One has to consider just how long this three-week lockdown will last. It might sound a contradiction, however, the last LockDown, like Topsy, grew and grew. At least, this time, the camping is not closed down and I don’t have to pretend not to live here. Not that I pretended very hard the last time. Also, I have little playmates who need things occasionally and I have the dogs to walk.
With my suitably filled-in form, I set off for the morning walk around 05:35. There’d been a brief shower and there were droplets in the wind, which was strong, making walking difficult at times. The cloud cover meant it was still semi-dark when we arrived at Plakaki Hotel. We passed silently on to the end of the physical beach. After a short rest, we resumed heading back towards the Promontory. At this point, the wind was mostly behind us making progress easier. We arrived back around 07:40. I put the dogs in the van then took Isabella for an extra walk to Kountoura around my running course which is a little short of 6km. Every dog in Kountoura must have barked at some point but Isabella didn’t seem to care only when approached by dogs which appeared seemingly from nowhere. Following my experience of running with Skinny, I know most of the Kountoura dogs and their propensities.
The wind was against us on the way back so it made progress almost impossible occasionally. The walk took 55 minutes to complete although we could probably do it in fifty. My November Challenge is to walk or run 382.9km during the month. My daily walking usually amounts to 10-12km depending on how much I have to walk around the camping so extra walking will be required to fulfil the challenge.
Upon our return, I fed the dogs and made my breakfast then started on the Doggy Dinners to get them cooking during my weekly call home. The wind was still very strong so there was much flapping of the tent sides especially as they are not well-fastened to the decking except for the sod cloth which is secured by screw bolts and washers. I need to anchor the walls to the floor too.
There was some activity on the Grammeno Community chat site mostly to do with food and filling in the Movement Form required for each and every journey during this period. The fine for non-compliance has increased to €300 (£270) for the first offence. During our walk to Kountoura, I could see how seriously the locals were taking it. Not a single person was wearing a mask and the cafeteria was open and noisy although the clientele had moved to the rear of the building where they are invisible.
The customers seem to think it’s windy even though the maximum gust for today has been a mere 75km/h some 20km/h slower than recorded earlier in the year. I suppose I’ve just got used to the wind over the years. Small(ish), rugged island situated in the middle of the proportionately large Mediterranean Sea which contains lots of comparatively warm water with cooler air blowing over it. A recipe for unsettled and windy weather methinks.
Timothy George and wife contacted me as they need a refuge to meditate now that the Community Room is becoming more popular with the masses. I said they could have access to T3 so long as I don’t require to let it and they leave it as they found it. They can now meditate and perform their yoga in peace.
Tim said there was a mountain biker who was looking for accommodation however he’d disappeared by the time I arrived. I don’t really want any one-nighters anyway.
I’ve prepared my supper which is cooking in The Pot and I’m sitting inside the van surrounded by dogs as I write. Doggy Dinner Time is approaching so I need to extract my supper from The Pot in order to put on some rice for the dogs and myself. There was plenty of light coming through the recently-cleaned rear roof light but the sun is setting and the day ending. Simon and Garfunkel are singing on Radio Paradise – what domesticity.
Leave a Reply