Swimming.

Late afternoon yesterday, I went swimming.

I realized just a little while ago that I did not know (and still am not sure) what body of water I was swimming in. A friend asked, and before I could answer he said "You don't actually know, do you?" I could have begged to differ, but the likelihood of my having actually studied a map and read up on the area is such a far fetched one, I didn't even try.

According to my scan of google maps, it might be the Ionian. I am waiting for e-mail confirmation from my dad.

It was absolutely magical. I used to love swimming, and when I was younger I was a pool rat in the summers. But, I have gone swimming a handful of times, max, the past few years, because I have such an intolerance to cold that I usually end up shivering, achy, and unable to get warm. It usually turns into a miserable experience.

Not yesterday. The water was a mellow temperature, the air was hot, any breezes that came by were warm, and all I had to do was float.

The water is a clear turquoise here, and the sand is a fine creamy white. There seems to be no seaweed, and not really any weird floaty things in the water. A few times I was terrified out of my mind by what appeared to be either a) a stick or b) a water snake, floating along below me. I turn to a quivering mass of terrified humanity in the presence of snakes, lizards, and germs (Greece is possibly not ideal, then), and I tried to suppress the urge to scream with gusto.

I just hurriedly swam away from the general area, and tried some deep breathing exercises to calm myself down, while wondering if water snakes actually exist around here. That worked until I saw a shadow along the bottom of the sea floor that seemed to be following me. In my mind, I knew it was my own shadow, but since I am mainly an irrational bundle of nerves, I was convinced that a shark was scoping me out for a light appetizer.

I was in two minds. The water was so lovely - could I swallow my psychoses and just enjoy the day? Or should I head in and roast on the sand?

Swallow I did, along with a fair bit of sea water, and I plan to go back, perhaps this evening.

In a couple of hours, I will walk into the local village, Charokopio, to try out a genuine greek taverna for lunch. Apparently they take you into the kitchen to view the food, and choose what you want. Yum.

I just really hope that I don't get lost again.