In Greece ~ The Curse is Lifted!

 Last week we officially lifted the curse that had been cast upon us.  

Back in ancient Greece curses were a real thing. And for a time, I'd started thinking they were a real thing in this 21st century Greece as well.  It seemed as if we had been targeted by the famed and feared 'evil eye' and a curse or spell had been cast upon us.

Mati's to ward off the 'evil eye'

Although our Stone House on the Hill sports any number of 'matis' the Greek icons that are believed to ward off the evil eye, we had fallen victim to our curse sometime during or in the aftermath of 'those Covid years'.  

For that reason, I named it, the Covid Curse.

Amathus archeological site in Cyprus

In comparison to some Greek curses that have been cast over the centuries, ours was a mild one.  It thankfully was nothing at all like the one unearthed in 2008 during excavations of Amathus, the ancient city state in Cyprus. Archeologists there in 2008 discovered a lead tablet, believed to date back for centuries, on which was written, 'may your penis hurt when you make love' and with it the image of a man holding in his hand something described as being the shape of an hourglass.

Covid-cursed castaways?

Our curse was one that didn't inflict pain or hardship on us, just a bit of mental anguish and embarrassment. It seemed to have made us: castaways.

Visitors return to the village in droves.

While expat friends in the village began welcoming houseguests as soon as the Covid travel restrictions lifted, we waited . . . and waited . . .and waited.  No one came to visit. No one even mentioned coming to visit. In the pre-Covid years we had guests both coming to the village and to our home to see us and our world at regular intervals.

A long-haul flight between West Coast USA and Greece

For a time, we reasoned that it was the lingering fears of Covid that kept them away, or perhaps, the distance they would need to travel. The majority of our guests - back when we had them - came from Washington State in the US Pacific Northwest.  

 But then our friend Chuck, who hails from the same Washington town and now lives just down the road, started using a calendar to keep track of his upcoming guests. Then our expat friends from California, now just down the road the other direction in the village, started using a calendar to keep track of their guests. Another couple from Portland, Oregon has also been hosting guests from back home regularly.

Easter dinner with expat friends and their guests

Thankfully those expat friends who had guests let us share them - inviting us to join them for holiday celebrations, dinners, drinks or morning coffees.  Friends quit asking if we had guests coming anytime soon.

Finally, The Curse is Lifted

For a time, I actually thought that maybe what we needed was a 'curse expert', one who in ancient times, specialized in the writing of curses and spells, according to historian/archeologist and author Jessica Lamont. I figured if they could write a curse or spell, they could probably conjure up a removal incantation of some sort as well. 

Lamont, by the way, is an expert on the subject and her most recent book published by Oxford Press is titled, 'In Blood and Ashes, Curse Tablets and Binding Spells in Ancient Greece'. 

Curse was lifting. Dinner with two sets of visitors!!

Before we resorted to some sort of exorcism, we started seeing signs of the curse losing power. A blogger friend visited at the same time as friends returned to finish the visit, they'd cut short in 2020 when Greece closed down for Covid.

48 hours of guests. . .how great it was to see friends!

Then former neighbors of ours in Kirkland, WA, now of California, tacked on a side trip to the Mani to visit us as part of a whirlwind Greek trip.  We had a fabulous 48 hours with them in June.

The curse was officially lifted last week with the arrival of our first houseguest since November 2019.  

Curse was lifted: our first houseguest since Nov. 2019

My friend and writing colleague, Brian Cantwell, (cub reporters together in our 20's and then he became my travel editor at the Seattle Times, during my freelance years) arrived for a long weekend stay as part of his 10-day tour of Greece. Brian lives on a remote San Juan Island, called Center Island, year-round population of 10 households.  He adapted well to our rural Peloponnese expat world. He writes of life on his island at Cantwell's Reef. He also wrote about his time with us if you want his take on the visit!

