Then Change came to the Village

Change. It is as inevitable as the passing of seasons.  

Agios Nikolaos, our village

And now change has come to our village. Slowly at first, it seemed, now picking up speed and with a domino effect. It isn't a single change, mind you, but a gestalt or pattern of changes, that has caused both delight and disappointment among those living in this slice of the Greek Peloponnese. 

Agios Nikolaos, just south of Kalamata

Our small fishing village is Agios Nikolaos. With a year-round population of a few hundred, it sits on the edge of the Messinian Gulf, cradled in the base of the towering Taygetos Mountains and set amid olive groves. It expands with visitors during the warm months and shrinks back to size in the late fall and winter.  

There is a real estate office in the village now

The heart of the commercial area of town offers kafenions (coffee shops), bars and eateries. There is a single clothing store, open seasonally.  A year-round hardware store and nursery are found a bit out of town, as are two gas stations. A dozen or so fishing boats remain based in our harbor. 

As of last year, we also have a real estate office that announced its arrival with the installation of fancy signage.  It offers an inventory of homes and property. At least one of those properties posted on that board in the photo is for sale - asking price 850,000 euros.

Yes, change has come to the village.

Change in the Village

Captain Antonis and his boat - Agios Nikolaos

'Kalimera, Captain!' I called out to our friend, Captain Antonis, as he worked on his boat in the harbor.  I blew him a kiss as I walked by on the harbor road.  'Kalimera, Jackie!' he called out blowing me a kiss in return. Seeing him and his fishing boat in the harbor and exchanging greetings, is one of the things that hasn't changed in the village. 

We were among the first to take the Captain's excursion

However, Captain Antonis might actually be one of the village's first change agents. Two years ago, he began taking groups out to experience reeling in the net, sorting the catch, then touring along the coastline, serving lunch and making plenty of swimming or fishing-by-pole-from-the-boat stops before returning several hours later.  

 

Captain Antonis reels in fishing net

His new venture is one of the most popular changes in town. It was announced by a small sign at harbor's edge and word of mouth among his friends. 

While the captain's change was subtle, others can't be missed.  The most recent -- and the one seeming to cause angst among expats and soon-to-be-arriving tourists, is the sale of our local supermarket chain. 

Katerina's is closing!

Let me tell you, if you want to get speculation to an all-time high and nerves jangling among those who don't like change, just start talking about changing the small grocery store chain serving our area. We have two independently owned supermarkets; one of which will continue operating every day but Sunday, as it always has while the other closes temporarily for a change of ownership. 

Turns out the news of the sale is true. We wait to learn of the new operating hours. Because our Katerina's market chain is locally owned and it will be different having a new chain operating shops in its place. One of the Katerina's stores - the one in our village -- closed last week for renovation by the new owners. 

Litsa's Katerina's closed this week and will reopen under new ownership

It and three other Katerina's will open as a Kritikos stores, part of a Greek grocery chain that got its start on the island of Aegina as a mom-and-pop shop decades ago; now with hundreds of stores across the country.  We will miss the retiring Litsa who oversaw our small store's operation, but staff members are all returning as employees of the new store. We are among those rather excited about this change, having seen Kritikos outlets elsewhere in Greece and knowing that no one is losing their job.  

Kritikos on the island of Spetses

Just down the road from the little grocery store, a new upscale restaurant opened in a renovated stone building along the harbor where a long-time favorite, but seasonal, restaurant had operated for years.  While we miss the traditional restaurant, the new one, Medikon, quickly became a favorite of ours and others.  As a full-time resident here, I can tell you it is nice to have year-round-eating-out options in the village.

Dining at Medikon - interior courtyard

The food is so good there, that on our recent cruise we found ourselves comparing a specialty dining venue on the ship with our hometown eatery as being, 'as good as Medikon!' We no longer need to travel to Athens for a fine dining experience. Change has come to the village.

Souvlaki, pizza and Medikon - our harbor is lined with new eateries

Next door to Medikon, a pizza place - a sister to the one in neighboring village Stoupa - opened a couple years ago. Then the souvlaki place next to it changed ownership earlier this year and expanded its operation and waterfront presence. The souvlaki place even offers home delivery!

Growing Pains

We've found the most difficult part of change has been the goodbye's it has brought with it. We welcome the new but miss the old familiar faces and hangouts. 

