OPA in PANORMO, CRETE

UNOFFICIAL PAGE FOR 

OLD PIERREPONTIANS QUASI OLD BOYS REUNION

PANORMO, CRETE 2013

School Photo - Left to Right:  Bob Reed, Geoff Pilkington, Tim Watmuff,
John Robertson,  Richard Brown, Kimon Capernaros,  Simon Ranger

Prize Winners, please line up in order ...

Simon Ranger – Mark Imperiali Prize for innovative manifesto posting and swimming against the tide, sea weed collecting etc..

Tim Watmuff – still holds the School High Jump record: RESPECT!

Richard Brown - Archivist of incriminating photos and holder of Cross Country Colours

Bob Reed – Cross Country Colours to be presented .. best person to work out the taverna bill with reasonable accuracy ..

Professor Geoffrey Pilkington – (we can't believe it either) – House Cricket Colours and Greek conversationalist … still approximately upright whilst everyone else is under the table.

John Robertson - School Discus Champ (where did we put that frisbee?) and wishing he was back in the Bahamas where they have real beaches and proper hurricanes … arrived with photos from 1968!

Kimon C – Man of Hyperbole and most likely to fall asleep in a kayak

Merope C – Endurance Record. It all started with a production of The Government Inspector by Nikolai Gogol, a missing necklace, capsizing in Frensham Ponds and the rest is history … Mrs C is temporarily standing in for Matron (who should have got a medal).

There were many members of the OPA absent without leave. Please send a note from your parents (or purporting to be from them – forging signatures and picking locks were our most popular ex-curricula subjects) to explain where you are and what you have been up to for the last half century – anyone found slacking will be sent to the Headmaster.

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We were sorry not to be in the best shape to meet our old school friends and transport at least one carful from the airport when they arrived this week. K was still in pain for car journeys and I cannot see well enough at night to attempt driving round the mountains in the dark – so we had to ask them to take taxis and meet them in Panormo late at night to show them the small apartments booked several weeks ago. Oh how the mighty are fallen and what a pair of old crocks we felt! The rooms were very much in the Pierrepont tradition and not what a lot of our guests had become used to in the intervening years. I would have changed them, and I expect one or two did without telling us! We tried to soften the blow with a supply of breakfast essentials and fresh fruit.

The bathrooms were a bit basic ... just kidding, this was an old kiln at the Pottery

There were a few things to explore in Panormo and like any collection of 60 year olds, our friends were looking for different things. Some wanted exercise and contemplated a run up the cliff path, past the goat herds and into the hills near the lighthouse to the East of the resort. Some wanted much more sleep and found a quiet niche on the beach to snooze under an umbrella. Many wanted to find the Limni Beach taverna where there are nice lunches and beers available overlooking the sea. Some braved the sea, others put in a vote for sea food so we went to one of the tavernas that specialise in fish for an evening meal.

Our favourite pottery shop at Margaritas

There was a short shower of rain first thing on Thursday. Despite this, K dusted off and pumped up the kayak before setting off to the beach with it loaded on the top of the car whilst Merope did Greek School revision at home. The learning process is very slow but we are all giving the lessons our best shot. You will deduce from this that K was a WHOLE HEAP better than before now his antibiotics have started to work. He is still taking things easily though.

Thomas and friends took us up the mountain ... and stopped for diesel on the way back

On Friday, the Little Train leaves Panormo at 10.00 a.m. and winds its way through the little villages up into the foothills of the mountains to Margaritas. We had always been somewhat dismissive of this comic form of transport and had been out of order in calling them “wally trollies”, because it was the best way of getting eight individuals half way up the mountains without having to worry about leaving people behind and/or avoiding Cretan drivers.

Shady coffee break at Margaritas

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All boys will be asked to submit their essays “What I saw in Margaritas” first thing on Monday morning after Assembly. If anyone has a headache, snake bite, broken ankle or sunstroke, Matron will no doubt have a small supply of Disprin available and has been instructed to send off for a further bulk order without delay. Until these essential supplies arrive, boys are advised to take care - especially with regard to Ouzo, Retzina, Metaxa or Raki, which local taverna owners are only too willing to dispense with unavoidable liberality.