Rhythms

This never got published … it was written on around 9/ 10 October.

I was thinking – a propos of nothing in particular – of the rhythms of life here.

The rhythms of life here are quite marked. On a micro level Grammeno brought me early dog walks, as day broke, companionship, a return, a sit down, a swim if not windy, brekky, and then the day really started. Sitting observing , snoozing and so on. Eating…

Sometimes there was washing to do.

On a more macro level, here in Palaiochora, current rhythms are the winding down of the summer season -tourist shops are not re-stocking; restaurants have dwindling numbers of customers; more people have sleeves or legs, or even jackets; the port road is no longer pedestrianised; hotels are no longer full. The evenings are not really longer, but that is how they feel and darkness delivers itself earlier each day.

Trees will soon be fiercely pruned and wood stacked for burning; the olive nets are being prepared for the soon- to-be-harvested olives. Soon spirals of smoke will rise above roof tops and the smell of woodsmoke will catch the air.

However the weather is defiant remaining warm and sunny (30C today) .

Soon only the hardiest of restaurants and bars will remain open to host persistent locals and expats. Palaiochora lives on through cooler times and much of it turns dormant until around March. Dormant – not extinct like some locations, tourist hotspots.

From my recollections anyway.

And then, as the spring flowers erupt, people also will erupt with ladders and paint brushes, mops and brooms; streets become cluttered with domestic objects and hardware and doors are opened and layers of clothing discarded. Σιγά σιγά …

And today followed no rhythm. Arose late after a comfortable night and no struggling out of bed for the delights of the bog bucket. Sleep was slightly interrupted. Not sure why.

I took H for a wander along Azurri beach. Most of the hotel occupants are Dutch or German, not sure which. But two of them were early swimmers.

Brekki was a magnificent buffet arrangement, taken in the garden outside – by the road. Very delicious. with very staff of effusive helpfulness and welcoming to the procedures. Proper job orange juice too.
He at the front desk is thawing slightly. Or maybe he just wanted rid of us as T rambled on with ‘See you later’ … and ‘In a while… Crocodile…’ I don’t think it caught on.

Which reminds me that I saw a cyclist in a shiny white helmet heading towards Palaiochora. A shiny white helmet that started its journey out here from the UK in our car. Glad it was not a wasted trip for it and I hope it is not called upon for its protective qualities.

We returned to Grammeno to finish clearing up which did not take long. The car was quickly loaded. Chris came to help with a few items and the rubbish, and found a shoe, for all of which I am very grateful.

Everything I organised, T decided to inspect and reorganise. AKA muddle up. He offers to help, but cannot. Put the blue wheelie bag on top of the large brown bag becomes an inquisition as to what I am talking about .., which is apparently nonsense or ridiculous and then the divorce music starts.

I / we bade Chris and Maria, Bona and Dimitri farewell though we will pop back on Tuesday to wish E and The Bears a good journey home. Toni was very kind the other day, relieving T of the small wheelie bags and placing them by the car in the car park.

We drove the huge distance to place cheese and beer in the fridge in our hotel room and relaxed for a short while, before taking ourselves off to the pretty bay with the Cantina.

There we had freshly made kalitsounia and fries – no 00beer – and a lemonade. Very good service and stunning views. And I swam a short swim late in the afternoon. Just wonderful.