Mikis Plays with his Camera

This is exactly what it means to have great friends like Akis:
You get broadcasted to the world with your pants down.
Thanks mate!

Wedding Pics Online

I know what you're thinking-
Gosh this place has suddenly gone all quiet!
While we just catch our breath,
visit our flickr.com group
for the latest uploads of wedding pics.
xx M&A

Party on at Privilege Beach Bar

Eight days to go, time for another teaser..

A lazy beachside walk from the chapel and we shall decant to Privilege Beach Bar, for meze, nibbles & cocktails at sundown. That should warm us up for a sizzling all-nighter party mood till dawn or till everyone drops -whichever comes first!

As you can see in the teaser video (courtesy of youtube)Privilege is pretty much open-air and straight onto the beach, but there are sheltered and cozier corners. The main benefit of the south side location is a a mild and warm evening but in any case, you may want to bring along something warmer to throw on, especially in case it’s on the windy side on the day.



Be warned, too, that you you will suffer extreme bouts of jealousy if you dress too stiff and square and you cannot follow all the cool people in flip-flops onto the beach..

Now for some necessary mundanities..

Greeks consider vegetarians a rare and rather unbalanced species, but we shall make sure you are well taken care of. Unfortunately, you will not be able to avoid the wafting smells of the BBQ.. I think I will leave the rest of the menu a surprise now.

One idea we had floated earlier was to schedule a coach to return to Kokkari - however, we realised this would probably cramp people's style, prompting a premature exodus, and we would rather have you there till dawn! So, if you don't have your own transport, and you smell too alcoholic to hitch a ride with some other guests, it's probably a good idea to obtain the mobile number of a taxi driver to arrange a pickup. There is a radio-taxi service in Vathy (Tel 22730-28404) and a taxi rank (πιατσα) at the airport and the centre of Kokkari.

I know I don't have to say this, but please be super careful if you drive yourself back, we would rather meet you on (rather than in) the beach on Sunday! Plus, in the early hours of Sunday there is pretty much always a police breathalyzer unit staking out at the Vathy-Kokkari roundabout (which you cannot avoid going through).

NB This is a blog-style website, so if this is your first visit, start reading from the bottom - and hurry up, not much time left!

Distributed Photography Project - Live on Flickr.com

As of just, uhm, now, our open-source, distributed wedding photography project (see the relevant blog posting here) has a home (click here). You can browse without signing up, but to bask in the glory of flickr (and to add pics, comments and notes) you really ought to make the move and join us (as a free citizen, of course).

Only 9 days to go now - look forward to seeing you in Samos!

Irene & Pandelis

Our most elegant, musical, lively and spontaneous friends Irene & Pantelis got married just this Saturday at a stylish do in Varkiza. We wish you all the lovely, cuddly and sparrrkly moment this world can offer!



Here comes some bootleg undercover video, stay tuned for more!

BlogAir

It was flying’ time to get back. After a weekend of downtown celebrations and two good friends' lovely weddings (yes, I admit, I spied on Pandelis & Irene, but it was for a good cause) I picked up my finished suit and Ms’ dress from the designer and headed for the airport.

The dress travel bag was taller than me, and to tell you the truth in 37 degrees heat the last thing I needed was to stand in a packed queue in El-Vel for two hours having to dangle it overhead.

So I suavely blagged an Executive Lounge ticket from the Olympic Airlines check-in desk. At the lounge, three most gracious ladies (real air hostesses, with that perfect smile, not the insipid ones you see onboard lately) knew exactly how to take care of everything smoothly (and even cooed over the invite by IPS).



An hour of air-conditioned therapy watching the football on a plasma, two espressos and two stiff Sapphire G&Ts, I was healed and ready to leave. To pick a fight at the security desk.

I knew they would refuse to let the dress through without shoving it through the Xray machine, and I knew I had to refuse to let it vanish into the belly of that beast, where it could get snagged, soiled, oiled, squashed, etc. They had a job to do, but I didn't want to end up as human sacrifice to Bridezilla.

I mean, what sick mad twisted terrorist would use a wedding dress as a bomb? (don’t answer that..)

Anyway, after abusing one supervisor after another (sorry guys!) the head honcho agreed to mcguyver a platform out of those big blue plastic containers they have for putting your stuff in, face-down, covered with fabric, held with some tape.. well at least it was a good show for the others waiting in the queue.

