A House on Alonissos: A Greek Island Retreat (Black and White Edition)($8.50Value)

Description

An almost deserted village, an old stone house and a beautiful Greek island: an account spanning four decades of life and changing fortunes in the 'Old Village' of Alonissos. BACKGROUND: Alonissos is a little off the beaten track, the most distant of a small group of islands in the north-western part of the Aegean Sea, but this is probably fortuitous because it is not subject to the mass tourism of some Greek destinations. The old stone house that my wife and I purchased in 1978 is located in the hill-top Old Village, or Hora, which was badly damaged by an earthquake in 1965 before being slowly restored. The Village is a delightful place with narrow, stepped streets and pretty tree-lined squares, and the views of forest, sea and islands from the two cafe-bars at either end of the main street are incomparable. Alonissos is a walkers' paradise, particularly in spring when the countryside is ablaze with a vast array of flowers, and the network of walking trails makes it easy to hike to picturesque fishing villages and deserted beaches. Every year, the island holds a running and walking challenge (originally the Alonissos Marathon) as well as a festival of folk dancing involving several of the nearby islands. PART 1 - OLD ALONISSOS: First Impressions, A Winter's Journey, 'Cobblers', Plumbing Eccentricities, Our Greek Neighbours, Scary Earthquakes, Island Pleasures, Three-Wheeled Transport, Simson and Meltemi, The Vagaries of Alonissos Weather, Maria's Donkey, Delightful Encounters, Evolving Alonissos. PART TWO - OLIVE TREE HOUSE: Running the Blockade, Wind of Change, New Horizons, House Reconnaissance, Olive Tree House Renovations, Life at Olive Tree House, Our Giant TV Screen, Shopping Trip to Patitiri, Patitiri Bank Heist, Medical Emergencies, Alonissos Marathon, A Walk through Hora, Athens Unrest. EPILOGUE: Alonissos today. (2015)