What did I do that was good in a previous life to enable me to be so lucky in this one?

Here I am in Thassos town, midwinter by anyone's calculation, standing on my balcony overlooking the whole of Limenas bay and opposite to Keramoti and Kavala, drinking my coffee, basking in mid-January temperatures of 15° whilst back in the rest of Europe everyone is knee-deep in snowdrifts. The air is still, the sky is blue if somewhat watery blue in comparison to the deep azure of Midsummer, the perfumed smoke from the log fires where the local people are burning their surplus olive and pine logs, rises lazily high into the sky as there isn’t even the slightest breeze.

The ferries come and go with precision and majesty as always, the local people stroll by, stopping to chat or popping in for coffee into the local bars and cafes, as January is time for relaxation and just be and enjoying the beauty of Thassos Island in winter...

The promise of carnival and Easter is somewhat distant, the job in hand at the moment is just to sit and talk and reflect on the last year, the mild winter and the economic situation, and just to ensure that there are logs in the wood store, that the oil tanks are filled should it be necessary to put on the central heating if and when the cold weather is always forecast may come.

Thassos in winter is superb. It is to be enjoyed alone or with friends. Many restaurants in Thassos Town are open, and thriving, fresh fish and winter salads are abundant, snack bars seem to have endless supplies of freshly fried pommes Frites, the coffee bars are full to bursting, and there is a sense of relaxation and yet waiting for the spring to come with the new challenges of the next year. But for now it is just to look at the island and look inward at oneself and just be glad that we can be in Thassos in the peace and quiet the balmy weather in winter allows.