy! Back to the ranch! It is quite straightforward to do this online and we made one and took a later bus. Stage 2: A textbook encounter including praise for R's Spanish - and we got the relevant stamps and paper :- easy! We even managed a very nifty interchange between buses to be back at the Health Centre much earlier than expected and ready for the next bit! Last year Bob had waltzed in with the same papers and emerged with a card, a GP and an appointment. This time Stage 3 lasted eight days. First there was the lack of another copy of the new proof of address document. In on Monday with that, but another paper was missing so Bob did a dash back for it, only to find the computer said no ( well, not, yet in fact!). The receptionist would ring on Tuesday. She did - to say come on Wednesday! We did :- still no association between S1 and Social Security number! She suggested two days off and a return on Monday. It worked! A celebration drink (non-alcoholic as it was a Moth day)!  Watch this space!

 

 



Gens de Voyage

Camping Le Parc could only accommodate us for a week as the International Fair (this year's theme: Latin America) was due to take place, so we spent a pleasant if quiet time there and then headed off to Agde for ten days.
Montpellier remains one of Greyrock's favourite cities, and the cycling in and near it is excellent, but Ruth was suffering again with a cough and the knees so it was Bob that did those trips. We both, though, used the new tramline 3 which goes from Lattes to the centre and we sat in the main place in glorious sunshine being entertained by students - presumably as part of rag - hurling cream pies. Palavas was very crowded on the Sunday and it was hard to discern signs of austerity. The weather was so good that the site delayed the closure of the pool and hardy Swiss campers went in. Greyrocks didn't!

 

Being too mean (careful) to pay a booking fee we set off early on departure day in order to catch the Mimosas reception before the lunch break. We were greeted effusively and given a three-bedroom mobile for an excellent price. The weather was not as good as that of the previous week, but still remarkably pleasant for October, and Ruth was recovered sufficiently for bike rides down to the Grau. Our Sunday lunch was at La Créoline beside the Marina:- glorious food and treats for the birthday of one of the owners!
Climatic conditions became less than tropical as our stay progressed, with high winds causing  Dutch motorhome owners to dismantle awnings and flee! We battened down hatches and survived unscathed. On a day with a particularly unpromising méteo we made a long car tour, getting deeply embroiled in the difficult historic centre of Béziers as we sought the locks of Fonserannes. We got there in the end and they are as interesting and impressive as ever!
Fortunately our mobile had a large canopy, under which we parked Yvette for the major unpack and re-pack necessary before final hibernation. We spent the final Sunday engaged in this whilst dodging showers, then had a jolly time at the hypermarket laundrette, where the dryers were very busy! Our final French meal of the year was reduced by the weather to an unremarkable affair at the hypermarket cafeteria!

We feared we would have another of those terrifying stormy Pyrenees crossings, but in fact it was alright. We went in and out of five thunderstorms on the autoroute / autopista to Girona, but the traffic was light, and we arrived at the parking in good time. The first train was very crowded, but the Line of Fear presented no problems and we were transported by shuttle from the airport (avaoiding Celtic fans!) to the hotel. We compensated for the previous night's dinner by eating at the hotel, which serves what looks like a rather expensive menu but has free-flowing wine and worked out both delicious and good value! Reveille was 4a.m, and that was the start of a very stressful day! Watch this space!

 

Snowbirds make a Slight Detour!

From "Understanding Canadian Slang":- "Snowbirds - (Usually) older people who leave during the winter months and stay in the southern states of the US."
.. make that "the southernmost parts of Europe"!
Part 1: Crete to The Car: Last year we felt we had stayed a little too late. This year we left Paleo in glorious sun, having had three or four days of perfect beach weather; but we had said a lot of goodbyes and potential hazards for departure were starting to be evident:- particularly strikes and bad weather on the mainland, so off we went according to schedule on 26th September.

