And that\u2019s August finally getting a mention, my apologies to the month that gave us delightful weather & grateful new guest-friends\u2026\u2026as well as news that mask wearing indoors and outdoors was necessary and that all cafes, bars, restaurants would close at the stroke of midnight. The first Saturday night this happened the town was chocka-block full. From my balcony it looked as if the final whistle had been blown at an important football match \u2013 everyone resigned to the new regime and heading towards the parked cars or hotel rooms along our way.<\/div>\n
By the end of the month my garden and many trees en route to Hania were strained with late summer weariness – all springtime enthusiasm well gone, hints of approaching autumn showing. Not so with any reduction in temperatures but the setting sun cast a deeper fiery glow on the mountains and the days became perceptively shorter. Overall a very fine August, so much better without the usual days of constant gusts!<\/div>\n
Flora, 28th September 2020<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
How remiss of me to not have a few words to say about August. Until now that is. Many of our friend-guests were unable to be with us as planned and initially the diary predicted we\u2019d be tending empty rooms. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/harisstudios-paleochora.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/904"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/harisstudios-paleochora.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/harisstudios-paleochora.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harisstudios-paleochora.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harisstudios-paleochora.gr\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=904"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/harisstudios-paleochora.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/904\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":924,"href":"https:\/\/harisstudios-paleochora.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/904\/revisions\/924"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/harisstudios-paleochora.gr\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=904"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harisstudios-paleochora.gr\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=904"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harisstudios-paleochora.gr\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=904"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"the_gusts_of_august\"](\"https:\/\/paleochora-holidays.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/the_gusts_of_august-300x225.jpg\")
How remiss of me to not have a few words to say about August. Until now that is. Many of our friend-guests were unable to be with us as planned and initially the diary predicted we\u2019d be tending empty rooms. Luckily, taking up the vacancies throughout the month were new friend-guests \u2013 staycationers in their droves. From passing satellites I\u2019m sure a mass exodus was recorded as families & friends made their way to Paleochora; from Hania, Heraklion, Rethymon, Irapetra etc. A very pleasant turn of events, and making their visits more enjoyable was a surprising absence of wind. August is often when we endure as best we can the malicious Meltemi, a violent north wind, not particularly cooling just annoying and destructive. It\u2019s the time bar and restaurant owners can see the day\u2019s profits smashed to the ground as a blast whips up empty, or not quite empty, glasses, leaving them in pieces strewn across the floor. This year, apart from occasional gusts, our glassware and nerves were safe\u2026.. It was hot. The sea was hot and much easier for us to swim when not being beaten on by choppy waves. Hot enough to take longer spells snorkelling, marvelling at endless shoals of fishes offering their choreographed displays, there\u2019s so much going on down there \u2013 I\u2019m delighted with my new hobby. No idea why it took me so long.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/paleochora-holidays.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/stone-300x286.jpg\")
When not in the water (or still working) I\u2019m loading up with vitamin D, the generous sun beaming down on my now not so pasty skin. It\u2019s become my habit to avoid sandy beaches, there\u2019s no way of preventing sand from coming home, sneaking under the sheets and, well\u2026I\u2019m sure you have a ready image of just how grating that is on a body that\u2019s had a few hours in the sun. So, I head off to pebble beaches, even though at one particular spot where the swimming is to my liking the proximity to family groups can be challenging. I have no issue with chatter and squeals and over loud talking on mobiles; what really gets to me are the stones – boulders to a child\u2019s little hand – being bashed against other \u2018boulders\u2019. That deep thud on impact, incessant and all permeating, gets under my skin way more than is reasonable. Afternoon naps are less easy with all of that going on. But, being the brave soul that I am, I keep on keeping on\u2026.by heading out to sea for another swim after all silent pleas for a miraculous intervention remain unanswered. During the swim I pledge to find the inner strength to graciously accept the racket. It works sometimes, so when I get back to the sun-bed I drift off. Other times it takes for the little darlings to have their hands filled by a gigantic ice-cream. That\u2019s when the parents reach the point I\u2019d been at much earlier, and when an afternoon nap can be mine \u2013 essential for the full conversion of vit D into the body\u2026\u2026. apparently.<\/div>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/paleochora-holidays.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/thats_it-117x300.jpg\")
In truth, it\u2019s an unrequited love affair that draws me to the beach where I tolerate the clacketty clack of stone thumping. Such a fascination I hold for those pebbles rendered smooth through millennia of turmoil and tumbling. The beach is full of them. I crave to create projects at home while concurrently respecting their preference for remaining in their natural habitat. Some days I avert my eyes and don\u2019t look down, resisting impulses to fill the beach bag\u2026\u2026.and \u2013 yes \u2013 occasionally I do indulge. In my defence, I ensure the captured beauties are kept in the best of conditions, maybe a special position in the garden, or painted for the caf\u00e9\u2026.is that not better than being bashed about by reckless kids?? At Methexis Beach, the pebbles aren\u2019t so smooth yet many ideas come to mind, not to fruition so far\u2026.. seems like my day job (rooms keep filling and cakes need baking\u2026) will keep me busy enough for a while yet. When I\u2019m being super wise I forget about the stones and fill my hands with a large ice-cream cone\u2026..<\/div>\n