Exploring our world with our guest

His arrival at the Kalamata bus station on a Friday kicked off a long weekend of eating, touring, drinking, touring, hiking and swimming that continued until his Tuesday departure.  

The curse was lifted!

It was like the olden days of having guests!  But just as he admitted being rusty at travel logistics (his first trip after Covid) we were a bit rusty at being hosts.  It was good to get back into practice again.

More to Come?

Our slice of the Mani

Between January and August 2023, some 18.76 million travelers to Greece transited the Athens Airport. That is 8% more than traveled through it in 2019, before Covid.   We are so thankful for our guests who were among them and who made the effort to get to the Mani to see us.  

We expats agree that folks back home don't understand just how much it means to us all to have friends and family who want to come and experience our slice of Greece.  We hope the trend continues.

Your travel tales:

Travel isn't for sissies!

And speaking of travel, we want to thank those of you who responded to our question last week about your unexpected travel detours and delays after you read of ours. Here's a sampling of your responses:

 Emily from California told us: 

 'Our latest travel nightmare was due to a late arrival and missing our connection on a SFO to Istanbul flight. Although we were whisked all over CDG (Charles de Gaulle airport, Paris), up and down elevators to the tarmac and sent in a van careening around planes, other vans, baggage carts, and meal wagons, we ultimately missed our connection. We then had to wait in CDG for 12 hours for the next flight to Istanbul, arriving in the middle of the night. On the return, we missed our connection from LAX to MRY and sat for 7 hours waiting for our 45-minute flight. Flying these days isn’t for sissies.' 

Tom and Jackie from Washington who traveled to Normandy echoed of her experiences with the Paris airport: 

'We have a history of dissatisfaction with CDG from past trips that was reaffirmed. We deplaned and walked the long hallways to Passport Control. The place was overwhelmed with travelers. We were sent to an Air Priority line to get faster service. Not so, other lines were moving while we stood not moving for over an hour and fifteen minutes. Fortunately, our driver waited, and we were able to get to Saint Lazare railway station in time for our noon departure to Rouen.'  

                                                                            ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

That's it for this week. Thanks for being with us! Olive harvest season is upon us in the Mani. We'll tell you more about autumn here in our next post. Until then safe travels to you and yours~

To Greece ~ The best laid plans. . .

Traveling between our US world and the Greek expat life we've chosen is a long haul no matter the route. We've come to see it as simply a condition of choosing to keep a toehold in two far distant points in the world. We make the trip back to the United States once a year. . .

A true long-haul flight between our worlds

Every once in a while, The Scout manages to find a route that shaves a bit of time off the trip while saving us some money.  He had done so this year. . .or so it seemed in the beginning. 

Gates at Kalamata International Airport

First, a bit of background for our tale:  British Airways (BA) flies a couple of times a week into our small Kalamata International Airport, a rather third world looking place that has two side-by-side departure gates, Gate 1 and Gate 2. It is international because flights from other countries land here. 

Its selling points are that it is easy to navigate, parking is 3 euros a day, it's close to our Greek home, and we can fly to Seattle from there, with a connection at London's Heathrow airport.  

We were flying round-trip Kalamata -Seattle - Kalamata although the price savings required a small, but manageable travel blip on our return flight. We would fly from Seattle to nearby Portland, Oregon -- a 30-minute flight -- on BA's partner airline, Alaska Air, and catch the BA flight to London from there.  

First leg: Manson to Seattle over Washington Mountain passes

Sounded simple enough at the time we made the reservation. We'd leave our Washington home at 9:30 a.m. Friday, Pacific Northwest time, make the four-hour drive to Seattle, have a few hours of time to spare at the airport, then some 20+ hours later arrive back at our Stone House on the Hill about 9 Saturday night, Greek time.

The Plans began Unraveling.

No matter how many times you confirm, recheck, and double-check travel plans these days, the travel gods still rule.  And sometimes they need a few laughs. This was to be one of those times.

