Pearl Blog 3

A working holiday

We play bridge. I’ve played for close on 50 years and Denis has played for even longer. In fact we met at Hull University Bridge Club. So it’s been something that has always been part of our lives. Now that we are retired it has given us the opportunity to work teaching and running bridge sessions on cruises. In return we get the cruises for free.

I wouldn’t naturally choose a cruise for my holiday, but obviously it’s slightly different when the cruise is free.

This week we set off from Liverpool on a cruise to the Norwegian fjords.

Bella and Bertie, the Liver Birds, from the top deck of The Bolette.

The first two days are at sea and that is when we do our work – bridge lessons in the mornings and sessions of duplicate bridge in the afternoons.

Our first task is to set up the playing area

And check that we have all the equipment we need.

Our first day at sea we spent traveling northwards, in effect tracking the coast of Scotland. The weather was dull, grey and overcast and the views weee consequently not great. We got 6 people at the lesson for beginners, 12 for the advanced seminar and 12 people (=3 tables) for the afternoon bridge.

On the second day we got 12 for the beginners lesson, but only 3 for the improvers and only 2 tables for the afternoon session. We put it down to the weather which was much better and a lot of people were sitting out in the sun

When not doing the bridge we are free to relax. Obviously I found some jigsaws to do

And there are at least three general knowledge quizzes and a “name that tune” quiz. As always I am disappointed at my performance in that quiz – especially as the first time was “Build me up Buttercup”. Sadly things deteriorated after that and we had the likes of “The Ketchup Song” which totally scuppered us.

After two days at sea we went off to bed and woke up on Romsdalsfjorden ….

The most important of the least important things

I started doing a daily blog when we went into lockdown just over five years ago. I thought I’d be doing it for a few weeks but as it happened it continued for much longer than I expected. On day four (25 March 2020) I wrote about the impact of lockdown on football and reflected on Jurgen Klopp’s comment that football was “the most important of the least important things”.

That was surely true during Covid when people were losing loved ones or being isolated and lonely. It made us realise that although we missed going to Anfield and watching our team there were more important things in life. And that it was really being with our friends that made the football special.

I still do the blog although not daily. Usually when I’m on my travels, or when there’s something interesting going on with the football. It is only 6 weeks ago that we had a celebration weekend in Liverpool when LFC won their 20th title. Everyone, players and fans alike, celebrated together and we all had a weekend full of friendship and fun.

Denis and I then had our annual month away on Naxos, and I came back excited for the forthcoming football season. LFC had made some great signings early in the transfer window and we had a pre-season trip to Wembley planned, to play Crystal Palace in the traditional curtain raiser, the Community Shield. This is either the first trophy of the season or a meaningless pre-season friendly, depending on whether you win or lose. All seemed well with the LFC world.

And then tragedy struck. Everyone will be aware of the road accident which took the life of Diogo Jota, the Liverpool striker, and his brother, Andre Silva. It is unimaginable to think how devastated their families must be.

From being a place of such joy only six weeks ago Anfield has now become a place of mourning where people – not just LFC fans – can go to express their sorrow and offer their condolences.

From sharing victorious moments on the pitch and on an open top bus with Diogo, Liverpool players have now attended his funeral.

The players have now returned to training. It remains to be seen what impact Diogo’s death and his absence will have on them and the team’s performances this coming season. But that will pale into insignificance compared with what his parents, wife and children will be going through.

Football really is unimportant in the midst of grief but as Jurgen said it is still “The most important of the least important things”

RIP Diogo Jota YNWA

And of course I’ll finish with his song.

https://m.youtube.com/shorts/B5MAH6lwtAo

Two busy days

The wind has died down and the weather is lovely

On Tuesday the two Annas went off on their sailing trip to nearby Paros. They seem to have enjoyed it. Denis relaxed around the pool. I started to think of home as we now only have a few more days. I felt a list was necessary so bought a notebook as I like to see it all laid out before me. I checked a few things on next week’s diary and generally started to think about what needed doing once we were back.

In the evening we went to a piano concert, part of the Domus Festival.

We were given a flyer for the July events which just made me a bit sad as we will be gone by then.

Yesterday was equally busy. We all caught the 09.30 bus towards Apeiranthos. Denis and I got off first, at Sangri, to visit the Bazeos Tower

Every year there is an art exhibition of some sort there.

Some of last year’s pieces were still in place

But it focused on a new collection entitled “The thread that brings us together” and was mostly fabric and natural materials used to make art installations and make the most of the space in the Tower

While we were doing the cultural stuff the Annas hiked up Mount Zas, the highest point of the Cyclades. We all met in our usual place in Filoti for lunch. Of course we had bouyourdi – it was quickly gone!

