Trip to Patras (2/4)
Day #2 (Saturday)
The day started off by taking a quick shower, followed by breakfast and later exploring the area a bit more. Our driver, Greg, whom I have to say, is a responsible and good driver (if I wouldn't write a positive review I would have to walk to Patras.. 😊) picked us up and Charlie (TheOptician) was there already too'as he stayed with Greg. Greg picked up one more person, Ioannis (Périgord) in Athens and our journey to Patras took off.
During the trip to Patras, Ioannis seemed to be quite knowledgeable about the landscape and happily told us, in detail, about the mountains, what area we were in, etc. If you ever need a guide in Greece, ask Ioannis 😊. Greece was nothing how I expected it, I expected things to be flat, like in the Netherlands, but the opposite was true, we were driving through mountain-like areas all the time and also came across some places that had forest fires previously. While it was fascinating to see the difference between an alive forest and a forest that's grey and ash, it of course is a sad thing to have happen. Ioannis also has a bit of a secret addiction, his selfie stick which he wanted to use extensively during the trip, but hey, it is not every day you get to be in the same car as two geeks from the Netherlands coming all the way to Greece 😊.
The bottle of water from the day before came in quite handy during the trip. Once we arrived at the hotel, there was a bit of difficulties with checking in at the hotel. The lady behind the counter wanted to take and keep my passport, something I did not intend on letting to happen. See it? sure, make a copy of it? sure but leaving the physical document there? not a chance. After some small struggles, that issue was resolved.
We went to check out our rooms and agreed to go to the tournament's location within an hour or so. Once we left the hotel, I came to the realisation I had put and left my most precious belonging at the counter.. my bottle of water, making this my #1 priority.. getting a new one.
As we went to the tournament venue, we parked the car, took some pictures (and you know.. Ioannis and his selfie stick addiction) and then walked to the venue. Some players were there already, including main organiser, Georgios. Some handshakes and greetings were exchanged and more and more players started to come in. The start of a good tournament.
The introduction was done and during this, we also handed out the prize to John Vandoros for winning the 4th edition of the WCO (2018-19). As the entire remainder of the WCO team was present (Charlie, Dennis, Gregory, Pim), we thought it would be best to hand it out in John's homeland, Greece.
With all this being behind us, I found it interesting how much effort had been made by the organisers to make this a special tournament. Special "things in between" (I honestly don't know a good word for it) that are used to divide the board during setup phase, special boards, and the thing that especially stood out to me was a platform where the #1 board was located at. Unfortunately I did not spend as much time on that board as I would have liked 😊
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Before the tournament started, bags with goods were given out. In my case, I got a little book with the program (schedule) in it and some other additional information, a Stratego Patras Team T-shirt that I obviously could not not wear the day the second day of the tournament 😊 and a personalized badge.
In the first round, I was matched up against Georgios Papalexopoulos, a few players warned me that this player is quite a good player. Me having no idea who I'm dealing with went to the table where it was revealed he plays online under the name of Phaeton. This would be our first game. We had a nice and close game and I also had a good chat with Nikolaos. Exactly why I came to Greece.
The second round opponent would be Pasxalis Tzenos, having played him not too long ago in a WCO match that came down to my last piece hitting his flag (his only unseen piece..) I knew I would be up for quite a challenge, which indeed, it was. One of the Greek players (sorry, forgot who it was!) was kind enough to translate a few things, so we could communicate after the game. Pasxalis was intrigued by the way I manage the graveyard layout of the pieces. I explained to him (and the translator) the reasoning behind it. They both took a picture of it and said they'd be trying it out - hope it helps you in your games 😊. Pasxalis finished #3 at the end of the tournament. A nice accomplishment.
The last game of the day, the third round, I would be matched up against Angel Baron from US, also known as fks/Sorrow. He had been wanting to play me in a live game for so long, it turned out we both had to go to Greece to make it happen. The game was a slow developing one and in the end it came down to +- 12 seconds before he could claim a draw, but before that, I snagged his flag and took the 6 points with it. While it may not have been the result he had hoped for, I think he got, quality wise, the game he had hoped for.
In between the rounds I got to talk to some players I've met before, but also with people new to me like Nikos Mandalos and Marilina Verra. Nikos (We also agreed to play a game online some time) told me he had to play against John in the first round which turned out to be a disaster for him. Marilina on the other hand, was playing her first tournament and was somewhat surprised but excited nonetheless that players all the way from the Netherlands were attending the Patras tournament. The three of us had a nice chat for a while. Part of meeting new people at a tournament 😊.
After the day, we went back to the hotel for an hour or so. After this short and quick rest, we went to a restaurant to enjoy a nice meal and have some drinks. The atmosphere was as it should be: good. During times like this, the things that really matter get, naturally, discussed too. After the dinner, which was getting close to running into late hours, we went back to the hotel for the night. A much-needed rest and finally a bit longer than just a few hours (not much, but still).
The day started off by taking a quick shower, followed by breakfast and later exploring the area a bit more. Our driver, Greg, whom I have to say, is a responsible and good driver (if I wouldn't write a positive review I would have to walk to Patras.. 😊) picked us up and Charlie (TheOptician) was there already too'as he stayed with Greg. Greg picked up one more person, Ioannis (Périgord) in Athens and our journey to Patras took off.
