Another Trip to the Vet

I could seriously imagine developing some twisted form of Munchausen by Proxy here. Today I went to pick up Elf, or Bachelorette #3, from her spay procedure. Since I was going to be there anyway, I also brought Cleo in to check on a scabby skin condition that she has developed around her head, face and ears. Rikki has it too, but not as bad. While waiting for the doctor to finish up with a woman and her poor little doggy who is going to lose an eye from a fight with a cat, Yannis (the vet's assistant) and I had time to chat and as usual, I thoroughly enjoyed the conversation. We covered a number of subjects to include the best way to learn a foreign language (watching old movies), culture shock, and the flawed monetary system. It's nice to have someone to talk to who is intelligent and has a good sense of humor! This kitty here has adopted the vet clinic as his new home. Yannis tells me that he was fearless from the moment he showed up, cruising in through the open window and making himself right at home. Once there were two large dogs in the waiting area, one of them a doberman, and this little guy walked right past them without twitching a whisker.

Anyway, Cleo has an ulcer on the back of her neck, probably a reaction to the Frontline treatment I gave to both her and Rikki back in July. So the doctor sent me home with some anti-biotic drops that also contain steroids, and gave me a steeper than usual discount for kitty #3.

Joke of the Day

A Pontiac goes to a coffee machine, puts in his coin and takes his coffee. He immediately puts in another coin and takes another coffee. He continues and gets a third and fourth coffee. At some point a man who was passing and wanted to get some coffee as well asked him, "When will you stop taking coffees?" to which the Pontiac replied, "When I stop winning!"


Note: Pontiacs are Greeks who usually come from Asia Minor and southern Russia. They are known for how hard they work, and how helpful they are to each other, but they got a reputation when they began to return to Greece as being "soft in the head". So the Greeks apparently tell Pontiac jokes like we (used to) tell Polish Jokes. Fortunately Greece hasn't jumped on the PC bandwagon yet. Many of the jokes involve two characters named Kostikas and Giorikas, which I assume are typical names for ethnic Greeks who come from the above mentioned areas.

What I Learned Today

1) Placing additional slabs of dough on the thin spots in your pie crust does not work. It just makes the thin spots not cook thoroughly.

2) Before going out to the car first thing in the morning to get the cat carrier to take kitty#3 to the vet for spaying, ALWAYS double check to make sure you've put the key back on the outside. It very much sucks to be stuck outside your house while the freshly brewed coffee is inside, waiting for signs that your neighbor has woken so you can borrow her phone to call the maintenance "hotline".

3) Keep spare key hidden somewhere outside, because #2 is just bound to happen again at some point.

Filler

I picked up a little book of supposedly "Greek" jokes at the gas station today. My guess is that they aren't strictly Greek, but I figure I'll post a few here from time to time anyway:

Why are married people fat and single people thin?
Because single people see what's in the fridge, then they go to bed.
Married people see what's in the bed, then they go to the fridge.

****************************************************************

When God created the nations, he gave two virtues to each one. So, he made the Americans organized and law-abiding, the Germans determined and studious, and the Japanese hardworking and patient.

For the Greeks he said, "They will be intelligent, honest and they will be working for the government."

When he finished the creation of the world, the Archangel Gabriel approached him and told him, "My Lord, you gave all the nations two virtues except for the Greeks. You have them three virtues. This will make them very powerful and disrupt the balance on Earth."

"You're right, Gabriel", the Lord said. "I was not careful and now the Greeks will rule the world. I must do something about it but now I can't take back the virtues I gave them. I know! I will let them keep the three virtues, but each Greek will be able to use only two of them."

And so it happened. Greeks who are honest and work for the government are not intelligent. Greeks who are intelligent and work for the government are not honest. Greeks who are intelligent and honest do not work for the government.

Just a Sunday

Breakfast was yoghurt with nectarines, crushed pistachios and honey (and of course, plenty of coffee). I usually try to do some greek homework while having breakfast, but since I've already completed the assignments that my tutor gave me for the week, I decided to try something different. I made a list of random nouns, verbs, adjectives, personal pronouns and possesives, cut the list up into individual pieces, and drew one blindly from each category, with the intention of making 5 sentences out of each batch. Didn't really work so well. For starters, I have not yet learned the proper past or future tenses, so the sentences were bound to be very awkward in only the present tense. And you can't really combine the personal pronoun for "we" with the possesive for "yours" without making a very complex, run-on sentence, which is far beyond my grasp. So I gave up after two sentences, neither of which I'm sure is correct anyway:

Η ομορφια νοικοκυρα ανεβαινει τη σκαλα. (The pretty housewife went up the staircase.)
Eςεισ θελετε να βρω ενα καταλογο; (Do you want to see a menu?)