In the evening we all went to a cheese tasting. It was excellent, with a good range of Naxian cheese, various accompaniments and a glass of wine.

After all that we went for a stroll, the Annas had some ice cream and we walked home along the beach. A lovely end to a busy couple of days- we plan to be more relaxed the next few days before heading home

Two windy days

The first two days with the two Annas were both very windy.

For the first of them we had planned a beach day and we stuck with the plan despite the wind. We were down in our usual spot quite early, having left Anna G to have a lie in. She also had breakfast by herself on the balcony which I think was a nice start to her holiday

The wind made for rather wild sea conditions but we ventured in regardless

Of course we had our lunch while we were at the beach.

We didn’t stay out too long and in the evening we just had fast food (gyros) as we had had lunch quite late

The Annas had hoped to go out on a sailing trip the second day but that was postponed because of the wind. Instead the three of us caught the bus to Eggares – Denis had a rest day. We visited the small Olive Oil Museum there

https://www.olivemuseum.com/

It’s a short free tour and chat about all things olive oil, followed by a tasting and an opportunity to buy some olive oil based products. There’s also a little cafe selling various olive oil based dishes. The Annas had olive oil ice cream with different sauces. I had olive oil cake, with olive oil ice cream and actual olives. Yum

The buses to and from Eggares are infrequent and it’s only about 3 miles from Naxos Town (as the crow flies) so we decided to walk back. The road back has no footpaths on either side so we decided to try what looked like a track back over the hills. Not a good idea as the track disappeared and the ground was very rough with undergrowth that scratched our legs and was generally unpleasant. Eventually we retraced our steps and came back via the road anyway

There wasn’t much to see on the route although we did pass wbat I think is the main Naxos cemetery.

Once back we had a drink and a snack before heading back home. And in the evening Denis and I went to our usual bar, Soulatso, and the Annas tried various other bars and cafes.

The wind had already started to die down as the day wore on and the weather is due to improve and be less windy over the next few days.

Goings and Comings

So Paul and Louise spent a week with us and left yesterday for Mykonos; they are flying home from there today

Most of their time with us was spent on the beach.

Paul and Lou stayed on the beach to watch the sunset

In the evenings we ventured out to eat, including visiting the local beach resort of Agia Anna one evening. Where you can also get a good sunset view.

On their last night we stayed local….

Just before they left the two Annas arrived by ferry from Athens

There was just enough time between their arrival and Paul and Louise’s departure for us all to have lunch together, which was nice.

The next week with them- which is also our last week- will be busier with various activities being planned. Some are weather dependent so the plan has to be a bit flexible.

Cocktails and guitar playing

We had another lazy day by the pool. In the evening we were going to listen to a guitar player, Nikos Giolias, playing as part of the “Domus Festival” which runs every year. As the concert is near the top of the old town I had planned a little bar crawl to break the journey.

First stop Soulatso (of course) where I was very sensible and just had some sparkling water. Then a short walk to “Honey & Cinnamon” where I had their Melon Sour cocktail. It’s a nice relaxing bar

And I really like this cocktail…

After that we next went to Avaton 1739

which is right at the top of the old town, with great views.

They do great cocktails as well. I had one called Summer Wine and Denis had a Tangerine Sorbetta. Both were lovely (if a bit expensive).

In the past we have eaten here but while the food is ok the service often leaves a bit to be desired

We then met up with Paul and Lou who had come in by bus so weren’t with us for our first stops. We met them at the recently renovated ‘Drink in Peace’ which we had chosen for dinner as it also has great views and is close to where the guitar concert was being held. Unfortunately the menu was limited and somewhat pretentious as was the food. It was also very pricey. Nevertheless we stuck with it but Paul and Louise in particular had a very poor meal.

Looks pretty but was nearly cold and not at all appetising

After that disappointment I was a bit anxious about how the guitar concert might go down but in the end it was great and we all enjoyed it

Beach day tomorrow….

Happy Eggs

Paul and Louise (understandably) had a lie in. We all spent the day lounging by the pool, snoozing, reading, snacking and having the odd beer

I was up a bit earlier than them and tidied up from the previous night before heading off to the pool area. Whilst doing this I found half a dozen eggs which I assumed had been taken out of the fridge to make space (for wine or beer presumably). There was now space for them but on returning them to the fridge I discovered that a) our eggs were already in the fridge and hadn’t been moved and b) the new eggs were “Happy Eggs” which were clearly from England. I tried to think of a logical explanation for this as it was difficult to imagine that Paul and Louise had brought half a dozen eggs with them in their luggage and they had arrived unscathed (the eggs that is). But that was indeed the case, Lou having inadvertently brought them in her hand luggage!

