We will be carrying out maintenance on the Symi Dream website sometime in the next couple of days. Don’t panic! Normal service will be resumed as soon as possible.

There is a busy time coming up on Symi and in Greece generally, with the lead up to Lent, with Tsiknopempti (Smoky Thursday), carnival (from the Latin carnem levare or carnis levamen meaning ‘the discontinuation of eating meat’), and the period of Apokries  generally. And we also have Harry’s name day, Clean Monday, Valentine’s Day, and Jenine’s birthday. So I best see about making her a cake. Or maybe I could get that nice lady at The Olive Tree to make one for me, which I could then give back to her…

Meanwhile, the weather has warmed up slightly, there is a gentle breeze and a mist across the Pedi Valley this morning, but the house doesn’t have the same chill as of late. I haven’t been doing very much this week, which has been nice, but we did have a highly successful day the other day. This happens occasionally when you go to Yialos with a list of things to do and people to see. The folk at the National Bank were very helpful and a new card has been ordered, the guys at the post office were, as usual, also very helpful though the post we were waiting for wasn’t there (but it all arrived yesterday), the paper we needed for the shop was available, the electricity bill got paid (at the Dodecanese bank these days, they don’t take money at the ΔΕΗ, electricity office now), and the supermarket had everything we were looking for. And I got some exercise walking back up the steps afterwards – stable doors and horses spring to mind, but it’s something.

All I need to do now is decide what to give up for Lent.

View at the Kastro this week

That special Symi light