A Monastery, a Market and a Magnitude 6.8 earthquake!

October is just the best month on the island as there are blue skies and it's very warm but not too hot - about 26 degrees. On the 1st October we decided to have a trip to Agrilion Monastery up in the hills behind Sami. I say the monastery but it's always locked and I'm not even sure it's open to the public. The little church and bell tower are here though and the view from up here is amazing and it's so peaceful.

Agrilion Monastery in the background. Norman the car taking shade under the tree!

The road (centre) to Antisamos beach (right). Ithaca in the background.

 

Since the last time we were here, a fence has been erected all the way around the perimeter. Is Health & Safety arriving in Kefalonia?

New fence

Antisamos beach - Me with my lampshade as Mark calls it!

I was really excited when I found the door to the little church was open so we just had to take a look inside! It didn't disappoint. It's tiny - enough room for about eight chairs and beautifully painted.

The little church and remains of the bell tower

Come on in!

Just inside the entrance

The ceiling

This time of year is great for gardening as it's almost like spring again. A new show of flowers on just about everything. I was in the garden looking at the yellow jasmine and was surprised to see a striking yellow and black caterpillar munching its way through the leaves. A Death's-head hawkmoth caterpillar, about 4 inches in length and quite chunky.

Death's-head hawkmoth caterpillar.

Yes - it was quite a size!

This is also the time of the year when trees are laden with pomegranates, waiting to be picked but when exactly is a pomegranate ready to pick? This is the question. At the beginning of the month we saw what looked like lovely big red pomegranates on some trees near us so we picked a few, got them home and opened them up to find that the arils inside were very pale pink/white. Not ripe. So we thought we'd wait a couple of weeks. About a week later, a local Greek man who we sometimes see on our dog walk approached us and gave us a bag of pomegranates (he did this last year too as well as a bag of walnuts). Most of these pomegranates were very pale yellow skinned on the outside and didn't look ripe at all but we got them home, opened them and they were gorgeous! Bright red arils inside. 

Ripe or unripe?

Inside of a pale yellow pomegranate

Arils of a ripe pomegranate

So I think in future we'll just leave it until the end of October until we pick them as you just can't tell from looking at them!

Maintaining a house is always an on-going business so we decided that the time had come to paint the side of the garage. We had been meaning to do this last year but two things had put us off the task:

• The wall of the garage faces a private chapel and garden so we can't access it without entering the grounds, which obviously we didn't want to do.
• There were orange and pomegranate trees in the chapel garden growing against the garage wall which would have to be cut back in order to paint the wall.

The woman who owns the chapel isn't there all the time so it was hard to catch her to ask permission, but a Greek speaking friend contacted her by phone and explained the situation. Permission granted to enter and trim the trees - Problem solved.

Mark cutting back the pomegranate and orange trees

Garage wall painted

Neighbouring private chapel

Beautiful chapel

Chapel entrance

Mid October arrived and most of the tourists have gone home and the island, once again, belongs to the residents. It's quiet. We've been walking the dogs along the coastline in the late afternoon and sometimes there's no-one about. The beaches are deserted with just a few locals walking along the promenade. You can feel the warmth of the sun. The Bay of Sami is quiet too as the super yachts and flotillas have mostly gone leaving just a couple of ferries carrying goods backwards and forwards to Ithaca and the mainland. The sea is calm and still has hints of turquoise and cerulean blue to it.
It's all a bit weird really. The perfect holiday environment but an empty paradise. If the airlines would provide flights later in the season, the hotels could stay open longer, the tavernas longer etc etc.
Not that I'm complaining though! We've been swimming almost every day in the little coves around the bay, our beach umbrella and chairs standing alone on the pebbles. The water is so clear you don't need a mask and snorkel! I've taken to wearing my flippers so I can zip along.

We had another occasion to visit a church on 14th October. Our friends who own the Donkey Trekking Kefalonia invited us to their daughter Nefeli's baptism at the local church in Grizata.

Invitation to the baptism

We had never been to a Greek Orthodox baptism so it was all very new to us.

The local church in Grizata where the baptism was held

Ornate candle storage as you enter the church

Interior of the church

Baptismal font

Nefeli with parents, godparent and priest before being baptised


 Nefeli in the baptismal font


After the baptism in her white gown


Nefeli after her baptism

Everyone is given a commemorative bracelet

Money for the children afterwards

A box of sweets for everyone

On the 19th October we went to a market which was set up in a huge field right beside St Gerasimos Monastery in the very picturesque Omala valley. It's only on twice a year but it sells everything from walnuts to rugs, potato peelers to bedding and everything in between. We got there quite early and they were just setting up the stalls but we enjoyed strolling around especially as it was lovely and warm. 

Setting for the market - Omala valley

St. Gerasimos Monastery (This photo taken in July!)

Market in the field

Mark looking for fishing equipment

Halva stall

All sort of nuts!

Lovely looking pomegranates! (But are they ripe?😂)

Me looking at EVERYTHING!

Rug stall

Budgies to bunnies

Tiny terrapins 

We spent a few hours here and came away with a few bits and bobs. There were plenty kitchen utensils and gardening tools but NO fishing tackle stalls for Mark! 😞

On the 26th October an earthquake measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale occurred 56.9km south west of Zante just before 2.00am. Kefalonia felt it too. I woke up to the bedroom radiator rattling and a rumbling noise which must have lasted for about 10 seconds. Since we've been living here it's the worst one we've experienced. Can't imagine what it must have been like on Zante. Since then there have been many aftershocks; in fact on 30th October we were in the local supermarket in Sami and the bottles on the shelves started rattling so we quickly stepped out of the shop! We later found out that it was a 5.5 earthquake off Zante.
Needless to say the new website on my 'favourites' list is:

http://www.geophysics.geol.uoa.gr/stations/maps/recent.html

The picture below (courtesy of the University of Athens Seismological Laboratory) shows the earthquakes around Zante between 10th - 30th October 2018. There's rather a lot!

Well the end of October is here and the weather is just starting to change. More cloud visible, blustery but still very warm (25 degrees) so can't complain at all. We went down to the harbour at Karavomylos to check on Athina Vaso the boat and I just have to say thank you to the hotel owner who has left a couple of sun loungers and umbrella on the beach. While Mark was tinkering about with the boat, I read my book in peace and quiet with nothing but the gentle lapping of water on the shore.

NOT Penny's Mark's boat! 

Mark, tools at the ready!

Karavomylos beach - Nobody around!

November is just around the corner. Will the weather take a turn for the worse? Will there be any more earthquakes? 

Wait and see.