And then they found the bomb. No, I’m joking - would I do such a thing? (don’t answer this either..)

Then another hour of waiting at the gate, courtesy of a delayed flight, but at least I could lay the dress out nicely on four seats in the waiting area. The downside was I got envious looks from women and evil looks from gay passengers on the OA734 to Myconos.



When boarding, I realised the plane was not as tall as the bag. At least the hostess was quick to figure out a good niche, and my highness allowed the plane to take off.

An hour later, on Samos, M smiled and waved, and it was all totally worth it.

6/6/6 - another typical day

We were having breakfast today at 7:15 when the news broke on the Greek newschannels (we were watching ET1) about attempts to rescue refugees who had been dumped overboard (per the typical smuggler procedure) in the sea north of Samos (opposite, remember, the Turkish coast at Kusadasi).

Now, sadly, this is hardly news over here. The Navy regularly hauls in smuggler boats (which promptly get ransacked for parts by the honest fisherfolk of Vathy) and takes the poor folks in for a medical, and then to holding (and thence a very grey existence in legaland..).

Last summer, M treated a batch of refugees who were so hypothermic from being in the sea for hours, they were purple and shivering in a 35 degrees summer day with the aircons to full heat.
And those were the hardy, lucky ones who made it.

However, as M is on-call today until 12pm tomorrow, she was understandably less than thrilled. Thanks to the chicken virus alert, medics have to don full biohazard suits to do their medical workup on refugees, while also covering the usual ward and ER workload.

Yeah, I will have my own salvage operation tomorrow.. and I just have to hope none of this happens on 01/07, the suits will just wreak havoc on the hairdo..

Update: We just found out that the refugees were being returned to Kusadasi by the Dutch cruise liner that had picked them up. Except one poor kid whose body was brought in by the Navy. The ominous date seems to have had its toll.

NB This is a blog-style website, with newest entries at the top, so if this is your first visit start from the bottom.. and keep connected for updates!

Of Wedding Presents (updated)

Your making the effort and time to travel all this way to be with us on our wedding day is a special gift, as personal, memorable and moving as they come. We are so thrilled by how many of our favourite people are going to make it, taking one and two and three flights to make it for the day!

It's going to be a fantastic few days, thank you to all for supporting us - and we love & miss the rest of you :)

However, everyone keeps telling us that no-one feels quite right arriving at a wedding empty-handed, so we thought we might be a bit more specific:

First thing to consider is that we will be leaving Samos (sadly, but necessarily) a few months hence, with the likely prospect of more house moves once abroad. Thus, quite obviously, as much as we fancy our homeware, we would rather not ship toasters, hoovers, lampshades and candlesticks all across Europe!

What we have really set our hearts on is some more travelling before moving - maybe another road trip around our lovely Europe (Sicily & Sardinia especially), sailing the Aegean (the Aegean Rally in July and the Aegean Regatta in August) or braving the suicidal chickens to Istanbul and beyond.

Any contributions to our travel fund, no matter how symbolic, would be most kind and welcome, but let us say again, by no means expected.

Please contact Alastair (in the UK on 07714-761630 or alastairmbailey@yahoo.co.uk) or George (in Greece on 6974-345232 or george.scorinis@scorinis.gr) who have kindly agreed to organise the collection on our behalf. Thanks guys!

NB This is a blog-style website, with newest entries at the top, so if this is your first visit start from the bottom.. and keep connected for frequent updates!

Booking Alert! (Third Edition)

I thought you should know: twice I have been told by a friend who called the Hotel Lemos that the people there were quick to make promises to book rooms at Lemos.. then added "we also have another hotel, Lito (Λητω), come along and we will definately find you a place to stay".

This pissed me off, frankly, because Lito is an absolute doghouse - nowhere near the beach, ancient, cramped and scruffy, where seasonal labourers rent rooms by the month. Don't go anywhere near it! I liked Lemos just fine, and the lady that I spoke to there was very gracious, but this kind of tricky dealing is unsavoury. I myself would not book with them unless I got a written confirmation of the booking at Lemos hotel, and nowhere else.. which I cannot see how he can guarantee, seeing as they block-rent all their rooms out to a travel agency, which then only a week before notifies them if they will have any vacancies.

