On to Greece!

Well the journey to Greece was a long one that started with an early bus from Cadalso de los Vidrios to Madrid. That was followed up by a Metro train ride to Barajas Airport terminal 1 and a 3 hour and 45 minute plane ride to Athens, Greece. Our layover was short in comparison to that of Ft. Lauderdale to Santo Domingo earlier in this trip but, we soon we on a small jet en route to Corfo (Kerkyra). It was a one-hour flight and before we knew it we were in Corfu and looking around for our newest host.

Unbeknown to us, Aldo had been sitting next to Mrs. Sylvia Steen all along. She had been visiting her mother in Athens and was on the way back home to meet the "new American boys." She called out to us by the baggage claim and said she identified us by either a "lost look" or our "large backpacks." After exchanging a few formalities we headed to her villa and our new "home" for the next six weeks.

1400 year-old Ficus tree

It was a short drive to the villa and we soon parked it in the driveway of a 200+ year-old house. Along the way, Mrs. Steen pointed out to us a 900 year-old Eucalyptus tree and a 1400 year-old Ficus tree that also call her villa home. It's one of the 3 oldest Ficus trees in the world. Unfortunately, the weather was nasty and certain astonishment had to wait until the morning.

Dinner was served and waiting for us along with 6 foreign faces that we of the other volunteers on the Silva Project. Our coordinator, Jon, is from Manchester, England and he gave us a tour of the house and grounds. Other volunteers are Ann from Canada, Sophie from France, Mark from Texas, and Attila from Hungary. We settled in and adjusted to the new sounds and comforts of our home. (The sounds were interesting, considering there are 15+ dogs on the farm as well as 20+ miniature horses and countless chickens and geese...)

Our Villa

Saturday we had the day off to settle in and explore Corfu Town with Jon. Corfu is the name of the island and also the name of the capitol city. The city has English, Italian and Venetian influence that is evident in the layout of the small streets and tall buildings. Corfu is the northernmost Greek island on the west coast, just across from Albania. Our villa is situated on a small peninsula just by the airport. From our porch we can see across to the Greek mainland. Some stunning views await those who walk just a few yards from the house.

One view from the property (Greece is in the distance)

Another view across the sea. Legend claims that the small island is the boat of Odysseus, who washed up onto Corfu's shore in Homer's Odyssey

  

The private beach we share with the resort

Saturday evening Mrs. Steen treated us to a traditional Greek dinner in a small town outside of Corfu. We sat apart from the locals and clearly stuck out as foreigners. The waiter brought out plates of sausage, meatballs, salad, bread, yogurt sauce, potatoes, cheese, and bottles of local wine. We stuffed ourselves full before learning that this was only the first course of the meal. It took a lot of strength to force down the second course of pasta, lamb, and veal. Dessert was traditional Greek yogurt with honey or candied fruits. We mingled for a bit and enjoyed the live performance of musicians and dancers.

Sunset from the front porch

On Sunday we took a short drive out to the kiwi farm to get oriented with our new profession. There are 12 rows of trees brimming with kiwis that will be ready to pick by next week. We took yet another set of dogs for a walk before calling it a day and stopping at a pub on the way home.

That night we went out for drinks and karaoke, and we quickly cleared the place out. The selection was pretty slim but we had a good time anyways. 3 a.m. rolled around and the restaurant owner's eyes were pleading with us to leave. Aldo paid tribute to Frank Sinatra with his version of "My Way." Songs were coming on randomly, and Sayer stunned the crowd when he belted out Andrea Bocelli's "Time To Say Goodbye" in Italian, word for word. Oh, what a night!

Monday is the volunteer's day off and we spent it around the villa and at our new favorite hangout, Captain George's. George is a local that opened a bar and restaurant next to our farm so we stop in for good drinks and food everyday. He welcomed us as "The Texas Mafia" and always takes time to sit and visit. He can't pronounce the name "Sayer," so Sayer is now known as "Spyros."

Aldus Maximus

  

A gyro, one of Greece's better-known culinary delights

  

Mini-horses

The rest of our week was spent working on the equestrian center and kiwi farm. We were separated in order to learn each job and it was nice to be apart for a few hours each day (our longest break from each other since before leaving for this trip). At the kiwi farm, we each walked the dogs, cleaned and organized the crates to prepare for the harvest. Back at the equestrian center we were put to work shoveling horse poop into sacks (mucking) and grooming and feeding the horses before each lesson.

There are several trainers that instruct youngsters to ride horses. Our job is to groom and saddle the horses and lead them around the arena during lessons. The work is simple and fun and we meet plenty of new people each day. Also included in our work week is one free riding lesson apiece. Horse riding is something we naturally should have learned in Texas, but we will take life as it comes!

Irakles (Hercules), the horse that Sayer rode. Sharon, pictured, is an instructor and the horse's owner

Evenings are spent reading or visiting with the other volunteers over delicious homemade dinners. There is a 5-star hotel directly next door that offers casino raffles 3 nights a week, so we head over and cross our fingers for the 500 Euro prize. We have yet to win, but there is still a good month left to try our luck.

Today was another day off but rain dominated any plans we would have made. Instinctively, we just went down to George's for lunch and an afternoon of conversation. This place is very unique and very welcoming. We are excited to be here and even more excited to keep everyone involved with our progress!