Drassi Valley Walk.

We set off to try to walk off some of the over eating and drinking we've had to do over the last few days and enjoy some of the wonderful weather we are having at the moment...it's been in the mid 20's!! Very unusual for us. Yes, I know and I'm sorry to everyone who has been suffering hardships due to the awful weather many of you are having at the moment.
Firstly, look at these!! composting toilets!! In a play/bbq area. We were amazed when we first saw them.
This area is open to all and is very popular in the summer time, there's an oven, bbqs and 2 sinks with running water. Take a closer look at the sinks.. they've been hewn out of a huge piece of stone.
The valley is full of orange and lemon trees groaning with fruit at the moment, (guess what I'll be making in the coming weeks..loads of lemon curd and marmalade, yum!
There are also olive groves here and as we walked along we could hear the hum of the generators being used to enable the electric pickers to work.

This is an ancient tree, probably been producing olives for hundreds of years. The texture of the bark is fantastic.
No, I don't think we'll climb up there today, just an amble around, it gets cold very quickly at the moment.
Back to the bbq area and the plane trees with the strange fruit. There's a source of water here which all the locals come to collect assuring us it's the best water for miles...
I'd like to wish everyone who reads my blog... peace, love and happiness in the coming year.

I, for one will try to be more peaceful, more loving and happier, I said TRY..... people who know me will chuckle at that! I'll have alot to be happy about in June when the new arrival makes it's first appearance.....can't wait!!

Take care x

Celebrations...

Christmas Day 2009

Geoff joined a group of friends for a swim at Potamos Beach, Malia.

The sun was shining and the sea was like a millpond!!

He described it as 'bracing'.
My friend Chris's husband Jeff also took the plunge, along with Jane.
Jane also entertained us with carols played on her cello.
Sandy, Chris, Geoff and I then set off for our alternative day.

We found a gorgeous little church tucked into a cave, halfway down a cliff facing the sea. We brewed up the camping kettle and settled down to eat Homity Pies, butterfly cakes and mince pies.
The view from the church was tranquil, just the sound of the waves gently lapping the shore and the distant sound of the goats' bells jangling as the goats scampered precariously on the rocks above us.
We ambled back, stopping to explore a tiny cove which we will be revisiting to gather driftwood and pebbles (more later!)
On arriving home, we enjoyed a marvelous feast that Sandy had brought with her, which consisted of delicious mousaka and a stunning apple and mincemeat crumble with home made custard....along with ample alcohol.

Another Christmas adventure with Sandy and Chris,

enjoyed by all !!

How was your day?

Some Wonderful News...

Remember this glorious day??
Bethan and Matt's wedding day in Sept?
Guess what? They are pregnant.....
Hoorah! Congratulations to you both!
We are all so happy, it's our first grandchild and Gareth is so looking forward to being an uncle.
Matt's parents are on their way to to Saudi at this moment to celebrate Christmas with them.
I have no photos of the wedding at the moment..eeek!! as they were all in my laptop when it died.
Yes, I've learnt a lesson!!
The baby is due in June, as soon as January comes it won't be long at all!!
I'm so excited!!!

Remember the kittens we saved?? Well, this one is the one we kept..meet Lily (Savage)
This is one of her quiet moments.

Oh, yes, can't forget Dewi... he's not learnt anything yet. Saying that, he does obey Geoff. Me??? no way, he just eats my things..Crocs, boots, scark, pjs, you name it, if it smells of me, he chews it! Any ideas on how we can stop him?

Lastly, look who will be going to live in Saudi? He needs some eyes then he'll be winging his way to wait for a little friend to be born. My knitting needles are steaming!!
Take care

The Camera Never Lies.......

Whilst dog walking last week, I though I'd try to take some evocative photographs. You know the sort,

classic tiny white Greek church in the middle of nowhere.

But, no, what's this?? Where did that come from??

Oh no, there's dozens of them!!!
I can hear you say it..Hasn't she got better things to do with her time? Doesn't she know Christmas is nearly upon us? Why isn't she shopping/cooking/ wrapping presents??
My excuse..I have a cold and we don't really make a big commercial thing of Christmas. None of my neighbours will be out buying Christmas trees, turkeys, presents they can't afford.

p.s As you can see from a comment left on my last post, my son was not the only visitor we had...more later!!

While I've Been Away...

...I've completed several projects and I've started a few too.
Some people like knitting socks, some people like knitting hats, others....??
I really enjoy knitting lacy scarves..don't know why..maybe it's repetition of the pattern? the soft yarn? Just don't know!

Now this looks abit strange, I must admit, I didn't have a model at hand when I took the photo. It's aran yarn, and when worn should look like the photo below...

This pattern was kindly sent to me by Cocoa and Blankets after I'd admired it on her blog.

I don't often do soft furnishings or "useful" things, give me a quilt anyday!! But I thought I'd try my hand at this little make up/ toilet bag.. What do you think??
Just to the right of it you can see my son Gareth's arm (in a t-shirt) He was over last week for a short break and the weather was truly wonderful. He made his way over from the UK to Crete by train and ferry stopping at Budapest, Sofia and Athens. On his return trip he went back to Athens then to Patras, ferry over to Bridisi, up to Rome, then to Zurich and back to the UK. He works for Rail Bookers so it was a fact finding tour as well as a quick visit to see us. So, if you ever want to know what the trains are like between Sofia and Athens or want a hotel room in Budapest, you know who to call... he's assured me his article will be blogged on Rail Bookers website next week.

