Watching the Olives Grow Read online

  I decided to go into the village to check for any post and to pay the Electricity bill and then on my return to set about cutting the tree into logs. It wasn’t what I had in mind in order to save 50 Euros, but the volume of wood would save me about that much money by not having to order more logs before the start of summer.

  Well, that was it; surely the end of all the disasters for now?

  Wrong!

  Disaster number five:

  When I came home from the village, Valerie called out,

  “You will not believe this, and you will not be happy! Come and see just what I have discovered.”

  She was around the back of the house, and as I turned the corner, there she was holding the metal Meerkat of the chimney smoke/weather vane in her hands. The wind had been so forceful that it had broken the welding and blown the Meerkat off the chimney stack fixing!

  She had discovered it lying on the ground with a bent nose and tail.

  It was quite a shock, but at least I consoled myself with the thought that I could straighten the nose and tail with a hammer and get it re-welded onto the chimney stack fixing.

  Please, no more disasters.

  So here I was, just nine days into March and I was in ‘mourning.’ As I sat on the upper terrace, I set about doing my job, ‘Watching The Olives Grow,’ but my heart wasn’t in it. All I could think about was the ‘demise’ of one of the Olive trees and the poor misshapen form of my metal Meerkat, as it lay on the ground below me, having been rent from its place on high on the top of the smoke the chimney stack.

  Even the Ouzo didn’t taste so good today, and that was not a good sign! The sun was shining, but I was oblivious to its warmth. I somehow felt that I was guilty of dereliction of my duty, but what could I have done to prevent these two things happening? Nature will have its way. I sat in quiet contemplation, trying to decide what to do. Do my job, that’s what I had to do! So, I finished my Ouzo and went down to the wood store to get the chain saw. I cleaned the spark plug, topped up the oil and the petrol, and I even sharpened the chain. I was a man on a mission! I set about sawing the tree into logs suitable for the fire and stacked them in the store to dry and ‘age’ ready for use.

  As I stored them, I guessed they would be ready for use in around 10 months’ time.

  Meanwhile, life has to go on, and I had to get back to work again and start ‘Watching The Olives Grow’ from my seat on the terrace. I recalled that I had left home to travel to Prague on 28th February and returned on 4th March, and to experience disasters four and five and that I was now into the fourth month of the growing season of the Olive trees. For the last week of February, before setting off for Prague, there had been nothing of significance to see or report. The February photo had been against the background of a fantastic sunset, and now I had to think about a photo for March to prove that I had been doing my job properly. So, here I was sitting in my usual place on the upper terrace and I was hard at work; ‘Watching.’ As I looked out at the Olive tree in front of me, I detected a slight change in the colour of the tree. I was curious, so I went down the steps into the garden, right up close to the tree. Wow! I discovered that it had started to grow flowers, which is the first stage of the year’s growth pattern.

  Photo: Flowers On Olive Tree As ‘Watched’ On 11th March 2010.

  It so exciting to see; I love my job! But, next, I had to decide how to get the Meerkat repaired and back up on the roof. Back to the terrace to think this through! As I was sitting there thinking and ‘Watching’ there was a squeal from Valerie who was working in the garden below. Please, no more disasters I thought as I descended the steps to see what was up.

  “Stuart, come here. Come here! Quickly!” She cried out, “Look what I have found.”

  I went down the steps to find Valerie standing there with her hand outstretched and there in the palm of her hand was a beautiful, tiny tortoise. Not a baby per-se but a species; Dwarf Marginated. Exquisite! So small, yet perfectly formed and with really sharp and clearly defined markings. We were so lucky. Valerie had almost trodden on it as she was busy weeding, but she spotted it just in time and plucked it to safety. Weeding does have its rewards and so, too the planting of bulbs!

  Photo: Dwarf Marginated Tortoise.

  As I was about to go back up to the upper terrace to decide just what to do, in order to get the Meerkat repaired, I noticed a yellow ‘flash of colour’ coming from the pot on the lower terrace.

