Last few days in Arillas

Day 89 - Friday 27.6.14

It was 26 deg by 10am - I spent the morning writing my blog.

We decided to go to 'Effies' - Eftihia  (EXYTHIA it means happiness ) for lunch as we have not been, up to now this visit. I always have the same meal - Grilled prawns with extra garlic - as recommended to me by Phil Poffley a few years ago. I think I died and went to heaven - they were just as delicious as always.

Effie came out to say hello, she is pregnant, due to have a baby girl at the beginning of September. She is keeping very well and had just come back from Corfu town where  she was buying some bigger clothes as nothing fits her now.

Phil and I spent a lovely couple of hours in the dappled shade, (30 deg outside)  reminiscing about this trip and previous holidays. The main pleasure for me is seeing how relaxed and well Phil is! It is just over a year since his heart bypass operation. I am so pleased we got to live our dream! I was doubting it when I saw him in intensive care last June.

Arillas sure is getting busy now and very hot!

This evening we walked down to the front. On the way we stopped to have a chat to Clare who is now working in the Silver Moon shop, she is loving it. 

Then we went to Portofino for a Meze. It was very windy so not as hot as it has been but still humid. Spiros was very stressed as he had had a visit from the police, right at his busiest time, when the restaurant was full. They wanted to check all his paperwork, which was all in good order except for one form which  he has to get from his book keeper. The police have visited most business premises today. They are looking for people who are avoiding paying tax.

We called in the Coconut for a nightcap and had a chat to Yiota.

I asked Kostas if we would be seeing Hannah and baby before we left and he told me that the Greeks have a tradition that they do not go out for 40 days. So we will have to wait until our next visit to see them  both. I gave him our present for baby. I had it made in England before we came to Greece - so it is well travelled.

I was curious about this 40 day tradition, so I looked it up and found that:-

The Greeks are very superstitious and believe a lot in religion but also in supernatural or paranormal phenomenon. Traditions and superstitions vary from island to island, from villages to villages and from region to region. In the past, it was believed that the new mother was the source of jealousy and must avoid the “evil eye” (κακό μάτι, kako mati) Therefore, she was never seen in public for forty days. After this period, she would take her baby to the church, the baby was blessed by the priest, and they could both start going out.

Day 90 - Saturday 28.6.14

I spent the morning packing and sorting things out for our trip home. Poppy only had a short walk this morning. It was 26 deg by 2pm and the humidity was 73%. I still have swollen feet and laid on the bed with them elevated. The inevitable happened - I fell asleep.

We went to Quattro in San Stef tonight - again. It is a new this year, Italian restaurant that specialises in hand made pasta. The  four friends are very efficient and friendly, they truly deserve to do well. Michaela told us that up to now, it has exceeded their expectations, I hope it carries on for them.  If you can possibly get there it is well worth a visit - the food is gorgeous. I had Bruschetta for starters, then Pasta with tiger prawns

 and Phil had garlic bread, and a to die for steak

followed by Chocolate mousse.

Including house wine the bill was less than 40 euros - so not too expensive for such wonderful food. 

We had a stroll up to Hippopots to have a chat with Jackie and Pete before driving back to Arillas. They do some wonderful pottery.         www.hippopots.com       I ordered a couple of special items to take home with us. Jackie is going to rush them through for me as we need to collect them on Monday evening.
Another very memorable evening.

Day 91 - Sunday 29.6.14

Another hot one today - 27 deg at 1pm.  30 deg at 3pm and 84% humidity.
We went to Brouklis to see Dimitri this afternoon, we were the only people there, apart from Dr. Yannis. The four of us had a good chat about various things including dogs on the beach. It seems that the notice on the beach is not enforceable. The council will be having meetings to discuss the matter and the wording may change - to something like, dogs on leash, keep dogs under control, pick up after your dog - there are various options.

So we took Poppy for a last swim of this holiday down by the jetty.









Yannis, Vasso, Harris and Alexandra, our landlord and his family all came to say goodbye to us, we paid a deposit to book the apartment for April, May, and June 2015. Looks like we will be doing it all again - all being well.
We had a snack in Sharon's pool bar and said goodbye to everyone. This evening we packed some things into the campervan then went to Brouklis for dinner. Bifteki again for me, one of my favourite meals. Called in at the Marvel for a nightcap and to confirm that we will be wanting a room for tomorrow night as we have to vacate the apartment. We watched Greece loose their football match to Costa Rica.



Day 92 - Monday 30.6.14

This morning we packed all the rest of our stuff in the van. We went to the Marvel to check in and have lunch. We drove to Roda to the vets to get Poppy's passport stamp and for her worming tablet. Matoula the vet is so lovely, she checked Poppy's microchip, and signed the passport saying she is fit and well to travel. A painless payment of €26.
We filled the van with Diesel, checked the tyre pressures etc. Then we drove to San Stef to collect my items from Jackie and Pete at Hippopots and say goodbye.. We drove down to the port to have a last look, then on to Armourada for a last drink with Leon and Billy. We met some more Arillas.com forum members who, all came to say they are enjoying the blog. Said goodbye to Clare in the Silver Moon shop.

We drove down to the front hoping to get a photo of our last Arillas sunset of this trip, but we just missed it. Back to the Marvel for a shower, then a Meze with wine and off to bed. It has been a long, busy and emotional day.



Day 93 - Tuesday 01.7.14        Leaving day!

We had a leisurely coffee on our balcony when we woke, reflecting about this trip and how amazing it has been.












We had brunch before setting off. Just as we were leaving I had a message from Yiota saying she had made Cheese pies for our journey, what a lovely thoughtful gesture! Yiota and all the like minded locals are the reason we keep returning to our little bit of paradise.
We said our goodbyes to Sophia, Kostas and Spiros at the Marvel, drove down to Yiotas to collect the pie, said another goodbye to Sharon then set off from Arillas on the journey home.

Last view of the beautiful clear blue sky.