Symi-Rhodes-Symi
Here we are back on Symi after a successful shopping expedition to Rhodes. The weather was wonderful until this morning (Monday) and right now it looks like it’s about to rain on us here on Symi.

I took a few photos while ‘over the water’ and I’ll put some up over the next few days. We came back with a suitcase full of ‘Jumbo’ and a few new clothes. Highlights of the weekend included visiting various charity markets where people were selling homemade biscuits and cakes, decorations and ornaments in order to raise funds for local charities. There was one such event organised in our hotel (the Lydia) on Saturday that included singers and musicians. It was good to hear some old Greek Christmas songs played on a variety of instruments. Elsewhere the seasonal music was the same-old same-old, apart from Jumbo where in the space of 90 minutes they played their own Christmas ‘song’ about five times.

Lyrics included: ‘I will walk from darkness and love you for one thousand years,’ or some such cringe-along-a-lyric that sounded equally as ‘stalkish.’ Sorry to dampen things but it’s simply not possible for one person to love another for that length of time (without dying) and they should not state it in a song for the sake of a rhyme, as in this case (although it didn’t rhyme very well.) But there you are.

Our other highlights included a walk around the Old Town moat on Sunday morning in temperatures over 20 degrees (people were sunbathing and swimming – not in the moat as there is no water, but over on the beach where we walked later), a stop or two at the Symi bar in the old market, having parts of the Old Town to ourselves to walk around heckle- and haggle-free, and having a whole Sunday with nothing to do.

More updates during the week as usual. Off to finish unpacking now. I am finding all kinds of things and asking myself, ‘Who put that in the Jumbo basket?’

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Long weekend
In a bit of a rush this morning; things to do, boat tickets to buy, packing to do, and off this afternoon (as long as we can get tickets) to Rhodes for the weekend; also cat things to arrange including babysitter, and as usual have left everything to the last minute.

I am sure we’ll be fine with the boat tickets though it could be a popular catamaran as there has been no Blue Star since last Friday and there’s not one today. This is because of a strike that has been extended. I did read somewhere that it might be coming on Monday night/Tuesday morning instead, but remember what I said about gossip the other day? I haven’t yet seen that on anything official but, even so, next Monday in the middle of the night isn’t helpful to us, but it will bring in supplies and fresh food, hopefully. And maybe some post – and it should also take the post off the island (passport application included).

I should be back on Monday and there may be a blog by Tuesday but, apart from that: I’ll leave you now for the long weekend with a few shots of Yialos looking sunny and warm in yesterday’s afternoon. It wasn’t. I mean, it was sunny, but it’s not warm. It was cosy inside Elpida’s kafeneion where I took a couple of shots through the winter plastic, I rather like that look, but otherwise… Well, at our house certainly, having a shower first thing is a bit like one of those saunas: warm bedroom, freezing cold bathroom, hot shower, cold bathroom and dashing around to keep warm – and it’s still up around ten degrees at the moment.

Anyway, have a good long weekend and I’ll be back online sometime next week.

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On nothing in particular
Odd the things you find. I just found one of my earplugs in the toilet. No idea how it got there. I also discovered recently that, whereas clothing sizes in China are very often two or three sizes smaller that they are here, in Thailand they seem to be three or four times larger than expected. I once ordered something from China, a shirt, via eBay and ordered an L size. (I know, rather ambitious, but it was a while ago.) It turned out to be Large for a six-year-old, but X-small for an adult. So, when I recently thought I’d see what shopping in Thailand was like, I ordered and XXL size, assuming that the size differences would be similar. Not. The shirt would well house a family of six and have enough left over to cover a few sofa cushions. I’ll try ordering again at a more realistic size and see if that works. Nice shirt though, but where did they get all that material?

No idea why I am talking about this today, maybe because I have no other news of consequence (or photos), except to remind you that, if you are going to offer someone the stunning gift of a James Collins book this Christmas, now is the time to order it. You can find the links over on the right, where the Symi books are, and some of the others, and I will include a link to top-selling ‘Remotely’ at the bottom of this post.

You might also like to order your Symi calendar 2017 or the Greek Cats Calendar 2017 (some proceeds of which go to help us feed the bin cats up the road through the winter). Again, the links are on the left but I’ll also put them down at the bottom.