  There, to my delight, was a bright yellow daffodil raising its head from the soil.

  “Hey! Look at me, I’m all grown up!” it seemed to say to me. I marvelled at this great sight; our first home-grown daffodil.

  Photo: First Home Grown Daffodil.

  These two sights began to lift my mood. The tiny tortoise was so cute, and the daffodil is one of my favourite flowers; it always seems to look so ‘happy’ as it lifts its trumpet flower towards the sun shining above.

  Both sights had invigorated me.

  Right then; time for action!

  I knew what I had to do with my metal Meerkat. I went up on the roof and removed the whole of the smoke / weather vane fixing and, along with my metal Meerkat, I loaded it all into the boot of the car and set off to find somewhere to get it welded back together again. I was lucky with my first stop because I found the men who made the metal gates for Meerkat Manor working in their workshop. They could see the problem immediately and they set about the task of welding the two items back together. They even welded an extra strip of metal to strengthen the unit, and after just 15 minutes the job was done, and as I was loading it back into the car, I asked,

  “How much?”

  “Nothing!”

  Came their reply. It seemed that they were happy that I was happy once again, and they were pleased to help. This was yet another example of the warmth and generosity of the Maniot people. I drove off back to Meerkat Manor with a big smile on my face; the ‘period of mourning’ was officially over. Once back, I applied a new coat of black paint and, as soon as it was dry, climbed back onto the roof to fix it back onto the chimney stack. Later that evening, I lit a fire and went outside to see the metal Meerkat happily spinning in the breeze as it dispersed the smoke coming up the chimney from the logs. He was back where he belonged doing his job; ‘spinning’, and now I no longer had any more worries, tomorrow I will be back doing my job; ‘Watching’.

  I had completed my early morning stint of ‘Watching’, and we had gone to the village; the usual routine. It was when we were in Katerina’s supermarket that we came across a ‘Wanted’ poster displayed at the front of the store. It comprised a picture of a little white cat called ‘Stumpy’ who wanted a good home. It seemed that the name had come about as it had no tail; just a ‘stump’ instead.

  “Poor little thing,” we said to each other.

  As we read the details, we realised that the Alan referred to for contact was in fact our friend who stays in Agios Nikolaos for the six months November to April period each year. He and his wife Stella live in Austria and rent their apartment out during the skiing season and come here to stay in The Mani for the autumn and spring. I could read Valerie’s mind. To my mind, two is enough.” Yet, nothing more was said, we finished our shopping, collected the mail and some water and set off home to Meerkat Manor.

  March marched on and, as the days went by, there was a noticeable increase in the temperature, hours of sunshine, and the growth of the wild flowers. During the last week of March, I counted no less than 28 different types of wild flowers growing in and around the garden, within the Olive tree groves, and on the beach. Perhaps the most colourful cluster was the brilliant red and yellow Poppies and that I saw growing right on the edge of the beach. They looked stunning too.

  Photo: Red Poppies On The Beach.

  Photo: Yellow Poppies On The Beach.

  So much had happened during March, but the surprises still had not finished. We were going to have an addition to the family!

  After seeing t
he ‘Wanted’ poster in the supermarket, we had thought no more about ‘Stumpy’ until three days later when we were at Alan and Stella’s rented apartment. We had been invited for a lunchtime glass of wine, and whilst we were sitting on their terrace, ‘Stumpy’ made an appearance.

  It transpired that she was a mother with two kittens and they had camped on Alan and Stella’s terrace waiting to be ‘adopted’. This they duly did, and within days they used their terrace as their home both for dining and sleeping! They must have known that Alan and Stella were ‘suckers and softies’ and they looked quite at home when we visited. The kittens looked quite cute and ‘Stumpy’ was just that, but none the less, she was very pretty; all white with glowing yellow / gold eyes!

