Happy Halloween ???

Halloween has its roots in the Celtic festival of Samhain and the Christian holy day of All Saints.

The ancient Celts believed that the border between this world and the "Otherworld" became thin on Samhain, allowing spirits (both harmless and harmful) to pass through. The family's ancestors were honoured and invited home whilst harmful spirits were warded off. It is believed that the need to ward off harmful spirits led to the wearing of costumes and masks. Their purpose was to disguise oneself as a harmful spirit and thus avoid harm.
Samhain was also a time to take stock of food supplies and slaughter livestock for winter stores.

On All Hallows’ eve, many Irish and Scottish people have traditionally placed a candle on their western window sill to honour the departed. Other traditions include carving lanterns from turnips, sometimes with faces on them, as is done in the modern (American) tradition of carving pumpkins. The American tradition of carving pumpkins preceded the Great Famine period of Irish immigration and was originally associated with harvest time ( enter the bob apples & toffee / candy apples) in general, not becoming specifically associated with Halloween until the mid-to-late 1800s

Chestnut time.....

This morning a visit to the hair dresser was follwed by collecting the bread and a walk in Petaldi market. I could not resist buying a few kilo of chestnuts @ 2 Euro per kilo what a bargain !

........and living in Greece I recall the history of the legend that the Greek army survived on their stores of chestnuts during their retreat from Asia Minor in 401-399 B.C. Chestnuts contain twice as much starch as potatoes. It is no wonder they are still an important food crop in China, Japan, and southern Europe where they are often ground into a meal for breadmaking, thus giving rise to the nickname of "bread tree."

If your wondering what to do with your chestnuts this year, check out the following:-
http://homecooking.about.com/library/archive/blv92.htm

Back to work for some....

Well a day of "rest" for the locals yesterday (Oxi Day) seemed to have worked wonders. As 8.30 am came not just one but two separate local contractors turned up to finish some outstanding work around our property. Now I clearly do not understand the greek word "αύριο" because I always think it means "tomorrow", now I know it really means "when I get around to it"....

On another note tomorrow will never come for the driver of the car in Messini that just after midnight collided with a horse that came out of one of the gipsey encampments. The car came off the road, down an enbankment towards the river and burst into flames.

OXI Day

The magnificent Greek holiday Oxi Day is celebrated every year in Greece on October 28th and remembered for General Ioannis Metaxas' strong reply of 'oxi' (no) to Mussolini's request to allow Italian troops to come into Greece at the beginning of WW II. In the early hours of Oct 28th Metaxa gave his reply loud and clear: OXI (NO). The "OXI" cry has become a Hellenic battle cry that blooms defiantly every 28th of October.

On this particular day Greece pays honour to the many men and woman who stood up to the fascist Mussolini, and this was no small thing to do. First of all, Mussolini had 44 million people, and Greece had 7 million. Italy had ten times the fire power of Greece in its army navy and air force which had total air superiority, since Greece had only a small defensive force. No free country around the world believed that Greece would survive the attack. As a small country Greece faithfully and courageously met her obligations to her allies with heroism and self-sacrifice. Greece suffered much more than other countries that were on the victorious Allied side. Greece lost the highest percentage of her population, about 12%, which means about one million people. That is why the world leaders of that time recognized the contribution of the Greeks.

Sir Winston Churchill said "Today we shall say that the Greeks fight like heroes, but from now on we shall say that heroes fight like Greeks."

Burn & prosper...NO !!

All to many of us were aware that some of the fires a couple of years back may have been started for "convenience". It is therefore good to see a new bill put forward by the government for the suspension of all construction in areas of Attica and another 18 municipalities and communities affected by forest fires. It would also see the creation of a demolition agency that would be overseen by the new ministry’s environmental inspectors and would have the responsibility of locating and knocking down buildings illegally set up on burned forestland.
Hopefully those who tried to prosper on other peoples misfortune will have their "just deserts".

Shopping day

Well a day shopping in Kalamata today, and still in shirt sleeves. The pedestrianisation of Aristomenos has really made a major difference, now all that has to happen is to stop pedal cyclists from mowing you down! Seriously it was not that bad. Coffee and a toasty on the square and a visit to the bank to cry over the current rate of exchange. A visit to Lidl on the way home to pick up a few jars of Piccalilli...they are having a British week !!!!!

