Deprecated: Function jetpack_form_register_pattern is deprecated since version jetpack-13.4! Use Automattic\Jetpack\Forms\ContactForm\Util::register_pattern instead. in /customers/2/4/c/equestrianfromcrete.com/httpd.www/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6078

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /customers/2/4/c/equestrianfromcrete.com/httpd.www/wp-includes/functions.php:6078) in /customers/2/4/c/equestrianfromcrete.com/httpd.www/wp-content/plugins/onecom-vcache/vcaching.php on line 595

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /customers/2/4/c/equestrianfromcrete.com/httpd.www/wp-includes/functions.php:6078) in /customers/2/4/c/equestrianfromcrete.com/httpd.www/wp-content/plugins/onecom-vcache/vcaching.php on line 603

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /customers/2/4/c/equestrianfromcrete.com/httpd.www/wp-includes/functions.php:6078) in /customers/2/4/c/equestrianfromcrete.com/httpd.www/wp-includes/feed-rss2.php on line 8
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0"
	xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"
	xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"
	xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
	xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
	xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"
	xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/"
	
	xmlns:georss="http://www.georss.org/georss"
	xmlns:geo="http://www.w3.org/2003/01/geo/wgs84_pos#"
	>

<channel>
	<title>EGVUS &#8211; Equestrian from Crete</title>
	<atom:link href="http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/tag/egvus/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
	<link>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com</link>
	<description>A Greek islander explores equestrianism</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Wed, 17 Apr 2024 16:46:17 +0000</lastBuildDate>
	<language>en-GB</language>
	<sy:updatePeriod>
	hourly	</sy:updatePeriod>
	<sy:updateFrequency>
	1	</sy:updateFrequency>
	<generator>https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.3</generator>
<site xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">117043774</site>	<item>
		<title>At EGVUS 5th annual show</title>
		<link>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/at-egvus-5th-annual-show/</link>
					<comments>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/at-egvus-5th-annual-show/#comments</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[chriszygakis]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 24 May 2018 12:18:46 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Equestrian clubs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[My adventures]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[competition]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[EGVUS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[equestrian]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[horse]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[show]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/?p=3108</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Hi! Well, spring is here and showtime begins for most equestrians! Spring has been established as a competition season in the equestrian world and at EGVUS we organized a competition among the athletes. People from age 5 to 45 competed showed their skills in a wide range of activities, such as endurance, polo, showjumping, vaulting, racing, timed exercises with poles, equestrian theory and timed bridle assembling. The purpose of the competition is to have fun, introduce the locals to the equestrian sports, show each other what we have learned and prepare psychologically the young athletes for affiliated competitions. Athletes, relatives, friends and common citizens arrived to watch the challenges that we competed in, making the yard a beautiful, lively place. Canada did very well, leading a number of young athletes to victory. As I was watching him, I was thinking that, despite that he is still a bit too sensitive, he has grown into an intelligent, strong and well-formed adult thoroughbred. And of course I feel lucky that he has skilled people who look after and exercise him while I am away. As for myself, I competed in three contests; timed bridle assembling, theory and timed exercise with poles. I got a nice third place in timed bridle assembling and brought a cute medal home. Now, time for some pics! &#160; &#160;]]></description>
		
					<wfw:commentRss>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/at-egvus-5th-annual-show/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
			<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		
		
