Monday, 31 August 2009

I've Been Graped


Sunday August 30


Another sunny sunday not so hot +28 ish
Its noon we are visiting a friend Natasha.

We are sitting In the garden under a bower of grapes that are hanging invitingly in great bunches the temptation to scrump them is very strong, another month and they will be perfect for wine making.


The barbecue's hot and the smells from it tantalizing, great pieces of pork are slowly cooking to a golden brown, the table is as usual groaning with goodies, one of the best bits the tomatoes newly gathered from the garden,freshly prepared sauces sit ready to embellish the meat. The wine is flowing generously the plates are waiting, we get stuck in, delicious!

Much later the eating has slowed to a hunt and pick situation, the talk flows animatedly from one subject to another until Natasha produces a knife and starts to gather some of the grapes, soon a huge bowl is on the table, we all dig in, Oh Boy! I've not tasted anything as good as this for years it's almost a shame that much of this crop will finish up as wine but I bet it tastes good.


“What's the variety”? I ask “Lydia” is the reply, well all I can say is "fruitfully gorgeous".
All to soon the taxi arrives and we make our goodbyes well fed and watered complete with a large basket full of delicious Lydia grapes.

Saturday, 22 August 2009

Fortress


A Very Tall Ship




The Sail Training Vessel Amerigo Vespucci  paid a visit to Odessa, 


Over a couple of days as a courtesy it was open to the public for viewing I took the advantage to go look at her, unfortunately for me half Odessa had the same idea. The upshot being I didn’t go aboard, she is such a beautiful ship that I was happy to admire her from the Quay.

Wednesday, 12 August 2009

Montenegro or Bust


24 July

Some ungodly hour 03-30 in the morning commencing our holiday to Montenegro.

Drive to Kiev, interesting to see sun rising over the fields of sunflowers is about 6-Hr journey but with stops we arrived just about right for check in about 90mins before flight. Ok so now we hungry find the only place to sit is bar area us get told unless you by something from bar we can’t sit there £4 for a bar of chocolate rip off merchants or what.

Finally we board the plane short flight about 2-hrs uneventful and arrive at Tivat airport simple transit through to coach taking us to the apartment in Budva.
Temperature gauge on board shows a warmish +46




Hmmm this is ok Air Conditioning luxury,two large rooms 2 double divans, kitchen,bathroom satellite TV please the kids, balcony own front door pretty good. Ira and Yura have similar apartment upstairs [cause the old man wouldn’t climb them lazy so and so].

Soon its time to go to the beach, A ground floor apartment means it is an easy 5 minute walk, I dont believe it thats what the man said 5 minutes and it is brill. a short stroll along the esplanade I suppose you’d call it lined with the usual junk and beachwear plenty of eateries and bars bet” these get louder as the night starts up” Oh Dear! bit of a disappointment the water is dirty the beach itself is ok if you could find any among the loungers and sunshades the sea is grubby full of detritus of all kinds odd that usually it’s the other way about water Ok beach grubby, but today was like that, the water was cold which is a surprise as the air temperature was +46 but it felt cold. Anyway we had a good swim a very good swim everything was ok as long as you kept you mouth shut ha ha.

So that was that went home had some supper and off to bed at the end of what had been a very long 14 Hour day.


The following morning we awoke early and it was beautiful the sun hadn’t sort of really go to strong and was throwing a wonderful light on the mountains around us I mean the view from the balcony of this place is just amazing really lovely, we sat there for a while and around eight am set off for the beach where we were having breakfast at one of the beachside cafe’s, and that was erm that was lovely. A good breakfast of eggs as much as you could eat, all part of the package that the family had put together, so we had our eggs and bacon well not bacon it was some sort of a sausage fried, bit greasy to be honest but tasty, we couldn’t have coffee in the morning only juice or tea and hells teeth the tea was dreadful but I suffered in almost silence.
Then it was decided to wander along to the old town of Budva the original one. This was a walled town and there were 2 or 3 gates going into it and of course very very narrow streets everywhere paved absolutely gorgeous every turn you took was something new narrow streets wonderful little courtyards everywhere, and gorgeous views out to sea.

The old town has catered well for the tourist plenty to interest the girls as well as gift and souvenir shops with many cafe's restaurants and bars for the inner man.

After having a good old wander round we found a coffee shop and bumbled in for coffee. The family stuck with cappuccinos I had an iced latte very nice after which we made our way back to the apartment because by now it was getting very hot.

