merry Xmas

…take care and beware of the Dragon

Every fairytale has its Dragon

oooops! Merry Xmas

my sincere and warmest wishes for Merry Christmas … for the seasonal Festivities…

some photos…

During Easter Sunday, I prepared my humble home for all the family to enjoy the Easter Sunday Lunch …

After a rather tiring – but quite rewarding noon, and just after the desserts, I found some minutes to stroll along Psakoudia, and take some photos.

roast lamb and potatoes for lunch!!!

sparrows having a party on a piece of bread

our old fishing boat and a triplet of acacia stalks...

Zizel, Adu (he is hiding behind Zizel) and Me

Does it really leak?

The biggest shopping mall in the Middle East has been evacuated as workmen scramble to contain a leak (???) in the massive shark-filled aquarium

it's just a thin layer of glass between them!

inside the centre.

“There was a small problem, a simple crack,

a simple crack???

and the water leaked”,

water leaked...

an official at Dubai’s civil defense department commented.

full story  of the leak  you can find it here

by the way,  the photos do not represent real events… they are just figments of my imagination!!!

Holidaying in Bansko (update)

Last night we returned home from our ski trip to Bansko, Bulgaria.

As I mentioned on a previous post, I had no previous experience of skiing…or Bansko…

Thus, the first day, when we woke up, I looked outside the window of  our hotel room and I saw …

... a foggy Bansko

We left our hotel and drive to the top of one of the ski slopes of the resort, parked the car next to a cafe’-chalet and started wearing the ski gear – boots, skis and batons… the whole lot!

almost there...

When we realized that we were completely ski- incompetent … it was a bit late.

Marianna, by being more courageous, had a couple of ugly falls…

Ouch!

whereas I was rather scared even to wear the skis after realizing how slippery they were…

to wear them or not to wear them?

After a couple of hours I was really afraid of the skis, the boots were hurting my feet and my fibulae were red and almost burning. And all of these because we had to go downhill on a rather steep slope without the ability/quality of skiing. So we went downhill on foot (actually on ski boots) carrying the batons and the skis…for almost 1.5 km.

where the heck is the chalet???

Instead of embarking on this stupid and tiring feat, we could have spend our day staring at the beauty of the mountains…

the calmness within ...

When we finally reached the chalet, we had chicken soup, roast peppers salad and pickled vegetables, which we gulped together with two ice cold beers…and suddenly we forgot everything about our disastrous first attempt of skiing the slopes!!!

The next morning we need some help, and we asked for a ski instructor.

Katerina, our ski instructor was very helpful and VERY patient with her students… At the end of the day she was very proud of her new students !

Born to ski !!!

Look...No batons !

The last day we were able to ski among children, other newbies and pros… but we were not ready for a whole ski slope… maybe next time!

until then …

take a break !

Photos taken during my last trip…

last week I spent three days in Zagorochoria, in Epirus. Up in the mountains, enjoying the nature around me, the people I love,  the rainy weather, the small and picturesque villages with their stone-built houses…

unfortunately I was a bit unlucky with most of my photos, but I will post them as soon as  I get them out of the memory card…

a glimpse of the souroundings... breathtaking nature!

Tsunami in Samoa…after an 8.3R earthquake

devastation after the tsunami

The 8.3-magnitude quake struck about 125 miles from Samoa at 6.48pm BST, sending a tidal wave into Apia, the capital of Samoa, and a 1.5m wave into Pago Pago, the capital of American Samoa.

At least 82 people are feared dead after villages were destroyed across Samoa. One agency reporter said there were “bodies everywhere” in the main hospital on the island of Upolu, including at least one child. She said three or four villages had been wiped out on a popular tourist coast near Lalomanu, on the south of the island.

Sight seeing…

small taverna?

The gates of Apollo Temple (photo taken from the Venetian Castle)

a glimpse of Sky!

Ruins of the Venetian Castle

Chora, Naxos … enjoy your stroll!

please follow the signs…

For the Museum, turn left ...

The Venetian Castle of Chora

Della Rocca Family

an inside look ...

naxos wedding…updated

there is a couple of sets of photos available,  here and here

5 people are trying to use a fire cracker...

having real fun with bride's brother...

really cool photos…

One of the official photographers of the wedding in Naxos, sent me today the link of his collection on Flicker…

I must admit that Kai did an excellent job…

unfortunately for you, there is no incriminating evidence of me being really drunk and rather joyful at the party…

some of Kai’s work…

My baby and I, just after the ceremony

Dinner @ the reception party