		<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">3108</post-id>	</item>
		<item>
		<title>Spring is coming on the shore</title>
		<link>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/spring-is-coming-on-the-shore/</link>
					<comments>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/spring-is-coming-on-the-shore/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[chriszygakis]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Fri, 03 Mar 2017 07:45:11 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Amazing Crete]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[My adventures]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[beach]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[EGVUS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Greece]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sea]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[shore]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[spring]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Sunday]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/?p=2832</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[It&#8217;s been a horrible winter over here. Nothing has reminded us that we can see the shores of North Africa from some high spots in the area. Strong winds that often exceeded 10 Beaufort degrees, low temperatures as well as prolonged rainfalls and snowfalls have made our lives difficult. Let alone the fact that each of us has had the flu at least twice so far since last October. Sunday morning, I went to EGVUS anticipating to do a riding lesson. The yard was still closed when I got there and, after having enough of gazing at Voukefalas, who had spent the night in the arena, I thought I should look around me. Most mountain tops surrounding the valley were still covered in snow, but everything showed that nature plans to compensate us for the cold trouble we&#8217;ve been through this year. And so I grabbed my camera and crossed the road to take some pictures of the shore; the scenery was breathtaking yet familiar; grass, bushes and wild flowers on the sand, the lovely sound of the waves that have begun to calm down and foreigners who have come in their caravan. The view of the town was lovely as well. Soon I returned to the place where I had left my stuff, including my cup of mocha, from which I took a sip. But the pot turned over on the sofa, staining both the sofa and my hands. Not having any tissues with me, I recalled the old trick from my days in primary school, when they took us on days out exactly to this spot exactly. The teachers sitting in the nearby taverna paying more attention to their food and drinks than to the pupils&#8217; welfare, I found my own ways of coping with the situations that emerged, such as dirty hands. And this time I decided to do the same. Thank God I was wearing my rubber riding boots and confidently stepped on the big rock, which was being whipped by the waves and soaked my hands in the water. It was delightful! Here are some photos: Holiday bookings have begun already for Crete, of course, the new season starting in Easter in most resorts. Why not staying in a Cretan villa with your friends this summer? Visit our partner Cretico to check out the villas which are available this season. Today I checked out villa Pelagos, which is situated on the shore, a few kilometres from the EGVUS. You can click here to make your inquiry!]]></description>
		
					<wfw:commentRss>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/spring-is-coming-on-the-shore/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
			<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		
		
		<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2832</post-id>	</item>
		<item>
		<title>A kids birthday party!</title>
		<link>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/a-kids-birthday-party/</link>
					<comments>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/a-kids-birthday-party/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[chriszygakis]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 03 Oct 2016 11:03:12 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[My adventures]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birthday]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[child]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Crete]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[EGVUS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[equestrian]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[home]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[party]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[riding]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/?p=2492</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[  Being a regular member of EGVUS means that you have made a whole bunch of juvenile friends, who come to the yard for lessons and volunteering. You see, in the minds of the locals, equestrian is an activity for kids and not even a sport. It is weird and shameful for a woman in her thirties to practice equestrian in any way -at least this is how an average person will see it over here. There are, of course other adult riders in the club, but the problem is, they are few and live quite far and only visit EGVUS for their lessons. So, I haven&#8217;t met any of them yet, except Christina, who is close to my age, but is busy with her marriage and lives 30 km away. Anyways, I have ended up with some good juvenile friends. A bit awkward for a 31-year old, but hanging around the yard with them and watching them skip around and talk cheerfully has had a quite positive effect on my mood. Out of these friends, 11 year-old Maria is my dearest. Kinda, &#8220;you can harm her only over my dead body&#8221;, which, is translated over here as &#8220;if you touch Maria, I will kill you&#8221;. She is a little cousin of mine as well, which I guess adds a bonus to the rapport. Last Friday, Maria celebrated her birthday at EGVUS, and I had been invited of course. I hadn&#8217;t been to EGVUS for more than two weeks due to my heavy schedule, so I was very happy to know that the party was going to take place there. And an excellent opportunity for a break. So, I went to a bookshop, bought a nice pencil case filled to the top with crayons and pencils  (given the fact that the school year began twenty days ago), and prepared for the party. As soon as I got out of the car and having not entered the club, a cheerful Maria began to shout, ran to me like crazy and hugged me on the street to the point I could hardly breathe lol. If you haven&#8217;t left home to go abroad for a few years, you cannot understand how such moments feel when you return home. When I managed to get in, Yannis was in the middle of his last lesson for the day. As soon as he saw me, he began asking questions about my plans concerning equestrian. He had been used to me visiting EGVUS almost every day, so I guess he had begun to wonder whether I maintain my interest in the sport. But, as soon as I told him I was busy, he said &#8220;I know you have been facing problems&#8221;, making me feel my face going red, so I just told him about my commitments and my currently stained relationship with dad. I got the answer &#8220;literally whatever you do to him, your father will forgive it&#8221;. I&#8217;m not sure this was the answer I wanted to hear, though, because my goal has been actually to get on dad&#8217;s nerves for once in my life. Because, in my early thirties, I have finally become angry enough to do it. Yannis is quite good at telling how people feel and what they think. I&#8217;m not sure how he does it, but he&#8217;s quite successful at it. He will never try to comfort or lie to you just to sound nice. He will tell you exactly what he thinks about your situation, no matter if you have told him what your situation is or not. And in my case, this is quite easy for him; his father and twin brother have been among dad&#8217;s most loyal clients for over 30 years, which goes hand-in-hand with a 30-year old friendship between my family and theirs in the Greek world of commerce. Upon my arrival, I saw that the club was full of balloons, hanging from every possible spot and the atmosphere was quite cheerful. It was going to be a very special birthday party, because everyone loves Maria. Even Ali, the little migrant from Pakistan who works in the yard, was wearing his formal traditional apparel in celebration of Maria&#8217;s birthday. He claims he&#8217;s 18 years old, which I personally doubt, because he looks no older than 16. But he&#8217;s too good for anyone to care. And he&#8217;s friendly and trustful to the kids, which is super. Soon Maria&#8217;s parents arrived, along with other adults, including her grandparents, who arrived carrying tasty traditional food (yummy)! While in the outside I was interacting with adults and kids, in the inside I was thinking whether this month is a good time to begin training again. The problem is, that my heavy academic commitments -with which goes stress, thus mocha, butter and sweets- have given me quite generous &#8220;gift&#8221; of fat. Except for receiving my riding equipment from the transporter&#8217;s depot, I do need to get fit enough to handle and ride Yannis&#8217;s huge ex-racers. It was a nice party, not only because I had lots of fun and ate good food. It was an opportunity for reflection on, which is rarely offered to me. &#160; &#160;]]></description>
		
