The world from my window

The plateia is quiet now, after the lunchtime rush. Whole parties of families gathered in the village tavernas and locals celebrated around big tables in their gardens. Today is one of the most sacred days in the Greek Orthodox calendar, marking the Dormition of the Theotokos or the 'falling asleep' of the Virgin Mary. The feast commemorates the end of her earthly life and her miraculous assumption into heaven. It is the name day for Marias, Marios, Panagoitis and Despinas, and a public holiday in Greece. Last night, as we have done for several years, we walked in the procession through the village from church to church to church, ending at the cemetery high up on the hill. I lit a candle for my own family's Mary and paused to remember her. Outside, the graves glowed in candlelight. Back down in the village and into the plateia, the lovely white-haired Maria dragged me in to collect a bunch of basil, the herb that is said to have grown at the base of J...

Dawn attempts to prise her rosy fingers apart through the morning sky. But it is no good.  There is thunder on the mountain . We count the seconds in between the lighting and the great cracks of thunder. It’s getting closer. As the rain starts to fall in gentle drips and then a great torrent, Mr Grigg and I sigh. It’s raining again. The water will be burbling through the streets of Corfu Town, chasing itself along shiny pavements and down into storm drains and then up again in a never-ending game of tag. Today in Agios Magikades, we will be confined to indoor jobs as we hanker for the sunshine we had earlier in the week.  I felt guilty on Monday when I grabbed half an hour after lunch to read a book in the garden. But, hey, we should all make hay while the sun shines. And up at St Simeon on its precarious perch on the side of a mountain, the wind gusted through the Sunday Name Day ceremony, threatening to topple the congregation right over ...