Advanced warning that there may not be a blog for the early part of next week and I am planning to go to Rhodes at the weekend for some shopping. Jumbo calls. I don’t know if they have Jumbo in other parts of the world but it’s like a glorified pound-shop where you can pick up almost anything. Last time I was there I picked up some must-have plastic items, things for the kitchen and a bit of a hangover thanks to the over generous lady in the snack truck outside who, apparently, had not had the pleasure of dispensing ouzo to anyone all season and made up for it with a couple of generous measures for me. What it will be like on a Saturday close to Christmas I dread to think; perhaps I will have the ouzo on the way in, to soften the blow. Maybe they have something that keeps earplugs out of toilet bowls, I’ll let you know.

And now, links:

Remotely: “There is more than one laugh on every page, so be prepared for helpless giggles.” (Amazon review.)

Symi Dream Calendar 2017

Greek Cats Calendar 2017

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Cat’s ears and passport
After a fairly lengthy couple of posts, a shorter one as I am on a tight schedule today. There’s some kind of lunch to be cooked, a meeting planned at 3pm, even though it is at Mandeio’s café, and then an evening of nothing to get organised.

The day (Tuesday) is calm and cool, the sea flat, the harbour quiet, the road quieter still. We can hear work going on somewhere, down at the new jetty I think, the cat is asleep on the bed… now that’s a thing. His ears are starting to ‘go’ although the vet the other week was not unduly worried about them. The blackness is creeping slowly over them and, because of his heart, he may not be able to have an operation, not without fear of fatality during it. They are not troubling him and he doesn’t scratch them but he does occasionally catch them by accident and then we get treated to the Jackson Pollock effect blood splatter across the walls, over the floor, over the sheets if he was on the bed at the time. It looks worse than it is and is soon cleared away. We keep an eye out for infection, but so far there has been none. Trying to put any kind of cream on the ears is a bit of a challenge for him and us, so we only do that if and when necessary. Otherwise he is fine.

Neil is down in Yialos posting off his Irish passport application that was witnessed and stamped at the KEP office yesterday. He’s also paying the pre-Christmas phone bill, so much cheaper now that we don’t really use it, and I am about to start my housework chores ahead of our social this afternoon. Today’s photos were from yesterday which is actually the day before yesterday as you read this.

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Gossip
So, the message is, don’t take bar gossip as face value. Apparently, the owner of the house that burned down was at home when the fire took hold, though neither he nor his dog was badly damaged and the fire started at the fireplace. Manos (Garden Studios/Fist Taverna) has offered both of them temporary accommodation and the house is being shored up until… Whatever happens next.

It reminded me, in an odd way, of when I was a rather reluctant boy scout back in the dark ages of 1973 or 1974 and we all sat around in a circle and played ‘Chinese Whispers.’ The classic that I remember our headmaster/Akela telling us to pass around was, “Send reinforcements we are going to advance.” I wondered where we were going to and what reinforcements might be needed for a group of 10/11 year olds, but passed on the message accordingly. It started its way around the circle.

While that’s going around, I can also tell you that we had a rather successful morning in Yialos yesterday when we popped down for a few things: get passport application signed, check post office, buy an envelope, find some fresh lemons, gamble on the ATM machine, have a look for Christmas gifts, walk back up. It kind of worked out.

Passport application: a quick tussle with the accountant who suggested the KEP office, a visit to the very helpful ladies there (who speak better English than I do) and the form signed, filled out and stamped (no charge) and off to the bank. Won a few Euros there, luckily, as there were lemons to buy, and off to the post office where there was a queue. Checked the PO box, found a slip announcing that I had a delivery, thought I’d call back for it later, was called to the front by Ilias to be handed it, rather embarrassed at my preferential treatment, accepted it gladly and darted out, red in the face. Went to the bookshop to buy an envelope for the passport application, was handed another delivery, headed to the lemons department but had two beers at Taxas – meanwhile, phone rings and there’s another delivery waiting at Rainbow later, forgot about the Christmas gifts (but got the lemons) and took a taxi back up the hill.

Where Sotiris was still open so we were able to do the shopping on the way home, rather than having to go out again later; ordered lots of water and found it delivered and on the doorstep by the time we got home ten minutes later. Neil now making a late lunch, me doing this, Jack wondering when we are going to settle down so he can sit on a lap, and an afternoon of reading and watching television lies ahead. Couldn’t be better.

So, off to do that now… Oh, the Chinese Whisper has done the rounds and the message, passed from Aleka to his troupe(s) is: “Send three and fourpence, we’re going to a dance.” I am still confused as to what that exercise had to do with woggles, badges and dib-dibs, but there you are. Don’t accept gossip at face value.

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