Kalimera, kaliespera, yasou, yasas or wot?
Normal service has been resumed. After a weekend of rain, sometimes quite heavy, the sun was back on Monday morning when I got up at six. The sterna is now full of free water, the plants have had a watering, not that some of them wanted it, and most of the Sahara dust has been washed away from the roof and courtyard.

It’s back to normal in the harbour as well. I popped down and up yesterday to fetch the rent money and get my tickets for Rhodes. Another day another day-trip for me, this time for a check-up follow-up follow-up. I’m going to go on Tuesday afternoon to save the rush on Wednesday, potter about (perhaps have an Indian meal if the finances will stretch) and then have my appointment mid-morning on Wednesday and come back on the Blue Star in the afternoon, nice and leisurely like.

But, down in the harbour. Work has started to clear the customs house building that went up in flames last week, and the flag is still flying high above it, as it did throughout the fire – very Greek spirited of it I thought. I’m not sure what the rebuild timeline might be, time will tell, but there was a group of workers there working hard as I passed. It was one of those mornings of saying ‘Kalimera’ to everyone; on the steps going down, around the harbour (the new bar staff in certain places have finally realised I am not going away, I’m not a day-tripper and don’t need the ‘please come in’ dialogue). Around to the bank, and passing Takis’ leather shop (six kalimeras needed there to greet all his staff) and up and down the other side of the harbour.

We’re often asked what the greeting should be, kalimera, yasou, yasa, ti kanite, mia xara, ya, kali-something else, and I usually apply the rule that, if it’s the first time I’ve seen someone then it’s kalimera (good day), second time it’s a yasou (or yasas deepening on whether the situation is singular and friendly or plural and polite, higher status or not). I reserve kalispera for after siesta time, kalinixta for on the way home at night, kali messimeri for specifically wishing someone a good lunchtime period, kali doulia for wishing them good work, and so on. I was getting quite pleased with myself and my kali-mera-ing when I noticed that some people got to me first with a yasou, which rather threw the cat among the pigeons of my greetings plan. Thinking maybe it was because the time was moving on towards midday, to the next person I saw I said Yasou! And they replied with kalimera. It’s all very confusing. I think, just say whatever comes out; ya, is a common one (hi), but not to the mayor or a priest. Actually, I think I know the mayor well enough know to greet him with a ‘watcha me old cock,’ though it might confuse him, and some of the priests are content just to slap you on the back and laugh for some unexplained reason.

So, leaving you with all that to ponder, I shall say kalimera (adjust it to your own time of day depending on when you are reading this) and have a quick check over what I have just written to make sure I’ve left some typos in for you – kali-typo! – and head off into the rest of the day. You should find a blog here tomorrow, but maybe not on Thursday, depending on what time I get back from Rhodes and whether I feel like writing something or not. Whatever you are doing, have a kali day.

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“Brilliantly observed and a wicked wit”
We’ve had a rather damp weekend here on Symi with rain over the weekend topping up the sterna, watering the plants and not deterring anyone from going out and having a good time. We were treated to a lovely meal out at Georgio’s on Friday – thank you Miss P – and that came hot on the high heels of our dinner invite on Thursday. For the rest of the weekend we stayed home and the plan is (as I write this on Sunday) to get up early on Monday and do a quick half hour walk before settling into work. The price must be paid!

We’ve spent some weekend time on the cover for ‘Remotely’ and below you can see a small image version of the full cover. The spine is yet to be sized, and this is only a first draft. I know there are some designers and artists out there who might have a few words to say about my layout, and I’d be interested to hear them (as long as they are positive) – the blue bar across the top is an RC publications thing – though I’m not 100% sold on the colour yet.

What doing this exercise did throw up for me though was a new review of Symi 85600 on Amazon which I think is worth repeating in full:

Symi 85600 (Notes from a Greek island)

[ 5.0 out of 5 stars – Absolutely brilliantly observed and a wicked wit!

