The Romance of Rome ~ Diamonds, Danger and Desire

Rome.

The name alone of this vibrant, ancient city- up until a few weeks ago – has always brought to mind scenes of exploration and adventure tinged with romance, similar to those from  “Roman Holiday” the 1953 movie starring Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck. 

An escapade in Rome 1953

For you who may not have seen the movie: a bored princess escapes her keepers, falls for a journalist and they zip around Rome on a Vespa, falling in love while having a delightful romp in Rome. 

I didn’t think anything could top that, well. . ., until we did. . .in a manner of speaking, that is!

Another escapade in Rome

As I hinted at last week, this post incorporates two tales of Rome – both in which we are the lead characters – however one is real life and one is rather ‘novel’. Without further adieu let’s do Rome. . . with a bit of fact and a bit of fiction:

Two Tales of a City

Riding the Rails through Tuscany

When we left you last week we were boarding a train on a cloudy Sunday morning in Tuscany’s Camuche/Cortona station bound for Rome. We’d have about 24 hours there before catching our flight back to Athens. It had been a whirlwind week of satiating our taste buds and senses with all things Italian but it was time to return to our Stone House on the Hill in the Greek Peloponnese.

     Jackie looked wistful. “Rome,” she whispered. “We are really going to Rome.”

     Joel approached her slowly, sensing in Jackie’s far-away glance that she was lost in a vision of what was to come. . ."

Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore

We checked into what has become our favorite hotel in this city, The Mecenate Palace, a four-star place located three blocks from Roma Termini; a location that makes it a walkable distance to sites like the Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain.  We’ve stayed here three times, each time requesting a room with a view of its neighbor, the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore – and we’ve never been disappointed. 

This time, like our previous stays, we entered the room, dropped the suitcases and headed to the window to make sure the view was as remembered. Then we headed out to see how much ground we could cover in the few hours we had – unlike the fictional arrival:

Joel approached her from behind and landed a soft kiss on her neck.

“Oooooh, that feels so nice,” Jackie cooed.

(Joel was encouraged by that, let your imaginations soar. They didn’t go exploring outside the room right away.)

Cloudy skies followed us to Rome

The same clouds that had intermittently dumped rain in Tuscany extended over the Eternal City, but that didn’t deter us, nor the thousands of other tourists and locals, from enjoying a Sunday afternoon stroll through Italy’s capital city.  

The Spanish Steps

“Hey lets make it a point to kiss at every monument we visit,” Joel suggested.

“Yeah, and then we can write a travel book, ‘Kiss Your Way Through Rome’.”

Joel quipped, “Then lets get going so we can research our next chapter.”

By the time we reached The Spanish Steps, the sky was getting lighter and the temperature climbing. The Scout and I did hold hands (so I wouldn’t get lost in the crowds) while searching for a place to sip cappuccinos, people-watch and rest our feet. 

From the size of the crowds at the steps, we decided to skip the other ‘tourist sites’ and enjoyed a stroll past everyday scenes back to the hotel. A sunset drink sipped in the rooftop bar at the hotel, followed by dinner in its adjacent restaurant completed our brief stopover.

Night views from the hotel

Rome really is a city that enchants. You can understand why tales of  romance are often set here. Speaking of romance novels, let me tell you the story about the one in which we are featured:

The Tale of The Tale

Back in January, a blogger-buddy, Irene Levine (More Time to Travel) wrote about a couple, J.S. Fletcher and Kathy Newbern, travelers and writers, who some 25 years ago put their travel knowledge and skills together in a money-making venture. They started writing custom romance novels – a ‘labor of love’ you might say. They created  YourNovel.com  

As part of that article, they offered a free book to a person who'd be randomly selected from those who'd left comments. You guessed it. I won!

Roman ruins are always a draw

I went through their list of book titles and picked a location and storyline, a thriller (Joel was cast as a cross between Indiana Jones and Superman in a secret agent role and Jackie was his clueless sidekick).  Then I chose the degree of romance, picking ‘huggy-kissy’ mild over ‘sexy-steamy wild. 

Then filling out a questionnaire, I gave them the information necessary to personalize the novel, things names, nicknames, eye and hair color, cars, work, favorite music, and favorite scents. 

I looked back at my comment on Irene’s post and see that I wrote, ‘laugh out loud’, giggling and smiling’ at the thought of us in such a book.  