The route involved Heraklion as this had been a very cheap option once the outward route had been established. The first panic was that this date was that of a General Strike in the whole of Greece; but fortunately for us the buses - being privately owned - were running as normal, so it was two hours on the crowded first bus, a break at the newly renovated bus station in Chania (including use of the new Ladies to commemorate the demise of the worst toilets in the Western world) and three hours on the second crowded but fast bus. After taking an ill-advised hilly route to the hotel we were given a choice of rooms and got a beautiful view of the harbour. When we went out into the city that evening it was like a bank holiday - not a strike, and we found a Noodle Bar with just the right delights for those newly arrived from the sticks. Next day it was E1.20 each on an empty bus to get to the airport, which was heaving with Scandinavian buggies built likr tanks, and Russian stilettos, and not a very pleasant experience. Our flight was a little late but this helped with killing time in Milan Malpensa airport, as did a very pleasant dinner airside. There was then a quick hop to Barcelona, a pick-up by hotel shuttle and a night at the Frontier Congress. Next day was not so smooth! We had turned down the offer of expensive breakfast and so went out to the two cheap franchises in the same commercial centre. Not open!! Grrr! We pay an extortionate price for (excellent) breakfast at the hotel and do mental arithmetic throughout! Never mind! We turned out to be the only takers for the shuttle and the very nice driver took us directly to the airport train station. there were no incidents on the "Line of Fear", and the Parking bus was waiting for us, with Yvette champing at the bit for a quick run to Figueres.

Part 2: Not making the most of Figueres:

Museo de Dali, Figueres

The plan was to spend a couple of days in Catalunya so that our Amsterdam trip would be after the weekend and thus both cheaper and more convenient for Chloe, so we decided to book a hotel from where we could do the Salvador Dali thing, with a trip round the musem in the town and then over to Cadaquez. By the time we got there Ruth was two days into a filthy cold and much of Spain was under water! Friday was dry enough but R was more or less hors de combat for traipsing round. We drove aimlessly round the town with few ideas what to do and then found a good restaurant walking distance from the hotel. On TV we saw what was going on in Malaga and Murcia, and the forecast.  Oh dear! Indeed next morning the rain started and it poured all day. People were arriving at the hotel in states of shock having come up from the South. We lurked round a nearby shopping mall and went for an early Chinese buffet (the largest Greyrocks has ever seen!) at Wok You! Next day it had stopped raining so we went to the seaside at Roses - a pleasant resort deserving a longer visit! The sun shone and we had a good cheap lunch and watched the world go by. on Monday we went back to Girona to give Yvette a few days off and flew Transavia from Girona to Schiphol. Salvador will have to wait until next year!

Part 3: Going Dutch
Clearly Amsterdam in October is not part of a sunseeking itinerary! The purpose was to visit

Chloë, who is in her second month of a full-time Masters (taught in English) at UvA. She is finding both the academic level and the workload challenging, and as she was preparing for a presentation on our final day we gave her plenty of space, and only met up in the evenings to feed her! She also kept us well away from the accommodation in Diemen which she detests! Greyrocks has "done" Amsterdam a good few times both together and in olden times, so we were not on a major sightseeing mission! The knees and cough were also issues, so we chose a hotel in the Plantage area (near the zoo and on Chloë's cycle route) that had a lift. It turned out to be right next to a tram stop and very comfortable, as well as good Greyrocks value. We also armed ourselves with 72-hour tram tickets with th eintention of touring by short hops. (The days of the old strippenkaarten are gone - it is chip technology now!)

"No! we are staying next door!"

On the first evening Chloë found us and we ate at the brownish café opposite, which had been recommended by Dutch friends:- Café Koosje, then sent her off on her bicycle into the night. Next day we spent a couple of hours in the fascinating Museum of the Dutch Resistance. which we had seen by coincidence the night before. It is very skillfully arranged and deals with the Dutch Jewish history in a much more understanding way than at Anne Frank's house where one is subjected to a dose of Zionism. We learnt a lot that we didn't know - particularly about the war as experienced in the Dutch colonies. We bought a small booklet documenting a number of war-related sights, and went to see a few of them. This includes the building next door to our hotel, which is now a memorial, having been a theatre.(From the booking.com site we had thought we were staying there!) It contains amazing stories and is one of the best 50 cents we spent! We left it with Chloë to aid her enculturisation.


After a few tram rides past key places we met the daughter again in Dam and she took us to the Beer Temple, and then sent us by tram to meet her and friends (Canadian and Swedish) in a brewery beneath a windmill. When that closed we moved to a nearby bar and ordered delivery pizza:- Dutch cuisine at its best, and a great bunch of people!
By next morning it was pouring with rain. Greyrocks reluctantly put on socks and closed shoes (which turned out in R's case to be deeply uncomfortable) and sallied forth on trams. Where better to escape the rain than in Europe's largest public library:- Bibliotheek? It is a magnificent place and makes you contrast with how libraries are being steadily destroyed in UK. We dealt with internet business, browsed around a bit and went to look at a great (if wet) view from the top floor.


