Waiting For Spring
I have moved through the hours, a leafless tree,
Through the cold dark hopeless days of winter,
Waiting for a sun-kiss to warm my cheek,
To rid the meloncholy from my rings,
My drooping limbs, bowed boughs of December,
Like the arms of desperate ballerinas
Wanting to be swans, wanting to be swans
In that soft-cygnet white of virgin maids,
I am ready for the company of spring,
With its chattering sparrows, and rainbows,
And those tingling roots that make me want to
Reach out and touch the sky with my blossom.
Jane Sharp
Sunday, February 12, 2012
The Crete I Love
If you were thinking of Crete for a holiday, take a look at the video for a taste of this magical island.
Last week I saw two new born lambs, and the almond trees are in blossom, that delecate, baby pink, a warm rouge on the wind swept hills of winter. And the orange trees of the village are so full of golden baubles that they could have been dressed for a shop window. Snow is melting from the mountain tops to give way to green shoots, and spring rain is a welcome gift of water to last through the long dry summer. Who could not be happy in such a place?
But the reality is that so many people are unhappy here. There is a gloom, a meloncholy sitting over Greece. Young families have no hope for the future of their children. Prices have risen, wages have dropped, and unemployment is rising. There is little opportunity for anyone. Self employment is a nightmare that I have only ever seen end in disaster. Debt is like a terminal illness hanging over the heads of so many. There are soup kitchens in most big towns, calls for second hand clothing, help for families who are about to have their electricity cut off. Dogs are being put out onto the street because owners cannot afford to feed them. How long before it is children on the doorstep of the Church?
So, if you do come to Crete for a holiday this year, try to be aware that behind all those lovely Cretan smiling faces, there is real strife. The problems are not going to disappear, but people may. How long will it be before doctors, dentists, teachers, and other professionals are forced to leave in search of a better life somewhere else. Hotels may close down, shops and restaurants too. They all need help!
Years ago my sister had to attend a school in a mining area of Yorkshire. My parents said that the school was not educating its pupils, but turning them into labour for the mines. What will the children of Crete be turned into? Their parents will not be able to afford English lessons. Higher education will be ruled out. The son of a friend of mine has stayed on at school for 3 extra years, and the only job he has been offered is that of a pizza delivery boy. The basic wage for under 25s has been cut by 30% to just over 3 euro an hour.
So, come to Crete for your holiday, choose it because it is a beautiful place to come, be happy, laze in the warm sunshine, and swim in the clean, clear blue Cretan Sea. And know that by spending your well earned money in Crete, you are helping towards the future of these lovely people.
And if you do come over to Crete, make your way to Vrahassi, and while away a few hours at one of the taverna's in the centre. I might meet you there!
Love Jane x
Last week I saw two new born lambs, and the almond trees are in blossom, that delecate, baby pink, a warm rouge on the wind swept hills of winter. And the orange trees of the village are so full of golden baubles that they could have been dressed for a shop window. Snow is melting from the mountain tops to give way to green shoots, and spring rain is a welcome gift of water to last through the long dry summer. Who could not be happy in such a place?
But the reality is that so many people are unhappy here. There is a gloom, a meloncholy sitting over Greece. Young families have no hope for the future of their children. Prices have risen, wages have dropped, and unemployment is rising. There is little opportunity for anyone. Self employment is a nightmare that I have only ever seen end in disaster. Debt is like a terminal illness hanging over the heads of so many. There are soup kitchens in most big towns, calls for second hand clothing, help for families who are about to have their electricity cut off. Dogs are being put out onto the street because owners cannot afford to feed them. How long before it is children on the doorstep of the Church?
So, if you do come to Crete for a holiday this year, try to be aware that behind all those lovely Cretan smiling faces, there is real strife. The problems are not going to disappear, but people may. How long will it be before doctors, dentists, teachers, and other professionals are forced to leave in search of a better life somewhere else. Hotels may close down, shops and restaurants too. They all need help!
Years ago my sister had to attend a school in a mining area of Yorkshire. My parents said that the school was not educating its pupils, but turning them into labour for the mines. What will the children of Crete be turned into? Their parents will not be able to afford English lessons. Higher education will be ruled out. The son of a friend of mine has stayed on at school for 3 extra years, and the only job he has been offered is that of a pizza delivery boy. The basic wage for under 25s has been cut by 30% to just over 3 euro an hour.
So, come to Crete for your holiday, choose it because it is a beautiful place to come, be happy, laze in the warm sunshine, and swim in the clean, clear blue Cretan Sea. And know that by spending your well earned money in Crete, you are helping towards the future of these lovely people.
And if you do come over to Crete, make your way to Vrahassi, and while away a few hours at one of the taverna's in the centre. I might meet you there!