Our plans began unraveling when we found the British Airlines check-in counter at SeaTac closed. A sign on the counter said it would open 3.5 hours before the next flight, problem was, it didn't say when that would be. A quick internet check showed it departing at 8 p.m. which meant the counter would open too late for us to check in for that little connecting flight to Portland.

Three heads are better than one 

Another woman traveler was in the same predicament. So, the three of us set off for the Alaska Air counters (at the opposite end of the airport). There, among the dozens of self-check-in kiosks, we finally spotted two humans staffing the Business Class counter.  The woman traveler went to one human, and we went to the other. 

Yes, we were assured, they could check us in! Problem was that they couldn't find our reservations nor the flight that British Air had booked us on to Portland. They called in reinforcements - three staff worked on our predicament and two worked on hers.  Finally, the five figured it out, tickets to Portland were issued and our bags were loaded on the conveyor belt.

Bags were heading back. . .were we?

While watching our bags depart, my mobile device pinged. An email from British Air had arrived saying our flight to London had been delayed by little over two hours, 'sorry for the inconvenience'.  

Our new London arrival time would be 2:15 pm. Saturday - 15 minutes after our flight for Kalamata left.

The Domino Effect

Ever notice that when things start going wrong it is like dominoes falling? Well, that was certainly the case with this trip: 

We were hiking back to the other end of the terminal, where the fast security line was located; glad to be part of the US trusted traveler program which allows us to use the speedy service. With all the check-in confusion that relaxing cushion of time we'd allowed ourselves was gone. We needed to get to the gate for the Portland flight. Wouldn't you know?  The speedy line was also being used by long-haul flight crews. We waited for some 80 crew members to be checked in before the 10 or so of us 'trusted travelers' were allowed through. 

Planning to have snacks and beverages at the airport, we hadn't eaten lunch. But no time for that now, we'd be lucky to at least get a final cup of Starbucks coffee before our flight boarded.

At the Starbucks counter a young man with bright blue hair - a color that rivaled that of the saleswoman in the phone store in my last post - took my order for a double latte. As I handed him my stack of dollars (it cost just under $7) he looked at the currency as if it were something repulsive and said, 'Oh, I can't take cash. . .' 

Okay. . .in retrospect, I could have dug out a credit card but that blank stare he gave me and my cash, simply broke the proverbial camel's back with the straw, 'Cancel the order!' I snarled as I stomped from the counter.

 

Sorry, no coffee on today's flight. . .

The Scout was disappointed at my failed mission. I assured him there was coffee on the plane. Our cheerful flight attendant promised it as soon as we were airborne. A few minutes into the flight, she picked up the microphone and, looking towards us, made a sad face, while announcing that our flight was going so fast there would be no beverage service.  

And we are finally off . . .late as promised

Better late than never - we were off!

In Portland, the BA representative issued us tickets all the way to Kalamata while noting we would miss that flight for which she had given us tickets. Ground staff in London would figure it out for us, she said with a smile. 

We actually learned what our new travel plans would be shortly before we arrived at Heathrow. Our flight attendant told us we'd be spending a night in London and flying to Kalamata the next day.

Flight connections madhouse at Heathrow

So many on our flight had missed connections that BA staff had set up a table outside the jetway and handed out dozens of new tickets from it.  Hotel, food and transportation vouchers had to be obtained at the Flight Connections desk, a place I'd call a centralized complaint/hysteria counter a train ride away in the massive Terminal 5. At the counter we fell in line with the dozens of others seeking vouchers.

Nearly an hour later with vouchers in hand, we were off to the bus stop where we'd just missed the hotel bus we needed. Nearly another hour later we were arriving at the nearby Radisson Blue Edwardian Hotel. It was 5 p.m.

At The Hotel - The Dominoes continued to fall

Lobby Radisson Blue Edwardian Hotel Heathrow

The opulent wood-paneled lobby adorned with a massive crystal chandelier was pretty welcome to these now weary travelers. Maybe this layover wasn't such a bad thing, we thought, until. . .  

