hello world

Well, it's been some time. I have to apologise for my long blog absence, which has been mainly due to a 500 Internal Server Error message which cropped up in my browser window about 2 months ago. This disabled all my Google access including the ability to log into my blog, so I've just left it gathering dust. We tried just about everything to get rid of it and nearly gave up until I posted a screengrab of the pesky error message on Facebook a couple of days ago in a last ditch attempt to see if anyone had the answer. And luckily, one of my lovely friends knew the trick! So here I am, back up and running. It's been a tumultuous few months here in Greece as I'm sure many of you have heard on the news and we are seriously considering jumping ship back to the UK. George is busy job-hunting and I have largely been lacking in motivation and inspiration due to the whole situation. But the last couple of weeks has seen a small reawakening in my creativity and I've been busy producing some new work which I shall share with you over the next few days. But first of all, here is a small gift for you all... a little something for your desktop. And I shall endeavor to create a new one each week on a Friday to which I will assign the title 'Desktop Friday Giveaway' (if you require a different size just leave me a comment). So in the meantime, enjoy the rest of your weekend and I'll be back again very soon!

Home From Home

I initially thought to keep this blog free of 'personal' stuff, but now I feel I want to share a little glimpse of my life with you. George and I have had a wonderful relaxing Easter weekend in our 'home from home' town of Nafpaktos, a beautiful little place in western Greece. One day I would like us to live there permenantly. The town itself is built around a beautifully preserved Venetian castle and port, and the location is perfect.

Photo: Wikipedia

Situated on the Corinth Gulf with views of the Peloponnesian mountains beyond, Nafpaktos is half an hour from Patras (Greece's 3rd largest city) from where you can sail up to Corfu and Italy, an hour by boat from the islands of Kefalonia and Zakynthos, and has a multitude of outdoor activities in the surrounding countryside from rock climbing to white-water rafting to kite surfing and more. We have some wonderful friends there too and I can't think of a more perfect place to raise a family.
So, as mentioned, we have just spent Easter there, which is a big occasion in Greece. Here are just a few moments from the weekend.


The port staged a spectacular (if not slightly tacky) light and fireworks show on Good Friday night.


The view from our hotel balcony - the tiny port of Hiliadou (about 10 mins from Nafpaktos)



Lunch on Saturday next to Evinos River.


George and I... relaxed and happy!

I hope you all had as good an Easter break as we did! I'm looking forward to hearing about it!