In 1996 my wife Betty’s Aunt Dina had offered her a gift of
the family ancestral house in Karlovasi, Samos, long unoccupied and neglected.
Betty went on a recce mission, decided it was worth developing, demolished the
old tumble-down place and we erected together by 1998 a marble-floored modern
summer-house with all mod.cons. It has 2 bedrooms including a shower and
Jacuzzi, a spacious living room and a sunny 2nd floor veranda with
panoramic views of the Aegean and of the surrounding hills. It also has an
adjoining court-yard, until recently packed with plants and local fruits. After
19 years of rather spasmodic occupation, which has always stimulated and
refreshed us, we have decided to let it out to the students who are such a
lively presence here from the University of the Aegean, and to retreat to our
cherished homes in peaceful Folkestone and in sun-kissed Athens.
The years are taking their toll. At age 75, we are less able
to cope with the 34 steps from top to bottom and the 34 back up again. The
Samos winters are raw and damp and maintenance costs swallow up much cash.
Property taxes, once unknown, are now a major prop in the hard-pressed Greek
government’s fiscal armoury. Yet we are reluctant leavers, as Samos is
unusually lovely, the bulk of the locals are very friendly and any island which
happily reared Pythagoras is going to take some beating!
 |
| Potami Bay, Karlovasi, Samos with Hippy's in the background |
Of course I admit to wearing rose-coloured spectacles. Many
other Greek islands no doubt have better beaches, better hotels and better
eateries. Samos has its fair share of rogues and vagabonds and noisy
motor-bikers are a trial. But we have felt welcome here and it is a wrench to
leave. We are giving up our house but we will still have to manage our properties
(we have the house and 3 rented flats here) and at least an annual visit as
landlords will be required of us or of one of our sons. We’re no awa tae bide awa, as the Scots song has it, at least until
the Greek housing market recovers sufficiently to make property sales again
feasible. Yet somehow it will never be the same for us again.
Today is the landmark day we hand over the keys to our new
tenant, an 18 year old girl and new student with prosperous parents from
Halkidiki, Northern Greece. She is a lucky girl as we have, with family help,
refurbished the house in the modern idiom and the place looks a dream.
We can only say many fond Thank-yous. To the Samos
municipality, for keeping the island beautiful when Greece was prostrate. To
the citizens of Samos, for uncomplainingly welcoming penniless refugees from
the benighted Middle East and the sub-Continent. To our friends and neighbours
– gallant Eftechia, now crippled, who looked after our house in earlier years
and multi-talented Theofilaktos, the creator of our courtyard garden and
invaluable helper, whose life and health collapsed months ago but is now
recovering steadily in the North. Thanks go to those who have helped with their
skills in so many ways around the house, Michaelis, Stamatis, Nectarios,
Dimitri, George, Manolis and Stelios.
Thanks too to Apostoli, presiding genius
at our favourite Hippy’s and his
right-hand man Yarmo, so attentive and welcoming, as has been the owner, Smarro.
Genial Dimitri has welcomed us for years at his consistently excellent
tree-shaded Dionysos. Tassos has
cooked like an angel at Kosmos on the shingle beach at lovely
Avlaki and Giannis has kindly dispensed tasty honest taverna fare and great
local wine at the Megalo Kafeneon.
We could not forget our friends Effi, Marigo, Katerina,
Filio and Costas. A huge final thank
you to our architect and long-term friend Kiki, who has introduced us to many
people and places, dynamically sorted out problems and cheerfully brought
Parisian sophistication to the island. She has been our rock.
So we say Goodbye and Thank you to Samos – bless you for all
the pleasures you have brought; you will always have a very special corner in
our hearts.
SMD
28.09.2017
Text Copyright © Sidney Donald 2017
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