My friend Aspacia - a casualty of change?

Many of you have come to know through these posts my friend, Aspacia, who lived next to the ATM. It is this woman with whom I exchanged plant starts and hugs throughout the year. She spoke no English and my Greek was limited. I gave her a poinsettia each Christmas, she gave me fresh eggs. She and her husband sold honey from their home. One day they were there, it seemed, and the next day construction was underway.

New home of something - but not Aspacia 

A sleek glass door now leads into a renovated space where they made their home for the decade we've been here. No one in the village seems to know where they have gone. Nor what is going into the commercial space.

But it was the closing of Gregg's Plateia in January, that probably sent the most shock waves through not only this village but neighboring villages as well.  For 15 years it had been the place you went when you needed food, drink, help, advice, a laugh or a hug.  Gregg, his mom Freda, wife Kathy, and their sons, along with longtime employee, Nikki, were celebrated at an impromptu closing party where well wishes were offered, and tears were shed. 

Our visitors always made a stop at Gregg's Plateia

The business closed and the building is being renovated. It will house a meze restaurant owned by the same people who opened Medikon. Gregg has just announced he will begin a transfer service, taking passengers to and from Athens and Kalamata. Freda is enjoying time with family in Australia.  

No one was a stranger at Gregg's - Freda and a guest from Arizona

We are all eager to try the new place, yet nearly six months later, it doesn't seem right not having Gregg's Plateia in the village. 

The bus still inches through town at least twice a day!!

Maybe COVID lockdown gave rise to the changes. Maybe it has been the impact of the growing numbers of expats - those like us -- who've been charmed by the place and want more than a vacation-sized serving of life here.  

Maybe it is the Greek government's push to expand tourism to year-round and in still-developing tourist destinations. In May the Peloponnese Tourism folks and the City of Kalamata hosted a conference of more than 300 travel writers, bloggers, content producers, and influencers as we are all called now. I can assure you, those attending loved what they saw of this area! 

Agios Nikolaos

Did I mention that we now have a hang-gliding launch pad in the village behind Agios Nikolaos and its not unusual to have a glider land near Pantazi Beach, just to the south of the village?

That's it for this week. Thanks for being with us again - hope you will be back next time when I ponder expat life. We have heard from many of you and it seems you are contemplating expat life in Greece. It may be time to tell you a bit more about it - the good, the bad and the ugly!  Safe travels to you and yours

Surprisingly Stunning Saigon

By whatever name -- Saigon, as it has long been known, or by its actual name, Ho Chi Minh City -- is a city both stunning and full of delightful surprises. 

Saigon, Ho Chi Minh City full of surprises

Even though it had been on our travel bucket list for nearly three decades, we didn't come with any expectations; no 'must see' or 'must do'. We simply wanted to see as much as we could in the nearly three days, that we had to explore this sprawling megalopolis. And maybe that is why we found it so full of surprises, and so stunning.

Here, unlike Cambodia, we explored on our own. . .on foot.  A bit warm with temperatures in the low 90F's but with good walking shoes, quite easy to accomplish.

City Hall patterned after Paris's Hall de Ville

This city was our last port of call and one of the reasons we had chosen this cruise aboard the Oceania Nautica itinerary for our 10-day late February getaway. 

The polluted Saigon River looked better at night

The murky river route that led us to the city (you can read about it here) didn't give us any reason to expect much. The stereotype of communist countries had me expecting to find a big city as drab, gray and polluted as the river we traveled to get to it.

Rolls-Royce and Communist Country didn't compute

 And that certainly was a misassumption on my part!  Clean tree-lined streets were home to high end fashion boutiques offering the ultimate latest designs in in home decor, clothing and shoes.  We certainly didn't expect to happen upon a Rolls-Royce dealership across the street from City Hall. . .a showroom so exclusive that you had to show your passport to get into the store!

The Scout reflecting on a Rolls-Royce on display

As 'Saigon', the city had been the capital of the French Colony of Cochinchina and later the Independent Republic of South Vietnam from 1955 to 1975. It became Ho Chi Minh City in 1976, named for the founder of the Communist Party of Viet Nam and the country's long-time leader.