Eating a Greek snail

The time will come when you will be invited to your neighbour for a "snack". So just in case the Greek delicacy is served you:-

HOW TO EAT YOUR SNAILS...............

1. Stare at the plate of snails and wonder what to do.
2. Observe your companions, now on their fifth or sixth snail.
3. Select a likely-looking snail. Clutch it firmly.
4. With your fork, drive a tine into the apex of the shell's spiral, creating a small hole.
5. Place the larger opening of the snail shell against your mouth.
6. Using your forefinger, cover and uncover the hole you made in the shell while sucking at the larger opening.
7. Continue until the snail suddenly pops into your mouth. Congratulations! You've eaten your snail.
8. If this dramatic method doesn't work, try working the tine of the fork into the snail in a spiral motion until it pops out the other side. Then eat it.
9. Repeat until full. Alternate with lots of sips of raki.

Tips:

1. Larger snails are a little easier to work with.
2. Let the snail drain of cooking water before you bring it toward you.
3. This is a traditional dish often served with raki, and the raki really helps move this process along.

Piraeus Dock Strike

Despite what appears (on the surface) to be a very good deal for the port of Piraeus from the Chinese company COSCO, with major financial investment and creation of 1000 jobs when they take control of terminals 2 & 3, the dock strike initiated on 1st October continues.
Over 3.5M Euro per day is being lost in revenues and massive stock piles of goods exist in the port including urgently needed medical supplies. The medical suppliers union (PASYPIE) are stating hospitals are in danager of running short of supplies very soon. Despite all this the PASOK government are no nearer a resolution. Indeed they have not, to my knowledge even implemented the fines that can be levied in the unions of 4000 Euro per day for this strike action.
Greece can not afford such disruption with its massive national debt. Surely this must be one of the governments most urgent priorities, but how low key is it being played?

Its OK to commit crime with a hoodie !!

The PASOK party in Greece has intonated that it will repeal the law that imposes stiff sentences on individuals who commit crimes whilst wearing hoodies or covering their faces. Now am I missing something here? Are they saying if you commit a crime and showing your face, when you get caught (and no doubt you will with this age of CCTV) you will get the same sentence as those who commit the crime and remain anonynmous (but then they might not get caught!). Well I suppose it keeps the prisons empty.....

Doggie passports..

Some time back we took in a stray, well truthfully she turned up after being dumped from a car and ended up staying. Well now she has been spayed and today she got "chipped" and obtained her Greek "doggie" passport. So I guess she now travels through Europe with us! Why is it that the UK is the most difficult country to enter though with a dog? Presenting the passport with its full vacination history counter signed by a vet is OK everywhere except the UK where you have to within 48 hours of entering have the animal revacinated.....or suffer the 6 month quarantine.

Throwing money in the air !!!

Three of the 30 warplanes Greece ordered from the US arrived on Monday. Greece received ten planes earlier this year and will receive 17 more in the coming months.Greece also holds the option of purchasing ten more planes bringing the possible total cost to about 2.2 billion euros.
Ironically whilst part of the EU Greece DID NOT buy and support the Euro-fighter.

2010 Olympics

The 2010 Winter Olympics torch relay has begun with a ceremony at Olympia in Greece - it will eventually end in Vancouver after 106 days.

New government in Greece

Well the new Prime Minister will wear himself out within a year if he keeps up his current pace! One moment he is in Athens, the next he is in Turkey, at a meeting of Balkan foreign ministers. Then he pops up in the burnt out areas of Olympia; the next day he is racing around Attica.
Either he is doing a very good job, or he is trying to hide from the European ministers that are due to arrive tomorrow to review the state of the greek finances....

Morning has broken....

With heavy rain over night it was far more of a pleasure waking at 0700am to a bright sky, but will it hold out all day...I doubt it. Time to teak oil all the wooden furniture and bring in under cover for the winter months I think.

Rain, rain and more rain

Its raining more and more, I am told last year winter was "real bad" ( I missed most as I did not return to Greece until late January). So I guess I had better dig out those wellington boots from the UK.