It was midday we decided to have lunch well we didn’t really we had a liquid lunch which was very all right, then sort of middle of the afternoon well early afternoon really made our way down to the beach. Everybody had a plan Plan A, we would go to a new beach one we had passed in the morning which looked a little less crowded, bit cleaner we thought, so down we went.

Well, when we got there forgot or hadn’t realised that it was all shingles and very slippery under foot, and umm! We found a spot got undressed,
I took my shoes off ouch! That was a mistake, I was burning the soles of my feet on these red hot shingles, so decided take a dip in the water straight away. Well hmph! the seabed is covered in rocks and stones and I didn’t really manage to keep my feet terribly well, got out as far as my knees and it was really uncomfortable and I was slipping and sliding around, I thought I’m not having this, so turned round to come back took three steps and there was an explosion, well I dont know what you might say but there was arms and legs and arse and head flying in all directions and I landed up flat on my face in four inches of water, much to the amusement of everybody watching, and of course they probably realised something like that was going to happen anyway cause it wouldn’t be the first time. So I got up huge grin on my face took a step backwards promptly tripped over again landing on my backside, the look of shock and surprise on my face just set everybody into paroxysms of laughter and I had to be half carried and dragged up the beach where I sat in abject misery for the next half an hour while the family went off for a swim. But a small consolation was the fact that they also got cut and bruised because the rocks really were quite sharp under the water.

So then we decided on Plan B that was to go back to the beach that we had gone the night before which we did, wandered back and found ourselves a lounger and parasol guy came along and demanded some money, and we said well we are staying at the apartment up the road, “No no no no thats all right” he said “thats all booked and payed for” so after all the fagaries we had been through earlier to find that we already got places booked on the beach was ha ha quite good. So that was it we went in.

Actually By this time there had been a breeze and bit of a tide I suppose and the water was pretty clean in fact and it was also warmer maybe we were getting used to it but was certainly warmer and that was it, I had a wonderful swim great stuff.

The family disappeared off they wanted to do shopping and various other things I said “no I’m not going I’m going to be blinking miserable I’m staying here” which I did for another hour just watching life go by.

One Mr Adonis Who’d been posing all afternoon getting the rays got collared Mrs Adonis indicated that she wanted the Parasol moving because the sun had gone round, well Iv’e never seen anybody get in such a bloody muddle trying to put up this blooming parasol and move it reminded me very much of the guy trying to put up a deck chair in the wind on the beach in Blackpool, at least I wasn’t the cabaret this time. I then wandered back to the apartment.
The girls are off putting some sort of an itinerary together for the rest of the week some excursions that we want to do, so thats our next discussion I suppose when they come back, tell us what wev’e decided ha ha that were going to do for the rest of the week.

Now it is evening the sun has swung west throwing a differant light on the mountains, soon it will sink into them and the night owls will emerge. Already the fun fair is waking the evening air will be filled with the screams and laughter from the Kamakaze ride and the distant throb of music from the disco dance floors of the bars around.


Sunday, 9 August 2009

A Wedding We Will Go

Poltava 

We have been invited to a family wedding in a very ancient city called Poltava. Site of a great battle between Sweden and Russia the latter vastly outnumbered their enemy 58k Swedish to about 150k Russians it ended any thoughts of dominance Sweden had. A monument to the great victory stands on the hill over looking the City.

Some 600k from Odessa it takes us over 10 hours to drive here. 
Katya is the granddaughter of Genny's cousin Galia today she is marrying Sasha having met while studying at medical college. A truly lovely girl I saw a few times when visiting Galia in Kirovograd. 


A very simple but beautiful civil ceremony accompanied by a string quartet who played various pieces including I will always love you and the ubiquitous wedding march, then as always loads of photos,the pros taking over proceedings as they usher shape and cajole us unwillingly to smile and pose self continuously. The one guy had an unusual approach to getting us to pay attention and smile he would waggle his ears or bark, it did the trick though.  Champagne and confetti in the park, a meal with dancing etc to follow. It's been 6 hrs and we are still eating not got to the cake yet. Oops more dancing, BH but not me ha ha, Galia 82 rock and rolling like a 16 year old I am ashamed sort of. 


There are many little ceremonies and traditions performed throughout the reception, as always the tossing of the brides bouquet, the removal of her veil which then becomes a wifely scarf, and special bread baked and offered much of what is going on goes over my head but I get the gist of it.


12 midnight now back to apartment sore feet full and not a little inebriated     
Time for bed said Zebadee.