New Year

Chronia Polla!

The New Year passed very quietly this year with few people out and about despite the mild weather. We spent the weekend in agricultural activities, burning brushwood and pressing olives. Apart from some lads letting off steam on their bikes on the road above us on Sunday afternoon we did not see a soul.

There were a few showers each evening but today is clear and dry with a cold north westerly wind. The wind is expected to freshen in the course of the day, reaching gale force tomorrow and Wednesday so the lads will have a chilly choppy time diving for the cross during the Epiphany ceremonies on Thursday. This is the first New Year for some time which has not been accompanied by lightning strikes or torrential rain.

There was a mass exodus on the Symi II this morning as foreign home owners departed back to the cities and other foreigners normally resident on the island headed off on their holidays. With the present forecast it is prudent to leave the island now as there is nothing scheduled before Wednesday and that is unlikely to run until Friday.

The first baby born in the New Year in Greece was born in Rhodes, a cheery note amidst the flood footage on Greek television and a reminder that there are new beginnings. Here on Symi the lambing season is well under way and there were many new bleats in the fields near our house this weekend and one of my neighbour's black hens was proudly parading a whole squad of new chicks past the donkey shed yesterday afternoon. The donkey was not too impressed - those who popped through the fencing were promptly shooed out with a firm stamp of hoof.

Have a good week.

Regards,
Adriana
www.symivisitor.com