Back in Greece

We've been back in Greece for three weeks now. Had a shaky start, too many things in the apartment going wrong, but it's all settled now and we can relax and get into our Greek routine.

Going swimming, a great pleasure.

We always have an early start and reach the beach at around 9:00 when it's fairly quiet and we can get an umbrella and beds in the front row.

Things are different this year however. Purple jelly fish have appeared for the fist time as far as I remember.  Apparently they are very different to the 'normal' jelly fish: their sting is extremely painful and and there can be complications for some. So, people swim near the shore and we have yet to see anyone going all the way to the net. One of our great pleasures used to be swimming up to the net, but, like everyone else, we only swim half-way to the net and then swim across. I used to get stung by jelly fish on a regular basis when I was a child and throughout adolescence, but I have to admit, that I would rather not get stung by these guys, so we're being careful.

Why the sudden emergence of these purple ones? One theory I have heard is that the population of sea turtles, whose main diet is these jelly fish,  has drastically declined. Why has the population of sea turtles declined? Because of plastic in the seas which they infest and then choke.  But, it could also have something to do with climate change.

This little girl, who was sitting next to us with her grandmother, was doing cartwheels. With her permission, and her grandmother's, I took a photograph.

Perfect.

And then, the splits.

One thing I have noticed here, on the beach is the number of butterflies: they are everywhere, 3-4 flying near us every minute, and even when we are swimming they hover over our heads. Butterflies are becoming such a rare phenomenon in the UK: if we see three during a two-hour walk in the countryside, it's a good day. Here, they are everywhere - such a pleasure.