The sad news is that the helicopter seen the other day, and the boat, were looking for survivors after a boat of refugees tried to make it across from Turkey to Symi. There were some fatalities. The survivors are now at the police station having paperwork seen to and will (probably) be off on the Blue Star to Athens this evening. This is happening up and down the coast and has been for some time now, other islands also have the same problems to deal with as we saw on Kos last year.
Seems wrong, somehow, to follow that with ‘we have just come back from a nice walk’ but that’s what we’ve just done. I’m typing this up on Tuesday afternoon having just been to Pedi and back. Down by the road, up through the valley, photos of plants and grass abound, there are sheep and their lambs grazing, blissfully unaware that this weekend is Easter weekend here in Greece, and there are church bells ringing.
Pedi itself is preparing for summer, the taverna had customers, although I got the impression it was on a fairly informal basis. There are some boats around, a white sail has just tacked into Yialos below me, and there are others out there on the currently calm sea. The weather is reportedly going to turn belligerent and might cause a shipping ban over the next couple of days. That’s one thing that’s put Neil off popping back to Rhodes this week; he will go after Easter.
It’s all about getting ready for work and this year he will be working for Yiannis at the Rainbow bar. He will need to get some medical tests done first, as everyone who works in bars, cafes, etc. has to do. Well, you can decide to not, and risk a very hefty fine. It means a trip to Rhodes, some tests at the hospital, private doctors or Euromedica depending on how much you want to pay, and then coming back again. But if there’s going to be a shopping ban, you don’t want to be struck in Rhode for three days running up to Easter only to find the boat that does come back is already booked solid.
So, that’s Tuesday’s news. Have a good Wednesday.
