August already & the kitchen will be finished soon

With T&C back in the UK it’s another week before Mick & Sue arrive on the same flight next Monday. We hope to get the kitchen finished this week and have a bit of beach time too.

On the kitchen front, the base units, sink and worktops are in. The tiles and wall units are to go on and the walls need painting. Having spent many a day putting tiles on in the unmentionable (bathroom) sorry, the tiling went fairly well. The wall units also went up fairly easily, I have to say these Ikea kitchen units are so easy to assemble and fit it is great. It all looks well but we think we will be getting another wall unit to go at the sink end to finish it off. We didn’t get one in case there wasn’t room as we weren’t sure how far over we would have to put the sink bases to accomodate the sink under the fixed taps. Mrs D was also busy charging around with a brush (paintbrush for a change) and a splendid job it is too.

Aside from all the kitchen fitting activity, we managed some time on the beach, an outing to Acharavi, helped some friends move house and we also tidied up the garden. All in all a very productive but satisfying week. Sunday night was chill out night before our trip down to the airport on Monday evening.

Third Visitors!!

Monday night seems to be airport night at the moment!! This time it’s Tom & Caz we are waiting for. Again they arrive pretty much on time so we are on our way home by 1030pm.

Tom & Caz came out for a week last year late on in September and had a few gloomy days weather, hoping for wall to wall sunshine this time for their 2 week break.

These guys are so easy to have around as they just want dropping in Sidari to go on a pedalo with a pita gyro and a mythos!! That’s about it really.

This time they did just that but they also booked a couple of trips, one to Corfu town in the evening and another down the east coast on a boat for the day. I also went scuba diving with them in Kassiopi. All in all, trips were good and a good time was had by all.

Toms DIY task was to help felt the roof over the front veranda. Tiles off, felt on and tiles back on again. The day came, after telling Tom the night before but it just happened to be one of those nights that they didn’t come in ‘til 6 in the morning. I was up and ready, raring to go when Tom appeared at 0930 allegedly “fit for work!!”

Tiles came off easy enough, roof was a mess underneath and sadly had to have some new timbers before we could felt it. We also found under there, a multitude of birds nests, snake skins and geckos. All now evicted and selling “The Big Issue” we set about putting the tiles back on. All went well ‘til we realised we were not going to have enough tiles. No worries I said we’ll get some from the builders yard down the road. Armed with a sample tile we arrived to “we used to sell them once upon a time a long time ago.” So we got something close and made it fit.

With the tiles back on this left the ends to tidy up and seal off which I did when Tom was out on his pedalo. We did join them many a late afternoon for a “cool off swim” in the sea.

We had a couple of wild nights out in Nappys bar “One for the road” which we sometimes frequent. Having said that our wild nights with them didn’t compare to their wild nights out on their own!! They were coming in as we were thinking about breakfast, oh what it is to be young!

They seemed to have a wonderful time and appeared to be very relaxed so that again is all that matters. They gave the impression they wanted to stay so that must indicate a good time!!

Another airport run to get them back then we have another week before guests number four arrive, our dear friends Mick & Sue are coming out for a week with us. These guys are the original busy people so with that in mind they get let off with tasks and we have decided to take a week off with them.

Surprise visitors!!

Mrs D just happened to be checking her e-mail one weekend when she found a mail from friends in Leeds which went to the tune of – hi, been on our cruise and decided to extend our break and we are sat in a bar in Sidari. Do you want to come down for a drink? Well what a surprise….. we leapt on the motorbike, shot down to the appropriate bar in Sidari, had a beer and duly arranged to see them for a night out. Chris & John were staying the weekend in a hotel quite near the middle of Sidari and had already discovered ‘One for the Road’ so we all went there again to see an excellent guitarist and drink a few beers. The following day we brought them to our house for the grand tour. I think they liked what they saw – they certainly liked Sidari – and we hope they will repeat the experience. It was definitely a lovely surprise for us to have their company for a couple of days.

A bit of a break, not likely.

With D&B back in Blighty and a week before next visitors, no time was wasted in assembling the base units for the kitchen. Tom and Caz will be here next Monday and I would like to have the base units in at least. Toms task is to help with the felting of the front veranda roof and I don’t want to rope him into kitchen duties too, might not be popular!!

With the units assembled and lined up down the hall like soldiers it was time to rip out the old backbreaking kitchen. There was no hesitation from Mrs D when asked if I could “rip em out” (the units that is, please!!) They came out easy and the repair work was minimal. The old tiles, which were vileness in the extreme and delicately painted over by Mrs D, were also easy off with minimal repairs behind.

We had been to the tile shop where the unmentionable (bathroom, sorry I mentioned it) tiles came from. We went down on the bike as last time we had to wait for them to come from Athens. Would you believe it, this time they were in stock and could have taken them home typical!! Well, I went back for them a couple of days later and once again with all the weight of the tiles this time, the car struggled over the hill through Skripero!!