I haven't figured out yet how to put the accent marks above the emphasized letters, so it is technically incorrect anyway. This is more than just a technicality, though - Greek contains several words that are spelled exactly the same but have completely different meanings, and where the accent is placed is the only way of differentiating them.

After the painful attempt at scholastic creativity, I did a load of laundry which had to be hung inside because the sky was rather moody today and I thought that it might rain. The fan blowing on them helped somewhat, but it's now 1o hours later and they're still not all dry.




I had planned to do one of my indoor workouts with the bag o' cat litter, etc. but decided that I needed to get out of the house, so instead I went for a walk along the western edge of the Rodhopuo peninsula, which isn't too far from my village. As I passed by the Porto Allegre restaurant in Nopigia, I picked up a walking companion. This is Αγγελικοσ, which means "angelic", and who I mentioned in a previous post when Yannis and I came to Porto Allegre for a few beers. She belongs to the restaurant owners, and is just as sweet as her name would imply.

We ran into very few people along the way. A few fishermen, and a group of about 10 men sitting up on some rocks, drinking and bull-shitting, apparently. Who knows, maybe they were talking about some very serious matters, but it sure looked like they were just bull-shitting to me. I did come across this lovely mattress cemetery, and decided that had I been born a mattress, this is where I would have wanted to be put out to pasture once I had passed my prime.

On my way back I passed Porto Allegre again, and fully expected the dog to leave me at that point, but she seemed to be enjoying the walk very much and she continued to follow me. In an apparent attempt to buck the stigma attached to her name, she harassed every goat that we came across. Many of them fled, but this one here was ready for a fight and alternated between lowering it's head as if about to charge, and stamping the ground angrily with his right front hoof. Αγγελικοσ eventually realized that she was out-sized and left him alone. After that she just went after any cats she came across, and delighted in tormenting the neighborhood dogs as we passed them, who were all chained and could only bark impotently at her.

Is this a pomegranate? It looks like one to me, but it's been so long since I've had one I'm not sure.







So, the damn dog followed me all the way home, which is about 4 miles from her home. I had no idea if this was normal for her, and worried that she might not be able to find her way back to the restaurant, so I intended to put her in the car and drive her back. Except that she wanted nothing to do with the car. I tried luring her in with sausage, I tried picking her up, all to no avail. After about 15 minutes I finally gave up, wished her good luck, went inside and left her to further torment my local neighborhood dogs. I will probably drive by the restaurant sometime in the next few days, just to reassure myself that she made it home.

It is spooky-quiet around here tonight. My Greek neighbors who are always home and always very vocal seem to have gone out for the evening; their house is completely dark. My landlord, who has been occupying the house behind me, is away on a business trip to Italy. No sound from my neighbor Helen's house, either - although she is usually very quiet anyway. Only the distant barking of dogs, the faint sound of wind-chimes and the breeze rustling the leaves of the trees.

Introversion: A Handicap

I posted the following on one of the expat forums for people living in Crete:

Something has been bothering me a little bit on a personal level, and I'm wondering if anyone would like to share their thoughts or experiences with me regarding the subject of integration with the local population.

I've spoken with or read about a number of expats who live here now who interact regularly with their Greek neighbors. Before coming here, I had assumed (hoped) that eventually I would do the same. However, I've been here for a little over three months and have yet to have any meaningful interaction with my Greek neighbors.

Now, I will admit that I can be a bit shy...I'm not the type to walk up to a complete stranger and start up a conversation...but I don't consider myself unfriendly, and I do say "Yia sas" and smile whenever my path crosses that of the folks in my neighborhood. I've always been led to believe that when one is new to a community, one waits for those who already live there to make overtures if any social "bond" is going to be forged. Hence the fact that I haven't just walked up to anyone and invited them to dinner:-)

I don't know if being a single woman would have any bearing on the issue, but I'm beginning to think that maybe I'm just doing something wrong or putting off the wrong vibes.

Any advice?

I received the following replies:

1) Try to overcome the shyness, at least a bit. It is traditional here for the stranger to be first to speak.

Next time you're passing a neighbour, in their garden or wherever, try a bit more than "Yia sas". Introduce yourself, tell them where you come from, how old you are, etc. As time goes on you'll find different people with the same family names so ask if they're related. Another great ploy is to go "gaga" over babies and young children. What's his/her name? [We were a bit taken aback a few weeks ago. We asked grandma the name of her just-started-to-walk grandaughter and the response was, "She doesn't have one. We will know when she is baptised at Easter."]