'I am unable to give you a key to your room,' said the smiling desk clerk, explaining a system failure involving electrical and computer stuff had shut down the hotel's vital systems, like that of making room keys. Handing us a piece of plastic the size of a credit card, she said, 'This is the master key for the room. It is the only one that opens the door. If you lose it, you won't be able to get into the room and we won't be able to get you into the room.' 

You'd better believe we treated it with respect.

Plenty of vouchers - too bad the hotel wouldn't take them

The hotel's restaurant looked inviting. Called Steak and Lobster, it offered some nice menu choices and to our amazement the vouchers we each had were so generous that they covered even the most expensive menu item.  While sipping a pre-dinner glass of wine, The Scout asked if reservations were required. The good news, we didn't need reservations. The bad news, they wouldn't take the vouchers -- in either of the hotel's two restaurants (and not because of the system failure). 

It turned out that a 21-person tour group had also missed a flight and BA sent them to this hotel as well. The hotel had opened a conference room for us all, offering a buffet table meal of beef stew, mashed potatoes and steamed broccoli and cauliflower in exchange for the 23 pound ($28US) per person voucher.  

That proverbial straw snapped again. . .We ate in the restaurant on our own dime. . .and had a fabulous meal while vowing never to return to this hotel no matter what the reason we might find ourselves overnighting at Heathrow. 

Destination: Kalamata ~ Delayed

A new day. . .a new delay

Leaving the hotel in the early morning darkness on Sunday morning, we shouldn't have been surprised when we checked the departure board at the airport for our gate to find that the flight to Kalamata was 'delayed' - those travel gods were still laughing. 

We rejoiced when it really was only less than a half hour delay. We'd be home by mid-afternoon!

Kalamata's runway - finally!

Ready to leap out of my seat with joy when we touched down at Kalamata, my happiness was momentary . . .

With the small terminal some distance ahead, our plane stopped on the runway. 'Folks,' said the pilot, 'we've got too many planes in and have to wait for one to take off before I can enter the apron.'  Within minutes an Austrian Airlines plane raced past us on the runway and was airborne. 

But still, we didn't move.  

We sat. 

So close. . .Kalamata airport terminal

'Folks, again sorry for the delay,' began the pilot, 'but we've still got too many planes on the apron. It is going to be awhile. I am turning off the engine, feel free to come visit the cockpit, use the bathrooms, as it is going to be an hour.'

An hour! 

We both later admitted to having thoughts of hijacking the parked plane, forcing open the door and escaping using the emergency evacuation slide. Luckily planes were shifted, and we were at the terminal 45 minutes later.

Moral of the Story: Travel Gods need their jollies so be prepared.

It's been two weeks so we can tell this story and finally find some humor in it. And those of you who are looking for a reason, not to travel, you can't use this as a case in point, as it was an anomaly (we hope!). We've never had so many dominos of disruption falling on a trip.

We do tell it with a tag line of 'be prepared' when you travel these days. Prepare for delays, detours and other disruptions. 

* Pack your carryon for an overnight stay. I always pack change of clothes and toiletries in our carryon bags, 'just in case' and 'never' need them. This time they came in handy.

*Don't assume there will be time to grab food and drink.  Pack a snack with you.

* Have a 'disaster fund' for emergencies, like needing to pay for an unplanned meal or hotel room along the way. As we learned, even with vouchers, you may end up paying for items.

*And travel with some means of accessing the internet at wherever your destination might be. Airport staff and help desks are becoming scarce. There is an expectation that you will turn to the internet to check in, to find answers to questions, and to solve your own problems.  I can't imagine traveling without a mobile device or laptop nowadays.

The Stone House on the Hill

With those words of advice, I will end our travel tale. We are home on the hill in Greece and have no desire to see an airport anytime soon.  