During the trip to Patras, Ioannis seemed to be quite knowledgeable about the landscape and happily told us, in detail, about the mountains, what area we were in, etc. If you ever need a guide in Greece, ask Ioannis 😊. Greece was nothing how I expected it, I expected things to be flat, like in the Netherlands, but the opposite was true, we were driving through mountain-like areas all the time and also came across some places that had forest fires previously. While it was fascinating to see the difference between an alive forest and a forest that's grey and ash, it of course is a sad thing to have happen. Ioannis also has a bit of a secret addiction, his selfie stick which he wanted to use extensively during the trip, but hey, it is not every day you get to be in the same car as two geeks from the Netherlands coming all the way to Greece 😊.
 |
| Ioannis's selfie stick in action |
The bottle of water from the day before came in quite handy during the trip. Once we arrived at the hotel, there was a bit of difficulties with checking in at the hotel. The lady behind the counter wanted to take and keep my passport, something I did not intend on letting to happen. See it? sure, make a copy of it? sure but leaving the physical document there? not a chance. After some small struggles, that issue was resolved.
We went to check out our rooms and agreed to go to the tournament's location within an hour or so. Once we left the hotel, I came to the realisation I had put and left my most precious belonging at the counter.. my bottle of water, making this my #1 priority.. getting a new one.
 |
| Near the parking space. Nice view |
As we went to the tournament venue, we parked the car, took some pictures (and you know.. Ioannis and his selfie stick addiction) and then walked to the venue. Some players were there already, including main organiser, Georgios. Some handshakes and greetings were exchanged and more and more players started to come in. The start of a good tournament.
 |
| Don't look for me - I'm the one taking the pic |
The introduction was done and during this, we also handed out the prize to John Vandoros for winning the 4th edition of the WCO (2018-19). As the entire remainder of the WCO team was present (Charlie, Dennis, Gregory, Pim), we thought it would be best to hand it out in John's homeland, Greece.
 |
| Present members of the WCO team - I should have brought sunglasses to Greece.. |
With all this being behind us, I found it interesting how much effort had been made by the organisers to make this a special tournament. Special "things in between" (I honestly don't know a good word for it) that are used to divide the board during setup phase, special boards, and the thing that especially stood out to me was a platform where the #1 board was located at. Unfortunately I did not spend as much time on that board as I would have liked 😊
 |
| "In between thingies" |
 |
| Board #1 |
Before the tournament started, bags with goods were given out. In my case, I got a little book with the program (schedule) in it and some other additional information, a Stratego Patras Team T-shirt that I obviously could not not wear the day the second day of the tournament 😊 and a personalized badge.
 |
| Badge |
 |
| Shirt |
In the first round, I was matched up against Georgios Papalexopoulos, a few players warned me that this player is quite a good player. Me having no idea who I'm dealing with went to the table where it was revealed he plays online under the name of Phaeton. This would be our first game. We had a nice and close game and I also had a good chat with Nikolaos. Exactly why I came to Greece.
 |
| Deciding who takes red and who takes blue |
The second round opponent would be Pasxalis Tzenos, having played him not too long ago in a WCO match that came down to my last piece hitting his flag (his only unseen piece..) I knew I would be up for quite a challenge, which indeed, it was. One of the Greek players (sorry, forgot who it was!) was kind enough to translate a few things, so we could communicate after the game. Pasxalis was intrigued by the way I manage the graveyard layout of the pieces. I explained to him (and the translator) the reasoning behind it. They both took a picture of it and said they'd be trying it out - hope it helps you in your games 😊. Pasxalis finished #3 at the end of the tournament. A nice accomplishment.
The last game of the day, the third round, I would be matched up against Angel Baron from US, also known as fks/Sorrow. He had been wanting to play me in a live game for so long, it turned out we both had to go to Greece to make it happen. The game was a slow developing one and in the end it came down to +- 12 seconds before he could claim a draw, but before that, I snagged his flag and took the 6 points with it. While it may not have been the result he had hoped for, I think he got, quality wise, the game he had hoped for.
 |
| Angel (right) and me settling a forum dispute which I won of course |
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| Few days prior to the tournament (green text = mine. White = Angel's) |
In between the rounds I got to talk to some players I've met before, but also with people new to me like Nikos Mandalos and Marilina Verra. Nikos (We also agreed to play a game online some time) told me he had to play against John in the first round which turned out to be a disaster for him. Marilina on the other hand, was playing her first tournament and was somewhat surprised but excited nonetheless that players all the way from the Netherlands were attending the Patras tournament. The three of us had a nice chat for a while. Part of meeting new people at a tournament 😊.
After the day, we went back to the hotel for an hour or so. After this short and quick rest, we went to a restaurant to enjoy a nice meal and have some drinks. The atmosphere was as it should be: good. During times like this, the things that really matter get, naturally, discussed too. After the dinner, which was getting close to running into late hours, we went back to the hotel for the night. A much-needed rest and finally a bit longer than just a few hours (not much, but still).
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| Dinner |
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