Be Merry & Blessed

The one priest blessing the NewYear's Cake and the other kniving a christian cross across the cake while words of eulogy are spoken and sung. Both young priests are monks, by the way, from the nearby monastery of Chrisoskalitissa in SW Crete (some 75 kms away from home).
Sweetheart gave his speech there to the locals who'd gathered at the taverna for the annual event of starting off another year with their Social Club and interests in Byzantine Churches, about which Sweetheart spoke his discoveries and readings. 
It was a bit of everything this gathering of today, but for sure a most pleasant and social gathering; what resulted in invitations for Sweetheart to come and speak elsewhere in circles of people specially interested in this history! Ah the best result he'd wished for!

Getting here we'd taken a short cut thro' the mountains and then soon found ourselves on a dirt track for some 6 miles... we just managed to get across that :-) and we arrived in time too.
From this picture you may think it's a mens gathering, but that's not the case, women and some children were there too... just a bit aside from this cake cutting event where men gathered around.

The day was a bit of twist for me, as on departure I'd learned that friend Kostas had died yesterday and his funeral was today. Crazy to know I'm so close by but just today not nearby enough to attend his funeral.. and sad coz Kostas passed away too, althobut happy his sufferings ended for him ~  altho' I did not tell these young monks about the loss of my friend, they surely have blessed Kostas soul in their prayers