Greyrocks was last here in 1989

and here!

It rained all day and well into the evening, but trams and bars came into their own and we went in search of old haunts like Hotel De Lantaerne (no good for us now with the knees and all!) and the Melkweg - newly (well maybe not that newly) - extended, and clearly with as bizarre a programme of arts as we recall from all those years ago!

For the "last supper" we met Chloë at Rembrandtplein at took her for a (slimmed down) rijsttafel in a recommended Indonesian restaurant.  Despite being a minor version there was still plenty for her to take back for next day! We did the goodbyes in pouring rain and returned to the hotel. The weather was a great deal better the next day, but it was too late for us! We flew back to Girona and were re-united with Yvette. We spent the night nearby in Salt (but at the Sidorme because we are disgusted with Holiday Inn Express' WiFi policy!) having some great tapas in the mall. We set off early next morning as we were unsure whether they could fit us in at the campsite in Lattes. They could (just) and that is where we are now!




Shaking, scratching, rocking, stuffing and sheltering!

 
September so far has been September-like! Half the days have had wind that is problematic on the beach, and the sea has several times been very high and rough. This has not deterred the usual "more mature" tourists who have been occupying sunbeds at a level unseen through the rest of the summer. Greyrocks has been reduced to early beach visits in order to secure a spot!

There was heated discussion recently about our big earthquake (magnitude 5.3):- data as follows:

Date-Time	Wednesday, September 12, 2012 at 03:27:45 UTC
Location	34.811°N, 24.064°E
Depth	27.4 km (17.0 miles)
Distances	58 km (36 miles) SE of Palaiochora, Greece

Half of Greyrocks slept through it completely, but Ruth felt a small tremor(!) and heard three bangs in close  succession which she thought was the boulders we have tied into the bedroom curtains to weigh them down. There was no damage in the village as far we know; but in researching it a more recent and closer quake of 3.1 came to light (that no-one felt!)

 

 One Thursday we went once again to Atoli for their rock night and buffet. This is usually just great recorded music; but it bcame clear as we ate the excellent food - price just gone up to 6 euros per head, but still great value - that something live was being planned. We ended up with an Austrian lead guitarist and a drummer who had last played together 35 years ago, an (Italian?) bassist and a couple of other gutarists plucked from somewhere. It shouldn't have worked, and to start with it didn't, which eased the chair shortage; but after the lead decided - or was advised - not to sing we had a couple of hours of classic instrumental rock.

Next evening it was party time! This was the belated celebration of  the significant birthdays earlier in the summer of Paleo's favourite two half-brothers and men about town - Duke and Jeffri. The model was Greyrocks' party last year at the Limnaki cantina, and the reason for the delay was mostly so that Duke's daughter Michelle - and hubby Mark could attend during their week here. Thus the drink flowed freely from before sunset, great musical oldies from as far back as the 50's had been assembled, and Yiannis and crew brought out the food at just the right pace. This included - as a surprise - 4 kg of sausages. hand-crafted by Barry and helpers according to his own recipe, and tasting like original Lincolnshire bangers. These were his gift to the boys, and by the time twenty or so guests had partaken there was no need for any more food! The souvlaki went back into the fridge.

 

It was then time for Greyrocks' contribution:- a celebration cake from the bakers, carefully commissioned earlier in the week, and transported on foot by Bob. Regular readers will recognise a history here:- just what would the cake deorator come up with this time?Before the festivities Yiannis had opened the box and announced a katastroph! The base icing representing the sea had suffered a tsunami and the lettering had slid down the sides and said nothing! As local hero he raced down to Petrakis and came back with icing. Ruth did her sloppy best of a repair job and here we have it! You may be able to spot the Native Americans apparently surfing. How odd that the bakers should know the Pocahontas - Gravesend connection! And how fortuitous that we had ckosen the Friday rather than later for the "do" because Saturday was a distinctly "unbeachable" day with cloud, wind and rough sea!

