hosted our first US-based visitor,

had a true Cretan easter celebration (lamb’s heads, overeating and all),

wrote a bunch of grants totaling over €3 million, visited four countries, got pregnant,

took on a foster car,

εχω βελτιωθει ελληνικα μου, and…I guess that sums it up. So, in order not to dwell on missed opportunitites, I instead have a couple of advertisements we received that I thought were amusing enough to share.

"Our store is always open"

The caption in Greek on the top states “Our store is always open”, meaning, I suppose, the web store. Kotsovolos, is an appliance and electronics store, so I don’t really get how the image of the woman unbuttoning her pants applies here, but it definitely got me to notice the fact that they have a web store…

This next one appeared in a supermarket circular that gets dropped off at the door…

I am not sure if it is easy to see (you can click on the image if you want a bigger view), but the photo depicts a collection of raw meat (including a whole pig) spread out on a table along with a glass of wine and other fine edibles. Salmonilla anyone? While we have gotten used to seeing whole animals for sale in the butcher shops, for some reason making a festive display out of raw meat struck me as odd…

Ideas for posts flutter into our collective mind all the time. Every day offers little gems of inspiration. Crete is an impressive place, offering many facets to explore. And we’ve been fortunate to befriend many interesting people (well… actually, most of those friends have since left the island, but we are still inspired by them).

But for all this “post-worthy” material, very little (lately, none) of it gets published (or even written).

Now we could claim that the lack of editorial attention here has been b/c we are in fact too busy experiencing all this awesome stuff.

And that would be true.

We can also fairly state that we are simply preoccupied with the more ordinary, day-to-day stuff: our work, the most attention-demanding (and cutest) dog ever, and of course, the latest (and greatest) news in our lives, the impending arrival of our first child.

And that would be true, too. Generally, life does tend to keep one busy.

Also contributing to this site’s abandonment is the “Facebook effect” – the ease of microblogging on Facebook (and Twitter). Nearly all of our friends and even much of our family are pretty active on Facebook. A simple status update or a quick photo upload is sometimes all it takes to share what’s up. No need for full-blown blog posts.

But still, this is not the entire truth.

The fact is, we have simply grown bored with this site.

That’s clearly bad. As blogs go (and websites in general), that is a death knell. If WE aren’t motivated to maintain the site, you certainly can’t be expected to stay motivated to visit the site, much less join the discussion by leaving comments. And without you… what’s the point of blogging in the first place?

The problem is this gawd awful, lame-o default WordPress theme. It is a total inspiration-killer. We’re tired of looking at it (aren’t you?). Just knowing that our words will be imprisoned within this blog’s drab skin… it makes writing feel more like punishment than a creative outlet.

Thing is, I’ve been sitting on a redesign for this site for, like, over a year. It’s been in a holding pattern so long, I’ve actually lost track of where I left off. But it was nearly complete… very close.

Now again, to be fair, I have been busy with other things. Work. Life. Etc. But to put time and effort into a redesign only to then have it sit on a back-burner for over a year (heck, maybe it’s been two years?)… I mean, this is a blog, not Liberty Travel (heh. an inside joke… maybe just for me). Nope. That’s just ridiculous. Beyond ridiculous. It’s redunkulous.

Well, I’ve learned something about myself, being self-employed these past few years. And that is, I don’t get ANYTHING done if I don’t set a deadline. So that’s exactly what I’m going to do.

Before the New Year, TheKristyDave will be updated with a spectacular new design. (not an overly aggressive deadline, I know… but heck, this way maybe I can impress myself and finish ahead of schedule!)

In the meantime, we’ll try to rededicate ourselves to more regular postings. Perhaps there are still a few of you lurking around to take notice, and we can try to rebuild something of a conversation here.

So… in typical long-winded Dave fashion, what I’m saying is: please stand by… FULLY AWESOME updates ahead.

Apparently this affinity for Crete extends to touring German rock groups. Yes, indeed, I am referring to none other than the 1980s music legends, The Scorpions, who descended upon Chania this evening to deliver a heavy dose of nostalgic hard rock!

I could hear them from the rooftop of my flat in Splantzia. They totally RAWK!

Making this even awesomer (is it possible? I mean – THE Scorpions!) were the opening acts: DOKKEN and Greek ‘melodic metallers’ Firewind. ROCK! Fully Awesome!!!

OK, so maybe I’m being a wee bit sarcastic. I’m not a huge Scorpions fan, at all really. Recognizing a few of their more famous tunes from my roof was cool, though, I’ll admit, as I definitely remember being rocked like a hurricane as a kid. They’ve really got the anthem rock thing down, and they sounded pretty good for retirees.