As I read the book, I moved on to guffawing and howling with laughter.  

Sometimes it was the plot that brought me to tears and other times it was the fact that as ex pats in Greece we don’t quite ‘fit the mold’.  

Example:  the book has us flying a wide-bodied jet, overnight to arrive in Rome from Athens, which in real life is a two hour flight on smaller aircraft. Had we flown from Seattle as in our old life the plot would have worked as there would have been time for the frolic under the blankets that the two characters had while en route. It did make for good laughs. 

And on that note, I’ll say arrivederci Italy – real and imagined. We are back in Greece and I’ll have  a report for you from The Stone House on the Hill. Until then, safe travels to you and yours!  As always the time you spend with us, commenting and sharing is so very much appreciated. 

Linking this week with:

Through My Lens
Our World Tuesday
Wordless Wednesday
Communal Global
Travel Photo Thursday – 
Best of Weekend

O’ahu, Hawaii ~ Hunting HIdden Gems

Even moving to Greece wasn’t going to change our annual winter migration to our timeshare life on O’ahu, Hawaii. While increasing our commute sizably, it remains an annual journey that is worth the time and effort it now requires.

View from our Ko Olina home

Somehow, in the blink of an eye, ten years have passed since we took the plunge into timeshare life. And it happened right there at the Marriott Vacation Club in the Ko Olina planned development on this island’s west coast.

We’d been among those whose mantra was, “Not us! We aren’t timeshare people!” We’d simply taken the sales pitch offer for a good deal on a few nights stay and to prove to ourselves that we’d never buy a place there. Famous last words. 
It has become our ‘home resort’ – a place where we are guaranteed three weeks of Aloha Life each year.

And ‘home’ has taken on a new meaning since that initial timeshare purchase.

Our Ko Olina home

Now that we are technically homeless in America, this interval ownership provided as much a U.S. home base as we have these days. I have to admit we looked forward to ‘the familiar’ it promised: shopping at our ‘local’ grocery stores, eating at our favorite restaurants and spending time with our same-time-next-year friends who return to this tropical  ‘neighborhood’ at roughly the same time each year..

Doing it Differently

As nice as that bit of familiar was, our goal this year was to do the island differently. We seldom venture into the big city of Honolulu; gateway to the iconic Diamond Head (which really is quite magical) and Waikiki (which really is over-run with tourists and we avoid it like the plague).

We were doing a treasure hunt of our own design – a search for the island’s Hidden Gems . . .those special lesser-known places and those often frequented by locals but overlooked by visitors such as ourselves.

Our treasure hunt map

I’d promised the Seattle Times travel editor that I could find them and he was expecting an article and photos from me in February featuring them.  The challenge was on:

Research began in December while we were still in Greece.  I contacted friends who’ve lived on the island and asked for their recommendations. I began reading up on the places they suggested. Then, as we traveled about the island and met locals, I told them of my quest and they also had more suggestions of ‘not to miss’ places.

Since I know many of you didn’t see my article I decided that I’d share a few of our finds in today’s blog post.

I can tell you this was one of our best trips to Hawaii – made so by these special places. I know we plan to return to them in future visits..

I don’t have space to write about them all, but among those places we ‘discovered’ were a naval air museum, a centuries hold Hawaiian temple, an eatery and a rum factory.

The Naval Air Museum at Barber’s Point

(91-1299A Midway Street, Bldg. 1792, Kalaeloa Airport, 808-682-3982, nambp.org).

The Scout with Brad Hayes

Signage is limited and they keep the security fences locked so you don’t just drop by the Museum at Kalealoa Airport, formerly the Naval Air Station, on Barbers Point, near Kapeolei on O’ahu’s west coast. You have to schedule your tour in advance.

We chose a weekday morning and ended up having a private tour led by Brad Sekigawa, historian and Brad Hayes, executive director.

It was an amazing, simply, amazing two hours.

Brad Sekigawa, Museum historian

We were able to get up close and personal with airplanes and helicopters, going into some, standing under others, touching, photographing and asking questions. Trucks, tanks and fire trucks as well as helmets and flight gear are on display. Vehicles, aircraft and equipment that saw war duty. Some have been used in movies.

