I went to bed quite early so was awake correspondingly early as well, so I decided to get up and take out the dogs. Part of that decision was made by the dogs who were all up for it. I think we were out of the gate around four-thirty in the end.
There was a car in the beach car park and mostly the same residents along the beach track. We didn’t find the owner of the car so may have been off the beaten track or somewhere on Grammeno Beach. Otherwise the walk was uneventful and Luis made a reasonable effort at keeping up. We were back at the van about six so I went straight out with the girls so was back just after six-thirty. I didn’t hang around so was off on my bike up the mountain and over Panorama. The guy who walks his dog was just starting his ascent of the mountain as I was coming back down. There was a good number of joggers on the cycleway from Paleochora to Kountoura
The wind forecast had promised wind which generally gets stronger as the sun rises which is why I was keen to get going. I stopped at the bakers and Petrakis which hadn’t officially been open long. It wasn’t very busy and the Canadian lady on the only till was telling me what a great day she was not having.
I rode back to the camping and I could feel the wind was starting to get stronger so decided to go and see Maria in case there were any invoices requiring my attention. They had been stuffed into a plastic folder as I’d asked and there was quite a few of them including some older ones from Petrakis which had been missing from the end of July. I’d worked out what should have been there so was able to go back and enter the invoice numbers and get the amounts accurate too. I went to the office a little later to discover more missing invoices and some new ones. There were also a couple in the kitchen and there might be some in the bar. It seems that Greek suppliers don’t automatically produce monthly statements which would be very helpful. The entire process could do with tightening up.
I went out into the camping and ended up having a good conversation with some French people which started off in French until we were joined by a Greek guy so we changed to English. The French are not known for their linguistic abilities however this guy worked in an English-speaking organisation so speaks very good English, especially for a Frenchman. It was amusing as two separate Greeks tried to offer me assistance with the electrical connections which I was reconfiguring and consolidating. I explained that I’d actually built the meters and the rationale behind the metering policy in the light of increased cost and climate responsibility. The quickly discovered I didn’t really need much help. The French family are off to Samaria tomorrow so I gave them the information for the companies which operate excursions. One of which runs a minibus out to Kountoura.
I’d done DD’s which were my main reason for the Petrakis visit then I got called away to look at an air conditioner head unit but all that needed was the correct code in the remote. Michaelis dealt with that so I was let off the hook. I had another quick visit to the office to pick up the previously processed invoices so now I can put them all together as I have most of the missing ones. There has to be a better way! Without an assistant in the office, Maria has more than enough to do so doesn’t need to be tracking down invoices. At least Litsa is giving her a break which I suspect is good for both of them. I, very efficiently, cannot answer the phone or speak fluent Greek! Doing the bookkeeping and other little back office jobs is enough to keep my brain busy. Then I choose which punters I wish to communicate with.
Some small children came to the gate earlier to see the dogs but they didn’t seem to be taken aback when Isabella arrived. For a child, Isabella might seem enormous and black.
The Ηoliday Weekend approaches so I expect the camping to be extra-busy tomorrow. As anticipated, everything is booked solid except for one large rental tent but I’m sure that will go tomorrow or Saturday.
As for the weather, it should remain reasonably wind-free and the temperature will be warm without being overbearing. It should be a good weekend. I’m sure everyone on the staff will breathe a huge sigh of relief at the end of the week. Unsurprisingly, all fixed accommodation is fully booked as far as 28 August so no letup for hotel services!
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