By Sunday there was storm brewing. We sat at Tassos' watching black clouds mass to the West. The Kandonites sent a text from their home in the mountains to say it was pouring up there. Thunder and dramatic lightning followed and we looked at the kafenion's palm frond roof and decided it was not fit for purpose. We went speedily down to the Jetee where we encountered - unsurprisingly - all the usual subjects. The beach continued to clear, Tony rushed round putting down parasols, and at 3.20 the rain came. We all settled into the breakfast room, received free drinks and it lasted 40 minutes or so. Apparently there was a glorious shallowly-arced double rainbow, but that was "on the other side" so we missed it.

 

Avian Update Plus

Ever mindful of the importance of accuracy Greyrocks offers the following quick updates:

The lammergeier was neither old nor injured! It was, in fact, a juvenile from Omalos (the top of the Samarian Gorge) which had lost its way. Far from being drowned it was placed in a crate and sent to Chania on a service bus, whence it was hopefully re-homed in the mountains by a conservation organisation.
Bulletin ends!

Meanwhile - down at the cantina - Yiannis has lost his canoe (but perhaps has found his paddle!)



 

Blue Moon!

This August saw a Blue Moon -when two full moons occur in the same month! The first was a very impressive red one too, and we watched it rise on each of the three days as we ate on the stony beach prom.The latter was bright but not particularly red as happens as the season progresses. It was, however, followed by a "strange event"!

On the street where Greyrocks lives

We were enjoying brunch at our local snack bar "Votsalo" when there was a thumping noise above us, followed by evident scuffling around on the lightweight roof. It transpired that there was a Big Bird! The crowds gathered and it moved a bit, finally taking off with great difficulty to reveal an enormous wingspan. Later it was seen elsewhere in the village, and finally in the arms of a fisherman who was taking it to the harbour:- presumably to put it out of its misery. We spent an age trying to identify the species, and it was suggested that we had seen an old and/or injured Lammergeier (this year's third interesting German word!) This was confirmed when we went to look at the birds poster in the bookshop window, and then looked online to discover how rare they are. Read all about by following the link!






Irish Kevin sings at the cantina

Looking back on August as a whole it was a month of flux! Chloe managed a week with us between festivals and starting her Masters in Amsterdam. With the current spiti having only one bedroom we were considering getting her a room - despite it being across the dreaded chaotic 15th - when we got the offer of a friend's newly acquired flat in the block near the old spiti. We decided we would all stay there, so we had a week of peace and quiet. It was a delight to sit on the balcony looking over the lane and encountering old neighbours! The wind was a bit of an issue and on two days we took a taxi up to the Viena bar with a swimming pool to escape some of the force. Otherwise it was a lazy spell with much time spent on the beach, in the sea and at the canitina.

Yiannis now has a canoe and pedalo available for free use by his customers. Unfortunately there is no sign of an oar!  There have been some fish and/or music evenings there, and many an Amstel and krassi has been consumed!


After Chloe's departure and our return to the under-loved spiti we took Ian and Janet up to Azogires in a taxi. Bob led them on a walking tour whist Ruth sat at the Alpha. There we discovered that we had inadvertantly chosen Lucky's name day (Eftiki - 24th August) - and - it is rumoured - also his birthday, so a few freebies were brought forth, and we were subject to some of his (slightly smutty) jokes.We took lunch and went back down the mountain by taxi. Good, clean fun!





And at last we managed a quorate AGM for the Yia-yia Gaga Club. Eva arranged a dinner at The Wave, and here we are - all a bit older but not much wiser!:

Greyrocks' Summary Statistics for August: 16 great days, 8 a bit iffy, and 7 "unbeachable" days. there were two slightly cloudy days more like September, and some very high top temperatures. (The Paleo weather station went down for a week after one of the storms, but our records show about half the days had highs over 38 deg C)

Yiammas!



A Last Dip in the Libyan Sea

At the last full moon some friends met at Castello at sunset to celebrate the life Mike Warren. We brought along some pink Crocs to place on his chair as he was famed for wearing his (even brighter) pink Crocs on the beaches, and thus being visible for 500 metres!
Steve says it all in Millie's YouTube video

After the camera battery went flat Greyrocks played a recording of Fairport's "Meet on the Ledge" - both for its message and to remember Cropredy, which Mike also loved!

A very sad loss!
This season has also seen the demise of two notable Paleo locals;- Michaelis from the cake shop that used to be next door to Yannis' Place died in June, and Spiros of the taxi firm died a few weeks ago.