9 May 2016
Format: Paperback | Verified Purchase

I loved this honest and highly amusing account of leaving it all behind and heading to a Greek island. James has a brilliant command of the English language and makes it altogether much more fun than English language ever was at school! If I was to follow in James and Neil’s footsteps then this is the book I would tuck under my arm and head to Greece with. I cannot wait to read it again…and again…and again… I want to be buried with it – which may well be sooner than I think since I nearly died laughing during some of his witty observations! ]

Thank you very much. Let’s hope that leads to a few more sales. If you are a Facebook user you can find more info about my books and writing things as I post them on my James Collins Author page; likes and shares and comments all welcome. https://www.facebook.com/jamescollinsauthor/

But now, back to the ‘Remotely’ cover which, as you will see, contains some of that fabulous review. ‘Brilliantly observed and a wicked wit’ – I rather like that. I’m going to have a good week now, and I hope you are too. Hashtag wickedwit! #wickedwit (no idea what purpose that serves but the advice is to hashtag everything – but it’s not a hashtag it’s a sharp sign!)

Click the cover image to make it bigger:

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Symi, where you can expect the unexpected
I gave myself a day off on Friday, kind of. I read some proofs of ‘Remotely’ and then went to Yialos to do the usual things: bank, post office, buy some snacks for some guests coming for pre-dinner drinks, then cat litter and cat food from the pet shop (for the cat, not the guests), back up the steps, made lunch and chilled out on the sofa in my study. A place I don’t very often sit; it made for a change of view.

The wind was up again, there were some clouds about but it was still warm; and there was dust in the air, apparently, blown across from north Africa. It did look a bit hazy but nothing to write home about. The harbour was fairly busy, there had only been one day boat in. The Blue Star had come in a little late and seemed to take a long time going out again, the Express was waiting for it. The Sea Dreams moored up alongside in the harbour, so I assume there was a swell or strong wind down there or something. The Nikolaos X came in at its usual time, and the Panagia Skiedani too, so we now have three regular day-trip boats from Rhodes each day.

Neil had one of those ‘things’ happen on Thursday. He was at the bar, working, and had two sisters as customers come and sit and chat. They were staying in Rhodes but live in Liverpool. They had been told to come to Symi for a day (they were staying for two) and to visit the Rainbow Bar in Horio, which they dutifully found. They had been advised to take this excursion but a man in Liverpool who knew the bar. Neil described him and asked if he barked like a dog to surprise people as a practical joke. They said, ‘That’s him!’ and he said, ‘That’s Liverpool, George, we know him.’ So not only does Symi’s charm and fame spread far and wide, but so does the fame of the Rainbow Bar (and ‘Liverpool George’ who is a regular visitor and Symi supporter). What are the chances eh?

As for my weekend ahead, I have nothing planned but some work on ‘The Saddling’, the next story on the ‘must write that book’ list, and some work for my college course. I had some great feedback on my action scene assignment last week, and this time I have to write two different openings and two different endings for the same story, in this case a screenplay – as that’s what I was interested in learning about, though I could have chosen stage or radio play. The basics are the same really and the course covers all kinds of scriptwriting, it’s up to us students to decide which. I think the story I have chosen would make a better film, so am going with that medium.

And that’s about it. The end of another week on Symi, with the custom house fire, the changeable but warm weather, hot days, sunny days, a little overnight rain, some breezes and cloud, a walk in the hills last Sunday, nephew George heading off to a new adventure in Rhodes, some book work and other things, a lovely meal with neighbours on Thursday (thank you for that and for bringing my camera back), and some guests on Friday. I’m looking forward to a quiet weekend but, as I’ve said before, when you are on Symi, the only thing you can expect is the unexpected.

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Symi fire, booking a ticket, nephew news
The main news from Symi today (yesterday) is the fire that happened at the Custom House in Yialos. I don’t have any photos as I was in bed at 1.30 in the morning when it happened, but you can find some on Facebook, if you use that. Apparently there was a car parked beside it that caught fire and the fire then spread to the building and into the roof. Very sad, and slightly worrying. If there had been a wind it could easily have spread to other buildings. No one was hurt but I think there will be questions asked about the fire response services arrangements and facilities.

Meanwhile, Andy who runs the Symi Visitor travel blog http://symivisitor-accommodation.com/blog/ sent me this note about the Skiedani showing as full on the Dodecanese Seaways website if/when you go to book a ticket on it:

“There’s a solution to the “Skiadeni apparently full” problem.