A few people asked why I didn’t go to the concert, particularly since the Scorpions probably are the biggest music act coming to the island this summer. I certainly noticed when the posters for the concert went up around town a few weeks ago, but I just never looked into getting tickets. I suppose in part it is b/c I had nobody to go with (Kristy is not a fan).

What’s really funny is that they played, at the end of their last set, in order: “Wind of Change”, “Rock You Like a Hurricane”, and “No One Like You”. Guess that’s what the paying crowd was waiting for…

I got my money’s worth from my private rooftop seating, thank you very much

Some pics and video here:
Living In Crete blog’s “Scorpions Rock Chania”

We arrived safe and sound back in Chania…. a mere 16 hours in the travel log this time (an improvement over the 20 hour trip out to NY). Got home just in time for a sunset swim. Ah, it’s good to be back.

Much love to all the family and friends back home, miss you already. See you soon we hope, here on sunny Crete.
- Kristy, Dave and Pita

So here goes, a more personal recollection and post-chaos update, with apologies to the folks who already got a variation on this via email replies – but hey, think of it as you having got the exclusive story first! (there’s the old newsman in me again…)

Chania wasn’t as deep in it as Athens or Thessaloniki (1st and 2nd biggest Greek cities respectively). There were street protests in and around the city center, but nothing really violent.

To my knowledge, the worst that happened here were some smashed bank windows, slogans against the police and government graffitied on buildings (nothing new there, actually), some garbage was lit on fire, and a bunch of up-to-no-good punks looted the local OTE phone office.

All this happened relatively close to where we live – it’s a small city. But from our vantage point, we just heard a chanting crowd and police sirens.

“The villagers are getting restless” kind of went through my head and during the height of it all, maybe I opted to not venture too far out of our neighborhood at night when taking the dog for a walk. There was definitely electricity in the air – the waxing-to-full moon lent some appropriate “craziness” to the ambiance – but there was no real sense of danger.

I hear reports that Athens and Thessaloniki continue to have sporadic rioting and protests, but things have calmed down here in Chania over the last 48 hours — at least it seems that way. Earlier this evening there was a relatively normal event of some sort with music and people cheering in one of the big local squares, where protests were held just days earlier.

Certainly the underlying socioeconomic issues are still very much in need of attention. But regarding the recent civil unrest, at least here in Chania, ola kala. Everything is OK. I guess. For now… we’ll see.

The situation here was, in many ways, a tinderbox. News reports about the riots of the last week have focused on the spark that ignited the flame. But a country doesn’t just rip itself apart overnight. The underlying causes run deep, and perhaps it was only a matter of time before deteriorating public sentiment exploded into protests and violence.

In the ensuing melee, dozens of people have been injured, businesses have been looted, banks smashed, and hundreds of properties torched in cities throughout the country. Even here in Chania on the “holiday island” of Crete, there were street protests including some that turned destructive.

Another fact that perhaps the MSM hasn’t reported on is that there have been a few disparate forces at work in all this chaos, and not everybody is employing violence to get their message across.

There have been in fact thousands of peaceful protesters. Communists, students, teachers, union workers – run-of-the-mill “mainstream” people, perhaps pushed to the point of desperation, but who have been holding explicitly non-violent street rallies, symbolic sit-ins, and vigils. This doesn’t make for great news though, so it hasn’t gotten much air time.

Most of the violence seen on the news seems to have been committed by masked youths who fancy themselves as revolutionaries of some sort. Unfortunately many are just taking advantage of the situation, looting and wreaking havoc for the sake of it. I dislike the phone monopoly OTE as much as anybody, but ransacking their office and stealing modems and mobile phones, as happened here in Chania, doesn’t address anything other than one’s personal greed.

There are self-claimed anarchists, who are using violence in what they see as legitimate protests against the government. They destroyed banks and state property. I won’t legitimize their actions, but I suppose there is a subtle distinction to be drawn between them and the hoodlums who are simply looting.

Regardless of the motives, the destruction is difficult to understand. The injustice in all of this is that there is no connection between the innocents whose property has been stolen or destroyed and the police brutality and governmental corruption that so many are protesting against.

The opposition party has maneuvered to take advantage of the political fallout, and it is as of yet unclear whether the current government will survive. But clearly what is needed here is strong leadership during crisis that can deliver a swift and just response, with transparency in all proceedings. Greece deserves nothing less.

I can’t help but draw a parallel to the situation back home. Americans are also reeling from an economy in disaster, have expressed clearly their dissatisfaction with the government and a flawed political system, not to mention a gravely expensive and unpopular war. What has stopped the pitch forks and torches from being marched down Main Street?

That rhetorical question aside, I’ll simply say that we and our friends are thankfully safe and largely unaffected by the riots here. But there is very much a sense of unease in the air, amid the anticipation for order to be restored and justice served.