  Alan had put the advert up in various places as he had decided not to abandon them when he and Stella returned to Austria. He was arranging and paying for the cats to be ‘doctored’ and wanted to find good homes for them. He had found homes for the two kittens but was worried that nobody would want ‘Stumpy’ because of her not having a tail. He was wrong to worry! Valerie was taken by ‘Stumpy’ and immediately she was suggesting that we adopt her and that she should become a ‘sister’ for Minstrel and Owen. Ugh! This was not in our plans for living at Meerkat Manor, however, Valerie was quite insistent that we should give her a home.

  I suggested that we should not be too hasty and that we should think about it for a few days. A few days later, ‘Stumpy’ arrived at Meerkat Manor! We decided that not having a tail was bad enough in itself, yet alone having a name that confirmed it. Imagine calling out, “Here Stumpy. Here!” So, we decided to rename her ‘Snowball’ as befits her colour; all white just like a snowball.

  Photo: ‘Stumpy’ Now Re-housed and Re-named ‘Snowball.’

  Within days she became very settled, accepted by Owen and Minstrel and ‘seamlessly’ became one of the family.

  Still, she does ‘purrrrrr’ her appreciation when she is fed. Worthwhile!

  March was almost over, April was just a few days away, and with it came Easter on the first weekend of the month.

  However, there had been an on-going saga throughout the month of March that you should be aware of. We had been aware of it from the very first day of the month! We had a problem that had not been remedied.

  In the first week of March we had decided to remove the shower tray and have the shower room fully tiled and have only a central drain; a wet room, so to speak. The room is quite small and we thought that the change would make it appear bigger, and it would certainly provide more room to move around when taking a shower.

  I called Giannis, our builder, As well as being our builder, he is also our neighbour; he lives about 200 metres away. He is very proud of having built our house, so, whenever we need anything doing to the house, he is the first person we consult.

  A few days later, he and Eleni came to see us, and through Eleni’s translation, I asked him if he would lay the tiles. As he is a big man at 2 metres high and weighing around 95 kilos in weight, he finds it difficult to work in the small shower and bathroom, so I had a proposal to make.

  I proposed that I would do all the hard work of taking up the old tiles and shower tray and preparing the floor if he would just lay the tiles.

  I can lay tiles, but the tricky part is to get the level right when need the drainage to go to one central spot, and that is why I needed his help.

  He agreed and said that he would do it in a few days, so I set about removing the existing tiles and preparing the floor.

  Within two days I had done my bit and the room looked empty, but clean and ready for the new tiles to be laid.

  A few days? Well, a week had gone by and there had been no sign of Giannis. Then 10 days had elapsed, and still no sign of Giannis, so I phoned him and was told “soon.”

  So, here we were, just three days before Easter weekend and the tiles were still waiting to be laid.

  I telephoned him again, and Eleni answered on his behalf and said that he had been very busy and that now he would not be able to do it until the day after Easter. This was not what we had agreed, but what could I do? So, I said that we would look forward to seeing him then and wished them all a Happy Easter.

  Despite all the tales about Greeks and their approach to time keeping i.e. poor (GMT = Greek Maybe Time), this was the first time in two years that we had been let down and been kept waiting.

  Roll on Easter!

  APRIL 2010

  One of the best things that I notice about spring is the clocks going ’forward’ because the evenings become so much lighter. During the last days of March and the first few days of April, even at 7pm the sun was still shining, and it was light and bright. The 1st of April and another hot, sunny day; not a cloud in the sky, and the Easter weekend beckoned. In terms of Religious and Family celebrations, Easter is the BIG event of the year for Greeks. In the towns, the shops close for Friday, Sunday and Monday, and some will even close on the Saturday. In the village, the Post Office was closed for four days; however the two small supermarkets, the tavernas and the bars only closed for the Sunday.

