Here’s some good (and probably slightly old) news about a Greek bank: Alpha Bank has sponsored (donated?) three machines to the Symi surgery. A letter from the deputy mayor to Alpha Bank, published on Verna a while ago now (but I only just found it) says:

Προς τμήμα δημοσίων σχέσεων ALPHA BANK – Κοινωνική Εταιρεία Ευθύνης

Σας ευχαριστούμε θερμά για το έμπρακτο ενδιαφέρον σας να ανταποκριθείτε άμεσα και να συνδράμετε στον εξοπλισμό του ιατρείου Σύμης με τρία σύγχρονα μηχανήματα, ήτοι με έναν φορητό υπέρηχο, φορητό καρδιογράφο και έναν φορητό συμπύκνωτη οξυγόνου, που θα συμβάλουν στη βελτίωση της ποιότητας της ζωής των κατοίκων του νησιού μας.

Which roughly comes out as:

“To the public relations department ALPHA BANK – Company Social Responsibility.

We thank you for your active interest and prompt response, and for providing assistance with equipment for the Simi clinic with three modern machines, i.e. with a portable ultrasound, portable cardiograph and a portable oxygen concentrator, which will help improve the quality of life of its residents our island.”

So, good news there. And there was also an article on another news website stating the Europol had ‘smashed’ a people trafficking ring from Turkey to Greece, stating that “the gang had smuggled 350 people, mostly Syrians, by boat to the Greek islands of Kos and Rhodes, charging as much as 9,000 euros ($9,500) per person.”

To which I would add Symi, and probably many other islands too. We’ve experienced the situation first hand here a great deal on Symi and we chatted to some refugees in Kos last year. I dare say that this will not be an end to the problem.

There’s that’s a couple of serious articles for you to check out today. I’m keeping things brief because my vertigo is playing up wildly today (this is Thursday as I write) and my fingers are not hitting the correct keys (in a worse fashion than usual), mainly because the keyboard is swimming about and not staying still. It’s a pain to have to go back and correct the bad typing while feeing like you’re on the Symi 1 in a storm, so I’m heading off to sit and be stable somewhere else. Have a good day!

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Symi in the winter #4Power cuts.

Ah, the absolute peace of waking up to a power cut. I think this was the first of the winter, and I’m still not sure what it was all about. And when I say ‘absolute peace’ I actually mean, waking up to the sound of the cat screaming at the front door, loudly, wanting to be let in, at 5.15 in the morning.

But later, sitting in my office listing only to the sound of the clock ticking, and then being in the kitchen and, after turning off the gas having made a hot water with lemon, listening only to the kitchen clock ticking – no fridge, nothing else humming – and the rural sounds of sheep and geese outside. (If it’s not geese we have down the lane then it’s someone with a very consistent nose-blow sound.) And of course no water as the pump will not go and no heating, no cooker, and using a candle or a torch at that time of day. And not being able to connect to the internet so no messages or emails, not even SimCity Bulidit (unless playing off line), and no morning walk/jog because I don’t want to risk spending the rest of the morning wet with sweat, and catching anything thanks to being cold and damp all day.

It’s okay though, I think to myself, I can go and do some work on a book, only to remember that all my work is up there in the ‘cloud’ and I can’t access it without the internet being on and that needs electricity. The copies of the work that are on my laptop (which has four hours battery) are not the latest versions so no point going back over on them.

And so you’re reduced to pottering about: checking on the photos I took yesterday when we went for a short walk to Pedi, during which Neil took a phone call about work, we saw people working on the roofs of the new holiday blocks, saw that Apastolis Taverna is still full up with chairs and tables and boat bits, and its beach is still the winter boat yard extension. We waved to a few people who were out and about, saw the cargo boat high in the water having unloaded, and walked back up the road to the sound of bleating goats, sheep, and then the squawk of chickens, and back to home for a quiet evening in and an early night.

And who says nothing happens around here in the winter?

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We all got a bit of a shock on Monday night, around nine, when an earthquake/tremor struck just off Symi, between Symi and Rhodes actually. It was a 3.9, which isn’t particularly big, but it was only 2k down and fairly close. Some people didn’t notice but we heard a huge bang that sounded like an explosion and then a rumble that went on for a few seconds. Some people in Rhodes have been talking about it sounding very loud there, while others didn’t notice it. I suppose it depends on where you are and how close you might be to the fault line and the shockwaves.

