|
Post by yorkshiremouth on Jul 11, 2019 5:18:01 GMT
|
|
|
Post by dennisn on Jul 11, 2019 5:30:27 GMT
Well, I do apologise all round for doing remiss. And Theresa beat me to it getting over her tad busy - my busy has been even more tadder!! Anyway, here we are at our last day, and it has been chucking it down since last evening - we got out during a respite, long enough to eat out a couple of hundred yards away, since when it’s been saving Angela watering the flowers at last, but saints protect her chicken which lives in a bothy or something made of spare stuff, hates people so runs away when you go to feed her and comes back after you’ve left the food handy. But her brush shelter is not the slightest bit waterproof and when we went out last night, she gave us one of those looks that chickens do when they really are fed up with the rain! So Saturday we went off into town to start picking up our remaining things for home. None of them were ready. Most worrying was Vera’s ring - we took it in to be repaired, since back in January an illness necessitated all her rings being cut off and this one they declined to repair in England so, it being a Greek ring, we brought it here to be done. Actually, it WAS ready, but for some reason had turned into white gold, not yellow! So it had to go back and today’s our last day here, so it had better be right this time. We we ate that night at Sunrise Taverna. One morning on our way to/from dawn swimming, we learned that they had changed chef again, back to a previous one - we had dropped them from our list last year because the new chef’s idea of food was disastrous. Now they seem to be back to normal. Being several days of tadding ago, I haven’t the faintest recollection what we had or the cost - but it was in our normal price range, maybe around 35 Euros. Here’s our 90 year old. She pointed at herself and said two words - doctor, baby. I am struggling to decide what that means - is/was she a baby doctor? Is her baby a doctor? Is she the baby of a doctor? Did she have a doctor’s baby? Etc, etc.
|
|
|
Post by dennisn on Jul 11, 2019 5:51:33 GMT
So, YM, the great storm (as in the vicar of dibley).
We saw it approaching from the west, only gentle rumblings of thunder and faint flashes, nothing impressive. I took a photo, but it’s not worth posting. It eventually came closer, with a big curtain of rain hanging down from the clouds. I saw one drop of rain and we rushed to grab in our washing from the balcony clothesline - absolutely just in the nick of time. It hammered down, strong wing hurling hailstones down to bounce off the garden lawn, water pouring down around us from the upper floors (we’re on the ground floor). Very impressive even though the usual violent lightning and thunder didn’t perform. It only lasted a short time, so we upped and outed to Vareli Taverna, where they had suffered soaking of half their tables which are not under cover. The next door supermarket were recovering half their display blown down the road.
It allowed us time to eat and get ‘home’, then started again, as far as we know, all night. It’s stopped now, 9am, and a wind is drying the hard surfaces of paths and balconies.
|
|
|
Post by kelso on Jul 11, 2019 6:19:38 GMT
That lady looks amazing for her age. I'm always amazed just how quickly everything recovers after a storm. Whilst watching the storm from inside, the effect is increased by the fact that they don't have rone pipes and so the rain just pours directly off the roofs. Bob
|
|
|
Post by dennisn on Jul 11, 2019 7:10:54 GMT
I think we HAVE got rone pipes, because water is pouring down these pipey things. And I say “is” pouring, because thanks to your kind observations, it’s raining again. And we HAVE to go into town to pick up our things. It’s sort of English drizzle, with a wind blowing it will go right up my shorts and we had already packed (away, that is) our pacamacs.
The weather doesn’t seem to have affected today’s flights (yet?) as the JSI arrivals and departures boards look normal.
I just need to be satisfied that this weather will have cleared before our flight tomorrow.
|
|
|
Post by dennisn on Jul 11, 2019 7:16:55 GMT
It’s stopped and there’s a tiny blue hole in the solid clouds. Off we go - we may be some time, as the saying goes.
|
|
|
Post by kevb on Jul 11, 2019 8:43:46 GMT
Glad you are both OK and the things you need to take back are ready in town. Enjoy your remaining time on the rock, it won't seem long before you are back again. Safe journey home.
|
|
|
Post by kelso on Jul 11, 2019 8:49:05 GMT
I think we HAVE got rone pipes, because water is pouring down these pipey things. Pooh, posh!
|
|
|
Post by Tre on Jul 11, 2019 9:24:58 GMT
We escaped just in time! Glad to hear that so far I understand Skiathos is bouncing back. Sadly, I hear there have been 8 or 9 deaths on the mainland due to the weather conditions. Have to say a Skiathos storm was long overdue. Don’t know about you but everyone we spoke to agreed it was so much hotter & humid than we’ve ever experienced at this time of year. Here’s wishing you a good last day
|
|
|
Post by kevb on Jul 11, 2019 13:15:20 GMT
Folks will need to watch out in about 2 weeks time. The rains yesterday will spark off mozzie matings and the eggs laid in standing water left by the rains now will become adults in a couple of weeks and the females will be out for blood in numbers!
|
|
|
Post by dennisn on Jul 11, 2019 14:02:01 GMT
It’s stopped and there’s a tiny blue hole in the solid clouds. Off we go - we may be some time, as the saying goes. It chucked it down again in town, so we got soaked. I amused myself by hopping and skipping from one foot to the other down Papadiamanti Street, singing "I'm singing in the rain, dancing in the rain". Everybody else was already cowering under every bit of overhanging awning, no room for us. I felt sorry for whoever sits on our seat next in the bus home! I discovered that my pacamac says "Shower resistant", so that's why the rain came straight through.
