Roll Out the βαρρέλλη

I am writing this on Wednesday morning a day ahead as usual. This means I can’t yet comment on what’s happening in the yUK and the mess that is the Tory party, Brexit and the yUK generally as Ms May-Not-Be PM is currently announcing her leadership disaster thing. My journalist mate over there is sending me headlines by the minute, and it’s all very interesting, but as there’s nothing I can do about it (as I have been stripped of my democratic right to vote), I shall address the more mundane matter of our on-going water adventure. Sitting comfortably? Here’s your update of this thrilling tale – with some photos.

Tuesday. The workman arrived at 3.30 pm and told me a βαρρέλλη (barrel) was on its way – a tank, I assumed correctly. A little while later, while I was inside keeping out of the cold, I heard a few grunts and some plastic-scrapes, the clang of the gate, and popped out to see that a βαρρέλλη had indeed arrived. A great big heavy-duty plastic thing. The guy was pottering about with it on the courtyard floor, so I retreated inside; he knew where I was if needed. About an hour later, things had gone quiet outside, so I took another look. The βαρρέλλη was now magically up on the bathroom roof. I have no idea how he did it, I assume he prepared it, dragged it back outside and then lifted it on a ladder over the courtyard wall, avoiding the vine and the wires that support it, and the mesh, and the railing and squeezed it through a small gap in the rigging and into place. There was no-one around, and I assumed he’d gone home for a well-earned lie-down. It was dusk by now, so I closed the gate and knew he wouldn’t be back to plumb it in that evening.

That meant I could do a quick tidy up and head on up the hill to the godsons’ house where we are babysitting for a few days. Well, teen sitting really which is, surprisingly, much easier. I went to have a quick wash before leaving only to find no water in the taps. Ah ha! I thought. The sterna has finally run dry. Nope. There was enough water in the sterna (it had been raining), and the pump was trying to pump it. Perhaps he’s connected something… A look on the roof and it was clear there were no pipes attached to the barrelli. I did notice it was resting on a couple of plastic water pipes that come from somewhere and go somewhere else, but these are hard plastic and were not crushed. Odd. I reset the pump as best I could, but still no water. I concluded that with everything else going on and the level low, grit or sediment had filtered in and bunged it up. A job for the next day. Off I went to spend a pleasant evening and night up the hill.

Next day, Wednesday. I was home by just after six, to find there was still no water and the pump hadn’t corrected itself. No reason why it should. I popped over the road to tell a rather beleaguered and crestfallen landlord that although we had some water in the sterna, the pump was now not working. He said he’d phone the man – which I am sure he will do, and I expect the guy again probably at 3.30 when he finishes his real job. Meanwhile, I had a brainwave and, as it was town hall supply day, wondered if there was any way I could divert the incoming mains to a variety of bottles we had been collecting. Luckily the in-pipe for the mains is one of those tough plastic ones but flexible enough to be pulled from the sterna entrance and directed, with some spillage, to the bottles one at a time. No need for the pump as this is pressured water from the main pipes. So, I have filled up what we have which should be enough for today and tomorrow, and I’ll do it all again on Friday if the new barrelli is not yet attached. The pump, whether it’s dead or simply injured, will have to wait. No point replacing it if we’re not going to need one until the summer.

I am sure there will be more news on this adventure tomorrow if you can tear yourself away from the car crash which is the yUK at the moment. Oh, and roadworks have begun again on our lane so all the above is accompanied by pneumatic drills. There is good news, however. The accountant rang to say Neil is to receive a merisma – a dividend – from the government (Greek, not British of course). It’s something to do with his name being on the lease for our property rental. I don’t know exactly, and I don’t know how much it might be, but he will investigate today. Might be enough for a new pump…

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All a bit dark

No, I am not talking about a blackout or anything, but today’s photos. I thought as the sterna saga continues, you might like some images of what’s going on. So far, not a lot, but I did get a shot of the entrance to our water tank (the sterna, or cistern, beneath the house). You can’t see much, but you might see why anyone is reluctant to go down and investigate. Before we get to that dark and damp experience, here’s yesterday’s sunrise.

That’s about as pretty as today’s few shots are going to get.

