Ramblings from Greece

This leg situation is dominating everything and I sort of wish it wasn’t. It is taking up so much energy and effort, but maybe today there is a turning point. To have two more months of the cage isn’t a problem but definitely having a place to stay here is, as nothing is confirmed yet. At least four or more trips to Syros is energy sapping, so last night we decided to see if I can get a fit to fly certificate. We also looked at the business class seats and the ones at the very front of the plane have more legroom and I could sit in row one. I checked and in the next few days there are seats available. But hold your horses, let’s wait until it’s booked and the deal sealed! We have been disappointed before.  After the Medical Centre where it s agreed a fit to fly could be issued, we did some other chores and we had an early lunch, one of my favourite pies over here, the jambontitioptita. If this is all works out, I will be going to the fracture clinic in the Royal Berks Hospital, hop...

It’s not been quite so plain sailing on this trip to Syros. There has been a lot of administrative effort into organising the trip but hopefully next time it will be a bit smoother. In the morning I was woken just before six, so I could get dressed to be taken to the port. The guys on the Artemis welcomed me on board, and I was put in my usual place. We left on time and I found an inner peace on the ferry as it gently chugged along, rolling gently in the slight swell of the sea. Luckily there was no signs of sea sickness ! From the church book, there are two churches of the name Agia Varvara. ( Barbara ). The first is in the Kastro or castle area of Chora. It offers magnificent views of Livadi, Sifnos, and other islands. Because of its height and the granite it sits on, it attracts lightening. Years ago, a churches icon was put in a nearby house, where it was placed in the best room, with a candle lit by it. The second church is in Panagia, it’s very small and in 1960 the earth roof wa...

Before I left for Syros I took a photo of the progress of the jigsaw. The big bird is done, it’s now just the detail around the animals and birds that needs doing. It’s a very nice puzzle. The two churches continues with Agios Vasilios. The first is by the beach Avessalos which can now be reached by a track, which I found was refurbished recently. There is a lot of sage growing nearby which people collect for tea in the winter. The second church unfortunately is in need of repair which is possibly needed because of a bad damp problem in the area. The water that comes from the nearby spring is said to be the best on the island.  The hospital had a couple of other inbound patients so I had to wait until I could be processed and taken to the ward. Before then I was x rayed, so I  the images were reading for the doctors round in the morning. I think I got to the ward about one am. It’s cooler which is good, but there was lots of things going on with the patient next to  me, a...

A friend of one, the Wordle beater, sent me this nice link  about some art on display on Serifos. I can’t get there of course and when I do it will be closed. One thing I am sure about and I have not had to deal with the really hot weather here yet, is I don’t think I will want to be here next July and August. I hope next year, I can try and go to the UK, by then our house might be rented, so I will have to have a plan if I don’t end up with back to back dog sits, like this year was going to be.  This book is not my normal reading material but my friend from Serifos lent it to me and it’s meant to be the best translation ever done. I have read the introduction and will see how I get on. It’s very topical of course! Last night we had a nice home cooked meal, after my friends got the final bit of my trip sorted out.  I have checked in both my outward and return tickets so I am good to go. We had a bit of a late lunch then they took  me to the ferry port. It’s definitel...

  It was a quieter day, luckily with a bit  more of a breeze, I think the wind is going to build up over the  next few days,  hopefully not so strong so the ferries won’t run. The Artemis seems to sail in all weathers, although I did get stuck in Syros for a day as it was so windy. I have a bit of potentially good news. The lady who runs the hotel I am going to next, has one of her in-laws living in a room after the other one died. So next to me is where they lived and she says if it was cleaned up a bit I could rent it, there would be no end date which is fantastic. I was thinking after the cage is removed it might be better to come back here to get myself a bit more accomplished on two feet before I try and go back to the UK. So that’s really good and it would be easy to move into. My Sifnos friends are going to try and have a look before we commit.     We have also been trying to finalise my travel arrangements to Syros. As  I am not a stretcher cas...

I got taken in the new car with my friend from Sifnos. It’s the last time I will see the Junior doctor from Serifos until I go back in the autumn. Everything went fine, we had to wait a little bit as there were a few people ahead of us. There is a school down towards the beach, I can often hear the children singing along to music being played. The road the house is on, it’s very quiet as it’s a dead end, we often see people driving along then realising the road is going nowhere and having to turn around. We had a nice time last night with our friend and her family friend. He is a retired orthopaedic consultant and worked in Athens. He was able to reassure us that everything is working well, and he thought two weeks after the cage comes off, I could start putting a bit of weight on the leg. That’s very good news.  Todays church is another by Panagia, Agia Anastasia. It’s very old but was renovated in 1988. It looks like only a few people attend the Panagyri where pigeons are served....