Τhe circle closes
It has been a long journey. A lot of things have happened, a lot of posts have been written, a lot of memories have been created. But now it's the time to wrap it up.
It's time to pick up the thread of the story as we were getting ready to leave the scenic town of Sitia, the village of my grandparents and the island of Crete altogether and start the return trip back to Nafplio.
It was the first of November when we started this trip, it was the first of December when we took our way back. The picture below was taken on our first stop, shortly after we left our village. It has been a really busy morning, loading the car and closing the house for the next months and it was only after we left that we relaxed enough to grab a bite and drink our coffee cocoa. And this spot seemed just perfect! December was starting with the same good weather that seemed to be after us :)
Since both my parents are from Crete, we have two villages to say goodbye to and two houses to prepare for the winter. But everything seemed to be going very smoothly that day. So after the chores at the house and before we meet with some cousins of mine for a late lunch (or an early dinner, whatever) we still had time for sightseeing!
We saw an old chapel carved into the rock and a few Roman tombs, also carved in the rock. Both among trees and lush vegetation. Nothing too fancy but enough to make us forget all the work we had done that day and get into travel mood for once more :)
The next day we were in Athens, the capital of Greece and also our home for many years, in the past. We stayed for three days to enjoy a bit the big city and see a few more friends and family but the first thing that we had to do, the one that we couldn't miss, was to go for a long walk to the park in our old neighbourhood. Plus that Marcos, our canine friend, would never forgive us, if we didn't :)
Ancient monuments, big trees and neat pathways in one more familiar scenery that we haven't visited for a while. The essence of that trip turned out to be exactly that. Revisiting familiar places that used to be part of our daily life but we have been distanced. And the confusing feeling, not to be able to figure out if you are going or you are returning. One familiar place after another, one familiar face after another until the circle closes and we find ourselves in the beginning.
On the 5th of December we were back in Nafplio. Everything was as we left it, more than a month ago. The port, the big pedestrian street in our neighbourhood or the ducks in the park, they all seemed to be waiting for us.
And of course our favourite beach under the medieval castle and the sea almost as warm as we left it :)
This was the thirteenth and final part of our trip from Nafplio to Crete, in order to harvest our olives and visit the places and the people that formed our daily life for almost a decade. It lasted from the first of November till the fifth of December and it was totally different from whatever we ever anticipated.
The photos of this last post are from my phone but all the previous ones are taken with my dslr.
If you haven't followed my journey and you feel like doing some reading, you can find below the links of all the previous posts or you can just visit my blog and scroll down.
Thank you for reading and if you want to know more about me you can check out my introduction post.
Commenting, upvoting and rebloging are highly appreciated!
So peaceful!
Thank you for stopping by, @nikv :)
It's always a pleasure!
What an entertaining trip! I'm happy to see Marcos enjoying the park😍. Grete looks very mysterious and familiar, but I must confess Nafplio earned my ❤️ with his beaches and his beautiful ducks. 🤭 I'm very happy for all of you and Marcos for having such a nice few days!
Thank you very much and Marcos says thanks too :)
Spectacular this trip from Sitia, through Athens, to Nafplio. Oh, I have seen the Parthenon... is that what you see there on the hill?
The views are so beautiful. I love Greece, I wonder if one day I will be able to fulfill my dream of living there?
That's right, that's the Parthenon on the hill!
If it is your dream to come to Greece I hope, with all my heart that you'll have the chance to fulfil it! As someone who has spend his whole life here, I have to tell you though that it's not all roses, far from it. But I guess you would have told me the same if I told you that I find Cuba fascinating and I would love to live there :)
Cheers!
That's right. But tell me what Greece's problems are... I'd like to know.
Haha where to start from?
I'll try to be brief. Let's start from 2010 when the country was declared bankrupt. The first problem is that the government bankrupt the country in order to save a few banks and at the same time convinced the people that it was their fault. Ever since the financial situation of the Greeks is only getting worst. People are loosing their homes over the banks, the cost of life has skyrocketed and the salaries are decreasing. But that's only the beginning.
Greeks used to be openminded, happy, friendly, hospitable and solidary. Those values are getting more and more scarce. They are now replaced by conservatism, individualism, depression and defeatism. The economic crisis that was imposed on us, seems to be dissolving the social structure itself. The country and its people are rapidly changing. To the worst.
And the change of the people is what aggrieves me the most.
This is a huge topic and it's quite hard for me to elaborate in English but I hope you got an idea of what I am talking about.
Of course there is still beauty in Greece and many good, openhearted people to welcome you if you ever come :)
😞
Yes I had heard (and read) about this.
It is terrible, and I understand what you feel and the whole picture. What can I tell you? I was born in 1980 and I have never experienced an economic boom in my country. It is getting worse every day. Shortages, hyper inflation, salaries (hahaha... this if I tell you, you will collapse), constant emigration, broken or divided families. Most of the things are destroyed, the infrastructures as well as the values of the people.
Anyway... the same I tell you, even so, there are still good people and beautiful places that visitors can enjoy.
if you didn't tell the date the only clue of it would be the lack of crowd on the beach. it looks like summer.
that shiny bus looks like an interesting travel vehicle
It looks like summer indeed! It's not all day like that and it gets a little chill at night but we do have a fair amount of sun almost every day!
One of the most impressive caravans I have seen. A bit too much, for my taste but still very interesting :)
it is a bit too shiny but i do like that retro look :)
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