With the units out and the sink out of action, speed was of the essence in order to resume functional kitchen services. Wall plastered the base units were lined up in their respective new homes. The new sink was sat on top of the worktop and a good old bucket under the waste. Basic kitchen facilities restored!! This was how it stayed until T&C arrived.

It wasn’t all graft during the week, don’t you believe it. We had time for a few swims, beers with friends and our regular visit to the vodafone shop to find out why we had no internet at all!! With problems resolved, swims and beers had it was time to think about our next guest’s arrival on Monday evening my youngest son Tom & his wife Caz.

The kitchen saga continues

The kitchen saga continued…The kitchen epic got into full swing with many e-mails to Ikea Greece and much looking at their website. We planned the kitchen based on a visit to Ikea in Leeds back home. A lot easier when you can see what you want. When we got here we looked at the website and noticed that Ikea had just opened another store nearer to Corfu than either Athens or Thessaloniki. Joy, we said only a 400 mile round trip instead of 600 or 800.

The problem was the website info was limited and the e-mail was not getting anywhere and when we finally got through to someone they asked us for product codes which we didn’t have. The dilemma was this, should we drive to Larissa Ikea and see what they have or should we go on the bike, see what they have, order it and go back in the car.

Having tossed these ideas around for days and driving the guests nuts with Ikea discussions we decided to throw caution to the wind and go for it in the car!! My dad and I set off from here at 0530hrs fro the 0615 ferry to Igoumenitsa. We arrived in Igoumenitsa at 0815hrs and were straight off onto the Greek northern motorway the A2.

The A2 is a marvel of engineering and design I wont bore you with the details but it is a series of tunnels and bridges all the way through the mountains. If you want to be a real anorak follow the link and have a look, very interesting.
http://www.greek-motorway.net/html/body_a2.html

The problem we had was that we weren’t sure all the junctions were completed so we came off a junction before we should – because we didn’t think it was there – and went on the old road for about 45 minutes. Well it was a joke, the road was falling in bits, there were huge holes in, it was falling down the hillside and there were goats, sheep dogs and no other cars on it. It soon became clear we should not be on this road and that the junction was there and we should have stayed on the motorway. After many strange looks from locals as we passed them we arrived at the junction we thought was missing and it was fully operational, what a bummer!! Well it was the shorter way back for us.

Where the junction was you then drove down a super winding road all the way down a beautiful valley to Meteora, a place as such I have never seen before. Huge rock towers up out of the earth with a monastery on top of each one. Again worth a look, just type Meteora into google images and see for yourself a real wow moment!

We eventually got to Ikea in Larissa just before noon and hurried straight to the kitchen dept. The store was brand new, only been open two months max. No-one there but us we were sorted in no time. Luck would have it they had all our kitchen so it was sent for picking at the warehouse whilst we went for some splendid Ikea meatballs and chips!!

Our three trolleys of stuff appeared, 9 units, 11 doors, 5 drawers, 2 worktops, sink, 2 plinths, waste unit, handles and hinges. The next feat was getting it all in the car. It went in easy with room to spare and we were heading back at 1430hrs. We were heading for the 1915hrs ferry back to Corfu so we weren’t too bad for time. Heading back the right way this time we got into Igoumenitsa at just after 1800hrs. Just time for some souvlaki and a beer before the boat. Crossing went well and we were back in Kopsocheilades by 2200hrs. Just enough time left to share the days tales with Mrs D and Betty with a beer before a well deserved rest. The following day we unloaded the car and the units were left in the room until after D&B had gone as I felt he had done enough for one trip!! More later…….

Second visitors.

Monday evening and on our way to Corfu town for a bit of a shop on the way to pick up my dad and Betty from the airport. They are the first of our visitors to come out on Jet2’s new service from Leeds Bradford. This is the first Jet2 flight out here and it went to time which is always good.

Another set of easy guests with my dad happy away DIYing and Betty sitting on the decking, supervising the DIY and waiting for the house bar to open!!

No sooner had their plane touched down and we were off to pick up the new kitchen window and fly screen. It was DIY from the word go! So much so that during their two weeks we managed to brick up half the old kitchen door, fit the new window at the top, render the wall outside, fit the new front door from Wickes, level out the rubble heap to better the car parking, fit a TV aerial outside, fit a gutter to the house side next to the apotheki to take the rains away from the joint wall of the house and the apotheki AND have a full day out on the mainland buying and fetching a new kitchen (see below)!!! All in all a busy time and the house bar was busy too with the shift forepersons Betty and Lynn!!

We did manage a few nights out, BBQ’s and trips here and there so not all work. A good time was had by all and the mozzies had a right feast on my dads legs so all (except my dad) were happy!

First visitors.

We’ve been here pretty much 5 days to the minute when our first visitors come strolling through arrivals in Corfu town. Reg and Buffalo (Lynn's brother Graham and my mother.) They are here with us for a couple of weeks and are fairly easy guests. Reg has the short straw being first on the task list helping me replace the kitchen and pantry ceilings.