Anyway, on a finer note, the luxury Doryssa Hotel 5* (where the wedding chapel and party are) has good availability around the end of June. It's 30 minutes drive from Kokkari, and honestly folks it's a plush place! Book there through Mrs Sofia at Rhenia Tours (22730-92367) who can get you much better prices than the hotel offers directly (ie E70 instead of E100 for the best doubles).

The Ceremony (Remixed)

Hear, hear: it's June, summer is upon us for good, and we have important changes to announce!

As much as we initially liked the idea of the wedding ceremony at the St Nicholas (Αγιος Νικολαος) at Karlovassi, lately we became rather more fond of a ceremony at the Chapel of St Marina (Aγια Μαρινα) at the Doryssa Bay Hotel (pictured left).

The Doryssa Bay is on the south side of Samos, very close to the Airport and the town of Pythagoreo. You can get there very easily in 20-25 mins by car or taxi (E20) from Kokkari. The Chapel is part of a traditional village reconstruction within the Hotel's grounds, through an archway to the left of the main reception.

And yes, it's still July 1st, 7:30pm, and still a Greek Orthodox service.

The main advantage we have here is the south-facing location, which guarantees a smooth and warm evening, with a very mild breeze at most -the prospect of a force-5 wind carrying the bride away was always present at Potami.

Of course, we are moving the party to a fabulous beach bar nearby .. but stay tuned more on that in a next post!

Get Your Skates On! (Second Ed.)

Well it seems tht this season is hotter than I thought.. tourist agents are telling us they have 105% bookings for late June, all tourist packages of course. Better get moving folks!

Οποτε αυτο που ελεγα για Αριωνα (www.arion-hotel.com, 22730-92020)..? Ε, οχι μονο δεν ειναι φτηνο, τωρα δεν εχει κιολας! Καλα, οχι τωρα, απο μηνες, γιατι ειναι ΟΛΟ κλειστο με τουριστικα πακετα. Ομοιως γεματο και το Kalidon Palace (www.kalidonpalace.gr, 22730-92800), και απ'οτι λεει η πρακτορας μας, ολα τα Α' κατηγοριας εναι παραγεμισμενα με βορειους τυπους . Εντωμεταξυ, οι διαφοροι καταστηματαρχες στο Κοκκαρι παλι γκρινιαζουν για την χαμηλη κινηση. Ειναι να αναρωτιεσαι δηλαδη τι γινοταν παλια..

Finally, this reminder applies to all: the very high levels of bookings for late June means you better book rental cars now if you want them. We had floated the idea of a coach to take us all to the chapel, and then maybe do a couple of late returns, but all coaches on Samos are booked for a group of Finns arriving on the day!

...how ungrateful, after we gave them our 12 on Eurovision..

Reminder: for car rental, we would recommend you first ask Savvas, our landlord who is a very nice guy and very dependable, and promised to take care of people. Contact: savvas@savvasrent.com, Tel +30-22730-92450. An alternative is to book via the Rhenia Tours agency, who are also available to book accommodation for us, contact Mrs Sofia on +30-22730-92367 or info@rhenia.gr.

Happy hunting!

Ολοι Παμε Κοκκαρι! (First Edition)

Ηaving done, in the last four days, a better job of surveying the touristy industry in Kokkari than the Ministry has in years, we can now give you the lowdown on accommodation available locally.

Since this post is only relevant to our multitude of Greek fans, we shall relay the following information in the mother tongue..

Ακολουθει η λιστα με τα διαφορα μικρα ή μεσαια ξενοδοχεια, δωματια κλπ, τα οποια επισκεφτηκαμε στο Κοκκαρι και δεν ντρεπομαστε να συστησουμε! Η λιστα ειναι στη σειρα που θα μας αρεσε εμας να μεινουμε, χωρις να σημαινει οτι πιο χαμηλα στη λιστα δεν ειναι ενταξει το μερος (ισα-ισα). Ολα πληρουν τις βασικες προυποθεσεις (πορτα, κρεββατι, λεκανη, κλπ), και ειναι κοντα μας. Τιμες δινουμε για τα πιο ακριβα δωματια (τα μπροστινα θαλασσινα συνηθως), τα υπολοιπα ειναι συνηθως 5^Ε φθηνοτερα. Προτεινουμε επισης να τα ζητησετε χωρις πρωινο, σιγουρα δεν θα σας λειψει το πλαστικο βουτυρακι.