In leiu of an entrance fee donations are: $15 for adults, $10 seniors/military, $8 under 18.. To avoid the intense mid-day sun on the tarmac, booking early morning or late afternoon tours are recommended.

Pu,u O Mahuka Heiau – Hawaiian Temple

(Pu,u O Mahuka Heiau Road, off Pupukea Road [Highway 835], Pupukea, 808-587-0300, nps.gov)

Views from the open air temple

Frankly we were both skeptical as we set out for the Hawaiian temple. 'Ancient', several articles called it. Not ancient compared to Greece, we thought. But, oh my! What it may have lacked in centuries, it made up for in magic. The view of Waimea Bay and the channel between O’ahu and Kaua’i from high atop the hill where the temple was located was breathtaking.

And on the day we visited, we had the island’s largest heiau, ancient Hawaiian temple, to ourselves.

The old temple, several centuries old as a matter of fact, is believed to have been dedicated as a luakini, or sacrificial temple, where ceremonies involving animal or human sacrifices were conducted.

Offerings at the temple

A slight tropical breeze -  maybe the the breath of long-lost rulers - caused goose pimples as we stood on this sacred site.  Entry is free; limited on-site parking.

Manulele Distillers – the Rum makers

(92-1770 Kunia Road, #227, Kunia, 808-649-0830, KoHanaRum.com)

Manulele tasting room

So tucked away amidst the sugar cane fields was this small distillery that we drove past it on our first try. Ready to give up, we backtracked our route and were certainly glad we’d persevered. This farm-to-bottle rum distillery is making a name for itself with its production of Ko Hana Hawaiian agricole rum; made from sugar cane, not molasses.

The distillery is surrounded by cane fields that are still hand-harvested. It is housed in what was once the Del Monte (cannery) company store. Several tours are offered daily; adults, 21 and older ($25 per person) and children ($15 for ages 6 – 20, under 6 free). At the tour’s end adults taste rum and youngsters are served gelato.

Tiffany Tubon, assistant manager, explains the types of rum

The distillery’s display garden near the tasting room entry showcases the varieties of heritage cane plants – it was amazing to walk among the varieties of cane that go into the making of this rum.

Kahumana Organic Farm, Café and Retreat Center 

(86-660 Lualualei Homestead Road, Waianae, 808-696-8844, kahumana.org)

Kahumana Retreat Center

By far the biggest surprise we had was the meal we ate on our last evening on the island at the cafe in this retreat center.

A late afternoon rain caused us to eat inside the covered patio

It serves as an on-the-job training program and revenue generator for Alternative Structures International, the non-profit organization that operates the retreat center and provides social services for the disadvantaged.

‘Kahumana’ is interpreted as, “Guardian of the Life Forces”, derived from the Hawaiian words ‘kahu’ a spiritual leader, healer, or priest and ‘mana’ life force.

Our meals were 'broke da mouth' good!

Our entrées, each less than $20, included Macadamia Nut Pesto topped pasta and veggies crowned with grilled Mahi Mahi and a Coconut Dahl lentil chicken curry with rice and fresh vegetables. The Lilikoi (passion fruit) Cheesecake was so good, I forgot to take a photo!

Alcohol is not served but BYOB for adults is fine. Dining reservations recommended.

This one was a perfect dining spot for those staying out on the west coast.  It would be a rather long drive for dinner from Honolulu but they do serve lunch as well.

Kite surfer on the North Shore

Kite surfing beaches, cliff top hikes, coffee and chocolate factories were among the other gems we found.  I’ve already gone far beyond the recommended number of words for blog posts, so will add a link to my article that appeared in The Times for those who’d like to read more.  Thanks, as always, for the time you’ve spent with us on this treasure hunt on O’ahu. The Times travel article.

It is Holy Week, the week before Easter in Greece. Next week, I’ll tell you about how we celebrated it in this village.  Until then, safe travels to you and yours ~

Linking this week with some or all these fine bloggers:

Through My Lens
Our World Tuesday
Wordless Wednesday
Communal Global
Travel Photo Thursday – 
Photo Friday
Weekend Travel Inspiration
Best of Weekend

Greece ~ Just a Year Ago. . .

Happiness is not a goal – it’s a by-product of a life well lived.

              -- Eleanor Roosevelt

A year ago this week we packed our bags and headed to San Francisco, California. A short jaunt compared to our usual travels: an hour and a half flight each way, a couple nights stay and we were back home in the Pacific Northwest.