Good, so the earth has let off a bit of steam. It’s been a while since we’ve had any noticeable tremors, a couple of years ago we had loads through one month, November I think it was. Apparently there’s an underwater volcano not far away. Don’t let that put you off your Symi holiday though; we’re solidly built on rock.

And talking of Symi holidays, it looks like now is the time to get your Euros in and book (and pay for) your accommodation; the exchange rate between the Euro and dollar (US) and Sterling is looking favourable. Who knows how long this will last though? It’s also time for us to think about our off-Symi holiday and we have started planning for our next great adventure. And where are we going?

Rhodes for a night or two, yippee! It’s that check-up time of year again, or will be in a couple of weeks. And it’s pre-season shopping time, as once the bar work and season starts we won’t be as free to pop over the water for a day or two at the shops. Not sure when yet. I’m not sure how Jack cat will take to being left alone at the new house for a few days, he’s still not 100% settled and is still jumpy, probably because his paw is still ailing him and he feels a bit vulnerable. But as long as we can arrange for his litter tray to be changed and his food to be presented he should be fine. He is, after all, a cat; it seems to be only he who has not realised this yet.

As you can see from the photos I went out and about- this was Tuesday morning actually- and was out and back before the sun. I’d been awake since 5.15 thanks to the Alarm Cat’s insistence and so, at 6.10 thought I might as well go out and get it over with. I was back by seven by which time the sun was up but behind the clouds.

I gave our postman bit of a shock later in the day. I heard someone calling for ‘Daskale’ (Daskalos = teacher, which is what a lot of people call our landlord, because he was their teacher), so went out to see who and why. And there was our postie in the courtyard. He was more surprised to see me come out of the house than I was to see him in the courtyard. I explained that our landlord had moved across the road and we lived here now. He went on to explain that there was a package for us at the jewellery shop, and that one had been given to him by the DHL courier to be kept for us at the post office because the DHL courier didn’t know who we were. (Which is wrong, as they usually ring us and tell us we have a package, I think it was because our landline is unplugged at the moment, so they couldn’t ring). Anyway, all that info was exchanged and the postie now knows where we live, though we continue with the PO Box as our way of receiving the mail.

Don’t know why I told you that, something related to shocks perhaps? Off now, so have a good day and remember to go and book your Symi holiday. Best do it now before you forget.

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Monday morning walk. After getting some jobs done around the house and a bit of work at the desk, I headed out to get some jobs done out and about.

First stop, the hardware store in the village, passing, en route, two tourists heading towards the museum, or at least following the signs. I was so gobsmacked to see tourists (you can tell them from the outfits) that I didn’t tell them it wasn’t open. Anyway, they looked like they needed the exercise. But the hardware store excursion: This was the one near the doctor’s surgery that you could easily pass by without noticing. In fact I’ve done that once before. Now I know where it is though, I’ve become a regular. Inside you find there are aisles and all the products are laid out in neat rows so you can see what there is. This saves you the embarrassment of asking for a length of small pigmy when in fact you only wanted a hosepipe. It also prevents any misunderstanding when dealing with plumbing, ballcocks in particular, and makes things a lot more comfortable for everyone concerned.

I was looking for ‘ose. What? Rubber ‘ose? ‘No, Os, letter Os, for the gate… Yeah, yeah, I know. Fork ‘andles. What’s that? Four candles. No, no, no, fork ‘andles, ‘andles for the garden fork. And so on. (See, ‘The Two Ronnies’ hardware store sketch.) I was actually looking for a length of hose to connect the trap thingy under the sinks to the overflow widget. The current ones are both cracked and if too much water goes down the sink in one go it backs up and starts to flow the wrong way, i.e. into the cupboard and out onto the floor. I saw something that looked suspiciously like what I’d measured (with my thumb) but decided it was best to leave it to an expert as it means taking the whole gadget apart, and I may not get it back together again if I did that.