As a single woman it'll probably be best to confine this to other women. You don't want to get a reputation for "chatting up" married men when their wives aren't around.

Obviously I don't know your ability with the language but don't worry even if your Greek is awful. People really do appreciate the attempt, however garbled and a bit of sign language will help, too. Most are very helpful and will gently correct you by repeating something but correctly pronounced. I've found it useful to learn parrot fashion a few phrases; "Please speak more slowly." "I am trying to learn but Cretan people speak so fast." "Sorry, I don't understand." One of my personal favourites is "The problem is, I am old and can't remember the words." 'Er Indoors insists I only use this because, whatever the reply it always starts with, "Eh, Philippe, you are not old ....."

Ask one of the women, preferrably one of the 40+ ladies, where you might collect horta and how you should prepare it. You might well find yourself dragged off for a bit of roadside harvesting. One of our Greek friends regularly goes horta collecting with two or three of her friends. If there's any similar little group amongst your neighbours you may be invited to join them. You may hate horta and surreptitiously bin it but you'll get to know people. Doesn't have to be horta - "How should I make pastry with olive oil?" "How do I make kleftiko?" or whatever.

Most important thing is just to keep trying and speak to just about everyone, anytime. Good luck.


2) First off I have to say I have Greek family and I have Cretan/Greek family living next door so I am not 100% in the same circumstance. Two examples though of how I have got into "groups" of locals without the assistance of family.

Bike ride most mornings throughout the year and most times I see and say good morning to a local guy watching his sheep. Then I go into a local taverna to watch a particular football match and he is there and we say a little bit more than hello so now it has got to the stage where I am known, not a stranger to him or his friends and there are limited conversations usually around the football which is on the tv. Second case is a cafe I go to where they play chess. Sit and watch and there are others watching and someone asks you if you play so you do and then start going there regularly and you find there are a whole load of people go on a Saturday afternoon throughout the winter and play chess. Many different nationalities as well as Greek and so you are all working hard at understanding and getting points across and you don't feel like the only one. Go regularly and people recognise you, know you play and boards are out and set up with no intro needed.

Ok those are not particularly useful in your case but I think the thing to do is to be somewhere regularly at the same time so that people get used to seeing you and you get drawn in purely by being there.

If you see some old boy working in his garden ask what he is growing and does it grow well there. Not only will he probably be pleased to tell you but he'll probably say to his friends that the new Xenos asked him about plants this morning so then his friends know you do talk to people and you are interested in plants/growing stuff and they will feel easier about approaching you

Not easy but if you are not in a tourist environment then it probably requires you to make first contact however small.

3) My situaution is slightly different to yours as I haven't made the permanent move to Crete yet. I bought my house in a traditional, agricultural village (population around 230) 3 years ago & I visit as often as I can (5-6 times a year). I'm also a single female, although several times a year friends also come out with me for part of my stay. My village only has one Kafenion, which has a small shop attached.
There are no non-Cretan families living permanently here, there are several houses owned by returnees (from America, Germany & Australia) who spend 6-9 months in the village. 3 houses are owned by Brits & Irish, who have them as holiday homes.
The majority of the villagers, both permanent & returnees, have made me very, very welcome & I have constant invitations to coffee, meals, parties etc. On occassion I thought I'd been invited for dinner only to be taken to friends or families houses in other villages to eat, or for a party. In fact I've been told off for not taking up as many invitations as I've been offered!!! I've been told "you must walk around the village more & visit more people".
I tend not to visit the kafenion very often, as it is the domain of the men, but I do pop in from time to time. I've never yet been allowed to pay, some one else always insists. Whenever I come out my suitcase is laden with boxes of chocolates & biscuits, which I take to my neighbours when I first visit them. I also make a point of dropping a box into the kafenion.
The villagers always speak to me, even if we can't always understand each other! And I'm constantly being given fruit & vegatables, (which they've just picked) bottles of wine, raki & olive oil.
I have 2 female friends who've been staying in my house for just over a week, returning to the UK tonight. They say they've had a fantastic time & have visited the kafenion several times & been made very welcome by everyone in the village.
The next village 1km away has shops, tavernas, bank etc, and again I'm slowly getting to know some of the people there as well, mainly from eating in the taverna.
I'm quite confident that by the time I do finally get to make the move permanently that I won't feel too isolated as I will know many of the local families. I also already have several friends from the UK, Switzeland & Holland that live on Crete within a 40-50 minute drive.

Good luck, I hope everything works out for you.