Love Jane x
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Odysseus Elytis - This Wind That Loiters
THIS WIND THAT LOITERS…
This wind that loiters among the quinces
This insect that sucks the vines
This stone that the scorpion wears next to his skin
And these sheaves on the threshing floor
That play the giant to small barefoot children
The images of the
Resurrection
On walls that the pine trees scratched with their fingers
This whitewash that carries the noon-day on its back
And the cicadas, the cicadas in the ears of the trees
Great summer of chalk
Great summer of cork
The red sails slanting in gusts of wind
On the sea-floor white creatures, sponges
Accordions of the rocks
Perch from the fingers even of bad fishermen
Proud reefs on the fishing lines of the sun
No one will tell our fate, and that is that,
We ourselves will tell the sun’s fate, and that is that.
© Translation: Edmund Keeley and Philip Sherrard
From: Sun the first
I like this poem very much. Odysseus Elytis was born in Heraklion in 1911 and died in Athens in 1996. In 1979 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature. Most of his poetry is very difficult to understand, even in translation, so I was pleased to come across this one.
I hope you like it,
Love Jane x
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Full Moon Trip to Heraklion February 2012
No expence spared for our romantic full-moon outing! Despite the rain, we had a good time. Lots of sales but not many shoppers. Great gyros pita, and lovely glass of wine.
The music is that of Jaqueline Du Pre playing Haydn - Enjoy!
Love Jane x
The music is that of Jaqueline Du Pre playing Haydn - Enjoy!
Love Jane x
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Strike in Athens Today
| Strike protesters burn German flag | |||
| |||
 Hundreds of protesters chanting "Nazis Out!" clashed with police outside parliament during a general strike rally against austerity. Police used pepper spray against the protesters, who burned a German flag, during a brief flare-up of violence at the rally which was joined by some 25,000 people despite the heavy rainfall. The generally peaceful rally, organized separately by general and communist trade unions, was called against widely reported plans by the government to slash the minimum wage and impose other drastic cuts. Unions and employers have already rejected calls to cut the minimum wage, currently at 751euros per month, arguing that it would make the country's four-year recession even worse. "This is a crime against the nation," Vangelis Moutafis, a top strike organizer at the country's largest union, the GSEE. "They are driving wage-earners into absolute poverty. They are wiping out the unemployed and retired people ... They are selling off the state for nothing. This must not continue. It's a crime and it must be stopped now." (Athens News/gw) | |||
Monday, February 6, 2012
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Cretan Traditional Almond Drink - SOUMADA
Soumatha is a soft drink made from almonds and sugar. This video is well worth watching; it shows how the drink is traditionally made in the area of Neapolis, which is our local town. And if you would like to try making it yourself, here is how:
Ingredients:
- 500 grams almonds (skins removed)
- 60 bitter almonds (see note)
- 1700 grams sugar
- 1700 grams water
Preparation:
Remove the skins from the almonds by boiling them for a minute or two. The skins will slip easily.
Dissolve the sugar in half the water and boil until you have a syrup consistency. Set aside. Using a food processor or blender, grind the sweet and bitter almonds into a fine powder. Combine the ground almonds with the remaining water.
Using a strainer lined with cheesecloth, strain the liquid from the ground almonds and reserve. Kyria Anna passes the ground almonds and water 2 or 3 times through the cheesecloth to extract the most flavor.
Combine the strained almond liquid with the sugar syrup and heat on the stove, being careful not to allow the mixture to boil.
To serve, add about an inch of syrup to a tall glass with some ice. Add water and enjoy.
A bit more information about soumada (pronounced soumatha)
Mastic resin is exported throughout
the world for confectionery, distillery
and pharmaceutical purposes. In
Greek cuisine, masticha is used in
cakes, cookies, drinks, liqueurs and
candies. In the summertime, Greeks
enjoy a masticha drink called
soumatha. To make soumatha, a
syrupy almond milk is made from
pounded almonds, sugar and masticha,
which is then mixed with an equal
part of water.
It has been a fantastic day in Vrahassi today, blue skies, sunshine, about 15 degrees. The moon is coming up to full on Tuesday so I'm looking forward to our 'full moon' outing. Not sure where to yet.
Have a good week.
Love Jane x
Dissolve the sugar in half the water and boil until you have a syrup consistency. Set aside. Using a food processor or blender, grind the sweet and bitter almonds into a fine powder. Combine the ground almonds with the remaining water.
Using a strainer lined with cheesecloth, strain the liquid from the ground almonds and reserve. Kyria Anna passes the ground almonds and water 2 or 3 times through the cheesecloth to extract the most flavor.
Combine the strained almond liquid with the sugar syrup and heat on the stove, being careful not to allow the mixture to boil.
To serve, add about an inch of syrup to a tall glass with some ice. Add water and enjoy.
A bit more information about soumada (pronounced soumatha)
Mastic resin is exported throughout
the world for confectionery, distillery
and pharmaceutical purposes. In
Greek cuisine, masticha is used in
cakes, cookies, drinks, liqueurs and
candies. In the summertime, Greeks
enjoy a masticha drink called
soumatha. To make soumatha, a
syrupy almond milk is made from
pounded almonds, sugar and masticha,
which is then mixed with an equal
part of water.
It has been a fantastic day in Vrahassi today, blue skies, sunshine, about 15 degrees. The moon is coming up to full on Tuesday so I'm looking forward to our 'full moon' outing. Not sure where to yet.
Have a good week.
Love Jane x
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