Οταν επικοινωνειτε με καποιο απο αυτα, να αναφερετε βεβαια οτι ερχεστε για το γαμο της Μαρινας & του Αλεξη, επειδη αν και γενικα δεν εχουμε “κρατησει” αυτα τα δωματια, σε μερικα μερη τους εχουμε ζητησει ευγενικα να μας κρατησουν διαθεσιμα τα καλυτερα θαλασσινα δωματια για τους καλεσμενους μας που θα τους καλεσουν πρωτοι.

Παμε λοιπον:

Hotel Tsamadou (www.tsamadou.com) – Ενα sixties κτισμα πανω ακριβως στην παραλια, που φετος το αγορασαν και το ανανεωσαν ενα ζευγαρι συμπαθητικοι και τυπικοι Αγγλοι, η Tina και ο Ian. Να οι ξενες επενδυσεις! Εχουν 4 διπλα δωματια θαλασσινα (στα 40^Ε), μερικα μονα, και μερικα ακομα διπλα που βλεπουν πισω και πλαι, συνολο 11. Τα δωματια ειναι σκετα, μικρουτσικα, τακτικα και καθαρα, και τα μπανια παλαιας κοπης. Επικοινωνια: 22730-92314 και hotel@tsamadou.com .

Hotel Dimitra – Πολυ διπλα μας, με 4 διπλα θαλασσινα (35^Ε), μερικα μονα, και δυο μεγαλυτερα σαν studio, συνολο 13. Καπως παλαιοτερο, πολυ ησυχη θεση, πανω στη θαλασσα, και συμπαθητικοτατοι ιδιοκτητες. Καθαρα, βασικα δωματια, ισως και κανενα εκατοστο μεγαλυτερα. Καλεστε την Κυρια Λια στο 22730-61120.

Long Beach Hotel – (www.samos-longbeach.de) Στην περα (απο εμας) μερια της παραλιας του Κοκκαριου, πολυ πιο κοντα στο.. εε.. κεντρο του χωριου και τα.. εε.. γραφικα πισω λιμανακια. Πανω απο ενα χαλαρο beach bar, απλα και τακτικα δωματια, καπως πιο μοντερνα απο τα υπολοιπα. Ο Charlie Paraskeva (ναι, αυτος, στο τηλ 22730- 92150) εχει δυο διαθεσιμα δωματια, κανονικα 49^Ε αλλα αν κλειστουν και τα δυο θα προσφερει το κατιτις. Καλη περιπτωση.

Sunrise Hotel - Στην περα περα μερια του Κοκκαριου, πανω ακριβως απο ενα πανεμορφο και ησυχο κολπακι, ενα καπως μεγαλυτερο ξενοδοχειο με απλα δωματια που ολα εχουν εξαιρετικη θεα, μερικα και αρκουδισιο. Κλεινετε μεσω του γραφειου Rhenia (πληροφοριες παρακατω). Δεν ειναι για οσους βαριουνται το περπατημα, το εχει το μονοπατι του, αλλα και μια καλη ταβερνα αποκατω.

Pension Γιαννης Περρης – Στο κεντρο περιπου της παραλιας, με εξι απλα, βασικα, καθαρα δωματια πανω στην παραλια. Τα πανω δυο για οσους θελουν θεα, τα κατω δυο για κατευθειαν σαλτο στο βοτσαλο. Τα μεσαια για τους αναποφασιστους. Επικοινωνια: 22730-92747.

Hotel Koralli – Και αυτο ειναι στην περα (απο εμας) μερια της παραλιας του Κοκκαριου, πολυ πιο κοντα στο.. εε.. κεντρο του χωριου και τα.. εε.. γραφικα πισω λιμανακια. Πανω στη θαλασσα, εχει για εκεινη την εποχη ενα διπλο μπροστινο (καπου 40^Ε), και μερικα ακομα πλαινα, συνολο 5. Μικρα, βασικα, απλα και καθαρα as usual. Ενδιαφερον στοιχειο ενα συμπαθητικο roof garden με χαζοκαρεκλιτσες και καταπληκτικη θεα στην παραλια, τη δυση, και τα βουνα πανω απο το Κοκκαρι. Επισης, βιβλιοθηκη με pulp fiction προς τερψη του εκλεπτυσμενου πελατη. Ο ιδιοκτητης ειναι ο κυριος Κωστας (22730-92474) αλλα για να κλεισετε εκει παρτε την κυρια Σοφια Γεωργουδη στο γραφειο Rhenia Tours που μας το βρηκε, 22730-92367.