As for the progress on the water situation… It rained on Monday, so we had loads of free water pouring into the sterna from the roof. While this was going on, we were able to have showers and save some rainwater in a few buckets in case we need them later. After the downpour, there was a decent level in the tank, but most of that was gone within an hour, leaving us enough at the bottom to use for washing up and the like. The leak seems to be somewhere at a level above the top of the pump, so I am not too worried about sediment being dragged into the machine and ruining it, and it’s one of those pumps where if there is no water to pump, it shuts itself off, so the pump itself shouldn’t suffer damage. It’s down there somewhere…

On Monday, our landlord came across to see how we were doing and check we were okay for the day and told us that his workman would be arriving after work that afternoon. Two guys appeared around half-three with the landlord, took a look at the sterna entrance and discussed options. This was all in a mix of Greek, Symiaka and Albanian, but I followed the thread as I knew what the context was. In the end, it was decided that they would bring a temporary tank to go on the bathroom roof and, I assume, plumb it in so we can use that as our sterna until they do the deed down the hole. Something they are reluctant to do now as it’s a big job (we wouldn’t be able to use the workhouse for some time because a wall and possibly floor need to be knocked through or something), the weather is unpredictable, and it’s winter, so that will have to wait until summer. As long as we have the tank, we don’t mind, but it did sound like a bit of an excuse to me. I waited in for the evening as they were due back with the tank and equipment after five, but thanks to a thunderstorm, they didn’t arrive.

It’s Tuesday morning as I write and no sign of them yet, but we still have some water in the sterna, so it’s not a worry. I will have to wait around until they get here – which could be any time – and deliver the thing and set it all up. Meanwhile, Neil is covering our godparent duties up at the boys’ house while mum is away, and I’m missing out on the fun. But there’s no choice, not until we are back online with water and can fill up the new tank. Hopefully, this morning, as you read.

Get ready for the next thrilling instalment of ‘The House that Leaked Water’, a remake of the 1971 cult horror classic, ‘The House that Dripped Blood’, four shorts in one film written by Robert Bloch, a bit of a long way from his novel Psycho, but there you go. And here I go to wait around for a plastic tank.

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Random Places

While we wait to hear news about the sterna-fixer due last Saturday but not yet appeared, let’s go on a little journey. I was just going through my collection of images in the ‘for later’ folder, and I thought you’d probably had enough shots of the mountain and the path to To Vrisi, the walk up the road and so on, so I looked for something else. Actually, I’ve not been able to walk up the road much these last few weeks for one reason or another (rain, cold, waiting for workmen etc.), and so a trip around a few places might be of interest. Apart from anything else, it will fill today’s blog page and won’t take me long to do, so I can load this up ready for Tuesday and then pop across the lane to have a chat with the landlord and see what’s what with water. We’re down to about two flushes, and a kettle-worth left in the sterna dispute the weekend’s rain which went straight in and straight out again. Anyway, meanwhile, here is a random collection of images from some places I have been to this year.

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Sunday Morning

Here’s a Sunday morning roundup for you. We had a fair old strong wind at the end of last week which delayed the boat from Athens for about 16 hours, meaning some people had to change flights and make alternative travel arrangements. The weather’s calm again now (not that I can see it with all the shutters closed) but it looks like we’re in for more wind and rain this week. The rain will be good for topping up the sterna. On which note…

The story has moved forward a couple of paces and back one. I called on our landlord on Friday to explain the problem we’re having. Andreas speaks less English than I do Greek but he speaks more local dialect than I do, of course, and has a strong accent which can make it hard for me to grasp everything he says. The other way around, I speak Greek with a horrible accent, and he is a little deaf, but together, we managed to shout and signal back and forth what we think the problem is. Roots or a crack in the sterna, allowing the water to escape somewhere into the ground until the level falls below that of the problem and we’re left with some water, but very little – and I don’t want to drain the tank dry and risk messing up the pump that’s down there. So…

