Back to our usual kind of blog today and some rambling thoughts from yours truly at his desk where someone has just been letting off bangers or shooting at pigeons right next door, at least that’s what it sounded like. No sounds of protesting animals so don’t think it was someone getting self-sufficient already. No doubt that will come in time.

But still, what’s been happening chez Symi Dream these past couple of days? Well, not a lot really. Same old same old as they say. Work, writing and work. I’ve now reached 114,000 words in ‘Straight Swap’ and am still in the finale area, with a lot yet to happen.

The weather has been pleasant, up in the high 20s with a slight breeze, so not feeling too bad most of the time. I’ve been looking at some of the reports from the UK (the screaming press never fail to amuse) about the heatwave being experienced there. I love the way a rise in temperatures brings out the British caution: ‘How to tell if you have heat stroke’, ‘Ten essentials you must know to avoided death in 28 degrees’, ‘How to tell if your elderly relative is dehydrated or perhaps already dead,’ and those horribly worded post headlines on Facebook, ‘He thought it was just a bit of sun and then he went outside, you will be shocked at what happens next.’ No I won’t and don’t tell me what to feel. (If you don’t do Facebook then, a) sorry you missed the point of that one, and b) good for you!)

Yes, I know it’s a serious problem for some and the UK is not used to it, and definitely do not leave dogs, cats, your granny, in a car with no air or water, and always park in the shade, and never leave the house without factor 150 on, just in case the sun pops through a cloud. But ela re! As the Greeks would say. When it snows the country grinds to a halt. When it rains everything gets flooded. When there’s some sun everyone fears instant death from solar flares! My advice for those suffering ‘extreme’ weather is to stay out of it as much as possible, stay calm, drink water (or, in cases of a snow flurry, a little hot chocolate) and stop being led by the tabloid headlines like sheep to the sheep dip.

So, my early week amusement was once again caused by the overreaction of the Brits, and Greeks actually but that’s another story I’m not going to get into. And I hope my rambling here don’t offend anyone other those who might benefit from a little offending from time to time. I guess we’re just used to dealing with 45 + degrees here, and high humidity. It was warm on Tuesday night and there were times when the harbour was all hazy with the humidity. We’re sitting on towels on the sofa with the windows are open and the cat is not allowed anywhere near, he’s too warm. (We’ve been brushing him and now have enough fur for a small Chesterfield.) Mind you, the duvet is still on the bed and gets used in the early hours.

Other rambles: Anyone been to Hungary? I was thinking of saving for a trip there, having seen a little of Romania. Budapest I know is a recommended visit, but anywhere else in the rest of the country? I was thing of a couple of nights in the capital and a couple in the countryside as we did in Romania. A little holiday planning and browsing, and dreaming, helps keep you going through the Te Deum, sorry, tedium of working life, especially when it’s hot.

Think that’s enough for now, there are things to be getting on with. Stuffing the new sofa with Jack fur for one, hoovering the furniture for the left over fur is another. And if you want my serious tips for dealing with hot weather: drink at least three litres of bottled water a day, stay out of the sun as much as possible, keep to the shade, wear strong sun block if you are in the sun, eat regularly, don’t over exert yourself. Avoid alcohol (no, seriously, even beer), avoid coffee, tea and things that make you wee, and go slow. If in doubt, book a holiday to Greece in July and August and local folk will show you how it’s done. Be sensible!

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Yesterday I mentioned a new novel about moving to Greece called ‘Girl Gone Greek’, by Rebecca Hall. Today I have some more information about it; plus some recent photos from Neil, for a change.

Rebecca wrote this year’s Rough Guide to the Greek Island section and paid us a visit when she was here. (She’s an Alarm Cat fan too, I hear.) her debut novel has already received several good reviews at Amazon, example: “Girl Gone Greek is not your normal predictable romantic holiday read, instead it takes you into the heart of Greece and her people, with wonderful colourful characters you can relate to and would love to meet!”

The synopsis of the book (which I was privileged to read in its draft form, for my comments and suggestions) reads thus:

“Rachel is finding it increasingly difficult to ignore her sister’s derision, society’s silent wagging finger and her father’s advancing years. She’s travelled the world, but now finds herself at a crossroads at an age where most people would stop globetrotting and settle. She’s never been one to conform to the nine-to-five lifestyle, so why should she start now? Was it wrong to love the freedom and independence a single life provided, to put off the search for Mr Right and the children? Perhaps she could find the time for one last adventure…

So with sunshine in mind, Rachel takes a TEFL course and heads to Greece after securing a job teaching English in a remote village. She wasn’t looking for love, but she found it in the lifestyle and history of the country, its culture and the enduring volatility of its people. Girl Gone Greek is a contemporary women’s fiction novel. When Rachel moved to Greece to escape a life of social conformity, she found a country of unconventional characters and economic turmoil. The last thing she expected was to fall in love with the chaos that reigned about her.”