Kallidon – υπαρχει το Village, κατω στο Κοκκαρι (οχι παραθαλασσιο, αλλα πολυ κοντα) και το Palace (www.kallidonpalace.gr) που ειναι ψηλοτερα στο λοφο και ειναι πολυτελεστατο. Εμεις κοιταξαμε στο Village, και βρηκαμε 4 διπλα (55^Ε) στο ισογειο – μοντερνα δωματια, πληρως εξοπλισμενα, με μικρο μπαλκονακι που ομως δεν βλεπει τιποτε σπουδαιο – και αλλα 6 διπλα (40^Ε) στο ημιυπογειο που αν και ομοια εσωτερικα, ειναι σαφως πιο σκοτεινα. Ιδανικα για κρυψινοες τυπους με κρυφους σκοπους. Η ολη μοναδα ειναι σαφως πιο συγχρονη και φροντισμενη απο τα προηγουμενα, αλλα τα καλυτερα δωματια πανε στα πακετα.. Επικοιωνια: 22730-92605-7.

Hotel Lambros – Εδω ειχαν μεινει φιλοι απο την Αγγλια οταν ειχαν επισκεφτει, καθοτι η κυρια Σοφια το δινει κυριως σε γραφεια, και ειχαν περασει μια χαρα. Αν και γεματο εκεινη την περιοδο, μας βρηκε: ενα poolside σπιτακι, με διπλο δωματιο και δωμα με δυο στρωματα (μαλλον για παιδια αλλα και αλλους ευελικτους) (75^Ε), δυο ολοκαινουρια, μεγαλα, πολυτελη studio (πολυ ωραια εξοπλισμενα και διακοσμημενα, οροφη με ξυλινα δοκαρια, ολοκαινουρια φαρδια διπλα κρεββατια - δυο οροφοι ανεβασμα μονο σκαλες) το ενα με θαλασσινη το αλλο με βουνισια θεα (100^Ε), και δυο ακομη studios, στον αποκατω οροφο, στις ιδιες μεγαλες διαστασεις αλλα με παλιο και πιο προχειρο εξοπλισμο και επιπλα (75^Ε). Επικοινωνηστε το συντομοτερο με την κυρια Σοφια στο 22730-92590.

Hotel Lemos – σε πολυ ομορφη θεση στην περα ακρη της παραλιας, καθε δωματιο και θαλασσινο μπαλκονακι, απλα και ευαερα. Καλυτερη θεση για ηλιοβασιλεμα! Δυστυχως δεν μπορει να ξερει αν εχει διαθεσιμα απο τωρα γιατι δουλευει με γραφεια, και πρεπει να περιμενει κανεις μεχρι 15 Ιουνιου και μετα για να δει αν υπαρχει κατι για κεινες τις ημερες – οσο λιγοτερες διανυκτερευσεις, λεει, τοσο πιο πιθανο. Αν δεν ηταν αυτο το κολλημα, θα ηταν απο τις πρωτες επιλογες. 50^Ε για διημερο, 40^Ε για τετραημερο. Επικοινωνια στο 22730-92250 και καλη τυχη!

Angela Rooms – Στο απο μεσα λιμανακι του Κοκκαριου, μια γραφικη γωνια (στο μετρο που πλεον το ‘εξι μπορουμε να περιγραφουμε κατι ως γραφικο..), χωρις να ειναι καθολου μακρυα απο την μεγαλη παραλια μας. Η κυρια Αγγελικη εχει απλα, βασικα δωματια (ναι, το ξερω, ολο τα ιδια λεω). Επικοινωνηστε στο 22730-92052 και να επιμενετε αν θελει να σας βαλει να περιμενετε μεχρι μια εβδομαδα πριν!

Hotel Arion – (www.arion-hotel.gr) Για πιο φραγκατους τυπους, τετραστερο resort hotel με πισινες και τα σχετικα, στο λοφο πανω απο το Κοκκαρι, με φανταστικη θεα. Εχει ενα συγκροτημα bungalows που ειναι ομορφα, και διαθετει λεωφορειακι που κανει πυκνα δρομολογια μεχρι το χωριο κατω. Αν ρωτας τιμη, ως γνωστον δεν εχεις αρκετα. 22730-92020.