  Early on Easter Sunday morning the bells were ringing from all the churches in the surrounding mountain villages, and today the peals are very upbeat. The first ringing session of the morning is to ‘announce’ Easter Day and invite the parishioners to the first morning service. The whole family get together for the day; Grandparents, Mother, Father, Sons, Daughters, Uncles, Aunties, Nephews and Nieces and other relatives. The celebration is as much a getting together for the day as well as celebrating Easter itself, including the end of Lent. The family group goes to church, and then return to the house; the women to prepare vegetables and salads for lunch, and the men to prepare the meat for the lunch. As it is a special day all round, the tradition is to spit-roast a goat. So, after the first church service, the men light the barbeque.

  Photo: Loading The Goat Onto The ‘Brick House’ Barbeque.

  The barbeques are usually very large affairs. They are either purpose built ‘brick houses’ or steel cabinets on trestles. Men and fires are always a fascinating topic, but men and Easter barbeques are very serious business indeed! The goats are loaded on the spit, and then everybody goes back to church for the second service. Worship over, the families return home. It is time to party!

  Remember, this is their first meal containing meat for the 40 days of Lent; they have a lot of catching up to do! The wine flows, the music starts, and the families engage in the art of conversation. It sounds like a lot of shouting, but they are all very happy, laughing and joking, and just talking very loudly, and all at the same time whilst they wait for the meat to be cooked!

  Some families even light their charcoal fires on the beach for their family barbeque!

  Photo: Goat Loaded Onto A Spit For A Barbeque On The Beach.

  Smoke from the barbeques, and the aroma of roasting meat, is carried on the gentle breeze from all directions; quite an amazing sight and smell, it is positively mouth-watering!

  I walked into the village and reflected upon how really good it is to see whole families getting together; young and old alike. All seated around very long and large tables, either in their family room with the windows open, or in the garden, and of course the beach.

  The taverna and bar owners close for the day and put their tables together for their family get together and celebrate. The meat is ready around 3pm, lunch is served, and the party continues! The lunch party nearest us went on until around 11pm! Remember, Maniots know how to party!

  The Easter weekend celebrations were soon over and everybody was back to work as normal, including me. I was back on the terrace busy doing my job, ‘Watching The Olives Grow’ and, as an accomplished multi-tasker, I was looking at the wonderful wild flowers in full bloom and planning my work schedule for April.

  April is a busy month! Apart from having to work on the property maintenance ‘list’ (all the small jobs that turn out to be bigger once you start!), there was strimming t
o do, a trip to Athens to fulfil and a celebration of our second year in residence at Meerkat Manor to plan. Also, our friends Sally and Pete were coming to stay for a week in the middle of the month. Their visit was a priority as we had a problem with the shower room in the studio apartment. This was now a worry for us as the timescale was getting tight. The day after Easter was 6th April and Sally and Pete were arriving on the 15th of April; just nine days later. OK, but tight none the less.

  By the Thursday 8th April, there was still no word from Giannis, so I telephoned again, only to be told by Eleni that it would be at least 10 days before he could come. That meant that was after Sally and Pete had arrived! What to do? Panic! That’s what to do. So, I started asking around and nobody was free to do the work immediately. This was not looking good at all! Eventually, we found somebody who came to look at the work required and said “maybe in the time available.” We lived in hope!

  The following day Friday 9th of April, we celebrated our second anniversary of living in Meerkat Manor. Last year, for the first anniversary, I gave Valerie an ornamental orange tree; a special variety cultivated especially for growing in a pot, but one that produced dozens of miniature oranges. The oranges were for display and not consumption.

  Photo: Ornamental Orange Tree With Miniature Oranges

  This year, I gave Valerie a comprehensive guide to the Wild Flowers of Greece. The book listed wild flowers from all over Greece. There is even a special section on the wild flowers of the Peloponnese and these are the ones she wanted to identify. There are hundreds and hundreds!

  Perhaps the most striking of all is the wild red Anemone that grows in single blooms and extensive ‘clumps’, it is quite majestic.