We wonder how many of you have had travel plans upended in your recent travels.  Please share your stories in the comments below or shoot us an email. Let us know the problem and how it was resolved.  If enough of you participate, I will use your tales in the next blog post!  

Thanks for being with us today. Safe travels to you and yours!

You Can Go Home Again!

I disagree with Thomas Wolfe who penned the famous book, 'You Can't Go Home Again'.  You most certainly can go home again! We have done it annually since beginning our expat life in the rural Greek Peloponnese six years ago. 

Heading home at 40,000 ft.

Wolfe's 1940's book, by the way, is about a fledgling author who makes unflattering references to his hometown in his writings and finds that when he goes home again, his family and friends aren't pleased with the way he depicted the place.  

American home is at Lake Chelan, Washington State

The rest of us - who haven't penned such a piece - can certainly go home again.  All we need is the time and energy to do it. This year it has felt like both were a bit in short supply for us.

At Home in Washington 

And the only flack we get from family and friends is that we haven't allowed enough time to see them all.  I can tell you that when you are blessed to have lived 70 years and have a lifetime of accumulated friends, it just isn't possible to see them all during a month-long stay.

The Butte in the distance - Chelan, Washington

Of course, one might ask what is meant by 'going home' when you are an expat with roots in one country and strong ties to another.

I turned to one of my favorite writers, Frances Mayes, to see if she answered that question in her new book, 'A Place in the World, Finding the Meaning of Home'. She doesn't provide any answers, but certainly provides food for thought. Even travelers can relate to some of her observations.

Home is where. . .??

It has been a perfect read during our stay in the Pacific Northwest. I've not had much reading time though as we've found ourselves with far more on our to do list than will ever be accomplished and far more people to spend time with than is humanly possible. 

Whoosh. . .the month is gone. By the time many read this, we will be back in The Stone House on the Hill in the Peloponnese.  

The Rest of the Story

Because I told you about tackling that 'to do' list in my last post, I wanted to wrap up those tales before we leave:

My phone delivered to the door here - a treat!

The quest for a new mobile device (phone) for use in the U.S turned out to be a multi-week effort. I simply wanted to buy a newer phone from my service provider, Verizon. Told that I had a plan that didn't allow for the purchase, they sent me off to one of America's big box stores, Walmart, to buy the phone. When I returned to Verizon with the new phone so they could assist in the switch over, I found I had bought a 'locked' phone that only works with Consumer Cellular, another service provider.  

This time a different clerk - without bright blue hair - suggested a new phone plan for me which. . .drum roll. . .actually gave me the phone I had wanted to buy for free, just by changing plans. Thirty minutes later the new phone was working, and I returned the ordered phone to Walmart.

 I must note that in Greece phones are sold 'unlocked' meaning you can put any providers' SIM card in them, in fact two providers could exist in one phone.  This 'locked' business seems to be a US glitch.

Leading a duck's life at Lake Chelan in Manson

Our new bank account is up and running, after having passed all the identification and security checks initially required. However, the checks associated with it are lost in the mail. They were sent on Aug. 31st and should have been delivered a week ago (an automated voice told me that when I called the bank). 

 A trip to our local post office provided no answers as I had only a photo of the package sent by the bank, not a tracking number.  A second call to the bank finally got me to a human who couldn't help because we had not 'paid extra' for a tracking number. Paid extra. . .really??

Back in 2021 when it was a drive through affair

We failed to get our Covid booster shot while here. The newest vaccine doesn't hit the shelves until the week after we leave.  I was questionable for the shot as I came down with shingles in July and still have the rash.  It turns out a side effect of the shot could be shingles, or reactivating shingles. Always something new to learn, isn't there?

On the Flip Side

Our Stone House on the Hill in the Greek Peloponnese

Meanwhile back in Greece our neighbors report we've been without municipal water for several days on several occasions since we've been gone.  Facebook pages from our area show mountains of garbage that have accumulated at municipal bins.