Such a tiny little trip with such a huge impact on our lives.

The Stone House on the Hill - middle row, far right

Today, sitting in our home in Greece where we are living as full-time expats, I think of that trip as the first domino to fall; setting off a series of  life-changing events. We’d gone to that city by the bay to  make a case for being granted an entry visa to Greece. A face-to-face meeting at the Greek consulate. That began the process of obtaining a permanent resident permit; one that would allow us to stay here longer than 90 days at a time and also allow us to buy and register a car. 

The application process – as you long-time friends and readers know – was a lengthy endeavor and so focused on it were we that we wouldn’t allow ourselves to ponder the possibilities that having it in hand might bring . . .

Pursuing the Possibilities. . .

“We need much less, than we think we need.”

              -- Maya Angelou

Rainbow over the Mani 

We went from pondering to pursuing possibilities in rapid fire succession once we got those precious little plastic cards proclaiming us residents of our adopted country.

While I often encourage 'pondering possibilities and chasing daydreams' in my writings, there comes a time in life when you’ve either got to act on them or file them away and get on with the status quo. We knew in our hearts and heads, that for these two boomer-aged adventurers, it was time to act.

So here we are. . .now what?

“Many people lose the small joys in the hope for the big happiness.”

                            -- Pearl S. Buck

Afternoon coffee break at The Stone House on the Hill

It has taken a year for the dominos to fall into place and for us to settle in to this new lifestyle. Although we returned for full-time living last fall, the reality of being based here didn’t hit until we returned from our six-week visit to the U.S. 

The few days we spent in the Northwest, tagged on to the start and finish of our Hawaiian timeshare life, were interesting. We loved seeing friends there. Time didn’t allow us to see all that we’d have liked, but time is limited when one travels. We lived in hotel rooms, each stay being only a couple miles from what was once our home.

It was unsettling to be in an area we know so well and to slip into the old rhythms and routines: running errands, making appointments and shopping with such ease, yet feeling a bit of an outsider to it as well.

Wild flowers carpet the olive groves in February

Back at home in Greece we found ourselves returning to our rhythms and routines here as easily as we had in our former Northwest stomping grounds. Just as we got caught up with friends 'back there', we’ve spent the last week getting caught up with friends 'back here'.

A New Chapter at The Stone House on the Hill

It is the first time we’ve seen the Mani in February. The olive groves are carpeted in wild flowers, almond trees are in bloom and roses are budding. Mother Nature can’t make up her mind to dress for spring or winter so sometimes we have 65F/18C days and others a howling wind and rain.

With the logistics behind us it is time to really live in Greece. The Scout is mapping out travel options in the Peloponnese and further afield on this side of the ocean, we have a stack of books to read (we continue to avoid owning a television) and the seed packets I stuffed in my suitcases when we moved last fall need to be planted. Our days are full. We sleep soundly at night.

The Stone House on the Hill from the olive grove

We’ll be welcoming three sets of friends who are visiting in the late spring, I’m going to make good on my promise to learn more Greek and my writing journal – that has sat untouched for a year – is going to be filled with scribbles. Who knows? We might even attend that summer Sardine Festival that I’ve whined about missing while high stepping to the “Schengen Shuffle”.

We’ve got a year to enjoy this life before we get back on that Road to Residency and begin our next journey: renewing our residency permits.

“At some point you gotta let go, and sit still and allow contentment to come to you.”

                                                     -- Elizabeth Gilbert

Sunset in Kardamyli village

It’s been an amazing year and we thank you all for being with us as we leaped hurdles, celebrated successes, stopped at roadblocks and then accelerated at full speed ahead.  We hope you’ll continue to be part of the journey as this is the year when the real fun begins!  See you back here next week and until then safe travels to you and yours!

Linking this week with:
Through My Lens
Our World Tuesday
Wordless Wednesday
Communal Global
Travel Photo Thursday – 
Photo Friday
Weekend Travel Inspiration
Best of Weekend

'That' Mediterranean Garden

 

"My garden is my most beautiful masterpiece."

