The custom of carol singing, which has ancient origins, has fortunately not died out in Greece, and all over the country during the Christmas period there are more or less elaborate rituals in which the local youth do the rounds of the houses in their neighbourhood to knock on doors and ask the question “na poume ta kalanda?” (“shall we sing the carols?”). On receiving the affirmative they launch into what is usually a single well-known carol celebrating the birth of Christ in a manger in Bethlehem, accompanied by the sound of triangles. The householder then donates sweets or money according to their inclination.

On Christmas Eve this year the youth of Afrata turned up at our door to sing a carol for the benefit of the village’s Cultural Association: “Peninsula of Peace”. In return for a donation they presented an Afrata 2023 calendar (illustrated). It is notable for carrying a photograph of what has become a sort of local monument – a tree which hangs perilously over the road up to the village from Kolymbari.

Of indeterminate type (possibly a wild olive) it has been growing there for at least the past 10 years. Initially wind-blown but upright, it has gradually leaned further and further over the edge, presenting an obvious hazard to the passing motorist, and in particular to the KTEL bus which visits the village twice a day.

With the typical Cretan tendency to let things be when there is no obvious reason for interfering, the locals (or possibly the municipality of Platanias) have sought neither to prop it up nor to give it the coup de grâce, merely confining themselves to trimming it now and then to ensure that it does not obstruct the road too much. Now clearly in a precarious state, it will be interesting to see if it survives another year.

A video of the carol in question can be seen here.