So we’ve got plenty of eggs now!

For the evening we headed out by bus to the port area for drinks and dinner. We ended up at Flamingo where there was some traditional Greek music, and dancing, and plate smashing.

It was fun for a while but it went on for far too long for my liking.

We came home via Soulatso

This morning we got up a little bit later than usual and had a more substantial breakfast- Denis made us both a 3-egg omelette with the Happy Eggs. Very nice.

Paul and Louise arrive

I was up early after a really bad night’s sleep and probably because I was excited as Paul and Louise would be joining us.

There was some last minute shopping to be done and then we had a lazy day round the pool

Mid afternoon we strolled into town along the beach, stopping for coffee, then for a beer, and to pass the time watching the world go by. There were some good views.

It was VERY windy

Paul and Louise were arriving on the SeaJet from Mykonos.

Nikos had come to meet us all too so that he could bring their bags back to the apartment- which left us to do a bar crawl home.

Finishing off the evening with Baileys on the balcony.

Moving on….

Tuesday we had another pool day and then an evening out.

I went to a quiet bar and had a couple of their Melon Sour cocktails while relaxing and reading my book

Denis popped into Soulatso and then joined some acquaintances at a bar called Prime which we had never been to before. I eventually joined him there. A nice place, providing free nibbles, good background music and some Baby Guinness shots on the house. Another place we’d definitely revisit

We had booked a table at La Vigne, a tiny restaurant owned and run by two French ladies. Their menu is a bit different so it’s a good place to go if you want a break from Greek food. They spend a lot of time in Thailand and I think you can see how it has influenced their menu choices.

After La Vigne it was back to Soulatso to watch England play Senegal in a friendly. The less said about that the better.

After that busy (and boozy) night we needed a few quiet days as we have family coming soon.

So we had a day at the beach then a day round the pool. On the beach day the wind had picked up and it wasn’t that pleasant to be out on the sun loungers or even indeed sitting out on our balcony. But by the next day the wind had died down and the weather was lovely.

So far we had been staying in a one room studio apartment but with visitors expected we had to swap rooms and move into the two bedroom apartment we usually stay in. We also did another BIG SHOP to stock up with provisions.

My brother Paul and his wife Louise arrive tomorrow. Paul likes Guinness so Denis has been doing a bit of research on his behalf. I don’t think we’ve found a bar which serves draught Guinness yet but we have found several places where we can get it in cans. In any case Paul now tells me he’s happy with Greek beer anyway but I suppose the research may come in handy at a later date. I might need to get the infamous PrimeMutton to check out the Guinness here!

On the football front we have seen Trent go and, hopefully, we will see Florian arrive formally next week. I have sorted really good seats for our cup tickets and of course next season’s fixtures are released next week. Lots to look forward to.

For now we are having an evening by the port, watching the world go by, and very much looking forward to tomorrow.

Agia Prokopios

Sunday we spent another lazy day by the pool then headed down to the port area. I had a few little tasks to do down there: pick up the latest bus timetable, buy some ferry tickets for Paul and Louise who are arriving on Saturday, buy a hat and say “Bonjour” to the lovely ladies who run La Vigne. We also made a reservation to eat there later in the week.

Then we walked to a restaurant which had been recommended to us, Barabbas. It was busy but they managed to squeeze us in. The food was indeed excellent and very reasonably priced. Definitely worth another visit.

Since it is just round the corner from Soulatso we decided to pop in there for a night cap before heading home. There was a lot going off there though! We sat with some friends and watched the final set of the French Open (tennis) but most of the bar was filled with locals watching Olympiakos play Panathanaikos at basketball. Basketball is a big thing in Greece and Soulatso is the place where Olympiakos supporters (football and basketball) congregate to watch their team.

It was a title decider and Olympiakos won, so everyone was happy.

Only two weeks ago we were watching similar scenes near Anfield! 😂

We also watched Spain versus Portugal in the EUFA Nations League final (won by Portugal in a penalty shootout). So quite a late night in the end.

But we’re on holiday so no rush to get up yesterday.

But once up I set off to walk to Agia Prokopios where I was to meet Denis for lunch.

There were great views

Looking down towards my destination, Agia Prokopios

In this area of the island there are some salt flats and one of the ones I passed today was RED!

I was hoping it is the left over effect of the recent sandstorms they had and not some sort of Erin Brockovitch pollution incident. It turns out it is caused by bacteria and other microorganisms which thrive in the very saline environment.

We had lunch at Avali overlooking the beach

And later caught the bus home. I had a couple of hours around the pool. Denis cooked us chicken in tomato sauce with rice for tea – quite an achievement in our very basic kitchen.

We were both quite tired and ready to have an evening in and an early night.