                                      -- Claude Monet

Anyone who has traveled in the Mediterranean region – France, Spain, Italy, Greece – probably read that title and immediately remembered ‘that’ one special garden that snatched your heart and sent your imagination soaring.  You likely thought back to following – or wishing you could follow - the uneven stone pathway that wound through it, letting your imaginations determine who created it, when and why.

Maybe you just imagined yourself as its owner and pondered the many ways you would spend time in it. Mediterranean gardens seem by their very nature to  prompt such flights of fancy.

Wild mint and African daisies line the stairway to the grove

If you are like me and other such travelers, you tried to recreate such a garden ‘back home’ - most likely - again, like me - in a climate that is not Mediterranean. If so, (like me), you’ve failed at your attempts.  I can't tell you how many gardenias, lemon and orange trees have died under my watch in the U.S. Pacific Northwest.

"He who has a garden and a library wants for nothing."

                       -- Marcus Tullies Cicero

So half the joy in finding our Mediterranean Stone House on the Hill in the Greek Peloponnese was its garden. Built on a portion of a long-ago olive grove the property cascades in terraces down a hillside coming to rest at the edge of one of this area's many gorges. And most of the property is a garden.

It is a garden that stretches from high above the back of the house, winds itself around one side and front where it meets the olive grove. At the time of our purchase, it was clearly overgrown and under loved. It beckoned with potential and challenged us to discover its secrets . . .and I told you in an earlier post about those first days of uncovering our 'secret garden'.

Lemon Tree patio at The Stone House on the Hill

It needed work - lots and lots of work as we were to learn. But each time we set forth with shovels and hoes, I'd fantasize about creating a place to spend future idle hours reading some of the world’s great novels or writing one. Or I'd think of myself just sipping morning coffee or wine at the day's close; in each scenario basking in the wonder of it all.

A portion of our crop - The Stone House on the Hill

Even the thought of bringing this Mediterranean (potential) masterpiece back to life had a rosy, romantic glow about it. However, it didn't take long though for reality to set in. The process hasn't been quite as idyllic as you might image. Centipedes and spiders welcomed us. And that rich red soil is about as hard as the stones that seem to make up 90% of the land mass here.  Despite following 'how-to' book recommendations, in the last year I've managed to buy and then kill one French lavender plant and the two remaining are at death's door. One rosemary plant -- they normally grow the size of bushes here - has also bitten the dust under my part-time green thumb.

New pomegranate tree in upper garden is a gift from houseguests; Iris, African daisies are in full bloom

"However many years she lived, Mary always felt that 'she should never forget that first morning when her garden began to grow'."

                                                                        -- Frances Hodgson Burnet, The Secret Garden

On the flip side, our successes have been many and we've loved seeing the fruits of our labors. This is the first time we've been here early enough in the spring to see the garden come to life. We do bask in the wonder of it all as there is always something blooming or sprouting or wilting away. And we do indulge in time spent in our Lemon Tree patio. Yet, 'We've only just begun' just like the lyrics of  the old Carpenter's song of the 70's. We've got more in the planning stages so you'll get another garden tour one day.

A carpet of wildflowers in the grove - The Stone House on the Hill

Speaking of gardens and blooms, I'd be remiss if I didn’t tell you the olive grove  has been carpeted with blooms this spring – wildflowers of white, red and yellow have made it a place that would have inspired Monet.

What's a garden without a cat posing in it?

And each time I am in the garden I think of all that would have been missed had we not decided to have this one last fling, to throw doubt to the wind and grow olives instead of old. 

As Frances Mayes, one of my favorite writer’s, once said:

“Life offers you a thousand chances. . .all you have to do is take one.”

Our first two weeks of this spring stay at The Stone House on the Hill has been marked with on-again off-again internet (which has helped the garden tremendously because we weren't tied to electronics inside).  And as a reminder of the agricultural setting in which we are in, the internet problem was the work of  the mouse that chewed the internet cable last fall and returned to do the same this spring. With luck I’ll get this posted and be able to respond to your emails and comments.

Iris, once buried under vines are flourishing this spring

As always we love having you along with us and next week we'll start telling you about some of the Peloponnese wonders that guidebooks haven't yet discovered. Hope you’ll be back and until then, safe travels to you and yours!