My mum has not been since the Christmas of 2008 so there will be a few noticeable changes, the bathroom, the decking, the weather and the holiday makers. Out of season is pretty quiet here and last time the Buff was here it was too quiet for her I think. This time we have a couple of wild nights out planned, some BBQ’s and beach bumming around.

The break went well with beach days, lazy days and the obligatory grafting couple of days for Reg. We had to do the ceiling as it has been up 30 years, was a little warped and wouldn’t really look too good with the new kitchen. The word from Mrs D was about the mess as she helped do the bathroom one and ‘remembers’ how bad it was. Anyhow it was a mess, we tried to contain it the result was another splendid ceiling!

No sooner had they arrived and we had to take them back to the airport!! The holiday seemed to fly by. We did plenty, ate and drank well and they seemed to have a good time (all that matters.) Reg will be back again in September, when I’m trekking up to Machu Pichu with a neighbour. We now have 3 days until our next visitors arrive on Monday evening.

Whats all this about a kitchen then????

Just before we get stuck into playing host I ill enlighten you on this years big project - the kitchen. After last years mammoth task of destroying and rebuilding the bathroom and toilet we decided we had so much fun we’d do the same with the kitchen this year. Our kitchen here, or Lynns kitchen as she tells the guests when they are trying to get their hands in the sink is very old and about six inches too low. We have a plan and that is to brick up half the old kitchen door and put a window in to get some air in, replace the old ceilings in the kitchen and pantry to stop the sh*te coming through from above and then replace the kitchen. We want to get a kitchen from Ikea, easy I hear you say. It is in Blighty as you can order it online. Here, our nearest is Athens or Thessaloniki which are both approx 400 miles away and an overnight stay once we have got the 2hr ferry across the mainland port of Igoumenitsa. We will keep you posted if you can stay awake long enough

Back in Corfu.

The first day in Greece and the garden is an overgrown jungle, the new strimmer has its work cut out here. We unloaded the car and the suspension lifted about six inches!! With stuff away in the house I attacked the parking and getting in and out areas with the strimmer, what a splendid piece of kit.

So what do we have in store for the summer, well on the project front there is the kitchen and pantry ceilings to replace, the old kitchen door to rip out, brick up and a fit a window, the kitchen to refit (more on that later) and the front balcony roof to refelt. Of course most of these tasks will fit in with the various visitors who are coming out this year of which there are many. This is great as it is always good to see folks and also nice that they want to come out to see us. Between June and the end of September we have eight weeks of guests!!

On the outside front we have five days before our first guests arrive and we need to clear the jungle outside and evict the snakes which appear to be living in it. Seen a couple coming and going from the undergrowth and a small one living under a decking board. Another job filling the holes under the decking to keep them out!! The first week flew as we knew it would, socialising, catching up with folks, doing a few personals and getting ready for visitors.

The road to Corfu 2010.

Car probably not quite as heavy as it was last year, it is Spring Bank holiday Sunday and we are heading down to Marians B&B in Winchelsea for a couple of nights. Always a pleasant stopover in one of the best B&Bs we know!! Our route this time will take us down through Belgium and Germany for a change to avoid the French tolls!! The plan was early Tuesday ferry to Dunkirk, then through Belgium, into Germany and a couple of nights in the wine growing region. Then onto Innsbruck in Austria for a couple of nights before the drive to Venice for the 5 o’clock ferry to avoid an overnight in Venice.
The trip went well with a lovely stay in St Martin in Germany. Splendid camp site in a beautiful village surrounded by hills and vines. Well you have to try some don’t you, it would be rude not to. Very nice it was too. Innsbruck was just as lovely as it always is and we went on a funicular railway and cable car up the mountain to the snow line. The camp site we stayed on had been replanned and moved with super facilities. The site fees reflected this so that’s the last time there let’s say!!

We got to Saturday and the Alps crossing to Venice. Never fails to please with super views and roads through. When we got to Venice Port there were five huge cruise ships in. One of which we followed out of Venice only to be stuck behind it for half an hour whilst the police stopped it and were obviously up to something.

Finally underway with floor space bagged for the night and the last leg of our journey. We were sleeping in a semi covered area at the back of the ship with quite a few others. The night went well and we slept OK. The following day was a very long one. This was because the must slow the boat down as what we normally do in 23 hours we did this time in 29!! You can imagine the comments from sea faring Mrs D!! We docked in Corfu at 10pm on Sunday night from where it is 40 minutes to home in Kopsocheilades. Another interesting and safe journey across Europe accomplished, time for bed and some shut eye before it all starts again tomorrow!

Pix are - camp & village of St Martin in Germany, camp at Innsbruck, view over Innsbruck from snowline, high above Innsbruck & leaving Venice behind cruise ship.