 

RIP

In contrast we became involved in a marriage! We have German neighbours well into their seventies. After coming to spend one summer a few years ago in response to a small ad, the lady has been fully resident; and they recently got married. We saw them at their little party in the Votsalo and were given some very nice fruit pavlova!

.. and rejoice! On 16th August - the day after the dreaded Bank Holiday - the Blue EU Safe Beaches flags were hoisted on the Stony Beach and Limnaki. The status has been there all summer with full details on the noticeboards, but the flags themselves arrived only now. Not that tourism is that important to the municipality!

 

"What is the English for Rampensau?"

From the Urban Dictionary: "Rampensau

3 up, 2 down

Colliquial German for a person, who has got a large history of being on stage either as an actor or actress or a singer or musician or conferencier. A person, who is almost addicted to having an audience, who 'cannot live without being on stage'. It actuall means stage pig - rough words but meant nicely! This actor is such a 'Rampensau', he feels at home at once o any stage." It was "word of the week as we prepared for the night! As teachers (past and present) we sought evaluation afterwards. The negatives were: nowhere to sit, poor sound system and no answers to the quiz! We learnt that it is quite hard to operate Media Player in Greek!

Wine, Chessmen and Song

Greyrocks is just about halfway through its Cretan phase 2012, and this is likely to be the most memorable year for all the wrong reasons. We are still both ailing, and failing to make the most of the beach and sea. Still.. mustn't grumble! During these two months the village has seen some interesting events, and here are some of them:
First we had a tasting evening for Cretan wines. Three companies turned up - keen to demonstrate that there is more to this than the tetrabrik/ box/ barrel/ bucket stuff we like to consume en place for no more than three euros per half-litre! This was quality! For a fiver each we sampled a fair number of the offerings, and would gladly drink any of them again - but not often on pensioners' incomes!
In planning this post Ruth came across on YouTube a promotional video from one of the producers. Here is a truncated version as we don't want to promote the nameless restaurant where the second night took place! (If this video fails you could go direct to  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66XsrYrPOGE, but it is a bit long!) Afterwards we partook of one of the meze plates on offer at Kapetan Dimitri's, and it was good! If you remember the old Captain Jim's this may surprise you! It was transformed last year to become a very sophisticated restaurant with novel twists on Greek cuisine, and particularly good for vegetarians.

A previous year - when prom was used

Second, we have had the annual Chess Tournament organised by the society in Chania. In a development from last year's short notice we this time had no posters up until the first day; but it did cause a stir in the High Street:- particularly on Blitz Night (see the text from the link!)

and finally: our magnus opus:

This arose from a regular practice of the Hamburg posse which has a night of wearing themed T-shirts - typically football. They decided this year to develop this and celebrate the Stones' anniversary, so they had advance notice to bring suitable attire. Günter arrived in the village ahead of most, met Greyrocks and we were soon on a mission, as above. Heidi took wonderful photos. Baited breathe for the next post!

The Euro:- In, out, shake it...

Wishful Thinking!

Greyrocks has little interest in football, but a lot of interest in the future of Greece, and the welfare and spirit of the Greeks! Thus it was that we could not ignore two events from our first month here:- the latest election and Euro 2012, and nor was their near synchronicity missed by headline writers!

Talking to people we know in the village brought home how much loathing there is for politicians in general in this (as one is frequently told) "home of democracy". In particular mention of PASOK -the traditional Socialist party - brings forth a torrent about broken trust :- sound familiar? A couple of notables told us of how they would be supporting Syriza - even if this meant leaving the Eurozone; many others said they would have to vote  for the establishment, but would do so holding their noses :-sound familiar?

We didn't come across any open supporters of neo-fascists "Golden Dawn"; but a few days into our stay we went to the local buffet breakfast cafe (excellent value at 6 euros a head!). On the TV was a non-stop loop showing what happened on live TV on June 7th. Watch the whole caboodle here! 

How could he?