No place is perfect, we've concluded.  But we still are happy to have two places in the world where we are surrounded by good friends and neighbors; places that we call home. We just may see them a bit differently than we did when we left them. And maybe that isn't such a bad thing. 

Again, thanks for your time with us. Hope you'll join us again next time when we will be writing from our slice of Greece~

 

Back in the Village

 We are back in the village. Not the Greek village, the American one.

Main Street Manson, Washington

Still shaking our heads at how rapidly the last year sped past, we are even more amazed that we are already at a midway point in our annual stay here. 

The Stone House on the Hill in Greece

Our expat life is one that involves keeping a toehold back in our homeland. Thus, we have a house in Greece where we live the majority of the year and one in America that we use for a bit of time each year. This American home has diversified -- and benefited -- our portfolio and provided a perfect getaway spot while serving as the 'fallback plan', should our health or Greece's residency requirements ever dictate a return to the States.  

A morning at home in Manson

Frankly, we like both places and are grateful we can be a part of each. We like having options.

And I know many of you reading this are considering options for expat life. There really is no one way of living an expat life; some choose to pack up and leave a country for good while others keep a toehold as we have done.  Some rent, some buy, some build. There is no one model that works. Your options are many and you need to choose what best fits you.   

Commuting between our villages

That said, we've learned over the last few years that a dual lifestyle, 8,000 miles and several time zones apart, isn't the easiest of lifestyles. It certainly never gets boring. It is far better than Sudoku at keeping our aging brains from going bad. 

Speaking of distance, the commute between our villages is a long one, usually spanning two days with some 14 hours of that in the plane. The good news is that we are able to fly from Kalamata to Seattle, but with a stop overnight in London. It cuts some three hours off our car travel time by not flying out of Athens. Still the journey and time zone changes take a toll on the brain and the body which slows us a bit for a few days no matter which direction we fly.

Mercer Island and Lake Washington approaching SeaTac

Because our time in the States is limited to a few weeks, we pack a lot into those weeks. There are simply tasks that must be done during each visit. And countless friends we try to see while in the area. Our calendar for this trip was full before we left Greece. 

 

Walk in vaccinations - easier than Greece

Long time readers may be surprised to learn that we still don't qualify for Covid booster shots in Greece (as we don't have their equivalent to a Social Security number, required for the shots) so that is high on our 'to do' list here. I block out a couple 'sick' days for them as I feel their impact. My trip to the dentist later this week promises another couple of days of reduced activity. Both shorten what is already a short window of opportunity.

'Cub' newspaper reporters still friends 40 years later

A life of all work and no play wouldn't be fun, so we also will have attended two reunions, hosted house guests, wined and dined with friends and had numerous coffee klatches by the time we return to Greece.

American Culture Shock

Our bank branch closed in our absence

The most amazing thing about our return to America is the dose of culture shock we get with each visit.  This year's tasks - to change banks and mobile devices - are almost tying Greece's red tape and bureaucracy. We're realizing once again that things 'ain't what they used to be'.  

A 'quick stop' at the new bank became a marathon session of showing identification and signing papers. "We don't like it any more than you do," said our young bank executive, "you can thank the Patriot Act for it." I honestly had to think a minute to remember what the Patriot Act is. . .hint, it was brought on by the events of 9-11. 

Lake Chelan in Manson

An attempt to upgrade our five-year-old U.S. mobile device should have been a task completed in the hour or so I allotted to it on the afternoon of our arrival in Seattle. 

Now, nearly two weeks into my quest, we are still without a new device. The biggest shock to me is that I can't call the phone company, . . .sorry, the term is now, 'service provider', and talk to a human. In Greece we walked in the phone store, bought a phone and picked it up two hours later after they had transferred my old device's contents to the new one. Done and dusted.  Here I've texted, chatted and interacted with 800- numbers and mechanical voices. 

