Just Another Day on a Greek Beach – Loutraki

All summer I wait in anticipation for September, when the best of beach days are to be had, all beach days are wonderful but in September, the Athenians leave for Athens, the tourists have mostly gone home, children are back at school and I have the beach to myself, alone to think my thoughts, to drink in its beauty and to be calm.

It is already mid – September and as yet, I haven’t had much alone time at the beach,

 September, so far, has been taken up with other things, raging thunderstorms, family obligations and a mammoth house clean, as housework had been neglected because of going to the beach every day, for hours at a time!

Yesterday I thought my Indian summer days were about to begin, it got off to a bad start, the sea was terribly dirty, so I just paddled about a bit at the edge and was bitten by a fish.

This had happened at around the same time last year, it must be the season for these small, pointy- nosed fiends, they stab you like a needle and one even drew blood!

I retreated to my towel and waited for the friend I was expecting, time passed but no sign of her.

 I had heard my ‘phone dring the dring, which means text message, but had to ignore it as I didn’t have my glasses with me and had no hope of reading the message, it dringed again, could it be my friend saying that she wasn’t coming?
What to do? I would have asked some youngster to read my message but the place was deserted.

As there wasn’t a soul on the beach, apart from me, how to read my text message without my glasses, only one thing for it, go into the bar and ask the waiter.

 The waiter, after I explained to him about not having my glasses, kindly read my messages.

The embarrassment, especially as my ‘phone is something pre-war, when both messages turned out to be some drivel from Vodafone, I felt so bad  I bought a cup of coffee that I didn’t really want.

 My friend did arrive, eventually but by this time I am far from being in my usual calm, tranquil beach mode.

 Well tomorrow’s another day, or so I thought!

 Today dawns, exceptional weather, the perfect beach day, MGG (My Greek God) has gone off on some errands, I wait for him to return, he does, an hour late which means I set off for the beach an hour late!

Not a good start.

I eventually arrive at the beach, but why oh why did I have to do my good deed for the day right at that moment, an elderly couple saw me pick up some rubbish and put it in the bin.

 The gentleman, around the age of eighty I should think, began his rant, people are dirty, the council is useless and the police should patrol the beach and arrest anyone littering the beach.

Hoping to leave the aggravated gentleman behind, I walked on quickly and spread out my towel, the beach was empty, they could have made camp anywhere, but no, they followed me and sat down next to me!

Said gentleman then proceeded to give me a ten minute anti – government lecture on  how standards have dropped, how everything was better when he was a young whipper snapper.

A very grumpy old man indeed, shades of Victor Mildrew, he did redeem himself a bit  though, when I heard him say to his wife, how he loved the sea, no matter how tired he was or how many aches and pains he had, went he went into the sea he felt re-born.
When speaking to his wife he called her …wife… he really did, this was my second not so calm day at the beach.

My walk home made up for the grumpy old man, I had a look at the pomegranates to see how they were ripening, I have been ‘following’ them all summer, they’re coming along nicely.

I pass a row of olive and cypress trees on my way, the scene reminds me of an impressionist painting, Cezanne perhaps?

 Today the likeness was even more so, the brilliant blue sky, a few puffy white clouds and the Gerania Mountains in the background.

I’ve had a funny kind of summer at the beach this year, or should I say different?

 Firstly I changed my location, last year I had been bothered by a man, through no fault of my own, unless politely saying good morning to him the first time I saw him can be classed as encouragement!

 In the end things became quite nasty, I should have moved to somewhere else on the beach when the trouble started, but my ego was telling me ‘I’m not going to be chased away from my spot, I’ve been coming here for years!’, stupid of me, it would have prevented rather a lot of friction.

This year, friends who never usually go the beach, realised what they were missing, and met up with me occasionally, this meant I had to sit on a sun lounger, under an umbrella, and sometimes even bought a cup of coffee.

 You see, they are not professional beach bums!

 I just lay my towel on the ground, put on my hat, and drink the coffee which I have brought from home, so, not only have I changed location, I am all la-di-da on a sun lounger, drinking a cappuccino!

 Then we had the wind, Loutraki is well known for the wind but this summer it seemed a permanent fixture.

One of my personal rules is (I have a lot) never visit the beach without going in the sea.

 I disappear into the pounding waves, the going in was easy, the getting out was not, I had to crawl out, like some creature from the deep.

 To avoid this happening again, my son showed me how it was done, surprisingly, I mastered it and one day, I was even applauded by a couple of  tourists who were too scared to venture into the sea.

Here’s a thing, it’s rather worrying to me, that none of my family are ever worried about me in these weather conditions, even when I have been down there for three or four hours!

 My Greek God does not accompany me to the beach, he will only visit secluded beaches, accessible only by boat or motorbike, I must say setting off for a secluded beach by boat is the best!

Notice the name of the boat…The Lady S, how many people have a boat named after them?

We have now sold this boat, and what luck, the man that we sold it to, well, his wife’s name begins with S!

 Something I was witness to, at the end of the summer, made up for all the not so serene days, I forgot about the grumpy old man, the biting fish, the gale force winds, the sun loungers and the cappuccinos.

  Friends, the unprofessional beach bums, had lost their dog, Teddy, about six weeks previously; keep in mind here that they live nowhere near the beach.

 One morning as they are at the beach, lounging in the sun, who should nonchalantly stroll by but Teddy!

Let’s see how the rest of September goes, one thing’s for sure, nothing can top the Teddy day!

The friends spot Teddy, and Teddy spots them, everyone freezes, time stood still, and then Teddy lets out the most heart-rending howl, my friend  is crying, Teddy is crying, howling to the high heavens.

 It was one of those moments that make your heart sing.

 What a moment, Teddy is home and well, a few kilos thinner but fine.

 The mystery is, how on earth did he fetch up on Loutraki beach, miles away from home?

Let’s see how the rest of September goes, one thing’s for sure, nothing can top the Teddy day!