Back home in the DC there are a number of "meet-up" type organizations that make it much easier for people like me, who are somewhat socially anxious/awkward, to get out and meet new people. It appears that I'm just going to have to step WAY outside of my comfort zone here if I don't want to spend the next 8 1/2 months as a reclusive shut-in. I want to be showered with gifts of veggies, sweets and home-made olive oil too, damn it!

Retail Therapy

My daily "beach therapy" session was canceled today due to inclement weather, so I used the opportunity to hit a few shops in town.

I love this stuff. When I was having all my skin issues, I picked up a tube of Bepanthol Cream for irritated and sensitive skin, and it worked wonders. I've since started using their body lotion and sunscreen, and I've liked all their products well enough that I'm going to try their face wash and "baby" wash for the shower. All of the products contain Vitamin B5, which apparently my skin likes. I've only ever seen it in pharmacies here, and it's not exactly cheap, but well worth it to me to have something that doesn't irritate my skin in the least, and that has almost no fragrance to it (the body lotion as a very light, floral scent).

I've been running low on oil and honey, so I stopped into a tiny supermarket and picked up some Cretan products versus the usual brands that I get from Carrefour. The oil is from Kissamos, which is the county that I live in.

The honey is thyme honey from Gramvoussa, which is where I was attacked by the bees. I thought it very appropriate that I at least sample the fruits of their labor after their horrible treatment of me.

I also picked up some τσικουδια, or raki, but I'm not sure exactly where in Crete it is from. I don't typically drink this stuff unless I'm out and it is offered at the end of the meal as a digestif, but I'm pretty sure it's law that every Cretan household have this on hand, and far be it from me to flirt with illegalities;-) Taken in small quantities (one shot), this stuff really does seem to have some wonderful digestive properties, and no ill after-effects. Brand names typically carry about 34% alcohol, but apparently the stuff that is produced at home can run between 60-90%.

I've been meaning to sign up for a membership at one of the video rental stores and finally did it. The guy who works the store is very friendly and helpful, speaking english for my benefit but also humoring me when I try to attempt greek. Today when I plunked the cover for "Burn After Reading" down on the counter, I said, "ενταξει, θα ηθελα αφτο...αφτη;" which means, "OK, I would like this" but I wasn't sure if DVD is masculine/neuter or feminine, so I asked both ways, with a question mark at the end so he could inform me. I now know that it's αφτο, and I will never forget it because I just spent this time telling you about it. Perhaps I should start writing up some of my lessons here...it might make some of it stick better.

Anyway, I chose Burn After Reading because I thoroughly enjoyed it when I saw it in the theater, and because it will be a nice reminder of Washington, DC. Rentals are 2 euros per day for new releases, and 2 euros for three days for the older stuff.

I picked this up yesterday on my way home from my greek lesson at a store called Sprider, which is the greek equivalent of a Ross or Marshalls, I guess. I didn't bring any winter clothes with me, so I'm going to have to pick up a few items to get me through the cold, wet months. This jacket isn't exactly high-fashion, but I think it will do the job, and it was better than most of the other stuff they had. It was 35 euros. I almost picked up one of those vest jackets, because I see a lot of people wearing them, but I hate them and I did not succumb to the urge to get one just so I could "blend". Besides...aren't the extremities where we lose most of our heat? What's the point in warming the core if you're just going to lose the heat through your limbs??

Well, I think I've spent enough money for one week, so I hope the sun comes out tomorrow and I can return to my regularly scheduled program. I'm determined to enjoy as much sun, sand and sea as I can before the season ends for the year...

My Next Home Sweet Home

After viewing an apartment in the city of Chania, and after unsuccessful attempts to see others that were posted in the Chania newspaper, I have decided to accept my current landlord's offer to move into one of his houses in Kastelli/Kissamos when my lease here is up at the end of November.

I've been told by my Greek friends, and by Chantal, that I should be able to find something cheaper, that my landlord is charging too much. And that's probably true. However, I'm willing to pay extra for the convenience of not having to run around and visit a bunch of different apartments that may or may not have all the amenities I'm seeking, the owners of which may or may not understand what I need and who may or may not be responsive. I know what I'm getting with Crete Direct, and while I might be able to save 150 euros per month by digging in and doing the footwork and taking a chance on someone new, I'm just more comfortable doing it this way.

Excursion to the East

I departed Drapanias at 9:30am and made it to Iraklio in two hours...record time for me (I've only been there once before, so I don't really know if that's good or bad...probably good time-wise, probably bad if I had been caught by one of the several speed-traps that were set up along the way.) The map here shows my route, with the red dots being approximately where I stopped along the way. The little dip down in the middle of the island was on my return trip.

