Life at Yoga Plus, Agios Pavlos, Greece

I am here ... arrived nearly two weeks ago now, life is very simple ... but challenging ... here. The yoga centre is very busy this time of year ... up to 60 guests at any one time. My job is kitchen assistant, which sounds wonderful but I realize now that I was somewhat naive about working in a professional kitchen ... it is very challenging, physically and mentally can be quite stressful. Coupled with the heat (the little air conditioner cannot cope with the heat of the oven and large fridges), the demands of the volume of food being prepared and often lack of appropriate ingredients ... well it can be quite stressful. But after my 6-7 hour shift each morning or evening ... one or the other, I can sleep, swim in the beautiful Sea just down the cliff from where I'm staying, relax in the nearby taverna or sit in a hammock and read.

So there is balance here ... everyone is extremely tired much of the time from the heat and demands of the work ... the staff come from mainly England, Ireland, or Germany. We have two professional cooks, one is from Edinburgh (Caroline who I mainly work with) and the second, Richard, is from London. They are very different, Richard is calm and confident and relaxed in the kitchen while Caroline is passionate, creative and often feels stressed out while working. I try to laugh, stay focused and do a good job. It is my first experience in a professional kitchen and has been a real eye opener to all the demands.

The life here is quite beautiful ... the sea right outside the yoga centre, down the steep cliff, quite a small bay with dramatic steep cliffs surrounding it. This time of year the beach is quite crowded with Greeks and Europeans on holiday. I'm staying in a little hotel/taverna next door to the yoga centre because all the rooms are occupied by guests. I will move up the mountain to another little hotel for the next 4 weeks and then back down to the yoga centre when things quiet down in September. August will be crazy busy with guests and the workload will be demanding.

All in all, things are quite good, I am meeting a variety of guests from Europe, especially Scandinavia, France, Holland, Germany, and there is an American man who teachers Tai Chi which I attended two days ago. Unfortunately I sustained a little Tai Chi injury in my left thigh ... who would have guessed? It is fine now, the yoga here is very challenging, we sweat all the toxins out, I have taken a break, for the time being from coffee, so by the time I leave will be detoxed completely!

Learning lots of new dishes using local Cretan ingredients ... this time of year the vegetables and fruits are plentiful, ripe and very tasty. I have never seen such bright red watermelon or deep green avocados. And we get lovely olive oil for cooking or using on our skin/hair.

I love swimming in the cool Sea ... I think it is the Libyan Sea, a part of the Mediterranean. The views are fantastic, there are beaches all around me and a short walk over the sand dunes to a nearly empty stretch of wild coastline for walking. The walking around here is challenging, it is extremely hot and dry and the roads twist and turn and wind but one does, believe it or not, get used to it. I will begin travelling further afield to little towns nearby in September when the number of guests drop and the heat drops a little.

This working holiday may cure me of my love of hot weather, my next digs will not have any A/C, only a little floor fan ... but perhaps I am now more acclimatized to the weather and I will be OK with just that.

Doing a lot of reading here, wonderful quiet time, am on my third book right now by a British author, Joanna Trollope, The Other Family ... a good read. Just finished Margaret Atwood's Oryx and Crake, another fantastic read.

More to follow ... the flight of the gypsy continues ...