We drove to Rethymnon on Tuesday taking advantage of a break in the clouds but as we bumped along the main road we could see that the level of the sea was very high, the waves were cloudy white and quite a gale was blowing onto the shore. We stopped along the sea front and looked at the scene – so different from the height of summer with calm deep blue seas, shops and hotels all the way along thronging with people and goods for sale but now completely empty and looking rather miserable. The palm trees were bent over double under the force of the gale and we were glad to find a parking space and a cosy spot in Anna’s snug dining room. We chatted over lunch and met up with our friendly builder later as he turned up after a day out working in this horrible weather. He reported that the port had been closed as the sea was breaking over the sea wall and flooding the port car park; he had seen a small car floating about beyond the police blockade to stop anyone from venturing in there.
We drove home quickly to make sure that we were indoors before dark but we had an evening of power failures – one after another – and Kimon looked at the fuse box and checked the trip switch on the meter which kept turning the power off every half an hour or so. This was really miserable – particularly as the log burner was not yet operational and we were depending upon electricity more than usual. I pronounced that getting the log burner going was top priority!!! We decided after the next power cut off that we would walk down to the village taverna and soak up a bit of their warmth and woodsmoke – so bundled up in every layer we could find, we set off and had a coffee with the locals. Christina, the owner made me very welcome and we had a chat about what had happened since I was last in Crete. As we talked I saw the footage from the Greek news on an enormous flat screen TV which showed Athens brought to a complete standstill by heavy falls of snow. It felt like complete “déjà vu” of all that had been happening in the UK earlier in the winter. Christina said that snow did not happen very often in Greece (last fall 15 years ago) and when it did everything came to a halt.
Well, you can guess what I said!
In the meantime, a friendly guy at the other side of the room beckoned K into the car and they went to attack the electricity meter and trip switch with Cretan gusto. “You push it like a very nervous man” he explained and K began to get the knack after that.
Christina asked me why we had chosen to live in the village and we explained the background. We had looked at three houses. The best was this one and when we visited the village, the local people had been so very warm and welcoming. She said that it was a good village, very convenient for towns, travel, beaches – not too high in the mountains and not too close to the water. After this conversation, she disappeared for a moment or so and returned with a bunch of narcissi to take back to the house. They smelled wonderful and were a perfect reminder that although the winter was harsher than usual, Spring was just around the corner.
Alarmingly, we are also expected to have a party. The idea of catering for an entire village with haphazard stove facilities and a diet of fish only (during Lent) would exercise even the most competent of chefs (which does not include me) and I am hoping that they will be prepared to wait until after Easter. The elderly lady next door said that it would be good to have wine and ice cream. We could easily manage that!
K and I wobbled back to the house and dealt with two more power blackouts and decided that having a hot drink and going to bed would be the best option. I put every blanket, poncho, coat and woollie we had with us on the bed and was fast asleep in no time. There had been a general power cut in the early hours of the morning and the power was still off when we got up on Wednesday. Kimon said that there was a bit of snow on the car, ice on the tiles outside the front door and a dark, depressing sky full of angry clouds. K unearthed the picnic stove which he had optimistically packed for our journey and we boiled up a kettle of water for morning tea, grimly taking an inventory of what we could have for breakfast. I ended up having sesame bread, yoghourt and jam with scalding hot tea and K settled for breakfast sausage with some Dijon mustard bought on route which was hot enough to burn holes in your mouth.
I learned a new phrase today. “Poli Crio”. Every time I said Kalimera to anyone, they responded “Poli crio” with a lot of crossed arm grappling motions. Easy to work out – it means “It’s VERY COLD”. I’m amazed at my progress and wonder if learning Greek will be easier than I thought.
After ages sorting out bags, trying to find things and fossicking around, we drove to Perama – about 5 miles away to find a good hardware shop and bought all sorts of manly things like masonry nails, a step ladder, cement for the log burner (acrylic?) and fire lighters. I had noticed loads of trees down by the side of the road and thought longingly of a roaring log fire in the “Jackie” but we were not quite there yet. I can see that the Summer will have arrived before we get the remedial work done and find a source a good dry logs. Any expert advice on log burners will be gratefully received. How to fix the insulating rope which is set into the door of the stove (any particular cement?) and how to ensure that the chimney which goes up through the ceiling and floor upstairs does not set fire to the floor boards and thus the house on fire. Sensibly, K is a bit cautious but I bet our NZ friends will have all the answers! Enough for today; I have to go and run about for a bit to get warm.
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