We are linking up this week with:
Mosaic Monday – 
Through My Lens
Our World Tuesday
Wordless Wednesday
Travel Photo Thursday – 
Photo Friday
Weekend Travel Inspiration

And for those who want to try your hand at creating a Mediterranean garden, let us recommend this book, Gardening, the Mediterranean Way by Heidi Gildemeister as an excellent resource:

Leaving Home ~ Heading Home

"Never make your home in a place. Make a home for yourself inside your own head. You'll find what you need to furnish it - memory, friends you can trust, love of learning, and other such things. That way it will go with you wherever you journey."
~ Tad Williams

Our Stone House on the Hill

We arrived home last week.

We also left home last week.

Here again; gone again. 

Such is the life of part-time ex pats.

Restless nomads, with a desire for roots, but not in one place. Or senior citizens who’ve realized that the time to be a bit wild and crazy is now while we’ve got the  energy and health to enjoy it.

By whatever label, we’re settling into the rhythm of this ‘here-there’ ex pat lifestyle.

Touring real estate meeting owners

We’d shared the ex pat daydream for years. But it wasn’t until  two years ago that we decided to ‘at least’ look at some houses.

Greek sellers don’t plaster “For Sale” signs on their homes as we do in the States, so you don’t really know what is for sale until a realtor shows you.

And then, you usually visit the house while the owner is there! Again, not the way it is done in the States.

Our daydream, however,  was moving toward reality.

Even after finding this house, we were hesitant to make the commitment. Would it end or enhance our vagabond lifestyle? Even if we found something, did we want to travel 6,000+ miles between two homes. Of course, Greece’s charms had already drawn us back, time and time again in recent years, but did we want to put down roots here?

We took the plunge later that year, hitting a few rough edges of the purchase process along the way, and finally landed on our feet at our front door by December.

Fast forward two years. .  here we are, at home – for a few months --  in Greece.

Entry table - The Stone House on the Hill

“There is nothing more admirable than when two people who see eye to eye keep house as man and wife, confounding their enemies and delighting their friends.” 

– Homer, The Odyssey

“So, what’s it really like?” ask some, a hint of a frown or a wiggle of the nose giving away the true question.  “Is is just wonderful?” others ask with such enthusiasm that they almost wiggle out of their seat. “You are living my dream, tell me everything.” some say with a deep catch in their voice.

If I do my writer job well, you’ll get a taste of  what it is really like through our next series of posts. We plan to introduce you to both people and places that make up this new part-time world of ours.

Sunset in Stoupa with friends and neighbors

Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.

-- George Bernard Shaw

Creating a new world: I’ll admit one of my fears about buying a home far away was losing touch with long-time friends back (at the U.S.) home. Articles about ex pat life caution that you should expect that to happen. Well, it has in a manner of speaking. While we’ve got a few friends who stay in touch regularly, others don’t.  Just as they said it would be in those articles. . .

What we hadn’t expected were all the new friends we’d make here. Friendships are being forged with both Greeks in the area and the many ex pats who populate the valley on either a full-or-part-time basis. With fewer than a dozen Americans to be found, our ex pat friends bring a whole new world of European experiences, language and culture to our lives. 

Our view of the Messinian Gulf

A house is not a home unless it contains food and fire for the mind as well as the body.

-- Benjamin Franklin

Slow down – we moved too fast:  In the first year, our neighbors used to watch us racing around the property – moving things, hauling old items out and new ones in, digging in the garden, patrolling the grove looking for ‘what needs to be done’. Perhaps it is just the way ‘we Americans’ operate. Part, though, was the fact that we are part-timers here. With a time limit set by our tourist visas of 90 days per visit, we didn’t have the luxury of ‘waiting until . . .’ to get a project started and completed.  New deck furniture – for a time – looked nice, but wasn’t used.

Tom, on table, Princess in chair - photo taken fall 2015

With major projects now completed, we’ve decided to follow the example set by our stray-cats-who-adopted-us, Tom and Princess. Afternoon sun is meant for ‘cat napping’ reading and sipping wine – there is no more perfect way to spend time. (The photo above was taken during our last stay - I am sad to report neither cat has been seen since we've returned.)

Life isn't a matter of milestones, but of moments.

-- Rose Kennedy

Exploring our New World:  One of the reasons we were drawn to this centuries-old area where everything is steeped in history, is that it is all new to us. So much to explore, to learn, to see and experience that there will never be an excuse for boredom. Exploring by car is quite simple. Driving here is far less stressful than on our congested roadways back in the  Pacific Northwest – we certainly prefer the traffic ‘jams’ here.

