We've become complacent in this Greek expat life of ours.  It is easy to do when the sea is a stone's throw to our left and mountain peaks are to our right.  It is easy to become content until one day, you aren't, and you know it is time to travel.   The sea is a stone's throw away.. . In the Peloponnese, where winters are mild and storms mighty, but few, there is no burning desire to escape inclement weather as we did in our Pacific Northwest life. A good book and fire in the fireplace on the bad days and a coffee at the beach bar on the good days. . .who needs t ..read more

 A stiff breeze rustling the branches of the olive trees and making the terrace grasses sway, was enough to pause our stroll in the grove. Sometimes, it was the raucous cry of birds swooping to nests high atop nearby cedar trees that stopped us mid-step.  Each new noise or movement, they taught me, was a wonderment. We had to pause, listen and watch.  Every time . . .because it might just signify something new and exciting.   In the grove at The Stone House on the Hill In the spring, the grove beckoned for a game of hide and seek at the rosemary bush. Sometim ..read more

Just like that, our hibernating village awakened to spring! Eateries are reopening, fishing boats are being painted and readied for the season. And celebrations are underway.   Our village, Agios Nikolaos, awakens to spring. I write today during a three-day holiday weekend in Greece. We end three weeks of Carnival celebrations on Saturday and Sunday, then on Monday kicked off Lent with meat-free feasting and flying kites and outdoor gatherings of families and friends. Clean Monday's kite-flying tradition. Photo credit Saturday and Sunday were filled with acti ..read more

February's departure and March's arrival made it clear that winter's wild side is still with us in our slice of the Greek Peloponnese where we make our expat home. Windblown lamp post on the way to the village When we decided to move from the U.S. Pacific Northwest among the factors that helped drive the decision was getting away from ice, snow, cold and the long dreary winter that seemed to stretch from November until April.   The highest waves we've seen here. This is Agios Dimitrios below us. We succeeded in leaving the snow and cold behind. But we still have win ..read more

It seemed odd that during the first week of February my garden would be buzzing with a swarm of bees. One or two maybe, this time of year but certainly not a swarm. Actually, there's seldom more than a couple zipping between blooms any time of year. February blooms at the Stone House on the Hill But at least a couple dozen of the winged critters were hovering around a water bucket I use in the side garden. I went to the front door and another dozen or so were swarming around another water bucket I keep there. When I picked it up, they swarmed around it AND my hand. As with all myster ..read more

They begin just after sunset, those haunting cries that echo across our valley in rural Greece.  Sometimes soft and distant and other times so loud and close that you nearly jump out of your skin.  Sunset is time for the jackals calls to begin. Nightfall is the time of the jackals and their blood curdling cries. It is when they begin their search for food and drink; the search and piercing nocturnal cries often continuing intermittently until dawn. These omnivorous predators, smaller than the North American coyote, are in search of small- to medium-sized animals.  Trave ..read more

Walking into the village on a sunny winter's day is always pleasurable, but especially so on the first day of January.  A leisurely stroll into town is how we've marked the first day of the new year since moving to this rural slice of the Greek Peloponnese a few years ago. Actually, we walk into the village quite often, but what makes this particular stroll extra special is exchanging greetings with so many of our friends and acquaintances; all of whom are also out enjoying the holiday. Kali Kronia reads the sign at the church door 'Kali Chronia. . . Chronia Polla!' we call out ..read more

 'Tis the season in jolly ol' Greece.  Downtown Athens goes all out at Christmas. Christmas is just a countdown away and Greece's larger cities are decked out in their holiday finest. Being a country where 81- 90% of the population identifies as being Greek Orthodox, Christmas, like Easter, is a major event. A December storm churns the water in our harbor. Christmas comes during winter in the southern Greek Peloponnese, the place we've made our expat home. While the seasons' characteristics are different here from those in the U.S. Pacific Northwest, we definitely ..read more

At almost 101, she is probably the oldest expat in the area.   She is the expat I want to be 'when I grow up'. I am not naming her because her name isn't as important to this tale as is her age.  She is simply living proof that quality time lived as an expat need not be age defined.  Agios Nikolaos, our expat world Just last week I saw her studiously bent over her latest needle work, chatting away with her longtime friends at a weekly crafter gathering in the village. A couple years ago, while seated next to her at a fundraiser she kept me entertained with her sto ..read more

The old adage, 'where there there's smoke, there's fire' takes on a different meaning in Greece.  Olive harvest and burn season in Greece. Because in Greece where there is smoke, it is likely from a cigarette.  Our recent house guest was the one who called it to our attention as he viewed our world from the perspective of a first-time visitor to Greece. 'Don't they worry about lung cancer?' he asked, as we approached an eating establishment. Then reminding us of the impacts of secondhand smoke he directed us to areas where we might least be impacted by the neighboring table ..read more