The fares from Rhodes to Panormitis, to Yialos via Panormitis, or to Yialos non-stop are all the same, €13.50 on the Panagia Skiadeni. If you want to go from Rhodes to Yialos on a “via Panormitis” sailing, book a ticket to Panormitis, so you know you have a seat. When you collect the actual tickets at the kiosk or agent, tell them you want to go to Yialos and they will issue a Panormitis-Yialos ticket free of charge.

The problem is that it is an industry-standard online booking system, but nowhere else in Greece do you have the option of getting off and back on again at an intermediate stop so you actually need a second ticket to show when you get back on again.”

That’s a handy tip, thank you very much.

In our own news, it seems that nephew George likes his new job. And so he should, he was only there for one afternoon and then had a day off. His team have Thursdays off work and they even have a free bar they can use in a nearby hotel. Some of them went out to Faliraki on Wednesday night (lord help us all) and he seems to be fitting in very well. That’s a comfort and I write it here manly for friends and family who were following is adventures. The place he is at really do seem like good employers; he has a two room apartment to himself, meals paid for, a day off each week, the free bar for down time and they have said they will help get him his bank account and other things set up too. Where do I apply?

And as for us, it’s been warm up here with a cloud covering but temperatures into the mid-twenties. There may be some rain on the way over the weekend. That will please the plants. The winds are set to be low so that’s good for ferries and the sun should be fully back to normal service next week when I have to do another trip to Rhodes; hopefully the last one for a while.

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Don’t miss the boat or your flight
Now then, I should have added, at the end of yesterday’s lesson about making sure your boat departure matches you plane arrival, that you should also make sure your boat arrival matches your plane departure. Here’s why.

Nephew George left yesterday to start his new job in Rhodes (more about that in a moment). He trundled his case down to the clock tower to meet the Blue Star Diagoras with plenty of time – I have an app on my tablet that maps where the boats are, Marinetraffic.com, and I could see from that that it was going to be about 90 minutes late. No problem for George who was only going to Rhodes anyway, but he was waiting down there with a party whose plane was set to leave at 12.15. They had the choice to go the night before but decided to stay an extra night on Symi. All well and good if you have the time. If the boat had been on time then still all well and good, but it didn’t land in Rhodes until 11.15 leaving them only one hour to get to the airport and check in before the check-in closed. I still don’t know if they made it, I hope they did, but it’s a lesson worthy of a note on your ‘Things to do to make your Symi holiday more enjoyable’ list. Make sure there’s enough time, or leave early, so you’re not sweating and worrying and losing those holiday pounds through anxiety when on a boat that you can’t make go any faster.

Another exciting thing that happened yesterday was that Neil’s son and his GF (that’s girlfriend in youth-speak) booked a two-week holiday to Symi. They are coming at the end of August and staying at Anastasia Apartments in Horio, flight and transfers included, and for a good price. That’s an Olympic Holidays deal in case you were wondering.

And also, slightly earlier that that call, was a message from George saying he has arrived at Euromedica and picked up his results (all fine) and has gone to see the helpful lady who I had emailed; the doctor they wanted was not available but she was going to find him another. He later sent a message to say that he was now all legal to work, so his books must have been done. If not, his new employers have said they will get them sorted out, they are also going to help him set up a bank account and, I assume, will set up his IKA, health insurance. And the job? Well, it came out of the blue from a contact at the Kresten Palace Hotel, Kalithea, Rhodes. They were looking for someone to help with the entertainment department and could George start straight away? Last I heard they were picking him up from Euromedica and he was on his way. It’s a decent wage with accommodation and meals included, and a day off each week, eight or nine hours a day. Knowing what rep jobs are like it might be more than that but hopefully he will like it and they him.

I just had a look on their website http://www.krestenpalace.gr and it all looks very nice; four stars and plenty of poolside space, near the sea, lots of facilities and plenty of entertainment including ‘animation shows’ six times per week. No, I have no idea either, but no doubt we will find out in due course. So, at the moment, all the children are settled and sorted and… well, no famous last words here. Tomorrow is another day.

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