Mediterranean Summer Reflections…

At last, in this part of the world, we knew for sure that vacation time had arrived…

The sweet and mature watermelons were already on the fruit shelves of my neighborhood market, the sun was becoming brighter and hotter; the mood was getting lighter, as our clothes were seriously eliminated, the landscapes around the city had shades of gold and bronze and the sea waters were provocative and invited us to dive in their refreshing arms…

I looked at the side-mirror of the car… I could see the black road running behind us. It was hot outside and despite the heat, we didn’t want to open the air-conditioning/clima of the car. The windows of the car were finally opened and remained as such. Was still early, just ten o’clock in the morning, but the sun was torturing us and the atmosphere was steamy. Why? 34c already! Pure summer Mediterranean weather at its peak! We kept on moving, my eyes barely could take a glance of the green scenery. I could felt though, the captivating smell of the thirsty pine trees and the distinctive aroma of the thyme and oregano plants that escorted us in both sides of the road during our trip. We were already 50 miles away from Athens. The radio played whatever it desired… At a moment, I could hear it playing the blues, BB King, to be precise… I loved it. I closed my eyes for seconds and took another deep breath. My spouse and I were finally leaving the hot capital and we were moving towards our holiday destination.

The beginning of August, was, is and will be the period of the great European ‘escape’. It is the time all companies, multinational and local ones, ‘silently’ decide to have their summer break. Thousand of sweating cars, boats and airplanes, in Italy, Greece, Spain, Portugal, France and throughout Europe, full of piled luggage and full of exhausted, by a demanding winter, people, were following the same direction… the longing hide-out to mountains, islands and exotic sites. All of us, as if we are listening to a universal, magical flute, we were repeating the same mantra:

“I want to leave as far away as possible, as remotely as possible. Away from everything and everyone… to eventually relax for a few precious days alone or with my beloved ones.

To forget the thorny, sometimes, daily routine, the tough, long hours at work, the business trips, the exhausting conferences; to forget the banks, the loans, the terrible traffic, the social obligations, the unbearable boss and the competitive colleagues; to ignore the clock and the schedules, to forget about the international problems and crisis. For a period of time, by choice, I will have no alarm-clocks, no phone calls, no mobile phones or e-mail communication (or at least I will limit them to the basics).

I will try to forget about my worries, my problems and my anxieties… Only for a few days I just want to feel free! I deserve it… ”

No more thoughts for me please! Finally, we arrived in our non tourist destination; a few rooms, ivory painted with aluminum, glass and light brown wood details, refurbished elegant 60’s architecture hotel with a pool and the beach in front of us; the venue was surrounded by pine trees, a small heaven. My reverse counting was automatically initiated: I started to stop counting days, hours, minutes; I left my watch in a tiny bag in the closet of the hotel room.

Endless, eternal mother…

My eyes relaxed when I saw her turquoise gown united with the blue horizon. She offered her delicate, white, embroidered with sea-shells and sand, hands towards us… The smell of the sea touched our existence. It freeze, relaxed and at the end, soothed our tortured bodies… The sun, even though tough and aggressive (because of the human stupidity and indifference), was welcomed, at least the first moments of our exit from the refreshing rooms of the big blue… our only shelter was the old umbrella of straw.

The joyful cicadas were lying on the pine trees; these little fellows were giving the tempo for another warm, summer day. Finally, we were in the initial phase of feeling like humans again, with the pure meaning of the word and not dizzy, grey and tired walkers of the demanding daily schedule. We observed the surrounding landscape and we felt it to its pure essence, we did not pass it instantly. There were hills, foliage, the pool, the sea, faces… We were feeling alive, we were real…

The cheerful group, we and a friendly couple, were already four days there and I had not realized it. Time moved transparently and smoothly in this part of the world. I half-opened my eyes under my huge purple straw hat and my black Jacky-O sunglasses. I had no idea if I was asleep, if I wanted to sleep or if I was just bored. This was a unique feeling, of just ‘being’, I cherished it, I did not wanted it to end, since I enjoyed it so rarely. Around me there was a strange buzzing, as if a flock of bees was passing by… children’s voices, songs from the beach-bar, cicadas, footsteps, the waves kissing the beach, all together, mingled and tangled. I returned, exhausted (!), to my previous nirvana position, after drinking a generous sip of ice-coffee. My brain remained empty from thoughts and my heart from heavy emotions… Rare.

This was the first time ever we decided to just relax in a place and to make short visits every evening to the nearby fishing villages. What a joy for all our senses… We were sitting by the shore, watching breath taking sunsets… purple, golden, red, orange, blue colours, all together tangled in an exquisite union with the sea. We were there, a carefree group, a few friends, sitting by the beach, looking at the sea, drinking ouzo and local wine, eating all the delicious fish specialties and fresh fruits, listening to instrumental and folk music, while we were talking about the moon, the stars, the life, about love… simple, yet so important pleasures. What else a human to desire?

Now, as I am sitting in front of my lap-top while I am putting my thoughts and my recent summer memories in writing, I feel a little lucky, as I am watching from my window a glorious autumn sunset diving into the sea. It sooths, a little of course, my nostalgia for these holidays, that are already a precious memory in the closet of my mind and soul.

I am not sure if my words can explain my feelings and the images my heart and my mind captured during my holidays… Careless summer time, endless beaches, breathtaking sunsets… the extraordinary feeling of being free and light-hearted… I will cherish them till our next escape… it’s a promise!

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