Our visit this week to a Verizon (the service provider) retail store finally involved interaction with a real human; one with dyed Greek-blue hair, who was just about to order the phone we wanted. . .then she checked my phone number and said my service plan didn't allow her to order the phone.  Do what?!?!?!

So, true confession: I've resorted to the only option left for an American consumer with limited time: I am ordering from Amazon. In a week I will have a new phone delivered to the doorstep. 

Harvesting Americana

Harvest - a perfect time to be in agricultural areas

Our two villages are located in areas similar in geography and topography. One blanketed with vineyards and orchards, the other with olive groves and vineyards. Harvest of apples and grapes is underway here and by the time we return, we will be heading into olive harvest in Greece.  

My favorite vendor, Fran, at the Manson Farmer's Market

We've grown accustomed to - and love - the laid-back pace of our village worlds so I don't think living back in a metropolitan suburb as we once did in the States would ever again appeal.  We like the concept of walking to the grocery store or to the coffee shop/kafenion in our village lifestyle along the sea in Greece and the shores of Lake Chelan here. 

With that I will sign off as our first houseguest arrive today. I'll have more from this slice of American life in the next week or so.  Thanks for being with us and wishes for safe travels to you and yours~

The Mail in the Telephone Booth

 'There is mail in the telephone booth at the Kafenion,' wrote a neighbor on Facebook last week. 

Mail delivery in the Mani, Greece

While that probably sounds odd to those of you reading this, it was good news! It meant mail was being delivered again!  

Mail delivery, summer protests and road work are my topics this week.  While vastly differing subjects, each provides a look at real life in Greece this summer of 2023. This one is for those of you who turn a critical eye to my reports and photos of beautiful sunsets, of the quaint village settings and those featuring the fun times we have with friends here, and ask, 'But, what's it really like?'

Agios Dimitrios village

The dusty, abandoned booth in the small village of Agios Dimitrios, at the foot of the hill where we make our expat home in the Greek Peloponnese, seems to be one of the new 'substations' for mail collection.  Other mail drops (almost literally) are said to be somewhere outside the small grocery store in nearby Agios Nikolaos village and at a taverna in Stoupa village, just down the road.  

Of course, figuring out which of those places one might find one's mail. . .well, that it yet another story. Because our mail is addressed to a business (Mani Money) in Agios Nikolaos, it doesn't come to the phone booth near us. While they continue to deliver parcels to Mani Money, we are told, letter-sized mail isn't being delivered there. Those are going elsewhere. . .somewhere.

You've Got Mail. . .maybe, or maybe not!

You can't make this stuff up.  It happens in Greece.  And we expats find ourselves becoming so inured to it that we discuss the logistics of finding our mail as matter-of-factly as we do the weather.  

Now some techno-enthusiasts are probably wondering why 'snail mail' is even important these days.  It is here because many still receive phone, electric and water bills via snail mail. Believe it or not, a number of banking, government, and other official transactions often require us to present such a bill as part of our identification and authorization process. That paper copy has come in handy more times than you can imagine.

Delivery is also key to successful mail order, as on-line shopping is a means of commerce used by many of us living in this rural area. 

Mail at Gregg's - in the good old days

Many of you longtime readers, recall 'that back in the good old days' our mail was delivered regularly to Gregg's Cafe in Agios Nikolaos. In fact, it served for several years as our mailing address. We'd go have coffee and sort through the mail, picking up our own on an on-your-honor system.  The cafe owners kept a watchful eye out for us. They knew it - and us -so well that once my friend Marti received an envelope from Washington State addressed simply to 'Grandma' at Gregg's. 

That system crumbled when the village closed for Covid.

 

Covid shut down the village and mail delivery Gregg's pictured on left.

