Correcting an Oversight

On page 4 of Tzatziki For You to Say, there's a brief explanatory note, plus a section entitled "GROVELLING DEPARTMENT," where I credit two people who were of great help to me in producing the book. One was Mr. Nigel Sparks from the Yeovil area in the UK, who sent me the photograph which is used on the book's cover (plus one or two which I've used inside) and the other is Mr. Colin Anderson from Bristol (also UK), who thought up the title when I'd run out of witty ideas.

It was a little remiss of me to forget to also credit my very good friend Brenda Dawson, who lives not all that far from my wife and I, for coming up with the essential "framework" of ideas and recommendations which are listed in chapter 5, which is entitled "Live the Nightmare."

Brenda's experience at the sharp end of buying property here was essential to the information that chapter 5 contains and we'd discussed together putting such a chapter in when I talked with her about preparing book three in the series; since we both thought that, although it's not a bundle of laughs, that chapter may prove invaluable to anyone who is now contemplating buying out here. Why shouldn't they benefit from hers and our experience and, dare I say it, also be relieved of some of the nightmarish pitfalls that those who've gone before have had to experience?

So, since it's now a little too late to change the "Grovelling Department" page, as the book's "signature" (master artwork PDF file) has already gone through the process which culminates in it appearing on amazon.co.uk & amazon.com, and would cost a packet to amend, I hereby redress that oversight and once again thank Brenda profusely for all her input on the subject discussed in chapter 5.

On the "Buy the Books" page there is now a direct link for purchasing "Tzatziki For You to Say" direct from Amazon.co.uk too!!

Mandraki December 7th 2010 (added to Dec 2011)

Above:
This is Josie, who came with us on a "jolly" to Rhodes town on Tuesday Dec. 7th. It was a glorious day, although a little drafty in the shade. Still, we stuck it out and sat upstairs on the Kon Tiki, where Josie spoilt us by treating us to a hot chocolate. Josie features in a couple of chapters of "Tzatziki For You to Say."

Above: My better half trying to retain that "chic" look whilst secretly wishing that she was sitting inside, letting the sun warm her through the windows, rather than braving it out on the upstairs terrace.

Above: Yours truly and the light of my life. (Hey guys, I'll teach you how to score a few points if you like!!)

Above: You can tell from this one how wonderful the light was that particular day. The
Turkish mountains were displaying a bit of snow here and there, but it's difficult to make out in this picture.

I ought to add that, just days after these pics were taken a freak whirlwind in Mandraki destroyed the top deck of the Kon Tiki completely and to this day (as at Dec 8th 2011) it's sadly remained closed.

Clicking on any of the pics ought to open them in a new window

Gorgeous Winter Pics

There's a link to these guys on my "LINKS" page, but this new set of pics, together with a really nice comment about the off-season here on Rhodes is well worth a visit:
http://www.gallery-photography.net/gallery.htm

Enjoy.
JM

Good Evening Deer, So Nice to See You Again

NO, it's not a spelling mistake, I meant it to read DEER. We're just so excited that we just had to tell someone!

Pottering around in the garden this afternoon laying more paths, edging them with rough stones in preparation for filling them with gravel, we took the wheelbarrow out up the lane behind the house in the search for more stones. Rounding the bend right behind the house and bordering our fence, Y-Maria said "is that a goat? Looks like a deer to me."

I looked and couldn't believe my eyes, for there just 60 metres from the track was a beautiful doe deer, grazing on the newly sprouting grass. We'd been busily throwing stones into the wheelbarrow, blithely unaware that she was there, yet she hadn't bolted. She merely lifted her head and gazed at us curiously. We were even able to walk on past her without her running away - twice!

So, having returned to the garden with a barrow-full of stones, I grabbed the camera and ran back around behind the house to find that she was still there. hence the pics above [click on them and you get a larger view]. It was fairly cloudy and very late in the afternoon, so the picture quality isn't wonderful, but you can tell how lovely she is. Since the fires of 2008 we haven't seen any deer within a couple of kilometres of the house, so this is a very encouraging sign.

After I returned to the garden and we'd resumed work on the paths near the front wall, the Greek gentleman who lives in the house at the bottom of our valley, right on the main road, came walking past. He's quite a private man and is known around these parts as "The Major" since he's evidently a retired army man, although we don't see a lot of him and don't even know his actual name. My wife was all excited and so she told him, "We've just seen a deer, right behind the house! It's the first time we've seen any so near since the fires." To which he replied, "Yes, and I saw a family: stag, doe and 3 fawns, on the road outside my house at 6.30am one morning back in the summer. They were standing on the road evidently confused as to which way to run, with traffic to-ing and fro-ing around them."

We all agreed how encouraging this development was and so also agreed that it wasn't such a pointless exercise the local council putting up signs on the main road recently, which read "CAUTION DEER CROSSING."

We just hope that some keen-eyed Greek with a rifle doesn't get her, she's so beautiful an addition to the local environment.