First stop: Knossos. One of the "must-do's" here, or so I've read. I'll confess that I'm not much of a fan of the "must-do's", especially when they are partially reconstructed archeological sites and involve large numbers of tourists. Granted, this is some pretty impressive history, being one of the most (if not the most) well-known of the ancient Minoan settlements. And perhaps if I had read some tale regarding the site that emotionally invested me in it, I would have been more excited. But there is something about the conjecture involved in the reconstruction of sites like this that leaves me feeling somewhat flat. Anyway, I spent about 45 minutes walking around, and took a few pictures. I think most of you will recognize this first one, the "Prince of the Lillies" fresco. As with so much else pertaining to Knossos, there is debate among scholars as to what the original actually represents (this is a recreation, obviously). I rushed through this about as quickly as I rushed through the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City, and was equally as glad to be done and away from the throngs of tourists.

(Note: Another blogger sent me a link to this write-up, which is really very interesting. As I mentioned in my comment on his blog, had I read this prior to visiting Knossos I might have found the whole experience more interesting: http://crete.wordpress.com/2009/09/13/evans-knossos-and-the-minoans-facts-and-forgeries/#comment-1125)











The next thing: Crete Aquarium. Mike and I had talked about taking a day trip here but never did make it, so when I saw the signs for it on the National Road after leaving Knossos, I decided now would be as good a time as ever to check it out. I enjoyed it so much more than Knossos; I suppose because it wasn't overly crowded, because it was nice and peaceful inside, and because...well, it was just more interesting to me. I was very happy with how well the camera performed in here with no flash.

I love the underside of rays...they look like faces.








Several people have told me that there are no sharks in the waters around Crete. I have taken them at their word on this and swim with abandon, feeling none of the usual fear that I do when I get into sea water past my waist. These pictured here are "mediterranean" sand sharks, and the Aegean Sea is part of the Mediterranean, so I think either those people were lying, or didn't know what they were talking about, or maybe they just never SEE the sharks here. I don't know, but I wasn't as comfortable swimming today as I usually am.









Moray Eel.








Ahhhh! Vampire Turtle!!!








Cuddly cuttle fish. Isn't he cute??









I believe I had some of this guy's brother for lunch a bit later that day.











Ohhhh, this is what I look like when I wake up in the morning!
























After departing the aquarium, I made my way east towards Ayios Nikolaos, and had the pleasure of driving through Malia along the way (said with sarcasm). Back a few months ago I posted about my visit to Milia, which is a very quiet, serene eco-village in the mountains of west Crete. A reader very kindly informed me that I had misspelled the name of the village in my post, calling it Malia, which is a very different sort of location with an unsavory reputation as a party-spot for rowdy young British and Dutch tourists. As I drove along the strip of road that ran through the town, I had to laugh at the contrast between the two places (and silently thanked that reader again for correcting me). However, I will admit that I was sorely tempted to stop at the KFC, which is only the second western fast-food joint I've seen since coming here (the other being MacDonalds in Iraklio). I hardly ever eat fast-food back in the States, but there's something about not having it readily available that makes me crave it.


As I continued my drive east, the sky became cloudier and by the time I reached Ayios Nikolaos, it was completely overcast. I wasn't bothered by it though, as long as it didn't rain.







I took this picture of the hotel where I stayed from a little taverna across the lake where I had a late lunch of grilled octopus. The room was very dull and simple, and my balcony overlooked the street on the other side instead of the lake, but it was only 35 euros so I took it.



It was during my lunch that the weekend took a turn for the not-so-great. As I sat drinking my greek coffee and eating the dessert that I ordered to go with it, I and the other patrons heard a "splash" in the water just beneath the rocks you see pictured here. We realized quickly that it was a cat who had either jumped in an attempt to catch one of the birds who were flitting around, or had been thrown from above by some children. Everyone watched in suspense as the poor little critter attempted to climb back up onto the rocks, and when it became clear that it was unable to grab a hold, several people began calling to it, trying to get it to swim over our way. Unfortunately, it was only able to stay above water for a few more minutes, and we all watched in horror as it finally gave up and just drown right there in front of us. And then it just floated at the surface while we all finished our meal. I was only able to take a few more bites of mine before giving up; my appetite was gone.