Our new delivery model operates as a self-serve, on-your-honor system.  Of course, if you see mail addressed to a friend now, you are likely to collect and deliver it as they may otherwise never find it again.  With the new self-service system, old mail is picked up and new mail replaces it. There isn't yet a timetable for when the new arrives and the old goes away.

 

Me in Covid days at the Stoupa post office

The new haphazard system was instituted after the real brick and mortar substation in Stoupa was closed this spring and its two employees let go. The original explanation had been that the operational contract had expired and a new one not yet awarded. Later media reports told a different story: several post offices were closed throughout Greece as a result of cost cutting measures. There was no indication they would be reopened. 

The Mani and our villages

For the time being, we are somewhat 'mail-less in the Mani'. But there are bigger things unfolding in Greece this summer, like. . .

The Towel Movement  

The Towel Movement, while you may not have read about it elsewhere in the world, is a headline- making topic in Greece.  It is the name given to a growing protest against what one might call, 'privatization' of Greek beaches.  The movement's epicenter is two Cycladic islands, Naxos and Paros, where citizens have issued the call to take back beaches. Technically Greek citizens have the right to access and use beaches when they please. In reality access has been limited on many popular beaches.

Stoupa's beach fills with sunbeds in the summer - all for rent

Over the years, beach-front hotels, tavernas, bars, and eateries have taking over beach areas in front of their establishments. They place sunbeds there which are rented out by the hour or day.  The businesses are required to pay for a license to operate a certain number of them.

Many here recall when for the price of a drink and some food one could use a sunbed. Now you pay rent and the cost of the food.  So, this summer it seems some beachgoers in some areas of Greece have had enough. They want their beaches open -and their cry is being heard by media and government officials. Their movement has been labeled The Towel Movement.

On the flip-side (of 'the towel') others observe that the beds are popular and being used, so what is the fuss? Most are removed in the fall and beaches return to their natural states.

Pantazi Beach just below us - in August 2023

In our area, Stoupa's main beach and its nearby cove beach, Kalogria, historically have served up the most options for sunbeds. But this summer Pantazi Beach, the beach just below us in Agios Nikolaos, welcomed Cube, a new beach bar and eatery. It offers sunbeds for rent as does the long-time Pantazi Beach Bar, operating at the opposite end of the beach.  And between the two, a beach vendor set up shop at water's edge offering kayak and SUP board rentals. 

All seem to be popular as the beds are often filled, and the beach is alive with the sounds and laughter of sun and sea seekers.

Pantazi Beach 2020

For the record, we aren't beachgoers, other than to sip coffee or krasi (wine) at a table at one of the two Pantazi beach bars - it is from there we will see how The Towel Movement shakes out. 

On the Road Again

The mail delivery might be topsy-turvy and the Towel Movement soaking up the public's attention, but our immediate focus is on being back on the road again.  Crews moved into town weeks ago determined to fix a section of the road along the sea that floods every time we have a major storm.  Over the years, the street surface has warped, and underground pipes have surfaced and broken. 

Road closed, take a right here. . .

The repairs though required closing the road that serves as the main north-south access road between Agios Nikolaos and Agios Dimitrios villages.  A smaller track road can't accommodate large delivery trucks and municipal garbage trucks.  

Someone was thinking outside the box when they came up with a brilliant, if slightly different, detour route. And I doubt if any environmental or shoreline protection agency was consulted before using:  The Beach. A rocky sort of area at the south end of the municipal parking lot.

The beach - a two-lane detour route; road to the left, sea to the right

Amazingly, the two-lane sand and rock road has worked well. Drivers have been courteous and cautious as they make their way past each other on a surface that could easily break a shock absorber if not traveled gently.  The repair work continues, siga, siga, slowly, slowly, just like we drive on the detour!

And that's enough 'behind-the-scenes' look at expat life in Greece for this time around.  We will be back with more travel tales and reports from Greece and hope you will join us again and bring a friend or two with you! Until then, wishes for safe travels to you and yours~