Τελευταια μα καθολου καταφρονεμενα, τα 2-3 δωματια της Κυριας Ανθουλας (22730-92295). Μικροσκοπικα, παλιομοδιτικα και μαλλον δυσχρηστα (κατι σαν καμπινα σε παλιο εξαμετρο ιστιοπλοικο) αλλα σε μαγευτικη θεση (πανω στο σχεδον-νησακι που προεξεχει στην κορυφη της παραλιας του Κοκκαριου, να κοιτουν κατα μηκος(!!) της παραλιας και με ολο το φως της Δυσης πανω τους). Ζητουν μονο 25^Ε και αρκετη ανοχη.

Μπορειτε ακομα να καλεσετε το Rhenia Tours (την κυρια Σοφια στο Κοκκαρι, καταρχην, θα σας συνδεσει με τα αλλα γραφεια αν θελετε να ψαξετε αλλου), που θα ψαξει να σας βρει το ζητουμενο καταλυμα. Επικοινωνια 22730-92367.

Αν δεν σας εμπνεει τιποτα απο αυτα, φυσικα υπαρχουν και αλλα μερη στη Σαμο εκτος απο το Κοκκαρι – κοιταξτε στο samosnet.gr και στο samos-hotel.com για μια εκτενη λιστα.

Φυσικα και πρεπει να επικοινωνησετε μαζι μας αν εχετε αποριες ή προβληματα. Υπαρχει γενικα πληθωρα απλων δωματιων στα εξωτερα & ενδοτερα του Κοκκαριου, οποτε μην ανησυχειτε ακομα και αν ειναι μονο μια εβδομαδα πριν, ολο και κατι θα βρεθει.

Happy hunting!

NB This is a blog-style website, with newest entries at the top, so if this is your first visit start from the bottom.

George & Vic Are Getting Married!!

Our best man George and Vic just announced they are getting married!
George popped the question just the other day in Rome, at the Fontana di Prada, and promptly rushed back to Athens to tell all, while Vic was hopping around deliriously (and deliciously) happy! We shall hear more soon, for a date around ?September. We love you guys & wish you all the best!

Peace of Mind: Priceless

Suit: $300. Peace of Mind: Priceless.

The other day M was going on about not previewing the suit I had chosen. What if you look like a troll, darling, she whinged lovingly and trustingly. True, only my best man George had seen it in full, and he made a helluva gag describing it to Marina: "very nice, only maybe the purple lapels and the turned-up sleeves should be a bit different..".

Anyway, M (whose dress by Costarellos I have not seen, as per tradition) could not be assuaged with words, so I gave in and put it on for her, in the presence of George and Vic, Costarellos and his badass seamstress. Now imagine walking in a roomfull of sharp mirrors and sharper gazes... Anyway, as I had no doubt they would, everyone including Costarellos liked the suit (the seamstress did not sneer too harshly, which was judged to be a favourable omen).

I have now earned some peace of mind. Priceless.

What's your name, darling?

We made a bet the other day with Marina. If it rains on the day, I change my surname to Banaka. If it doesn't, she changes to King (Dr. King, to you). With a sum precipitation of 0 (zero, nil) on record for the last ten years, I figure I've got me a winner there.

That said, there is a (historical) 70% chance of a windy day, but then again the wind at 7-8pm is only around a gentle force 2 (beaufort)... hold your nerve, Alex.

A Place to Stay

This post has been superseded by a newer one further up... so I will just leave the pics in for your viewing pleasure.


Kokkari beach in December.






A view of the north-west mountain range in Samos, near Karlovassi, near to the fabulous Seitania (Σεϊτανια) beaches.




NB This is a blog-style website, with newest entries at the top, so if this is your first visit start from the bottom.

RSVP Live

Vic had a great ideal: help us keep tabs on who’s arriving (or sadly not) by leaving a comment, and get a bit of social heat warming up this site. So easy: click on “ramblings” just below this post and leave a message for us. Even you technoproles can do this, right?

Virtual flight to Samos

Try this for technofantastic - a virtual, three-dimensional flight to Vathy in Samos!



First, you need to have Google Earth installed on your computer- it needs a fast connection, but if you haven't tried it yet, it's absolutely thrilling.

Then, go to this pic of Vathy on flickr.com (the one shown above) and click on the link that says "fly to this location" - and hold on for the ride!