I went back to my hotel room feeling rather depressed and intending to nap for a few hours before showering and heading out to check out the night-life and have some dinner. Along the way I stopped to look at the menu for one of the restaurants, and I was excited to see beef rib-eye steak on it. I haven't had a beef steak since arriving in Crete, they are a pretty rare item here, so I determined that this is where I would eat my evening meal. When I finally awoke, it was 9:15pm...long past my intended wake-up time. I found that I was still full from lunch, and not really in any mood to get dressed and go out, so I just hung out and watched life go by from my balcony. This town is known for being a bit more sophisticated and upscale than most in Crete, an image that was reinforced for me by the attractive, well-dressed people walking about.


The next morning brought rain, rain, and more rain, and I finally got tired of waiting for it to let up and just checked out of my room and headed to my car with my bags. My car was parked on the other side of the lake, about a 10 minute walk away, and despite purchasing an umbrella at a shop right outside the hotel, I was completely drenched by the time I got there. It didn't help that much of the pavement was slick marble...really bad terrain for someone who only brought flip-flops. This is me driving out of Ayios Nikolaos.


Under different circumstances, the drive to Sitia would have been spectacular. A good portion of it is up through the mountains, with a dramatic coastal view visible to the left. Given the torrential rain and thick fog, it was simply nerve-wracking. I had to cross several bridges like this one, and as I approached them and was unable to see the opposite side, it felt as though I was driving straight off into the clouds.


My original intention was to drive past Sitia and visit the palm beach at Vai, and I had decided to attempt it despite the rain. However, shortly after Sitia the road had been torn up for repaving or something, and it was a muddy, riddled mess. After about 10 minutes with no improvement I said, "Screw this" and turned around. I stopped at Dionysos Taverna on the road back to Sitia to wait out the afternoon, since I wasn't due to meet Chantal until later that evening and since it was not fit weather for walking around Sitia itself.

I had rooster in tomato sauce, which was really good. I don't know if I've ever had rooster before. I'm assuming that it's just a male chicken. Anyway, I'm a fan. While I sat in the virtually empty restaurant, the skies really opened up, and there was thunder and lighting, and I began to wonder if it was ever going to stop. Eventually my back began to ache from just sitting there, and my eyes were strained from trying to read in what was pretty dim light, so I paid my bill and headed toward Sitia with the thought that I would just hang out in the hotel lobby where Chantal and I were supposed to meet.

Once in town, I was greeted by flooding streets, a number of which were too deep to turn down. I've already had an accident in this rental car, I didn't want to add "swept away in flash flood" to my experience with it. I eventually did find a spot, and the rain eventually did let up, and I killed a couple of hours walking around and ducking into an internet cafe.











It was nice to finally meet Chantal after having chatted with her via Facebook for several months now. We dined on swordfish at a restaurant in town that is run by a French woman and her Greek husband. Chantal is very friendly with the people in Sitia, being one of those gregarious, outgoing types who just draws others in. She told me the story of how she came to live in Crete, and while I'll not tell that story here (because it's not mine to tell, of course), I will say that I am in awe of her resourcefulness and ability to adapt and integrate.

She put me up in her second bedroom, in a very comfy bed, where I slept quite well, with no cats there to wake me up at all hours.

The next morning she made a wonderful breakfast of eggs, cheese, yogurt, bread, jam, coffee and juice.














We were lucky enough to get a respite from the rain for the majority of our meal, and although some pretty ominous clouds were rolling in, I hoped that the rainbow that suddenly appeared was a portent of better things to come.











Soon after breakfast I decided that I'd better be on my way if I was going to reach the town of Anoyia by early afternoon (not knowing what to expect from the weather, I imagined that it might be slow-going along the way), so I thanked Chantal for her hospitality and began the drive back towards the west. Things began to look up as the weather cleared a bit, and I stopped to take this picture. The day was really beautiful at this point, that still-cool but being gently warmed by the sun's rays kind of weather.


And then...

It was around now that I said "Screw this" for the second time this trip and decided that I was going to skip Anoyia and the Idean cave altogether and just drive straight through to home.

However...


The weather cleared again and the sign for Anoyia was plainly visible to me from the highway so I made a fast decision to just go ahead and take the exit. After a nice, scenic drive through the mountains I arrived at the town and began to drive down its main street, along with several other cars. Then suddenly traffic stopped moving, and cars began backing up, and I saw that there was a huge bus full of tourists coming the opposite way on a street that really only gave room for one-way traffic. So I got to back up, along with all the others, for about 100 meters. Backing up has never been my strong suit, and I don't know how close I came to taking out a number of cars that were parked on both sides of the narrow street. I was in a very foul mood by the time I finally extricated myself from the fiasco, and further attempts to navigate the town proved to be equally frustrating. I finally found the hotel that I had read about in the guidebook, and when I stepped outside the car I realized that it was quite chilly and that the clouds were rolling back in. I had no footwear besides my flip-flops, which were going to be completely unsuitable for a hike of any duration, especially if it rained again. So, care to guess what I said at this point? Yep...screw this. I got back in my car, managed to eventually drive my way out of town, and headed back down the mountain to the National Road. Except that I took a wrong turn and ended up taking the long, winding mountain road all the way to Rethymno instead.

