Gitcha Greek On

We got our Greek on last weekend.  Two days in Halkidiki exploring the beaches around Vourvourou and eating fresh seafood and amazing grilled haloumi by the water, then a night in Thessaloniki exploring the big smoke.

It is a fairly well worn path, the trip from Kosovo to Greece on the weekends. Even though it is about a 5 hour drive to Thessaloniki and then a further hour or so down into the 'second finger' of Halkadiki, some people have been making the trip every weekend in summer.

This was our first weekend trip and the first time ever for me in Greece.

I get it now!

I want to go back!!

In the amazing waters of Karidi Beach

Fava Beach, where the sand glitters with gold.  Really!
We couldn't figure out what it was, but it was amazing.
Like little flecks of glitter that sparkle when
you kick up a cloud of sand in the water

The sea must be super salty because it was really really easy to float.
My balloon belly probably helped with the buoyancy.

We drove down further into the peninsula to a place called Sarti,
where there are pandanus umbrellas on the beach and cold cocktails.

Then up to Thessaloniki

Where we found this pirate ship at sunset

And next minute found ourselves on board for a drink and sunset cruise.
Daggy, but cheap and lots of fun.

Romain regales me with tales from his seafaring days

A flock of seagulls came racing out to boat as we left the dock.

Turns out they were after the peanuts.

We saw this thing on one of the docks.  Not sure what it is, but I like it.

A balloon lady on the Thessaloniki boardwalk.

Adding more colour to what was already a pretty radiant sunset.

The Surreptitious Photographer

I have discovered that people in Kosovo really don't like having their photo taken.  Which is fair enough I suppose.  No one likes to feel like an animal in a zoo or a weirdo tourist attraction.  But it really sux because everyday I see amazing portrait opportunities that I just have to let go of, for fear of being offensive and making a name for myself in this small town.

I guess it would be easier in a place where tourists or even photographers are more common and the sight of a lady walking down the street with a camera wouldn't look so out of place.

Today after I had finished my grocery shopping I was hit by two amazing images.  The first was a man in bright red overalls hosing down the dust outside his bright yellow garage.  The colours were just too good and I was so disappointed I didn't have a camera with me.  I was ruing the missed opportunity when I came across the second sight.  A group of Serbian Kosovars clustered around their market stands, sort of pretending to be selling their stuff, but really mostly just gossiping and having a good laugh.

So when I got home and unpacked the groceries I thought, bugger it.  I'm going back to see if I can get some shots.  Even if it meant braving the 4 flights of stairs again and possibly having my camera smashed on the road.

I took our small camera instead of the big fancy SLR to try and be as discrete as possible.  Plus it was worth less, which would be slightly easier to accept if it did get smashed to smithereens on the bitumen.

When I got to the group of Serbs I realised there was no way I was going to be able to take a photo without creating a scene, so I opted to just walk along casually with my camera by my side and surreptitiously snap a few snaps.  I ended up inadvertently taking a few bum shots.

But I also got this one of a group of ladies having a good chat.  Never mind that it is a bit crooked.

Fashion stakes are high on the streets of Gjilan, and you really wouldn't risk being caught without a matching bag and apron.  She had some pretty funky looking footwear too.

Here she is on the move, looking very stern.  I'm glad she didn't catch me taking photos.  I think she would have crushed my camera in her meaty fist.

When I got to the garage the red overall man wasn't there anymore, which was disappointing.  I took some pics anyway because I liked the colours.  Pretty soon he emerged from the shadows, looking a bit uncertain and waving his hand.  I didn't know whether he was waving to say hello, or waving to say 'no photos lady'.  I hoped it was the former, so I went over the road and said hello and tried to explain with the few Albanian words I know that I thought his garage was great (shumë e mirë) and I loved the colour of his overalls (shumë e mirë, again) and I wanted a photo (foto?).  He seemed to acquiesce and so I got this shot.  I felt too sheepish to take anymore.  I thanked him and went home, probably leaving him wondering why the f*** someone thought his garage was so pretty, but hopefully he felt happy about it.  I guess anyone who goes to work in the morning wearing snappy red overalls over a gorgeously purple shirt must have some appreciation for the beautiful things in life.

Into the Woods

We have quite a lovely forest about a 5 minute drive from home.  A few times a week a group of us head into the woods for an evening walk, or a jog.  To breathe the fresh air, soak up a bit of nature and do our best to ignore the rubbish dumped around by thoughtless nit-wits.

This photo was taken in spring
when the greenery was just starting to sprout

The best part about the forest is that it is home to tortoises!  Before moving to Kosovo I had never seen a tortoise in the wild, let alone miles from water.

we came across this little fella on a recent walk

and managed to momentarily coax him out of his shell

But they are everywhere here.  You can hear them rustling through the dry leaves.  And mating wildly in the undergrowth.  I never would have believed it had I not seen and heard it myself.  I think the season is over now, and they have all waddled off to their respective corners for a breather.  But hopefully that means that there will be baby tortoises everywhere soon.  That would be awesome.