Here in the village the election made little impact on everyday life! There was even less campaigning than we saw in France, but plenty of locals came back for the weekend to vote, and this included our landlord, Spiros! He rang the indoor bell whilst we were still in a state of undress, so Ruth hid, and Bob conducted a very strange dialogue with the elderly man wearing only a torn Goan sarong. (That's Bob - not Spiros!) At issue was an over-the-counter contract he wanted Bob to sign. To say there was little shared language is to completely understate the problem, but numerals and dates were passed backwards and forwards on paper, and we took away his offering mumbling things about spiti, avrio (tomorrow) and Kyria Maria's taverna. In fact he returned before that with anglophone professional reinforcements and we were ready with translated and transliterated  personal details. We are still not sure what we have signed:- perhaps liability for the entire national debt!

How could she?

Anyway Greece got a government, and Paleochora got 12 large screens in the High Street on which to watch Euro 2012, and on 22nd June Greece played Germany. Three of us who play cards together felt such  longing for the elation that would follow a Greek win that we placed a bet on it, and Ruth ventured for the first time into the betting shop, where the lady assumed it would be on Germany, and on hearing the contrary beamed and said "Poly Kala!" Politics and football came together too in the form of supporter shirts. New Prime Minister: Samaras! National hero (and Celtic player): Samaras!. We didn't know this and were surprised to see so many youngsters enthusiastic for an unpopular PM! For a very special 5 minutes or so (at 1-1) it looked like something wonderful might happen, and the entirely partisan crowd of which we were part at the Chicken House went wild, but then it all fell apart, and only the German supporters down there at Yannis' Place could be heard, so passion was redirected towards Angela Merkel and her tasteless, undiplomatic and unnecessary behaviour. All we wanted was an overall winner from amongst the PIGS nations.
Pity, though, for the Austrian and Swiss tourists:- innocent parties loathed on account of their language!


Joke of the month:
A Merkel goes on holiday to Greece. A official asks name etc. "Occupation?", "No this time just a holiday!"


Seriously... some of our best friends are Germans! By the time Germany was due to play Italy Gunter had arrived in town and asked where we would be watching the match. We match-made him with Jorgen and Sabine from Berlin. They had brand new shirts and banners etc for the occasion! The rest is history! We watched at Monika's, giving a good view later of despondent German supporters after the match. 

Schadenfreude!

.. and of course as Spanish residents we wore yellow and red with pride on July 1st and were not disappointed!

Spiti!

σπίτι is "home" in Greek, and this post covers our first month or so in our new one! It also references some frustrations and health issues... read on!

Our new sea view

On arrival we were faced with the boxes, bags and general clutter we had dropped off in October, some useful items left by departing friends, cadged extras, some recent UK post, the very old and tatty furniture and personal items from years of tenancies, and the packaging from the brand new washing machine and cooker (fortunately - and thanks to some nagging now recently, and perhaps safely - installed). The electricity was naturally off! We looked at the fuse box and any memories we had of what was what 8 months ago fled. Eventually we tentatively poked everything and there was light - but not at the cooker! We eventually solved that and set about installing ourselves. This involved a lot of dust and a lot of lifting and shoving:- with consequences! After a while we had had enough, declared it a young person's game and needed a beer; but first we needed to identify the immersion heater switch and turn it off! Oh dear! We ended up with everything off and unable to get the master switch back on again, so we went off for a delightful afternoon at Zygos where we spent a delightful time with a succession of old-timers - none of whom knew anything about Greek fuse boxes!

That evening we bit the bullet and went round to Kyria Maria's to explain with graphic gesticulations and use of words like problema, spiti and electrico! She phoned Athens, a neighbouring English speaker was briefly found and Ruth was told to wait. Soon KM emerged and with comparable linguistic ingenuity conveyed that Ruth should go to spiti and in 10 lepta the electrologo would arrive! Indeed he did - in more like 25 minutes - but 10 lepta has been known to mean three weeks, so we were lucky (or Spiros has influence!) The competent artisan poked and prodded downstairs in Bob's presence, came in and shook hands and pushed one switch. Sorted! We hadn't been brave enough to push hard enough! He identified the water switch, gave us the look we deserved and left, so we could embark on the first volta of the season without a torch.

Getting sorted has been a long and tortuous process - still ongoing; not least because after the lousy two months of weather we wanted to relax and do serious beach-time. It is different from the old apartment!