This was the only picture I got of Anoyia, which isn't pronounced exactly like "annoy ya" but close enough to be appropriate. It's probably a wonderful little town, and had I been in a better mood I'm sure I would have enjoyed it.

All said and done I spent about 7 hours driving that day, which is far more than I had anticipated or ever want to do again.

Heading East

this morning in just about an hour. Will be back late Sunday or early Monday. Hoping the car is up to the trip (there's no reason it shouldn't be, it just sounds a little creaky to me lately).

The Health Care Debate

My plan:

Legalize marijuana. The cost savings alone from the clearing out of the judicial system and a draw down in our "troops" abroad in the "war on drugs" would probably pay for a low cost, bare-bones government funded option. Add a sin tax on top of it, and it could probably fund a pretty decent program. Domestic production would stimulate the economy and create jobs, and keeping with agricultural tradition, we'd allow imports but impose a hefty tariff, which would also be directed towards the government option.

I think we'd also see a drop in a lot of the prescription drug costs, because who needs Prozac if you can just get stoned?

The morning started out with some unusual but predicted rain. My landlord came over one day last week to check out the roof in anticipation of the event. This is a picture of it taken while driving back from my language lesson in Chania this morning.





But the afternoon cleared up and brought some beautiful, refreshing late summer/early autumn weather. I went for yet another walk up into the hills behind my house...hopefully I haven't repeated too many shots from previous posts here. While some of the terrain was familiar, I wandered off on some paths through some olive fields that I'm pretty sure I haven't been on yet.





















I'm about 99% sure that this is my village viewed from above.








I came across this little church pretty much in the middle of nowhere. It was very quiet and peaceful, and one might imagine that no one ever came here except for the meticulous nature of the grounds.














I'm not sure about this...but the word for Friday in Greek is Παρασκευη (Paraskevi)...so I guess this is the church of St. Friday?? Never heard of him, but I LIKE him!! If I ever go back to church again, this will be it.























I wonder who lives here?? Looks about big enough for a fox.








I'll admit...this creeped me out a bit. Amidst all the natural beauty, coming across this made me think of some crazed killer in a bad teenage horror flick for some reason.






I think I may have already posted a picture of this church, but I really liked the way it looked in the late afternoon light.








Mangy, scruffy pup. He seemed to want me to pet him, but I was afraid he might bite me so I just spoke nicely to him and complimented him on what a sweet dog he was.

I managed to drag my lazy butt out of bed at 6:47am this morning in order to take a walk to the beach. I haven't been up and out of the house before 9 or 10am in a long while, and I wanted to experience the walk in the morning while it was still cool and the light was still soft, versus my usual afternoon visit. I even managed to carry my cup of coffee with me the entire way without spilling:-) Here are just some pictures from the walk:

I'll Call Him Ralph

The dog across the street is SO old, and makes SUCH a racket when he groans, howls, moans and otherwise carries on. But he is so sweet with the little kittens that also hang out at his house, and I snapped a couple of shots of him with one of them this afternoon. He's always grooming them, playing with them, and just hanging out with them.

I suppose I should attempt to say more to my neighbors than "yia sas", and maybe try to find out what their dog's real names are. There's another dog next door to me who I call Leroy, because he's brown and he hangs out in an oil barrel when it's hot, and he makes me think of the song "Bad, Bad, Leroy Brown". Today, Leroy was out front with the man of the house, and I stopped and said hello to the both of them and actually petted Leroy for the first time (he usually barks ferociously at anyone who walks by). Neither seemed to mind when I called him Leroy, so maybe I'll just stick with their American names for now.

Rock Market Closes Up

The KBIA (Kyrstyn's Beachcombing Igneous Average) gained 12 pebbles today to close at 57 in light trade-winds.

Apartment Hunting

After meeting with Elenie at her apartment in Chania for my Greek lesson, I drove into the city center to wander around and see if there were any "room for rent" signs that might lead to something suitable for me. Driving downtown is always a stressful event for me, as I'm in constant fear that I'm going to take out someone on a scooter or turn the wrong way down a one-way street, but I was rewarded eventually by finding a great parking space near the naval museum and the harbor.