A portrait of Ho Chi Minh dominates in the city's post office

Admittedly, our visit was short. We had just an appetizer-sized sample of the city with our explorations limited to its District 1, an area chockablock with some of the city's most beautiful French colonial buildings lining its wide elegant boulevards.

The Majestic opened in 1925, one of the city's oldest and elegant

Being fans of historic hotels, we headed to the Hotel Majestic to celebrate The Scout's birthday which fell on one of our days in port. The five-story hotel is built in French colonial and French Riviera style and its rooftop bar overlooks the Saigon River. It was a perfect place for a birthday toast!

Fresh mango margaritas at the Majestic Hotel

We sipped fresh mango margaritas, one of the hotel's specialty drinks and agreed this might be a good base should we return for a larger sampling of this city. 

Spring rolls at the Rex Hotel rooftop

Choosing between it and another historic hotel will be a tough decision though. The Rex Hotel, once a hangout for American officers and war correspondents in the 60's and 70's, quickly became a favorite of ours. 

Coffee mocha at the Rex Hotel

We made its rooftop bar -- once known as the home of the Five O'Clock Follies -- a regular stop each morning for iced coffee mochas.  We also had appetizers - the best spring rolls we've ever eaten -- and drinks there one evening.

Daily war press briefings at 5 pm in the Rex rooftop bar.

The elegant building housing the hotel was opened in 1927 as a car dealership. It wasn't until 1961 that the first guests experienced what that year opened as The Rex Hotel. 

The Rex Hotel and its famed rooftop bar

During the Viet Nam War in the 1970's its rooftop bar was the site of daily press briefings which were nicknamed the 'Five O' Clock Follies' by U.S. journalists who are said to have found the officer's optimism, shall we say, somewhat misguided.  

Courtyard of the War Remants Museum

Several blocks away the building that housed the U.S. Information Service, has become home of the War Remnants Museum. Previously called the Museum of Chinese and American War Crimes, it was a somber place where the war's atrocities and its impacts on the everyday Vietnamese citizen, were documented through pictorial displays, video, art displays.  It was as horrifying to me as the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C.  We spent far less time than the guidebook's recommended two hours.   It isn't a place for everyone. I am glad we went. It is good to see both sides of the story, the old journalist in me, kept reminding us.

The French-era post office - a popular tourist stop these days

We continued sightseeing, by visiting the enormous French-era post office built between 1886 and 1892. While still operating as a post office, the place is a popular tourist destination.

The Opera House, officially known as the Municipal Theatre

Our cruise ship shuttle bus stop was across the street from the city's Municipal Theatre, better known as the Opera House.  It, like so many of the sights, were magnificent.  But in the end, it was those scenes of everyday life that we will likely remember the longest. A small sample of them:

A supply warehouse on the dock 

Our ship cabin faced the dock, so we were entertained by watching the coming and goings of commerce.  A large warehouse, storing all sorts of goods, seemed a hub of activity all day long.  

Of course, the street congestion as seen from our bus made its way to and from the ship, will also be long remembered. (Not to mention trying to cross those streets on foot!)

Typical traffic congestion in Saigon, Ho Chi Minh City

And the school children. They came by the busload to visit the Ho Chi Minh Museum just around the corner from our berth.  They found our shuttle bus and we cruise passengers to be of interest and loved it when we waved to them.

School children waved in greeting

Our time was too quickly over. We set sail for Singapore where we disembarked and made a dash to the airport for our flight back to Kuala Lumpur.  After a night there and our Southeast Asian adventure was in the history books.  

Thanks for coming along with us once again.  We will be back with more travel tales and hope you will be with us! Safe travels to you and yours ~

Good Morning Viet Nam!.

Arriving in the very early morning hours we found ourselves in a monochrome world; one that even muted the sunrise. Good morning, Viet Nam! 

A muted sunrise on the Saigon River, Viet Nam

Because our cruise ship carried only 625 passengers, it was small enough to dock in Ho Chi Minh City. That meant we had a bit of a river cruise traveling up the Saigon River, at the break of day. Those enormous cruise ships can't make it up the river, so another plus for small ship cruising.

 

River traffic on the Saigon was fascinating.

This was the destination we had been waiting for on this 10-day Southeast Asian cruise. Aboard the Oceania Nautica, we'd set sail from Bangkok, Thailand and had visited Koh Samui, Thailand, then spent a day in Cambodia. We spent two days at sea thanks to stormy weather to our north and finally we were approaching Ho Chi Minh City, still called by some, Saigon.