All thanks to Rob Roy at roblog.com for this amazing toy.

Newsflash : Aegean Flies to Samos

We just confirmed that Aegean Airlines will be starting flights to Samos from May onwards, plenty nice for our July 1st date. As with all their tickets, the earlier the better. Look what I got today:


As you can see (well.. maybe if you enlarge..) they are giving away tickets from E19 each way, which is a huge dollop less than Olympic Airlines' E180 return. We suggest you book online pronto, and let others know too!

An Offer on Flights: Sunvil

Noel from Sunvil kindly provided us with some info and a discounted offer on their charter flights to Samos from the UK. Here goes:

Sunvil fly to Samos every Thursday for one or two week durations and have availability on the 29th June. Flight details are as follows:

Depart Gatwick 0700 - arrive Samos 1250
Depart Samos 1350 - arrive Gatwick 1555

The price on the above would be £214pp and which includes all taxes, supplements and meals on board.

We also have a Manchester flight on the same day and the flight details are as follows:

Depart Manchester 0700 - arrive Samos 1300
Depart Samos 1400 - arrive Gatwick 1615

The price on the above would be £270pp which includes all taxes, supplements and meals on board.

On the Sunvil website at www.sunvil.co.uk you will find details of the Samos programme. You can download the relevant brochures pages which give the prices of the packages, but are not yet bookable on-line (this facility will be ready in about three weeks).

Any of your party booking a package with us would receive a 10% discount on our prices as well as the early booking discounts which will expire on the 15th March, but which we shall continue for you.

If you want to take up this offer, please contact Noel at noel@sunvil.co.uk and mention that you are flying in for our wedding.

As always, if you dig up anything better, please let me know so I can post the information on the site.

NB This is a blog-style website, with newest entries at the top, so if this is your first visit start from the bottom.

No.13

Today is our thirteenth anniversary. Appears tremendous to say, yet feels absolutely light and undemanding. What do they say- the copper one? That makes me think: warm, earthen, supple – I like that image.

Being a laudable annual, not a perishable monthly, it calls for something incommensurate, in our true style: the perfect day in!

Now Launching.. for Mac Addicts

Update: Mac addicts (Mac usage can only be an irrational addiction) have been reporting trouble with the Powerpoint invitation file. Try getting this Mac version of the Powerpoint Viewer and tell me how it goes.

Now Launching..

Finally it's time to put this show on the road.. after weeks of (ahem) careful preparation and focus group testing today we send out our invitation and go live on the web.

Just in case you missed the link in the email, you can download the invitation here.



Instructions: follow the link above -if that gives you trouble, copy-paste this link: tinyurl.com/zcut7 - ignore the ads in the middle of the page, and click on the link below that says "Your download is ready". Select the option to save to your computer. The file is 635KB, so won't take too long to download. The file is in MS Powerpoint Show format, just double click to play. If you don't have MS Powerpoint on your system, you can download a free viewer (2MB) from Microsoft.

Over the next few weeks we will have more information on finalised plans, and maybe some visitor comments to chew over, so make sure you check back.

NB This is a blog-style website, with newest entries at the top, so if this is your first visit start from the bottom.

Travel Primer

Sea ferries to Samos from Athens’ port of Piraeus (daily, stopping first at Karlovassi then Vathy) take anything from 11hrs for the better ones (Hellenic Seaways Lines) to 15hrs+ for the dodgy old ones (GA Ferries Lines’ infamous Romilda and Rodanthi).



Good thing is you can usually get one leaving in the afternoon, get a cabin or sleep on the deck overnight, and arrive fresh and bright (and salty if on the deck) next morning. Prices are around E28 for a deck single or from E45 for a (shared) cabin per person. Depending on the day, ferries stop at some (or all) of the following islands: Syros, Paros, Naxos, Mykonos, Ikaria & Fourni.

Needless to say, this is by far the nicer way to come if you can spare the time.

Alternatively, flights from Athens (with Olympic Airways) come and go four times daily, and at about 45mins flying time are much quicker. The planes are turboprop ATRs with 60-odd places each so availability can be an issue. Prices are around E180 return, which pisses off the people in Samos no end (Olympic having an effective monopoly on the route and charging the moon).