Dave and Pita

I have another story. I have been spending my days finishing my thesis updated link to my thesis…and it is finally done. Printed, bound, and sent for review. If any of you have a free couple of hours that you want to waste, you can read it here here.

But that’s not the story. I was talking about rainbows…so about 5 weeks ago, this small dog showed up in our neighborhood and decided not to leave. In fact, he moved right into our house. After being exposed to the dangers he was facing on the street (think grandmothers with brooms, big hungry wild dogs, and overaggressive cats) and his sugary disposition we decided to let him adopt us. So we have a dog. His name is Pita. (Formally, Mogwai Skilopita, which translated from the two languages we have stolen from to make his name, means ‘devil dog pie’. Amazingly, this truly is the most accurate description of his character).

Anyway, he wakes me up at 7am every morning to go for a walk. And a few mornings ago, I was greeted by this.

Rainbows over Chania Harbor

Didn’t get as good a set of photos as I wanted, since by the time I finished the dog walk and got the camera from back home, this was all that was left of it. (Yes, left of it.) I have never seen quite a rainbow as what it was…one double rainbow – two spectrums – and another on top. So even though this little dog has put a dent in our freedom, and quite possibly our plans to visit our newfound friends in their home countries, things with Pita always seem to end in rainbows…even begrudged 7am outings.

Our life has suddenly turned into a Clash song. And really, this indecision is bugging me. Maybe you can help?

Kristy unexpectedly got a job offer here. The job itself is not as much a factor as is the viable opportunity it opens for us to stay in this incredible place for the long-term. Why wouldn’t we take it?

Well, there are lots of reasons actually, both for and against staying.

The Case for Going Back Home

We miss our family and friends back home, most obviously. That emotional aspect cannot be overstated. There’s also the not so insignificant matter of my professional path, which isn’t exactly blazing ahead out here.

Buying property, starting a family of our own, building the general financial groundwork for a secure future – these pragmatic goals are all certainly possible out here, just more difficult to reach than back home. This goes beyond any language barrier, which can be lessened with time. To a very real extent, we’ll always be outsiders in this country where being “in” is really the only way to get a fair shake (isn’t that true everywhere?).

Plus, we still call the US (and New York) “home.” That obviously means something.

Why We Should Stay

Honestly, is America still the land of better opportunity? The economy being what it is (we can hear that loud sucking noise, all the way from across the distance!), prosperity is not necessarily guaranteed back home.

We don’t exactly have all the dots lined up on where we’d live, finding jobs… nothing is really very certain after we get off the plane, actually. In many ways, we left our old lives nearly two years ago, and we’d be starting over from scratch anywhere we go.

Instead, we could keep building on the life and friendships (surrogate family, really) we’ve started out here. We could live on this beautiful Greek island – live a simple life, where people know the difference between working to live and living to work. No consumption-driven, rushed, workaday commuter life for us here. Yet most assuredly, life would stay very interesting.

Vote Our Future

We’ve exhausted more than a few pros and cons lists to no avail. Practical reasoning is at war with emotions and ideals, and the result is a stalemate. We are quite literally stuck between two places.

In short: we need some help. Third-party input. Yours! So come on and let me know…

Disclaimer: We retain the right to make a final decision regardless of any popular results. Feel free to make your arguments in the comments below. All views are appreciated. Seriously, though, TheKristyDave is not a democracy. Well, we are but we’re strictly a two-party system.

From "More Istanbul" set

First, a disclaimer: Sadly, between the rain which lasted nearly our entire trip and the diminishing quality of our abused digital camera, we managed to return from Istanbul with a lot of really bad photos. The trip was great… wet, but great. The photos we took don’t really do that magnificent city justice.

Luckily, our travel companions also took lots of photos and links to them are included below as well.

The Photos

• Kristy’s Picasa account > Constantinople…I mean, Istanbul…I mean, Constantinople
• I uploaded more Istanbul photos to my Picasa account, in addition to my really lame How To Travel To Istanbul (and back) photo set (just in case you missed that…)
• Koumbaros Christos put his Constantinople October 2008 collection up on Picasa as well.

Some of my favorites:

• the post-hamam experience – hamam is a Turkish bath… we got scrubbed GOOD!
• our travel companions in Istanbul: Vassilis, Anastasis, Christos (r-l)
• our late night troop, gettin’ jiggy wit it
• the whole gang: (l-r) Vassilis, Irini, Kristy, Dave, Christos, Anastasis

So there you go – photos as promised. Kristy still owes us all a recount in prose, but at least for now we’ve delivered (sorta) the goods on the photographic proof. And it only took us nearly three weeks…