So, declining the kind offer of help, saying I was only looking, which I was, and then heading out of the door (being given two complementary cigarette lighters for my trouble) I headed off to the supermarket. George was having a quiet morning. There was no sign of the guys carrying boxes around, no piles of incontinence pads on the wall waiting for homes, no determined old ladies piling up shopping on the counter and then heading off more things and piling them up on top, no one getting their aggouri mixed up with their neighbour’s kolokithi, none of this accidental swapping of pantoploion that can cause so much hilarity and riot. In fact it was very quiet. I added to the lack of rush by only needing to buy six waters, a yoghurt and a red washing up bowl.

And then, after dropping them home, it was my turn to play the part of Sir Henry Norris, Groom of the Stool, and clear out Sir’s litter tray. That done, I headed off down the Kali Strata to collect a new bag of the stuff and headed straight for the pet shop. (Just up the steps past the Kalodoukas office, bottom of the Kali Strata, by the carpenter’s, opposite Freddie’s Chrysalis shop…You’ll find it.)  There I had a chat with (excuse me, embarrassed, can someone drop me the name?) the ‘pet shop boy’ about cats and how he came by his collection – strays born in the ruin opposite attracted to the shop by the birds he has there. And from there I proceeded to carry the five kilo bag of litter back up to home.

But I went a different route to the usual, as it was such a pleasant morning. Past the accountant’s office (keep your head down), and then first right and up, and along and towards, ‘Where does this go?’ and past, ‘Oh I know where I am now,’ and towards, ‘That looks interesting,’ taking shots of various things as I went. Having passed three chickens, several cats and a downhill tourist (camera, backpack, bewildered look and everything), I finally came out next to the large house next door to us and made it home only slightly humming.

And so, here we are, Tuesday morning, and I wonder what today will bring. More cat litter and privy chamber duties I have no doubt.

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Good morning and welcome to Monday, and the start of a ‘settling down’ week. After a wonderfully bonkers weekend in our house, I think we can at last start getting back into a routine. At least, that is my intention.

On Saturday we took a walk down to Yialos to pick up a few things needed for the god-boys’ tea that night: mainly sausages and beans, and bought a couple more items for the house from Christalos. Also included: A cup of coffee at Elpida’s café, a walk around the harbour, escaping the rain by ducking into Pacho’s and then by taking a taxi back up because, by that time, we also had three bags of shopping.

Saturday afternoon and the boys and their mum came for tea, and then the evening disintegrated into a 1980’s quiz session and impromptu sing-a-long. (It’s a good job we don’t have any attached neighbours.) And then on Sunday, Neil spent the morning cleaning the house and cooking while I got on with a few bits and pieces; putting up pictures and cleaning out the litter tray, and so on. And after the boys have been back for Sunday lunch (their mum was on a health and safety course for two days, and yes, they do happen here), we had some friends up for a Sunday afternoon drink in the courtyard, moving inside later when the sun went down, as it’s still quite cold.

So, a busy and pleasant weekend now leads to a quieter week. But this is the week I settle back into my routine, at least that is the aim. It’s been difficult to do so far, what with moving house and moving in, but I feel now that I can set aside my two hours every afternoon to get on with my writing or my course… The course I have still not started, but intend to. I have some background reading to do though, so that’s a start.

This morning, and every morning for the next two weeks, Neil is off to aerobics, tonight is the tap class, and then Tuesday to Friday I intend to get out there and do my fast walking/jogging up the hill to the Kantina, or down the hill to Pedi, and back, or maybe get back to the To Vrisi walk. It’s all so much easier when I can get up at 5.30 or 6.00 and not be cold, get out and back just as the sun is coming up and still be at my desk by 7.00, but those days will soon be on us.

So, here’s to the week ahead. The sun is shining, the weather forecast is set for fair but cool, from 16 degrees today to 10 at the weekend, and I can’t think of anything else to tell you this morning so will go and get on with my stuff… Oh yes, that was it. While getting ‘Lonely House’ together I am also going to start on ‘Stuff and Nonsense’, a new book. It will be a collection of, well, stuff and nonsense, some of which will be Symi/living in Greece based, other stuff will be tales of travel from the past, and other nonsense about life in general. Not sure when that’s going to be ready, but I intend to start on it this week.

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