Life Like A Lucid Dream
On Thursday evening I ventured into the gym in the basement of Corfu Mare to do a mini strength and conditioning circuit before driving into the center of Corfu town for dinner with Anadi…
He stayed in our room and had a long soak in a bath, and I disappeared downstairs to discover another new world; alive with the whir of treadmills, the sound of footfall on the belts, punctuated by the occasional clang of weights.
I looked about me and in one room I was greeted by an attractive, lithe blond woman, who welcomed me warmly and said straight away ‘use everything; it is all yours…’
I started in a corner with a medicine ball, and then moved onto some exercises with the Dumbbells. It was when I was chinning on the chinning bar that Nikoll, I discovered this was her name, looked across from her exercise machine and clapping her hands together smiled at me and said ‘bravo…’
We started to talk then; ‘you have a lovely body’ she said ‘you are a runner?’
'Yes, I’m a runner…’ and I then asked her about her, impressed with her incredible flexibility and perfect form while she was exercising; she told me she was a gymnast and now a yoga instructor and that she owns and runs the gym.
‘I was watching you’ I said ‘your flexibility is inspiring… I need to improve mine…’
‘Come to my yoga class tomorrow’ she invited ‘I am waiting for you…’
Later that evening Anadi and I were driving back from our meal when there was a flash of bright light across the sky, the rumble of thunder almost immediate, and then the heavens opened… We are well and truly back to our Corfu of impressive storms that we remember so well from when we were here in September…!
And so this morning I was up early to post my blog, and to have a pre yoga breakfast of peaches and Greek yoghurt…
At nine o’ Clock I arrived in the yoga studio and talked to Nikoll for awhile before the start of class… which I was told was smaller than usual because it is a school holiday, so all the mothers were occupied with their children. The women who were there were very friendly and incluisve of me; and Nikoll even spoke in English for much of the time to accomodate my lack of Greek...!
I loved every second of the ninety minutes… Every moment; every stretch into every asana was joyous; even the ones I couldn’t stretch into. I could feel the resistance in my body and the aperture to new things opening and beckoning me from within.
It was very clear where my restrictions are physically – in the hamstrings, particularly the left one and in the left hip…
Nikkol suggested that I join a regular class (when I am at home) to go more deeply into the places where I am holding... I am motivated to do this and then I will attend her class in April, when we return to Corfu to spend two and a half months here…
I went to thank her again after I had put my sweat shirt and track bottoms back on. She was sitting at her desk. We kissed one another on both cheeks, then she reached under her desk and found an orange which she gave to me ‘It is from my tree’ she said…
We drove away from our hotel and followed the road we now know so well to Barbati, stopping in Ipsos on the way for provisions!
Today it has rained all day, sometimes the lightening and thunder has flashed around too; a stormy rainy day, the sea wild, its waves playing with the seaweed and throwing it onto the pebbly beach; and the wind whirling around us.
It feels like we are in a lucid dream; it may be the sudden and frequent changes in time, and the fact that it is only a week ago that we were in Bangkok; but driving along the roads we know so well on a rainy and quite cold January day had a surreal and relaxing quality to it.
A homecoming… We drove up the steep drive to Stefanos place and Giorgos was there putting on our hot water; It was so very good to see him… It was fabulous to see him!
The Salvanos family have given us a gift from them all of a week here in Stefanos Place - apartment number 11...!
Number 11 is their best appartment.
Words do not convey fully our gratitude; and our love for our big extended family.
They had made the apartment so warm and welcoming, with provisions in the fridge and a fruit bowl piled high, bread and coffee, butter ham and cheese.
Thank you thank you our friends...
Spiros, Magda, Giannis Giorgos and Stefano himself… all of them were here; we hugged and smiled and hugged and smiled - and said over and over again how happy we are to be back…