As for the author: “After extensive global travels, Rebecca left the UK to return to the country she fell in love with–Greece, where she teaches English, writes and wryly observes that the chaotic nature of her adopted country actually suits her personality very well.

She is a Rough Guide co-author and has contributed to numerous publications including Apollo Business Class Magazine for Cyprus Airways and Let’s Go for RyanAir, the Daily Telegraph Travel Section and her container ship voyage from Athens to Hong Kong caught the eye of NPR National Radio in the United States, where she was interviewed twice. When not writing, you’ll usually find her drinking coffee with her friends, or sourcing a new place to eat baklava.”

You can find Rebecca’s blog here: http://www.lifebeyondbordersblog.com/

And you can see the Amazon page for ‘Girl Gone Greek’ here.

And the Kindle version here.

If you are wondering what I thought of what I read, well… My initial reaction (before I started to read) was that I wasn’t really into ‘women’s fiction’, but after a few pages I didn’t find it ‘chick lit’ at all, nor anything like that. So I would say that it would appeal to men as well as women. Follow the link above and go on your own adventure to discover Greece through its pages…

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What’s news today? What happened on Symi on Monday? Well, the boats came in as per usual, and things carried on, as per usual. We had our front garden invaded by three sheep at six thirty in the morning by which time I was at the desk, having been up to the kantina and back by six. Actually, it’s not our front garden, but it is the front of the other part of the house that’s under us.

The photos today are a mix of shots that might interest you. And other than that, there’s no great news really. You will have seen all the news items about banks and money and so on, and €60.00 a day is fine for me, more than enough, though it will take planning in advance to get the money out for the rent. Our electricity and phone I pay online via Alpha bank so that should also be fine. Day to day, well, we have Neil’s wages form the bar for that. (No need to worry, mother!) And, at the moment, withdrawals on foreign (non-Greek) cards/accounts are only limited to the card’s allowance. So, if you have a UK Visa, or bank account ATM card, you can draw out as much as you want – as long as there is physically cash in the machine – up to your daily limit.

So, Sunday was a warm day as we took a brief walk down to Yialos to stretch legs after a morning at home. Monday started slightly cloudy and there was even a cool breeze up here. The sea was calm, like the rest of the island, and day trip boats and the pleasure boats were out and about. There are lights being put up in the village square for a festival that is apparently happening next Sunday.

This festival (details to follow when I hear them, so far it’s just word of mouth) was arranged before the referendum, so it could end up being some kind of joint festival – depending on which way things go and what your views are. I’ve been told it’s because there is no Symi festival this year and it has been arranged due to a petition from village business owners. That petition, led by the new Herb and Spice shop, has obviously had an effect and the aim is to get more people up to the village to use the services and shops up here. So, Bravo Niko and Co.

Tomorrow I aim to have a blog post about a new novel written by Rebecca Hall titled, ‘Girl Gone Greek.’ I’ll give you more info about that tomorrow, but if you want a look then simply follow that link.

Am off for lunch now – and that reminds me. A couple of folk have said recently that they thought I’d missed a day in the blog posts. Don’t be confused. I often write them the day before so if I talk about Monday when it is in fact Tuesday, that’s why. Check the date at the bottom of the posts if you’re not sure.

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Today’s post was going to be my take on what’s going on with Greek the Euro and all that malarkey. I even wrote it out and scheduled it for going live. But then I thought, some people are going to want to phone me up and discuss what I’ve written and I really can’t be done with that (hate using the phone) (hate discussing politics) so I decided to change it. I censored myself. So instead, I’ve given you a few choice quotes from the ‘article’, some photos from the weekend and a story about a bunch of flowers.

“I expect you are wondering how Symi is doing in the light of the economic debacle that’s been taking place. Well, this photo might be food for thought: a ‘super yacht’ parked outside the Alpha Bank, a bank with no queues for the ATM – the usual security delivery had been made.”

I, for one, am all rather confused by parts of what I’ve been seeing and hearing. The government have voted to hold a referendum on the latest deal offered by the Eurogroup. But that deal has been withdrawn. So…?

There was a good bit here but I deleted it by accident.

I thought that the current administration made some pretty wild claims in its electioneering with regard the economy, along the lines of ‘we are going to end austerity.’ Promises that could clearly not be kept.