It was arranged that he would call a mastoras (μάστορας), translated as a skilled worker, or more locally as a ‘master’ as in master builder, or by some as simply an odd job man. Whatever, it was a step forward, so I left it with him. He called over to us (he lives opposite) later in the day to let me now the plan. The mastoras would come at three the next day and take a look. He will have to open up the wall above the sterna and drop a ladder down, go down and assess the situation. Not a job I’d like to do, descending into a wet and slimy, cold hole, but it’s what must be done. The mastoras would be coming at three/three-thirty, Saturday. Andreas also checked that we had water, and I told him we had a limited supply. He then said that if we run out, we should let him know as he has a tank he can put on the roof and ‘wire up’ so we can fill that from the mains and have some water while we are otherwise without, which I thought was a very decent thing to offer. The thing is…

He was the head teacher of the technical college, so I am told and taught many of the men and youths who now work in building, plumbing, etc. In fact, he is known locally as ‘Daskalos’ (teacher). An interesting word as it can also mean ‘pedant’ so it could apply just as well to me. The story took a mild but not unexpected twist on Saturday afternoon when the only people to ring our bell were Harry come to collect his bags for a sleepover at a friend’s house, and Asif come to deliver several packs of water. No sign of the mastoras as yet, but it’s meant to rain later, and Monday is fill-up day anyway. Meanwhile, we’re using a friend’s washing machine down the road, and I have an excuse not to have to suffer a shower in the cold bathroom – not until completely necessary. I’ll let you know how it goes as it goes, hopefully, it will have gone in a week or so – it can take a long time to fix things like this so stay tuned.

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Symi Photos and SeaSmiles

As it’s Saturday, we mainly have photos on a Saturday, though these ones are a bit out of date and a mix. But, before then, a quick thank you to Sea Smiles (seasmiles: https://www.seasmiles.com/en/login-en.html ). This is the loyalty card you can get for your trips with Blue Star (and associated lines). I first registered for a card years ago one morning crossing to Rhodes on the Diagoras. I was given a flimsy plastic card with the number written on it, and have been using that for years. Recently, I thought I would pop into the website and see what points I had accrued, only to find myself unable to log in. The page that came up had a card number (the username) already entered with a remembered password, so I must have used it before. However, when I tried to access the members’ area, I couldn’t. I reset the password, but to no avail, then checked the number on my card to find it different to the number online. Confused, I wrote to SeaSmiles by email…

I explained the problem, that I was unable to get in and was now confused about which card number was mine. They wrote back the same day saying that my card had not been used for two years so was now invalid and the points accrued were lost. I replied, explaining that I had used my card several times this year and received discounts, so something was working…

I had three emails the next morning. One informed me they had found two accounts for me; one active, one not. The next was to send me login information for the online account system, plus a new password. The third was a note and a PDF of my new card. All I have to do is print it and keep it safe. What’s more, all points that were floating around between my number and nowhere are now found and have been credited to the new card (which may be an old one, but… whatever). So, within 24 hours, it’s all sorted, I have my points back, a new card and I can get into the system. Bravo!

Now then, let’s not talk about EasyJet. Okay, then, let’s. Remember I suffered a cancelled flight last July? Ended up an extra night in Rhodes, missed my Hilton Hotel booking (not as grand as it sounds but still £80.00), missed my pre-paid train tickets, a night in Brighton, had to spend a night in the knocking shop that was, that night, the Hermes Hotel – unmade, still-warm bed, wet towels, the scent of rubber still hanging in the air, etc.) and pay around €50.00 in taxis for the pleasure. Well… I did two claims via those ‘Have you been delayed?’ websites, both of which had good reviews. Neither of which was able to help. I went through the EasyJet system myself in the end and put in a claim for the cancelled flight and also one for expenses. Was told I was unable to claim on that flight as the cancellation had been caused by weather problems; it hadn’t, not really, it was because they didn’t have an alternative crew in Rhodes, but that’s another story. I replied, slightly ‘outraged of Surrey’ style, and heard nothing, of course. But, one day sometime later, I was nosing around in my bank account searching for a few pennies when I noticed a £50.00 credit from EasyJet (no email or anything, I was just slipped a silent fifty to keep quiet). Well, thank you very much. That went some way to replacing the lost £200 their incompetence had cost me.

Anyway, didn’t mean to ramble and now, here are a few more photos as it’s Saturday.

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