From The UK

If coming from the UK, TUI/Thomson and Excel sell packages direct from the UK to Samos, flying in and out once per week. So you come in on (say) a Wednesday or Thursday and leave one or two weeks later, though meantime you can of course tour around! Tour operators like TUI and Excel usually sell flight plus accommodation packages that come in at decent prices, however you could get the flights only and find accommodation locally (more on this soon).
Prices on these packages as you will know will vary from agency to agency (eg Sunvil ) so do shop around.

I am currently looking into the possibility of a block booking from the UK via an agency which would give better prices – check here again soon. Also please let me know about any good agencies/deals that you dig up, so I can post it here and let everyone know.

Other sources of direct flights are LTU and AirBerlin from Germany and BelAir from Switzerland.

Car Rental

The other thing you will need travelwise in Samos is wheels! Public transport is very slim, and although it is perfectly lovely to stay put in one place and relax, a couple of days of touring will reward you highly.

Unless you plan to come with your wheels on the ferry, you will need to rent, but worry not! As it happens, our landlord Mr Savvas Perrris runs a business renting small cars, open-topped Suzuki 4WDs and scooters from Kokkari (but can deliver anywhere). Savvas is a great guy and entirely dependable.. and also promised us preferential rates. We know this is a big plug, but don’t at feel at all obliged, go elsewhere if cheaper or more convenient, the place is crawling with rentals.

NB This is a blog-style website, so if this is your first visit, start reading from the bottom!

The Distributed Photography Project

Join us in this unprecedented and exciting venture, where we bring together our collective styles and tell the wedding story a thousand ways!

Do you really long to have some grizzled pro wedding photographer lining you up with the aunts for an overflashed shot? The way we see it, the richest images are going to come from the people who are there for us, care for and know each other. And given the unparalleled ease with which modern photography (digital or otherwise) can be processed and shared, it would be too dull to do otherwise.

So here is what we have planned:

First, everyone bring along your favourite photographic or video apparel (with adequate supplies of batteries & films). Anything goes, from home-made keyhole, pro medium-format and 35mm compacts to SLRs, pocket digital to the imperial EOS 1Ds MkII, Super-8mm film to pro cinematic widescreen (with Peter Jackson in tow).

Then shoot at whim. Impressionistic, expressionistic or journalistic style – just no rigid, posed stuff. Distributed means we get to see ourselves and our special day through your eyes and your style, and this is what we most look forward to.

Look at these pics on flickr.com for inspiration!

Remember, there will be no wedding photographer –you all get to have control, capture the moment and immortalise the people. As well as the sensible shots, use your feeling and your imagination, experiment, and see with new eyes. Take burst shots, black & white, shoot from the hip, paparazzi-style overhead or dizzy-style with drink in hand! Short videos (all digitals are pretty good at this too nowadays) can also be very interesting.

NB Non-Greek guests may be dutifully coy about shooting during the ceremony. Rest assured that it is typical for the Greek wedding photographer and guests to deliver a veritable barrage of flashing and clicking. Especially during the rice-throwing bit…

We will also hopefully have plenty of warm, natural sunset light and not much need for flash (get your settings right!) so be nice but don't feel too inhibited about shooting at this stage.

Then, before you go, you drop off the films or download your image files to our laptop (armed with an all-format flash memory card reader) that will be waiting in a corner. Don’t worry, kind help will be at hand if you are new to this. We will also have some NiMH battery rechargers just in case you run flat.

We will then process both digital and old-school photo film and upload the best pics onto a dedicated area on flickr.com (the best creative photography sharing site on the net) where all can have free viewing access and can download the pics.

Or, if you prefer, you process and upload yourself (dead easy – just create a free account on flickr.com and upload to the specified group – more details on this in due course).

Of course we don’t mean to have this take over to the point of anyone missing the fun; but remember that we will depend on you for posterity (no pressure…).

NB This is a blog-style website, so if this is your first visit, start reading from the bottom!

Welcome

We are excited to welcome you to our wedding blog! We’ve put together all you need to know on the wedding day plan –including our trailblazing distributed photography project– as well as a steady stream of information & resources relating to travel, accommodation, facilities and our favourite haunts on Samos and around.

As you can understand, several details are still being worked on and won’t be finalised for a few more weeks, so please check back regularly for updates – or even better, subscribe to the page feed (see right sidebar). Please don’t hesitate to get in contact by leaving a comment or e-mailing, same if you dig up information that could be useful to others.