So, I am off for three weeks now and am handing you over to some guest bloggers. Before I go though, here are some recent photos from Neil. Winter on Symi is not just about being cold and wet, there are always celebrations of some sort going on: name day festivals, birthday parties (as below) baptisms (as below) and other festivals too. So, for this Monday, as I pack up and leave the house and cat in safe hands, here is a collection of photos to start your week. And remember, you can also keep in touch with Symi twice a week via Adriana’s Symi Blog which you can find here.
Sharing a joint birthday bash on SaturdayInside the kafeneion…… and outside with bubbles!Preparing the cakeFamily
And, from a few days ago – a few of the baptism photos.
A kind of quick’n’lazy blog today. The photos were taken from home as the Blue Star came in on Friday morning. As you can see, there is a little cloud around.
Friday morning
And then, as I was watching the boat and having my morning coffee, I noticed something else in the water. Recently we’ve become much more aware of the sea out there and we’re always looking out for small craft, refugees in trouble, that kind of thing, though our coastguard are very vigilant and there is often a navy boat out in the bay anyway. But this morning, this caught my eye:
What’s this?
It was too far away to see what it was but at first I thought it was a fisherman’s marker, except it wasn’t in a very sensible place for that. Later on I noticed that it was slowly drifting towards the shore, but what was it? Anyway, while that was going on, I was also thinking about the next few weeks and being away, and I prepared a guest blog post. I’d originally set the first one up for next Wednesday, and then I’d filled in all the other gaps for while I am away, and then a last minute one popped in so I have put that in for next Tuesday, which is when the guest blogging will start. I now have something for every day from next Tuesday to the 12th December, by which time I should be back.
Boat coming in, and the tug working the barge
But I thought I would think ahead in terms of weather as well as we have to go and arrange our boat tickets (and stock up on Jack Cat food for his agency care worker to deal with). Checking out one weather site I found that the forecast I had last seen had changed; no longer sunny with only one day of rain, it looks set to be a bit miserable when we are in Rhodes next week; maybe I won’t get to Ancient Kamiros after all, I don’t fancy a long walk in the rain. At least the wind looks to be fine for the boat on Monday afternoon and the temperature is not too low. And as for the weather in the places we are going to visit… Well, ‘Showers of rain and snow’ seem to sum it up along with temperatures of five and six degrees, showers and ‘an afternoon thunderstorm.’ I think we will be buying umbrellas when in Rhodes.
Waiting for the boat
But before then… What was it? Ah ha! As it floated in towards the Nireus I was able to get a better photo and blow it up. Not sure where they came from but they seem to have travelled as a pair.
Symi Dream Calendar Okay, early and advanced warning that I will be repeating this post in a few weeks as if by magic when I will be away. On the day I am planning to copy this post I should be back on Symi, actually, if all goes well. But still, there is one gap in my scheduled posts list and it’s December 12th so this will still give you enough time to order and receive your Symi Dream Calendar for 2016. Here’s what you have to do:
Head to Neil’s page on Lulu and find his Symi Dream Calendar 2016. (Just click that link.) Then click ‘Add to basket.’ You will need to register for Lulu if you are not already registered. This is quick and isn’t hard to do. You can change the shop you are buying from by using the drop-down up at the top in the menu next to where you see your name (once registered and logged in). Buy from a country near you for a faster delivery. In Greece, I use the Irish site as it shows in Euros. You can change the number you order as you go through the purchase process and postage is then added on. You can pay by card or PayPal.
Calendar page at Lulu
There, now you have no excuse not to order a little piece of Symi sunshine to brighten up your winter and every month through next year. The following photos are not from the calendar, but they are Neil’s and from Symi and a bit of a photo bonus for you – they will also reappear on Saturday 12th December (if all goes according to plan) which will probably be your last chance to order a Symi Calendar before THE day. Enjoy!
The Judas Inheritance
I had a very helpful email in from Amazon yesterday morning. It read: ‘How did this item meet your expectations?’ and the item in question was:
The Judas Inheritance
Well, I thought to myself, I knew I wrote it pretty fast but it was in the planning stage for a long time and actually I thought it was pretty good. I expect there are some typos left in there even though it went through a couple of proof readers. I thought the cover was a bit nifty, particularly as I did it myself and actually, it was exactly as I expected it to be so thanks for your interest but it met my expectations well. They weren’t Great Expectations, I am not Dickens after all, but all said and done I was pretty happy. Why do you ask?
Yesterday’s view
Ah, they ask because I ordered a copy for my niece and sent it to her in Australia, so now Amazon thinks that I might be interested in similar items which include not only my own novels and books (about Symi) but titles by Anne Zouroudi and Rick Stein, plus a map of the island (all of which I have, apart from the Rick Stein book). How very thoughtful.
Yesterday’s blue
Enough of that. I took the photos of the boat today mainly to show you the sky. It’s very blue today and has been for a while now, with only a little cloud around. It’s hot in the sun, colder in the shade of course, but still there’s no need for jackets when you go out at night. Unless you are a Greek man, in which case you need a vest and shirt and a jumper and a jacket, but then you’ve been wearing all that since the end of August anyway, just in case. I don’ know how they stand it. But, yes, lovely weather thank you for asking.
Hillside terracing
Nice weather but not a lot of other news from around here, I’ve not been out an about much, I’ve been getting ready for the trip on Monday and that kind of includes buying cat food and cat litter and getting the washing done and deliberating over what bag to take and wondering what on earth I am going to wear to the Opera? I have put away my summer clothes leaving my wardrobe free for my three shirts, two trousers, four T-shirts and two hoodies. Methinks a shopping trip is in order.
The Judas Inheritance is a horror/thriller inspired by the runs on Symi. More details here. The Judas inheritance
Quick news roundup
Here’s some other news to catch up with. It was all happening in Yialos on the afternoon of November 16th. First of all a chicken went shopping…
Off to buy some eggs
It’s one of those things that you see every now and then. You’re just walking along the backstreet towards the post office, passing the Xatzipetros supermarket when from behind the flower shop comes a small chicken. This is being followed at a polite distance by a curious young cat. The chicken crosses your path, you grab a quick photo and then it heads into the super market (sic) to, I assume, pick up a few essentials. The cat loses interest and wanders off somewhere else and you go to the post office.
Meeting with Solidarity Symi
Later you attend a meeting organised by Solidarity Symi, the refugee and island charity newly set up to help those in need. Attending are a group of interested observers plus the hosts, the island doctors, the head of the port police, people form the Rhodes charity ‘Helping Hands’ and members of the UN. A good two hour discussion with questions and some answers follows.
A message to remember
Later, having a glass at Pacho’s, you see a red flare being set off and wonder if that’s got anything to do with incoming refugees. It doesn’t, on closer inspection, seem so as the person holding it was on the quayside. The Dodecanese catamaran was leaving so maybe someone was saying goodbye in style. It did remind me though of a time in the summer when we were on the balcony and saw a flare, red, over by Nimos which did turn out to be a refugee boat in trouble. Red flares in the sunset.
Red flares in the sunset
And that’s my news for today, except to remind you that if you haven’t already put in your order for a Symi calendar or several, then now is the time to do so. You can find the order page here: Neil Gosling at Lulu. Or you could just ‘Google’ “Neil Gosling Lulu” and, surprisingly, you won’t find Neil singing ‘Shout’, but will find links to where you can order a copy, or several, of next year’s calendar. Well worth shouting about.