First - of course - we are "on the other side"! Our lucky sea view includes the Crocodile, the 08.30 departing Samaria ferry, and - in odd weather conditions  - the outline of Gavdos. This also puts us within spitting(!) distance of old favourite eateries like Maria's, Christos, The Wave and the Oriental Bay. We don't have cats, plants, church bells, landline, the large hanging space for washing, free fruit and veg,a spare bedroom, a TV signal, batterie de cuisine,  the unused zomba (wood-burning stove) or the beautiful shady bouganvilla balcony. We do, however, have a very new (strangely-configured) bathroom suite, lots of indoor living and storage space, an AC unit that looks as if it would work if we wanted it to, a local bar which has repeatedly done 3 for 2 or even 2 for 1 on the Amstels, fewer and safer stairs, a much lower rent, and - following some skillful negotiations - kosher free WiFi some of the time (watch his space and understand why it has been such a long time since last posting!)

As for the village?

Commercially perhaps not as bad as was being predicted at the end of last season; but we have lost Judy and John's dress shop, which has been done up as a jewellers, Nikos the jeweller, Vlissidis's second supermarket in the old Pelican by the harbour, and both crepe/ice-cream places on the Palm Tree road :- one is still empty, but the other has opened as a fish foot spa and nail studio! Just what we have always needed - eh? There is a new ice-cream place down the main street! At Odos (The Hole in the Wall) two Romanian sisters are running a simple but efficient and cheap bar with nice (payable) mezes. It is known as Monika's! There have been changes on the hair salon front - but probably no net change in number, and we have a flash new opticians. It is said that a new phone and computer shop will open soon in the old video rental premises. At Atoli there is now a weekly rock and reggae evening with a 4euros per head buffet by Suzi who now cooks there. It had earlier been named as an "over-forties" night, but no longer!

Leisure-wise the kids' amusement arcade on the stony side has expanded and is pretty gruesome of an evening, and on the sandy side a couple of fairground attractions have been installed where the Shell garage was until two years ago. The Elafonissi boat has been declared unfit and for a while there was no service other than a KTEL bus, but now the dolphin boat operates on some days of the week. In a strange move the landau has returned! Memories differ on when it was last here - but as Bruce's old home movie  shows it was here is 1995. (Recognise anyone?)

 It passes our apartment each morning at 9am. It doesn't yet seem to be too busy! The cinema started again at the beginning of July, and we are getting some live music in different kafenions.

The paving project has either finished or is on hold. The main street down to Stavros the barber is pleasingly paved, and all overhead wiring is gone leaving Chania-style elegant lamps. The statue has not been re-instated, and there is no sign of the dreaded water-feature.


However all is not well on the sandy beach! We were warned of sand erosion, and when we arrived the effect was dramatic. Many sunbeds could not be placed in their usual sites, and getting into the sea was very difficult indeed - especially for the ageing regulars! Some dramatic wind has helped a bit and there are now three potential entrances to the sea at our end, but it is disappointing. This is not helped by a strong rumour that an EU grant for the purpose of sand-moving was squandered. Now is that likely??


We have also been spitting at and in the wind! Is this a very early meltemi - or just just the revenge of the gods for some Cretan misdemeanour? June had a lot of  "unbeachable" days with a northerly or north-easterly.

And finally... we have both been suffering over the month with disgusting coughs. Ruth's knees improved and the use of a bicycle has made life a lot easier, but the flat frequently sounds like a sanatorium. Ah, excuse me:- Spiti!

Lucky, lucky, lucky and a hippie birthday!

Clive James said of Rio that it was both the most exciting and the most terrifying of places. Greyrocks feels the same about Barcelona! As it has become a hub for the migrations we have the prospect of four journeys a year on the "Line of Fear" connecting the city centre with the airport. By changing trains at a different station it is possible to limit the number of stops through which you pass in a state of tension, but something will still happen. This time there was a jostling at the doors of our carriage. Bob moved to protect the big bags. Ruth grabbed the small ones. There was some shouting and the doors closed with only a couple and their luggage having stayed inside. She was tiny and shaking. He was sturdy and fit. He was holding the ripped-off handle of his wheelie bag, had the bag at his feet and was clutching his wallet. Our Romanian friends had tangled with the wrong man. His wallet was intact  - including his Florida Police badge! A little later a discussion took place between us, them and a fellow passenger who is British but lives in the city. Street crime policy in the city is bonkers, and no good at all for the tourism image!