The Saigon River, a journey in itself

One of my favorite parts of cruising is arriving at a port, especially one that we've never been to before. And this was certainly that! The everyday sights and sounds are every bit as interesting to us as are the 'tourist attractions' that await on land.  I guess we'd ascribe to the theory that in cruising, the journey is every bit as interesting as the destination itself. The Saigon River didn't disappoint.

Entering the mangrove lined river

Remembering 'that' war

The majority of our fellow cruisers were of the age to have lived through the Viet Nam war years. The Scout, on this journey, recalled his luck in having a military draft lottery number of 365, virtually an assurance he wouldn't be called to serve in the Southeast Asion conflict. I was a teenager who remembers the horrors that appeared in U.S. headlines. My memories of what had actually taken place here were as hazy as the atmosphere.

Along the Saigon River

For others on the ship, the memories of the war were much more vivid.  One of our fellow passengers, a Vietnamese lady, was returning back to visit her country. She had been one of the 'boat people' who had managed to escape.  

Another man, who had served in Viet Nam, stood next to us at the railing as we entered the river. He gazed out to sea as if seeing a scene from decades ago, and said, "We were out there. Our boat was out there. . .we saved 150 of them. . .they wouldn't have made it, had we not been there." 

A bridge under construction on the Saigon River

He then pulled out his wallet and retrieved a folded bill, a Vietnamese 'dong' as their currency is called. He showed it to us, saying, 'I've carried this with me since then.' He gave it a final glance, folded it up and tucked it and the memories it held back in his wallet and then continued to gaze at the sea. 

Up a Hazy and Polluted River

I'll admit that we've become spoiled by the crystal clear, deep blue and green waters that surround us in our adopted country, Greece. Some days the clearness and color intensity stop us in our tracks - so beautiful, that it doesn't look real, as in the photo below:

So you can imagine our reaction to the Saigon River pollution. I took this shot and several others of the free-floating debris that we traveled through to reach the dock. It seemed endless. While motor vehicles and scooter pollution contribute to a hazy - polluted - atmosphere at times, we lucked out and had blue skies. 

But the polluted river has so many sources of contamination that it doesn't seem to stand a fighting chance at clearing up anytime soon.

A current of garbage making its way to sea

Since returning and preparing to write this post, I have been reading about the sad state of the Saigon River -- actually, somewhat startling, in this day and age of world-wide environmental focus. There are so many sources of pollution it is mind-numbing.  Industrial, agricultural and population-generated waste are all blamed for the river's pollution.  Most recent articles about the city say leaders are 'looking at' the waste problem - sadly, none report any actions being taken.  

Pollution in the Saigon River

We docked some three hours after entering the river. Our stay in this city of about nine million people was for the better part of three days. By the second day the ship was asking guests to conserve water because they were not taking on water here.  I can see why!

One morning as we made our way into the city, we saw a shop owner vigorously sweeping the waste that had accumulated on the sidewalk in front of his small business. It was an admirable effort until he swept the containers and garbage into the storm water drain instead of putting them in a garbage can!

Approaching Ho Chi Minh City

While our introduction to this amazing city was a bit off-putting due to the pollution and haze, it was a fabulous stop in a most amazing city. It exceeded my expectations tenfold. We are both saying a return visit will be in order. Next post will focus on all that is stunningly beautiful in this, the largest city in Viet Nam.

Until then thanks for joining us today.  Wishes for happy and safe travels to you and yours~

Adrift in the South China Sea

 Adrift, is probably too strong a word. As in reality, we simply sailed in circles for a couple of days.

Tender at the side of our Nautica ship

We were sailing from Cambodia to Nha Trang, our first stop in Viet Nam, on a 10-day Southeast Asian adventure aboard Oceania's Nautica. But when we checked the ship's navigational map, it appeared our ship was headed back the direction from which we had come. We joked with others at breakfast that someone had better tell the captain we were supposed to be going the other way.

Blue line shows our circling the South China Sea

Turns out the captain got the last laugh. We were going just the way he intended. The morning announcements confirmed we were going back the way we came as we were getting away from the storm and rough seas that would prevent our visit to Nha Trang. As the blue line on the map above indicates we didn't move very far either direction for a time.