					<wfw:commentRss>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/a-kids-birthday-party/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
			<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		
		
		<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2492</post-id>	</item>
		<item>
		<title>Back home!</title>
		<link>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/back-home/</link>
					<comments>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/back-home/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[chriszygakis]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 22 Sep 2016 20:24:54 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[My adventures]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Crete]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[EGVUS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[equestrian]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Greece]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[horse]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/?p=2488</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[ Hello from Crete! It&#8217;s been twenty days since I returned to the homeland -and two months since the last time I blogged, but that&#8217;s another issue. Since I arrived I&#8217;ve been mega-busy, and today it as the fourth time I got out of the house. One of my exoduses was a day at EGVUS, of course. How could I resist going to the yard which is just a 2 min drive from my house! And so I ended up spending there my first Sunday home! So there we go, at 9 am I was ready to be driven to the yard, in my riding breeches and everything, planning to just drink some coffee and say &#8220;hi&#8221; to my four-legged friends and meet new ones. When I arrived with my little friend Maria, Yannis was out on a hack with tourists, and so I had the chance to meet some new little human friends, who had spent their school holidays volunteering in the yard. I wanted like crazy to greet the horses and give them treats, but, since my boots were still in the transporter&#8217;s truck, I had to find a way to get to enter the arena, so that I save the white colour of my trainers. And yep, I found the boots that I had donated. It&#8217;s a pair of boots which I had bought for myself in Britain back in 2009 and, despite the fact that they were discoloured and the zip was missing from the left boot, the leather was in a decent state and I had no better choice anyway. The picture of me walking around in these boots was just immensely comical, making the kids laugh! And so greetings began. First was Pamelos, who began to paw with both his feet as soon as he saw me! I love this guy so much, he is just so impulsive and loving! I greeted each and every horse and I was pleasantly surprised when Bebis was not disturbed (aka did not try to bite me) when I patted his cute little nose! The treat menu today had white grapes, which the horses absolutely enjoyed! Indeed, if you haven&#8217;t tried grapes as a treat, you should definitely do it! Eventually Yannis returned from the hack and, thank God, he was happy to see me. He looked great, despite his unpleasant life news and I loved the fact that EGVUS was better than I left it. Well, home sweet home! &#160; &#160;]]></description>
		
					<wfw:commentRss>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/back-home/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
			<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		
		