I’m leaving in these photos for you so you have lots to look at.

The Gov are turning to the people to say, ‘What do you think we should, do?’ My concern is that the gobbledegook that comes out of officialdom is pretty unintelligible to us lay people and many voters will have no idea what the detail is and therefore make an uninformed decision on a very important matter.

But, back to Symi and how this current debacle might affect the island. Well, so far so good, nothing seems to have changed much, the bars were in full swing over the weekend, there was live music at the taverna and The Secret Garden and, as you can see from some photos, we had a great time with the boys at The Olive Tree making our own pizzas. (And being taught how to ‘Vogue’.)

And now for the story of the bunch of flowers:

I’m sitting at Rainbow with folk, chatting and waiting for guests to arrive when I notice a chap coming up the steps holding a white plastic vase with some flowers in it. At first I think they’ve come from someone’s grave, or are heading that way, because the slow bells have been ringing. He goes up the lane and up the steps to the square, and out of sight. A little later another man, smartly dressed, appears stage right and walks across the square and goes out of sight. A few seconds after this, first man reappears (stage left) with the white vase and no flowers. And a few seconds after this, the second man reappears and exits stage right, with the flowers.

Head to Olive Tree for our ‘make your own dinner’ party (see photos above) and think no more about it.

A little later and a wedding party appear, coming down the steps past the OT. There’s the smart man in his suit and a young lady in a wedding dress, and there’s the bunch of flowers. They must have come from the flower shop, in the original display vase, to start with. Off they go into the sunset.

There, I didn’t say it was going to be a good or interesting story. Just one of those things. Of more interest to you may be that we were in Yialos on Sunday and the ATM was giving out money, three day trip boats came in, and all was well with the island of Symi. So, that’s my update on the Greek crisis and my Symi thoughts for today.

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Good morning, welcome to Saturday and a collection of photos from the file with a catch up and some ideas for some Symi holiday bargains. First: Thursday evening: down to Yialos to attend a meeting about the refugee situation. That was followed, slightly ironically, by a pizza at the Dolphin. There was a family on the next table making an awful lot of noise…

Friday was spent doing very little. Neil was in Rhodes (reporting lots of police checks on people getting off the ferries, sniffer dogs and searches; I am assuming there’s been news of some smuggling from Turkey) so I covered the bar – not completely, just one chair and a couple of hours – and spent the rest of the day at home fiddling with ‘Straight Swap’ which is now only two major scenes from the end of draft one. But when I say major I mean – a variety show, a failed sabotage attempt, the denouement and the epilogue. I’m kind of standing back from it for a day or so to let the strands filter through the old imagination, and then will set about it.

I think the weekend holds in store a little frivolity with the boys coming over on Saturday, I believe, and a calm day planned for Sunday before getting back into the working week on Monday. The wind has died down up here, after Thursday’s blowing about, and the sun is set to ‘warm and above’ for the next few weeks.

Meanwhile, on Symi: we continue to have day trippers and regular visitors visiting, though numbers are down. So, if you want a last minute quick and quiet break there are probably plenty of deals around. You’ll be okay, even if we do go a bit bankrupt next week, something which seems to have been a possibility for five years now, so no great change there. Check out the ‘Search Hotels’ link in the right column >> you can change the location from Symi to Rhodes if you need an overnight there, otherwise, there are some neat deals to be had. I checked out Olympic Holidays, on Symi for the last two weeks of August, and found under £500 per person including flights, and that was staying at the ever popular Anastasia in Horio. I was almost tempted to book it myself.

Here’s another one: 8^th July for two weeks, two people, from Gatwick, flights included, staying at Sevasti Studios in Horio (greats views of Pedi), self-catering, £388 including flights and transfers. If you want to stay in Yialos there’s one there for £408, or Anastasia’s in Horio for £424 which isn’t a bad price at all, considering you have the flights included. A self-transfer at Rhodes could cost you around €20.00 for the taxi to the harbour, and then €16.50 on the ferry times two, so that’s at least €73.00, not to mention the possibility of an overnight stay. I know that package holiday companies do strange things with people, like put them down beyond Lindos for a night which means two hours there, two hours back and three hours in a hotel room. Or else they put you in the foyer of a hotel in Rhodes town (all depends on when you land and so on), but it’s bearable – you could always check yourself in for a night somewhere, for those prices you can’t go wrong.

Anyway, I didn’t set out to sell you an Olympic Holidays holiday, just thought I’d give it a mention. (And there are many other tour operators working here: Kalodoukas, Symi Visitor, Symi via Travel A la Carte…) I’ll let you ponder on it all though and let you get on with your day.

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