Morning has Broken

As I mentioned yesterday there are a several reasons I've not been blogging recently.
One is that I've spent the majority of nights for the last 5 weeks sleeping away from home... working obviously!
I love early mornings and when you rise and have this view from your window it's a bonus, well, I think!!

Even though some morning skies are the colour of dishwater, I still find it breath-taking!!

Some are simply magnificent.
Dawn is early here, approximately 6.30 am. Which is good as I sit for ages and just stare at the sky as it changes minute by minute.

All is Not What it Seems..

Hello there!!
I'm back...
I'm using a dinasaur of a PC after my laptop decided to die.
It's not the only reason I've been away and I'd like to thank all the kind emails I've recieved from so many blogging friends.
So, look at these photos..
they are of the small village of Plaka near Elounda.

It's become part of the set for the film 'The Island' based on the book of the same name written by Victoria Hislop. You can see the island, Spinalonga, behind the fake wall in the above photo.

The story is fictional but based on the last years of the occupation of Spinalonga by lepers.

It's was amazing to see how authentic the set was!

Cheese anyone??

Yes, it's a cheesecake!!
A delicious concoction from the best wedding in North Wales..
I'm sorry I've not been around, many reasons..but I promise to do better soon.
If anybody wants a taster of what's to come, go to
John and Lindsay's blog
Hopefully, I'llbewith you very soon
Byeeeee!!

Animal Farm...

I just don't know where the time is flying to..
I blink.. another week has gone by.. is it a sign of old age??
Geoff is working everyday,but we had a bit of a scare last week when he came home feeling rough.. as he has 8 or 9 people in the Land Rover 7 days a week, it's inevitable that he worries about contracting some nasty bug.
So, Thursday night, Geoff exploded from both ends all night.. nasty nasty nasty!, He looked awful and had to cancel the Friday's drive.
I nursed him all day, he didn't want for anything!! Such a saint, I hear you whisper!!
Saturday he was still not 100% but went off to work..
Saturday night, I felt rather weird..guess what!! All hell let loose, I didn't leave the bathroom all night...
Of course, morning comes and I'm left, home alone...
Today, my headache has gone and I've eaten toast but don't make me laugh, feel like I've broken all my ribs( from all that retching!!)
Enough!!! I hear you cry!!
Ok,so, above, photos are latest of kittens. Yes, they do leave the cage but I can't photograph them then as they run faster than me!!

These are some donkeys that live at a Donkey Farm above Ierapetra. It's a charity run by an English couple.
We go there to dig up the donkey poo for the kypos.

And lastly, look at Dewi..hasn't he grown!!
He's fine, loves to go on long walks, but can be a stubborn little (not so much little anymore) cuss!
We've only one angel fish now!
I'm on nights for a week now, then a plane trip to Wales, can't remember why though....
AAAAaaaaaaaggggggggghhhhhhhhhhh!!
I'm SO excited!!!

Why Don't I Keep My Nose Out of Things..

Ok, there I was waiting for a lift..
minding my own business.... a neighbour walks past with a heavy bin bag....we pass the time of day.... Only one thing.. I can hear a persistant meaowing, it's only when she passed I realised the sound was coming from the bin bag that she was the throwing into the communal refuse bins across the road.
With Leonie and Judith, we foraged in the smelly bin and amidst the maggots and other daily rubbish we found 4 kittens tied inside another bag.

We all know the Greek attitude to cats and dogs is rather, shall we say.....ok!... dubious.
But why, oh, why, didn't this woman, if she didn't want the kittens,drown them at birth.. they were well fed, cared for and tame and 5-6 weeks old. Instead she stuffed them in a plastic bag and then piled all her other rubbish on top and walked down to a refuse bin with them squealing..

They are being looked after and will be hopefully adopted by people in the Netherlands, Germany and other European countries.
The charity V.O.C.A.L. arranges fostering (which I'm doing, much to Dewi's excitement) and adoption. They also arrange neutering of cats .

Neither Geoff or I are cat lovers but hate the fact that people here are reluctant to have their cats and dogs neutered, claiming it weakens them. or, best of all, the males are not so macho!!

p.s.
As some of you may know Greece tried for the 3rd time to go smoke free from July..
We thought it was going really well, until we went to a reopening of a pizza restaurant, owned by a local Cretan . Brand new premises in the centre of Neapoli (not a tourist area)
The guy at the cash till, next to the sevice area, lit up!! He was serving all the takeaways with a cigarette hanging from his bottom lip..
It's count down to wedding now..5th Sept..
Really excited, Geoff has time off, we have the tickets to Manchester..
I've NOT got my outfit
I'm NOT at the weight I expected to be
but I'm still walking miles up mountains at 6.30 in the morning (and enjoying it)
Geoff is working every day with the Jeep Safaris, which is better than we expected at the beginning of the season.
I'm still cooking all the fab produce from our kypos and am planning to make jars of tomato sauce tomorrow.