Traffic jams we've encountered 

Village life, These postcard--perfect places, dot the landscape around us. Each village with its own personality – tavernas, cafes, mom-and-pop family run businesses – make shopping trips more like a visit to a friend’s house than doing chores.

Occasionally we are frustrated by our lack of ability to describe what we are wanting to buy (sometimes Greek and English don’t mesh). We think of how easy it would be to find it at the big-box-store-shelf in the U.S. . . .but then at the big-box they don’t often give us the handful of nails we’d come to purchase or a screwdriver to use with the screws we’d purchased as has happened to us here.

Stoupa Village

Developing cultural competencies:  Back in the U.S. I spent a lot of time in a volunteer position, sitting in conference rooms talking about the need for developing ‘cultural competencies’ – which loosely defined means both an understanding of and skills to better teach, work and live with others from different cultures.  Here I am no longer just talking the talk, I am walking the walk. But the tables are somewhat turned as I am the newcomer to a country.  Each day is a learning opportunity whether it be a new Greek word, a new approach to repairing something or a lesson in religion and history.

Religion, culture, history, cuisine - lifelong learning opportunities abound here

Celebrating life: Greek Orthodox Easter is coming in May and decorations, candles (to be used on Easter Eve at church) and candy are for sale in every store. The Easter we celebrate back in the U.S. was just another Sunday around these parts. What we would think of as Good Friday was Independence Day here, celebrated with community parades, students marching and a band playing. We also have the 3rd Annual Kardamyli Jazz Festival coming up in May.. There will be any number of ‘Name Days’ to be honored during our stay; those are Saint Name Days, by the way – and if you are named after that saint, it is your day to celebrate in much the same way you’d celebrate on your birthday.

We think this ex pat life has given us much to celebrate as well. So hope you’ll be back to celebrate and explore our slice of Greece with us.  Until then, happy and safe travels to you and yours~

Linking this week with:

Mosaic Monday – 
Through My Lens
Our World Tuesday
Wordless Wednesday
Travel Photo Thursday – 
Photo Friday
Weekend Travel Inspiration

The Greek Stone House on the Hill ~ One Year Later

Here we are in our Stone House on the Hill, this week  celebrating our first year as part time ex pats in Greece.

With most of our major projects completed, we’ve slowed our pace and indulged in blissful, idle hours ~ most of which we’ve spent gazing out over our small terraced olive grove and the view we have up the Mani coastline just beyond it; our own little slice of Greece’s Peloponesse peninsula





Dusk at The Stone House on the Hill

Many of you have followed along or been a part of the journey that brought us to this Stone House and you’ve stuck with us as we’ve turned it into our own. Some through the blog and others in real life, real time. Your companionship, encouragement and enthusiasm have been most appreciated.

‘You are never to old to set a new goal or dream a new dream.’

    - C.S. Lewis

It was back in 2014 when we got serious about focusing that somewhat fleeting daydreaming of ours into an action plan. We - this 60-something duo – decided it was time for a ‘final fling’, a ‘new challenge’, a ‘project’, before we got too old to have one. We’d accumulated many daydreams during our travels but kept coming back to the idea of. . .

Growing Olives Instead of Old

Last December 15th as we sat with the sellers, an array of others, (three attorneys, our realtor and the Notary) in the Notary’s cramped second-floor office in the nearby village, we moved that daydream into reality.
As vivid as if it were yesterday, we recall those pages and pages of documents being read aloud (a legal requirement here) in Greek and translated to English. Then payments (both for the home purchase and costs associated with it) were made and handshakes offered.

The purchase process that had taken months to get in order, was over in less than an hour. . .

. . .then, ‘but, of course’ as they say here, we all – buyers, sellers, realtor and attorney - went to the cafe next door for a drink!

Celebrating the sale

Finally, that Grecian stone and concrete temptress was ours – ten days before Christmas.  We’d  nailed that daydream  - the one that had slipped between our fingers earlier in the year -- and made it reality.