Anyway we survived, and found ourselves with a few hours at the airport. Terminal 2 is now exclusively budget airlines, and therefore has few facilities that a traveller might need - like signs to tell you that Easyjet operate from a separate building. Frustrated fuming passengers abound, and there is no ATM in that building. Backwards and forwards (we wanted some cash commission-free during this brief window in Spain), grumblings, and then a reminder of how little this was costing! We were off to Milan:- not the Ryanair joke of Bergamo, but a real Milan airport. It was a quick and comfortable flight, and we simply had to ring for the free shuttle bus to take just us to the overnight hotel. Our review says it all. Nice one!
Back at Malpensa (Terminal 2) early next morning we realised that Easyjet has colonised this old building, too! Crowded, dismal, short on catering, badly signed, and - naturally - the added bonus of Italians travelling in packs! More deep breathing! On the plane last (as a Greyrocks policy) we found perfect seats and were soon in Heraklion.


Now, East and West Crete feel about each other rather as do North and South London. We are off the West and would normally fly or sail into Chania, which is civilised  - Heraklion being industrial, dirty, and with the sort of tourists best avoided; but this year we had a cunning plan, which worked to perfection.
First we needed to get to Rethymnon. By taxi this would be an arm and a leg, and by bus a tedious walk between bus stations and would still probably need a taxi for the final part, so we had previously booked with Airport Transfers. This was supposed to be a minibus with up to three drop-offs. It turned out to be exclusive use of a proper taxi, and all for about 23GBP. Our driver took advice on where our rooms were and we were taken to the door, where we were met by the wonderful Lefteris, who said his last studio had been let so we would have to have a bigger apartment. It had two balconies and a sea view for a ridiculous price. When we left two days later he drove us to the bus station. That's a lot of luck!
The beach where we stayed is reminiscent of the Nea Hora area of Chania:- plenty of sand, organised beach areas but plenty of public space, easy entry into the sea and a continuous run of tavernas and bars. The old town is also like a smaller Chania, and probably worth exploring further. We picked a random bar and the owner declared an obsession with Paleochora and brought extra drinks!




From Rethymnon we were bound for the second Matala Hippie Festival. Last year's post has the background to this, and we had built our migration around the re-run:- with some tweaking of the details. First in getting there, we obviously needed just one bus to get as far as Agia Galini, and we had decided that if the wait for the onward next two buses was too lengthy we would treat ourselves to a taxi. (One can never be sure about the buses at Agia Galini as they are operated by the two opposing branches of KTEL, and knowledge is power!) 


It would indeed be over three hours to wait, so after a beer and a chat with the German bar owner we met last year Bob was tasked with doing something creative, and he returned with a privately secured ride to Matala. More Luck! We had also booked accommodation early and had three nights at the Matala Bay Hotel for a very good price. 


On balance the festival as a whole was not quite as wonderful as last year's. First, there was no Angelos Skordilis, who had died in the autumn. - RIP! Second the German efficiency of organisation had been supplanted by something quite else - but more local! Hence there were numerous different programmes in circulation  - none of which matched reality on stages. It didn't really matter - there were some good and some great acts! The pavement painting idea had been extended to include a competition, and there was an interesting range of stuff on sale - not all of it alternative! In fact it was all rather more commercial and mainstream - with a huge influx on the Sunday of Greek day-trippers. We bumped into Welsh Phil and friends from Paleo, and -weirdly - Lefteris from the apartment in Rethymnon!

On Sunday we also bumped into Barry and Judith (see last year's post!) and we led each other astray - getting ourselves thrown out of the Lions Bar at 3am, making Monday daytime activity rather gentle; but by the evening we were ready to go out for a big fish dinner with sparklers to celebrate Ruth's birthday.
Our final stroke of luck in  a lucky week of migration was that they offered to take us to Rethymnon next day in their car -despite our vast luggage - and that then became taking us all the way to our Chania hotel. 
A journey of sun, great company, Cretan scenery and smells and a great dollop of classic music to doze by! Magic!
Luck deserted us, however, when in the Chania hotel lift Ruth dropped the hefty wheelie bag on her big toe - not helping at all the Matala-acquired twisted knee, and the arthritis. There were two tasks to be done that evening before months on end in the (delightful) sticks: duck at Shaghai Lily's and French red wine from Carrefour! These were effected at a very slow pace! Next morning we just got a taste of the improvements to Chania bus station before the 8.30 bus for the final stage.