Village Works...

Today is cooler, still sunny and still warm in that sun but there is more cloud around and there is more of a nip in the air.  Undeterred we are still in shorts and t-shirts during the day but I did relent last night and put on a thin fleece as my arms felt a little chilly - we were sitting in the conservatory though and that does cool down really quickly once there is no sunshine.

We were having a lazy day and decided that we would take a walk around the village to see what is occurring particularly with regard to the roadworks as the main road through the centre of the village is closed to traffic again.

The village, save for the sounds of the workmen, is quiet and there are signs that it is Autumn not least with the Virginia creeper which is a vivid splash of colour on the wall next to where our friends Melanie and Simon live - in fact that is their chimney in the photograph!!

Christos's taverna looks to have been packed away outside and the vine canopy looks tired and dusty, around the back they have been harvesting walnuts and pecans and they are drying in boxes.

The scale of the roadworks is terrifying.  There is no regard for health and safety as we were free to walk wherever we wanted and in places there are massive ravines with cables and pipes sticking out and ancient buildings hanging on for grim death where their foundations seemed to have been undermined.  Hopefully somebody knows what they are doing but progress is slow, painfully so and where there were trenches which had been covered over they appear to have been dug up again.  I cannot see this being finished any time soon.

The local residents are philosophical about the disruption but it must be having a terrible effect on their businesses and apparently they get no sort of compensation.  We hope that once the project is finished that the guts will not have been knocked out of our lovely home.

We called to check the post and picked up a load for the Veaseys but by this time they should have been at the airport ready to fly back to visit family so we will keep it safe.  Bambos from O Stathmos called us over to have a coffee which we did and which he would not let us pay for which was kind and whilst we were sat outside we had a chat with Judi, Di and Rob's neighbour, she declined the offer of a coffee!

We decided to walk home via Les and Clare's to make sure that, from the outside, everything looks to be ok.  Les is due back later next week and Clare before Christmas and we think that then Les will be staying here for good.  Their house looked fine, in fact more than fine.  It is a great house - like a Tardis because the builder they have used has made sure that every inch of the property works for them.

I have taken this photograph for Wendy Bailey because I know she likes a bit of farm machinery!!!  I love the fact that our village is, in places, stuck in a time warp but fully understand that the younger generation are excited by things other than some old rotavator and some old blue doors!!

We decided to call in on Bassam to see how he was, and although the cars were there and the gate was open we couldn't see him or make him hear us.  I am amazed that the sign that I had done for Elena before she died is still on the gate and looking good.  I miss her - we used to have such a laugh together even when she was really ill.