		<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2488</post-id>	</item>
		<item>
		<title>Egvus: My home equestrian club</title>
		<link>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/egvus-my-home-equestrian-club/</link>
					<comments>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/egvus-my-home-equestrian-club/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[chriszygakis]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Wed, 30 Sep 2015 00:11:57 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Equestrian clubs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Crete]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[EGVUS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[equestrian]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fun]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[horse]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ierapetra]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[lesson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[stable]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[training]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://equestrianfromcrete.wordpress.com/?p=940</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[I have not written much about Yannis&#8217; equestrian club, have I? Or, at least, I have not devoted any post to it yet. The name of the equestrian club where I go at home is called &#8220;EGVUS&#8221;, just outside of the centre of Ierapetra, Crete. It is situated just opposite to the Aghios Andreas beach, and is surrounded by a range of hotels. The facilities are very small, and advanced lessons are mostly carried out outside, in the surrounding roads and fields. The whole club is indoors, with a roof made of professional warmhouse materials. Also, inside you will find handmade furniture, and -yes- handmade wooden jumping fences. Yannis has set up the whole thing himself, with his own hands, and with some help from Ali, his helper. The stables -also made by Yannis- are just besides the arena and accommodate ten horses for now. A proportion of them are ex-racing horses from the Athens racecourse. Also, there are two miniature horses trained for equine therapy. But all his equine friends are trained for this; not to move if your heartbeat is high. The diet of Yannis&#8217; horses is varied and includes hay, mixes and local vegetation. Southern Crete is a quite dry place, therefore there is little fresh grass to graze here, unlike areas of central and northern Europe. Thus, grazing here is thick and dry and must be accompanied with a lot of water. Lessons with Yannis are worth their money, as he wants his pupils to know everything about horses and how to handle them; historical and biological information, complete tacking-untacking, grooming, tying, leading, feeding, watering, and, of course, riding! Yannis&#8217; pupils must be competent both with handling and riding, hence leading tourists on hacks and preparing the horses for hacks and lessons is a mandatory part of the training. If you go to Crete for holidays, a visit to EGVUS is worth to do. You will be able to ride in the arena, go hacking, do lessons, and&#8230; treat as many horses as you like! If you have kids, then this is the place to take them, because of the colorful environment, the children who spend their free time helping out, the friendly ponies and the informative character of the walks in the arena. And if you like horses but are too scared to approach them, why not enjoying a beverage or snack while watching others having fun or working? More and more citizens of my hometown are proud of EGVUS, and foreign visitors claim that Yannis offers them experiences of a lifetime! For information about what is offered call Yannis himself at +306989293360 . You can also follow the updates of the club on their Facebook page here  Here are some photos:]]></description>
		
					<wfw:commentRss>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/egvus-my-home-equestrian-club/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
			<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		
		
		<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">940</post-id>	</item>
		<item>
		<title>My first equine steps</title>
		<link>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/my-first-equine-steps/</link>
					<comments>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/my-first-equine-steps/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[chriszygakis]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sat, 07 Feb 2015 23:30:17 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[My adventures]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[EGVUS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[equestrian]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[equestrianism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[horse]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[horseback]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[lesson]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://equestrianfromcrete.wordpress.com/?p=114</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Thinking about my first BHS exam, I remember those first days on horseback. In Crete, in EGVUS, a small equestrian club literally by the sea. Yannis, my instructor, a very stubborn man, who built his equestrian club with his own two hands, was determined to help me overcome my fear of horses and enjoy the sport. And he made it in two months! Last summer was very different to the ones I had lived bofore. My life changed through interaction with horses. I made new -equine and human- friends, offered joy to children and tourists, saw my life from a different perspective. Bebis (or Baby as we call him to give him commands) is my best equine friend. It&#8217;s always a joy to sit on his back. Cute, stubborn, smart and cunning, he knows how to get on my nerves and win my affection at the same time (which wins him loads of treats). He also knows that I am familiar with his oustanding luck to be found and saved by Yannis and uses it to make me forget about whipping and screaming (yeah, we learn to scream at horses, especially at the beginners&#8217; stage). About Bebis&#8217; story I might write at some other time. All I wish is for next Easter holidays to arrive for me to run (or &#8220;fly&#8221; is the best word) home, in order to see Bebis, the other horses and Yannis again.]]></description>
		
					<wfw:commentRss>http://www.equestrianfromcrete.com/my-first-equine-steps/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
			<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		
		
		<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">114</post-id>	</item>
	</channel>
</rss>