Practice makes progress!

Saturday 22nd October - Hora and Livadi

 So last nights sausage in red wine worked well, I forgot to defrost some bacon but with the red wine, mushrooms, onions and herbs it was ok.. There was so much of it, I froze one portion. I had it with potato mash, first time I have eaten them here. Tonight is spaghetti carbonara. 

I had an eight am call with my old work colleague from Singapore, I think I said before his son is in London doing his masters. I hope when I go to the UK in Spring I will see his son, maybe go and visit Battersea Power station. I know his dad who was over with  him settling him in, in September would have loved to have gone, as he used to work in one, but Battersea wasn’t open then. While I was talking to Anthony the guy with the two horses went past the house a couple of times, moving something with them. 

After the call I did my Greek and Guitar, I am still making mistakes in chapter three annoyingly. When they want something because they have different words for I want, You want and so on, they don’t normally prefix it with I or You but the variation on the Thello word tells you who is saying it, or doing something. So Thello Enna Ouzo, means I want an Ouzo, Thelette Enna Ouzo means Do you want an Ouzo and so on. This is meant to be the easy bit! At least I haven’t given up!

The guitar is happening, I have not got a tune out of it yet. Getting all the things together is the tricky bit, strumming, that’s playing the instrument with the pick or plectrum, then with the left hand holding down on the fretboard specific strings, and then changing the pattern while still strumming! The way you hold your hand around the neck is important. The YouTube video I am following  is this one. I was worried my pick was a bit thick, so I cut one out of a margarine tub top, but after more experience I think the bought one might be ok. His piece has three chords, all simple two finger ones, and close to each other so switching is easier! So I won’t progress until I can do this to a decent standard. He has done loads of videos. The friend I spoke to last week said her husband plays guitar and he might be able to help.

After this I had an early lunch and walked down the road to Livadi. I am glad I did because on the way, I chatted to a guy watering his plants, he lives here all year, he rents the top of the house he was in. He also has a rental place in Livadi and a house, I think his son is lives in, in Athens! He worked all over the world, Germany, Ireland, Dubai and more. His English was good..  his name is Paulos. He laughed when I told him my name! This is a place that makes and sells pottery on the road, it has a cafe, which is closed now.

I walked down the road, to admire my handiwork. It does look better, until you get to the bottom, the fields where the horse is still munching are full of litter, probably blown in and trapped by the walls and wire. I did a bit of shopping but no coconut milk, the chick pea and butter nut squash curry will have to wait. One shop had a two for one offer on sausages.  The lady serving me, asked if I had a loyalty card, I said I didn’t, so I do now!

On the way back I walked up the steps, I have said there are quite a few flowers coming out still, despite it being dry, and  there is a profusion of little yellow ones, they look like dandelions but aren’t. They have no leaves out at the moment, they must have a tap root or a bulb underground to produce the flowers.

After the meal tonight, I think I will go to Vasileas’s bar, he saw me on the road yesterday and sounded his horn and waved. I am sort of delaying waving to people in cars, to see if they wave first, most do. I wonder if the Serifos bush telegraph has been buzzing about the strange English person litter picking their road! This afternoon I will be relaxing , maybe trying the guitar and Greek one more time.