The Stone House on the Hill

Recalling those first few days, we’ve laughed at what a stark reality we’d purchased. It was rather a bleak stone house, both literally and figuratively. Cold (we ran out of fuel for several days that first stay – both central heat oil and wood), empty (we gave away most of the old well-used furniture and the new hadn’t yet been delivered) and rooms with gray stone accents around white ceiling, walls and floor that didn’t make for a warm and fuzzy feeling. With no television or internet – it also felt a bit lonely. That didn’t deter us from the vision we had for this place. . .

December 2014 - The Stone House on the Hill

As the days became weeks, and weeks stretched into months the The Stone House on the Hill has evolved into our Stone Home on the Hill. New furniture, paint and decorating touches and a bit of hard labor, by us and others (not to mention two cats who adopted us) made for some remarkable changes even with this part-time life we’ve had here.

One Year Later - Stone House on the Hill

Changes in latitudes, changes in attitudes

Just as the house has changed, so have we.  This Greek adventure has moved us from our world, filled with family, friends and the familiar in the United States’ Pacific Northwest, into a dual existence – living two decidedly different lifestyles on opposite sides of the globe.

‘Let’s be honest. Retirement abroad is not for everyone. A totally new environment. Distance from relatives and long-time friends. Culture clashes. Health care issues. Language barriers. But it’s also possible to enjoy a higher standard of living at a lower cost in foreign locations of natural beauty, appealing culture and great charm.’

                                                                              -- Forbes.com

A neighbors night out 

By living part of the year ‘there’ and part ‘here’ we’ve enriched our lives with new friends; both Greek and other ex pats (from a variety of countries) and have neighbors who are friends as well at both of our homes.

During the months we’ve been in Greece, we’ve developed new daily routines and honed new and forgotten skills. We’ve gotten back in touch with the basics of our childhoods– stringing a clothesline, drying clothes on the line, washing dishes by hand, living without television, putting together the miniscule pieces that come in a box and turning it into shelves or coat racks or other items.



We learned to harvest olives - it is hard work!

Little successes are noted with pride; like learning bits and pieces of the Greek language. . .I know the days of the week and can count to six. We can both order wine and say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’. Vocabulary victories occur daily!

Two sets of friends from the Pacific Northwest visited us this fall. We explored areas and eateries, sharing quality, unrushed time together; proving as the old saying goes, that ‘the road to a friend’s house is never long’. . . okay, so the flight is rather long, but you get the idea!

As for ‘distance from long time friends and family’, as Forbes cautioned. . .well, technology has made that simply, nonsense.  Thanks to internet, Skype, Facebook and email, we are able to stay in touch with friends and family. My early 2016 calendar ‘back home’ is filling with social engagements and appointments that have been arranged while I am here in Greece as easily as if I’d been at the computer back there.

The doors we open and close each day decide the lives we live.
- Flora Whittemore

 

Opening any new chapter in life often means ending or modifying others. Our increased time in Greece required that I resign from a board of directors for a non-profit educational agency on which I had served for 15 years. That was tough.  It also sidelined my freelance writing for a time.

 

The Scout, who used to focus on the logistics of life (investments and finances among them) as well as finding travel deals from Seattle has had to expand his calculations to international finances, thinking both in dollars and euros. And I’ve written previously of how this base in Europe has given him a whole new candy-shop of travel options to research.

Dusk in the Village of Stoupa

We’ve discovered the joys of village life with its laid-back pace. As we get to know people in the area trips to town take longer as we must stop and visit, or give a quick hello to someone we know. We refer to businesses by the owners name, “Let’s go to Yiannis’ and Eleni’s tonight” . . . “Let’s see if Ellie has fresh calamari” . . .’'We need to stop at Dimitri’s for nails’.

Slow travel in The Mani

Our pace has slowed here – a stark contrast with life back in the states.

Our olive crop waits for the press

Little did we know when we purchased this home and its 15-tree olive grove how attached we’d become to this agricultural lifestyle. Harvesting our first crop of olives was an unforgettable experience. We are already looking forward to next year’s crop.

Dwell in Possibility.

         -- Emily Dickinson

 

We are looking forward to new adventures in Greece during our second year here and hope you’ll be back regularly to share them with us. We are off to Cairo this coming weekend so will have tales to tell from there as well as more stories from Greece in future weeks. Until then, safe travels to you and yours~

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Linking up this week:
Photo Friday
Travel Photo Thursday –
Wordless Wednesday
Our World Tuesday
Mosaic Monday –
Through My Lens