Instead of one day at sea, we'd have two. Now we both like sea days, but when the selling point of the cruise had been two stops in Viet Nam, the news, I will admit, was disappointing. 

Koh Samui tenders were open to the sea and sun

But the port we were skipping was a' tender port'; one that requires the ship to anchor some distance out at sea, passengers descend a portable stairway attached to the side of the ship and board small boats that take them back and forth between the port and ship. 

Sometimes the shuttle runs in those 'lifeboat' tenders that dangle at the side of the ship and other times they are provided by the port. In Koh Samui, Thailand, we had colorful Thai tenders that opened to both the sea and the sun.   

Our ship at sea in a tender port, Koh Samui, Thailand

Neither of the small boat options would be good in a storm when the ship is a healthy distance from the shore.

View from the Nautica Horizon's Lounge

It was a good reminder that the best laid travel plans don't always work out, especially when traveling on the sea and subject to the whims of Mother Nature and the weather gods.   The nice thing about being on a cruise ship with such an itinerary change was not having to scramble to find an additional night's accommodations nor change airline tickets. 

For two days, the ship and the sea would be our world.

Days at Sea. . .

In today's cruise world, our ship with just more than 600 passengers, is considered small.  Yet, it came with a choice of dining venues (fine dining to grilled hot dogs and milk shakes), there was musical entertainment, a small casino, theater, movies, lectures, cooking demonstrations, and a wonderful wood-paneled library where you could spend hours. 

Staying on board was not tough duty.

Morning coffee on our cabin's deck - a daily event

We didn't completely avoid that storm and our ship was rocked both evenings of our sea days with wind and waves. Think of a cradle rocking from side to side and you've got an idea of the motion.  It was not frightening, but somewhat upsetting to those who don't have strong stomachs - luckily, we aren't among those folks.

Sun and sea beaconed on those sea days

The weather was hot, usually in the 80F to 90F, or 26 - 32C, range.  The chaise lounges at poolside called out to many of our fellow passengers. 

Our cabin - Oceania Nautica

We opted for the comfort of our cabin where we'd grab one of several books we'd purchased along the way and spend most of the afternoon reading.   

One of our delightful crew members

A highlight of any cruise for us is getting to know members of the staff. . . and sea days certainly give you time to visit with staff.  All of the service and hospitality personnel are primarily young people from all over the world. They are eager to talk about their families and the countries from which they come.  Their home country used to be printed on their name tags, but Oceania has quit doing that for whatever reason.  

A favorite Happy Hour waitress was from the Philippines. The ship's next cruise segment would get her back to the Philippines and afford her a day-long visit with family - she was thoroughly excited.  But, the 28-year-old, added, she was in her eighth contract on the ship. She'd begun with the idea of doing a single six-month contract and had liked it so well, she found herself signing up for more.

Senior Staff introduced at the Captain's Cocktail Party - guess the Chef

There is usually one staff member who stands out above all others for us and on this cruise, it was Aye.  This livewire seemed to work 24/7 behind the buffet counter. Always full of life, she was calling out greetings and flashing her smile whether she was serving early morning breakfast or late-night buffet.  

My name is Aye, that is A not I

'My name is Aye,' she explained one morning, 'That is A not I.' Aye hails from Myanmar. And that is all that I learned about her as her job serving at the buffet didn't allow much chat time. However, in that brief name discussion I told her I was Jackie.  From that point on she no longer greeted me as 'Ma'am' but flashed her smile and would call out, 'Miss Jackie'.  

Aye charmed us all

One evening in Viet Nam, she was dressed in a traditional Vietnamese outfit to help serve a special Asian Buffet dinner.  While always adorable, on that particular night she was simply stunning. I asked if I could take her photo and if I could share it with my friends on social media.  I stopped her in her tracks, she was so flattered: 'Oh Miss Jackie, you want my photo? Of course!' 

Early on I predicted that with her personality and skills, that we would likely have her as a cruise director one day. As our cruise went on, I changed the prediction: this young woman may well be the company's CEO one day!

And with the photos of Aye against a backdrop of Ho Chi Minh City, you have probably figured out that we eventually arrived in Viet Nam. HCMC was stunning and will be my focus next time around! Hope to have you back again and bring some friends with you! Until then wishes for smooth sailing to you and yours~