Things are very busy in Spiliazeza, or written in Greek, Σπηλιαζέζα. The other day, I was surprised to count 5 cars going by the house and heading up the road in an 8 hour period. Obviously, something was going on somewhere up the street! I never did find out what on earth would cause five cars to pass by – but I’m still working on my investigative journalism skills – so I thought I’d get to work on creating the very first English language weekly, reporting on events in the neighbourhood of Spiliazeza, Greece.
First, just so you are aware, Spiliazeza is an area located in the municipality of Laverotiki. In later editions, I’ll discuss some of the other very nice places in this municipality including Keratea, Lavrio, Sounion, and more – but you should know that Spiliazezza is really “where it’s at.” The place is just hopping – with goats, sheep, chickens, some stray dogs, and those cars – usually three a day, but sometimes up to 5 that pass by.
Serious Known Events
As I’m still getting to know the lay of the land, the local inhabitants, and the goings on but can’t yet fully hold a conversation in Greek, I’m not able to report on all the serious incidents that have gone on the last week in Spiliazeza. But there was one very suspicious incident that occurred on January 21st, 2021.
I was sitting in my office area at the back of the house, trying to get some work done at about 11:30AM, when both Beans and I heard a bit of a racket coming from the front of the house. I thought, like most noises I hear in Spiliazeza, the noise would stop – but it continued and I became aware of voices and realized someone or some people were rapping very hard at my front metal gate. This was very strange – these were not bare hands rapping at the locked gate. Someone was using some kind of weapon it almost seemed, to rap very hard!
Of course, my experience has taught me to be curious but cautious when investigating such suspicious things. I made sure my little Boston Terrier was right beside me as I walked out the door and over towards the steps down to the gate, where I could get a view of what was going on. The loud rapping continued.
And then I saw them. Those two again!
The first and last time I had dealings with them was back about January 2nd. They were walking up the street, singing – with walking sticks, and a young child. Very suspicious, but when they returned and walked past my house, they stopped and tried to speak with me in Greek. Although I apologized for not being able to speak much in Greek, they continued on, with many boisterous “Chronia Pola’s” over and over. They insisted on smiling, laughing, and trying to talk with me, and more laughing as I kept grinning with “Signome, Den Xero!”
Anyways, moving on to January 21st, it was the same two women, probably in their 60’s, who had stopped at my gate, and had refused to leave until I responded to them smacking my gate with their walking sticks so they could yell “Kali Mera’s” at me with their big grins and laughs.
This time, I did learn their identities though – a one “Anna” and a “Vasilike.”
I will have to keep an eye on those two. I have a feeling that these are the types that on someone’s “Name Day,” will tempt you to drink much tsipouro and raki, while insisting you get fat with eating a feast, and possibly try a bit of traditional Greek dancing.
Weather Events – Spiliazeza to January 22
Most of my friends and acquaintances think of Greece as a tropical sort of place, but the winters here can be downright chilly. Living as close as I do to the Aegean Sea also means high winds and almost “Irish” type of weather with lots of rain and dampness, and temperatures that can drop to the single digits during the day and night.
With quite warm weather in the second week of January, I actually planted lettuce and broccoli plants in the garden – only to see the weather shift as a cold front moved in, bringing strong winds which took down electrical lines and internet cable in the area. In fact, I’ve seen snow flakes twice – and am quite appreciative of my Canadian “long johns” at times underneath my trousers.
Then, a couple of days of a break in the winds and the rain, and temps rising to as high as 16 for a few days, and this suddenly appeared:
Not exactly sure what it is, but possibly some kind of African Daisy that decided to bloom.
The weather however, has once again turned to “cold” with a “polar” air mass hitting Greece. Yes, here “extreme” cold temperatures in this southern part of Attica mean that it could go to -2 at some point over the next few days. I know all my friends back in Ontario will be laughing at the idea of -2 being “extreme cold” as they “enjoy” dips on the thermometer down to below -20…
Regular Every Day News
The local shepherd continues to herd his sheep in some of the olive groves across the way where the sheep fertilize and eat whatever greens they can find including the olive leaves on the low branches of the trees.
Local big cocks stir in the mornings with their cocka-doodle-doos, and dogs bark their warnings – sometimes it seems, at each other.
And for this week, ending January 21, 2022, that’s all the news there is in English, from Spiliazeza. And if you’re going to spill your zeza’s, spill ya zezas as good as you can!
More news from the Spiliazeza English Weekly Gazette next week!
Not much goes on there, hmm? Seems like an ideal place. Nice article.