Fall in our Island Garden

Wednesday October 27th, 2021Wednesday November 17th, 2021 aglaia Leave a comment

The first rain on Kea confirmed the coming of our 21st fall on the island!

We were very grateful not only for the much-needed water, but for the comforting, cool temperatures after a very hot summer. We still have some vegetables, and hope for a few nice oranges, soon.

We started to get ripe, yet small fruit from the arbutus bush, and soon we will be harvesting the first oranges.

The few, aromatic quinces we got are ripening in a basket, and are soon going to be used in meat and vegetarian dishes, also, of course in our cakes as well as in jams, and spoon sweets (fruit preserves).

A low layer of green grass now covers the property, and our rose bushes are filled with tiny oblong red berries, and the big carob tree is filled with foul-smelling flowers buzzing with bees –an unexpected end-of-season treat for them. In Crete, where carob trees are ubiquitous in the rocky mountains, I heard that the densely-flavored carob honey is considered the best for melomakarona, the Christmas cookies.

(more…)

Our Summer Garden

Thursday August 26th, 2021Thursday August 26th, 2021 aglaia Leave a comment

The past few years had spoiled us, being somewhat cool and nice, with lots of rainfall in the winter. This dry, extremely hot summer almost destroyed our trees. On the other hand, less rain and humidity brought less bugs, and with the appropriate drip irrigation we managed to produce more vegetables.

Last winter we did not get much rain in Kea, and this, the 2021, summer was particularly hot for more than a couple of days: for about two exhausting weeks the temperature remaining very high, even at night, something quite rare.

(more…)

Spring…

Wednesday March 31st, 2021Wednesday April 7th, 2021 costas 1 Comment

This year we did not get much rain after December on Kea. The landscape is quickly turning from green to yellow, although it is not yet too warm. Still, spring is gloriously blossoming, and in shady spots green keeps its hold, and flowers keep surprising us with their elegant shapes and colors.

SEE ALSO

Scenes from our Island

Thursday March 18th, 2021Thursday March 18th, 2021 aglaia Leave a comment

During the first lockdown, a year ago, we started going on long walks either in the morning or in the afternoon. We take the paved road near our house, at Otzias, but also explore the paths and dirt roads around it. Each time we discover wonderful new angles of the island; we knew the place, but now we can appreciate it more, as we witness the constant changes in nature with the change of season.

A Glorious V-Symposium

Thursday July 23rd, 2020Sunday August 2nd, 2020 aglaia 3 Comments

From all over the globe and with no need to travel –confinement not permitting—people had the chance to share many of the marvelous Oxford Symposium experiences from their homes…

I was quite ambivalent when, early Mars, the organizers decided to make the Oxford Symposium virtual. Let us wait, I said, hopefully things will be better by July… As we all know, of course, I was foolishly optimistic and fortunately the wise Symposium team decided in time to undertake the huge task to make everything happen online. They worked tirelessly, until the day of the opening events, and the result was –and still is, as it officially ends August 2– fascinating!

I was so sorry to have to cancel my much-anticipated annual trip to Oxford to meet friends from all over the world, listen to stimulating papers, and share fabulous meals at St Katz College’s stylish dining room. I even had bought my BA ticket to London last January –now it is ‘floating’ and with any luck I will be able to use it next year(!).

It all begun with an emotional greeting by Claudia Roden, the Symposium’s president, who emerged radiant speaking from her garden in London.

Throughout the July 10-12 weekend the plethora of video paper presentations and the Zoom meetings followed the relentless full-day schedule of several parallel sessions, much like the actual concurrent presentations at St Katz’s. (more…)