The sun's been out and glaring for an hour or two now and we've had everything out on the balcony, so it's all just about dry, thank goodness.
|
|
|
Post by dennisn on Jul 11, 2019 14:24:39 GMT
Sunday we had a rest day, so nothing to report except that we didn't go thirsty and didn't go hungry.Taverna Varelli for evening meal.
Monday we were getting our Jimny, and having told the old lady, we thought she might not go to the beach. We hurried down early to avoid her just in case, but there she was, smiling nicely so we were clobbered, took her in and brought her out after a shorter than normal swim - we needed to get back early and in any case, the sea was quite rough, so it was a to do much swimming (old lady was happily pottering as we went up and down a few times).
Nice green Jimny, 20 Euros of juice and we were off. Down to Koukounaries to remind ourselves that the new hotel has obliterated the parking space even if we wanted to visit the beach, which we don't, not our sort of beach with bars and music. The road to Asselinos over the trails past Mandraki, Elias, etc, was in good condition to the extent that there seemed to be no evidence of storm damage yet. But some corners had very worn downside edges upon which I fancy the next storm might take a severe toll (last night's storm is the sort of thing I'm thinking of - I wouldn't be surprised if some are impassable today).
At Asselinos, the young lady waitressing was incredible at English and talked non-stop and high speed to us, all the while. Her father called to her from his outpost at the till, but she told him to get lost, I'm talking to the tourists!!
At Ligaries, we gratefully selected a table on the upper level at the upwind side - nice breeze and no ciggy smoke coming our way. Our first and very enjoyable Greek salad, washed down with bottles of alcohol free Alpha beer.
We came home via the roundabout tree down into the valley for Agia Paraskevi, the usual views of multi green scenery throughout the day always impress us, we never fail to comment about it. But we noticed the heavy ground covering of tinder dry pine needles and dead foliage, worrying for the fire watchers.
|
|
|
Post by dennisn on Jul 11, 2019 14:43:16 GMT
Tuesday we went down to the beach at normal time, expecting the old lady, but she wasn't there. Swam for a good hour, getting in loads of lengths.
Breakfast and off to Xanemos, stopping at the end of the runway to watch a couple of planes. The only takeoff we watched had me turning away early to avoid the sand blasting. So I saw a small boat blown free from its mooring and drift gently off towards the ferry. It was still gently moving that way after we left. Xanemos proved a pleasant stop, with a lovely breeze off the sea into the taverna. We really enjoyed a good laze there until (only slightly) reluctantly leaving to wend our off road route through Kalivia (the road there returns to civilisation down a gap between walls which is just the right size to get you watching out for fear of losing your wing mirrors) and on past the Monastery without calling, and on to Platanos Taverna. A year ago we had enjoyed a Platanos Omelette and wanted to repeat the pleasure - we hadn't been able to enjoy them last September because they had run out of Russian salad which they added to it. This time, there was no such option, so we've decided next time it will be something else - our eyes had bulged as we saw delivery of a huge fruit and ice cream bowl to the next table! But at least they had Amstel Free, which I find quite delicious.
Return route past Olive Thea entrance road and a different route down to the valley of Agia Paraskevi.
We ate at Ratatouille that night. Although not our top favourite, it's a close run thing, such excellent food, well prepared and presented by great people. I've never heard anyone dissatisfied with a visit there, my moussaka was to die for.
|
|
|
Post by dennisn on Jul 11, 2019 15:06:06 GMT
And on Wednesday they rested - in spite of advice that we should go to town and rest on Thursday when it would rain. I hadn't checked before, but we decided to stick to plan A, a lot of lengths at the beach where the old lady turned up again bright as a button. She was already at the water's edge when we arrived, trying to get a woman to put her in, but we called hello and she promptly deserted the woman in favour of us!
Long lazy day back at Villa Maria, with a couple or more dips in the pool. It's not and refreshing, just wet and less hot than out in the sun. So it rained when we were about to go eat. I've already described it I think, bedlam for a while, eased off long enough for us to escape to Taverna Varelli, then caught us just a bit on the way back. And rained all night. Our next door neighbours here in Villa Mari say it was thunder and lightning to wake the dead, but I didn't hear a thing!
So Thursday it was raining when we woke and continued, so we haven't swum at all, not in the sea, nor in the pool. Quite a disappointment, but can't be helped.
And we HAD to get out to town to pick up our things. And get wet. Quite wet. I've already described it, so just to say the sun has now been out long enough to dry everything for packing and the sky is back to clear and bright.
Apart from today, I agree wholeheartedly with Tre that this has been as hot a holiday as we can remember. I've slept on top of the bedding all fortnight including the storm last night. If Kev is right about mosquitoes about to swarm, we shall feel grateful that we've had none.
I shall return home and start exploring means of contacting our new mayor to persuade him to go lean on OTE to provide the digital line for the webcam - it's got to be in his interests to do so for brownie points alone, never mind the benefits of us poor tourists. I've already told the nice computer man that I'll be back in eight weeks, hopefully he'll pass that threat on!
|
|
|
Post by Tre on Jul 11, 2019 21:09:01 GMT
Did you get Vera’s ring sorted? Safe travels home tomorrow Dennis & Vera
|
|