A typical few days of life in a Cretan village -

A resident of Apokoronas has written about a typical few days.

Saturday 16th April - Bougainvillea

I went for a ride on my motorbike. On a whim, I turned through the village and saw a greek friend in his garden. I asked him whether he'd be interested in cutting down our Bougainvillea.  The painter, had advised me to take it down. I started on it, yesterday, but I hadn't the stamina to complete the job

He followed me home to take a look. Then rode his scooter back home and returned with his son in the car.

They borrowed our ladders and tools and took down the whole lot, then moved the branches across the road.

Meanwhile, Gill had gone to a rehearsal

I rode my motorbike to Georgioupoli, had a snack in the square then a frappé near the beach. There were very few tourists around but I saw half a dozen clamber across the rocky causeway to the tiny church of St Nikolaus.

Sunday 17th April - Breakfast

We drove to Almyrida. We had breakfast with friends

In the afternoon we drove to Rethymno and had a wander around.

Monday 18th April - Dentist

Gill woke me just before 7 am. "The painter is coming today to paint the wall!"

"Oh, bugger." I hauled myself out of bed, eyelids glued together, and dressed.

The painter arrived at 8 am with ladders, paint and brushes. He clambered onto the balcony and began his preparations.

I watched part of a "The Voice" episode then Gill drove us to Vrises.

In the High Street she stopped to buy bread then again to drop me off at the dentist. He is called Sifis and  he trained in Athens. Amazingly I called on a whim, without an appointment and was treated right away. Unheard of in England!  It would be worth taking a holiday here for dental treatment because it's half the cost of treatment in the UK and the waiting times (if any) are usually hours rather than weeks! Less than half an hour later I was at the café with a repaired tooth and instructions not to eat or drink coffee for at least an hour. I sipped water. At noon we paid Gill's bill and walked to the supermarket for food, then back to the car. On the way home, Gill dropped me at the bank to withdraw more cash from the ATM.

I visited a friend who had an electronics problem, We spent some time fiddling and made it a lot worse! Gill drove to her sewing group. Gill cooked pork and celery for dinner. I hadn't had lunch so I wolfed it down, gratefully. Tuesday 19th April - Georgioupoli I arose early because the painter was returning to finish the work. He finished the balcony - which is all that I can afford this month. It's not cheap but he's expert, meticulous and leaves everything spotless. Gill went to her rehearsal. I worked on the electronics problem for a while.When Gill returned we drove to Georgioupoli and ate lunch in the square.

Afterwards we took a walk to see how the new hotel is progressing.

It's enormous and completely blocks the view of the beautiful church.

We discovered a new sand-filled groyne opposite the Cotton Club.

Gill cooked green beans for dinner.

I noticed that the humidity was below 50% today.

Wednesday 20th April - Walk

My nose was running. Feels like hayfever so I took a Cetirizine Hydrochloride.

We drove to Helen's house because Gill wanted to speak with her.

I was relegated to the garden with the dogs.

We drove to Vamos and parked at the Vrises junction.

An abandoned puppy had taken up residence behind the rubbish bin.

Our friends arrived and we set off on a walk to Litsarda.

We stopped at the turkey farm entrance to let one of the walkers catch up.

My feet were sore after the walk. We drove home but others went to a café for a chicken lunch.

I rode my motorbike to Georgioupoli and chatted to a friend at Stelios Bar, while I drank a Frappé. The sky was overcast and seemed to be threatening rain. I rode home. The air was still warm and humid.

Thursday 21st April - Overcast Morning

I finally hauled myself out of bed at 9am and had a shower. Feeling tired because of the tablet I took yesterday.

I answered emails then edited a web site.

Gill has a play rehearsal at 2 pm. 

Later I rode my motorbike to Georgioupoli and toured the town for a while. I was slightly cold while the 'bike was moving and wished that I'd worn my padded jacket.

My nose is still running from the hay fever.

Friday 22nd April 

I had a banana and a spoonful of beans for breakfast  (this strange diet  is my attempt to lose weight and combat IBS by the way!) then rode my motorbike to Gavalohori for an meeting. Afterwards I rode to Georgioupoli for a chicken gyros then back to the village.  I edited a booklet from America for a while.

In the evening we met our neighbours at our local taverna for an evening of entertainment by "Irish Bob", opened first by Eric Whibley who played guitar and sang powerfully and tunefully.

Gill & I left during the interval.

I did more booklet editing then went to bed.

My nose is still running- pollen season is here!