I came across a sign on the door in the center of this picture that advertised a harbor view apartment and listed a phone number. Upon speaking with the guy on the other end of the line, I found out quickly that I couldn't afford this place (850 euros per month) but he said he had another apartment near the synagogue in the Jewish quarter, and that he'd send someone over to take me to see it. I thought sure..why not? I've never lived in any "ethnic quarter" before, could be cool!


I was actually just trying to take a picture of the street that I WOULD have maybe lived on if I could have afforded it, when the woman who came to take me to the other apartment appeared around the corner.



She took me to this place, which I could afford (450 euros). And there were things that I definitely liked about it. It is three levels...kitchenette and bathroom on the first floor, sitting area with TV on the second, and the bedroom on the third level, all connected by a very cute, wooden spiral staircase. However, it was DARK inside. And there are no screens on the windows, so if I were to open all of them to let in enough light to keep me from sliding into deep and total depression, my cats would surely make a run for it through one of them. Also, I didn't notice any laundry facilities and there is no internet. I was told that they could have that installed for me, but when I take into account the cave-like interior, I just don't feel it's right for me. Oh well, no biggie...it was the first place I looked at, carry on.

I stopped here to have lunch...rabbit in a white wine sauce with potatoes.

While still at Elenie's place, she went over the classified ad section with me. We circled some apartments that looked like they might be appropriate for me, and once I was back home this evening I gathered up my courage and my opening line in what I hoped would be understandable Greek, and called the first one. I don't recall exactly how the exchange went, but I heard "Oxi" which means no, and the words that Elenie showed me mean "no foreigners" and I said "Efharisto" and hung up. When Elenie originally showed me that phrase, she said that she thought they were primarily referring to Albanians "and the like". She thought that an American might be OK, I'd just have to ask and see. Well, apparently not in this case. Or who knows...maybe I mentioned that I had two cats and she was telling me that they didn't take foreign cats...I don't know.

Anyway, I'll call some more numbers from the listings over the next few days and we'll see what happens. I've still got some time, and if all else fails, I suppose I wouldn't exactly mind seeing my nephew Ben at Christmas:-)

Road Trip!!!

Before moving here, I met a woman online who was about to make her own permanent move to Crete. She has located in the far eastern part of the island, in Sitia, and we've kept in touch via Facebook (oh, what did we ever do before Facebook?). Chantal has graciously invited me to stay with her on the night I will spend in Sitia, and I'm very much looking forward to my visit with her, as well as the various locations I plan to stop at on my way there and back. The plan:

10 September: Depart Drapanias no later than 9am, drive three hours to Heraklion, where I will dutifully visit Knossos, the most well-known of the ancient Minoan palaces. I realize my blog entries thus far have been a little short on substance, so hopefully I'll come back with lots of interesting tid-bits for you history buffs. Or at least some good pictures. Maybe I'll just provide you with links to books to read for the historical part:-D

After spending an hour or two at Knossos (I know, I know...I could probably spend DAYS there and not see everything...whatever) I will proceed on to Ayios Nikolaos, "the center of Crete's most upmarket tourism" according to the Rough Guide. It is supposed to be a very picturesque, pretty place and I'm looking forward to seeing it. I'll spend the night there, and then...

11 September: Depending on what time I wake up, and how much of the town I managed to take in the night before, I will head towards Sitia, which looks to be about an hour's drive. If I'm up early enough I plan to drive past Sitia and visit Vai and it's beach, which claims to have Europe's only date-palm grove. Afterwards, Chantal and I have plans to meet in the center of Sitia for dinner before retiring to her place for the night.

12 September: Heading back home via same road I came, I anticipate around a three and a half hour drive before taking a turn to the south to visit Anoyia, a town that sits just beneath the highest peaks of the Psiloritis mountain range. In addition to being the ideal location from which to visit the Idean cave, the village is also one of those that was pretty much razed by the Germans in retribution for the abduction of General Kreipe.

The Idean Cave is one of the two contested locations claimed to be the birthplace of Zeus (the other is the Dhiktean Cave a bit to the east and in a different mountain range), and the reports that Pythagoras and Plato both visited the cave make it enough of a draw for me, silly superstitions aside.

As for General Kreipe...I recently read the book "Ill Met By Moonlight" by one of the foreign fellows who helped abduct him, and the town of Anoyia is one of those that they had hoped to spare from retribution by making it look like no Cretans were involved in the abduction. Didn't work out as planned, and I'll be fascinated to see what one of the unfortunate villages actually looks like now.

13 September: Not sure how events will play out on the 12th, and whether I'll be able to vistit the cave on that day or have to wait until the next, but I hope to be home by nightfall on the 13th.