Tue 12.Dec.2017
Rhodes, Greece
Developing medical worries - I scheduled 3+ months in California this time around. Tests and scopings dragged on, but
I resisted re-scheduling my next departure until I had some idea when to re-schedule it to. That proved just as well.
I turned out to be in less danger than feared; potential treatments would be risky. In short, I am back on the road -
and Rhodes - in good time and good conscience. Well, it all did need to be checked out.
Departure!
I got a pair of flights to Paris and Prague. Air France got the inflatable butt cushion that I
forgot on the plane in Paris. Somebody at San Francisco airport must have gotten the cell phone that slipped out of my
poorly-zipped belt pouch sometime before boarding. Oops!
A window seat made for a good sunrise picture. 30F temperatures in Prague made me thankful that I had
worn long johns and wool socks. A night in a comfortable hotel bed with a good breakfast made up for just about everything.
C'est la vie on the road.
Welcome to Rhodes!
Another day, two more flights, and here we are. Athens airport has become easier for connecting passengers.
You no longer need to go through security a second time.
A welcome change, that.
The airport espresso wasn't bad, but I
had ordered a Greek coffee, which I guess wasn't in their machine and they weren't alowed to make it by hand. The guy might at
least have warned me, instead of just making the substitution. It got me to my flight, anyway. What is a
Greek coffee counter without Greek coffee?
Thursday at the market.
The pita truck didn't have its barbecue out, so no souvlaki pita. Also no grapes or plums this late in the season.
Good clementines, though, and those sweet little Rhodian pears. And local honey - pine, chestnut, and some floral mix.
I probably scarfed up enough honey to last my whole time here.
A visit to the supermarket deli counter, and now I have thick unstrained Greek yogurt to put under the honey.
A brunch worth waking up for.
I replaced the lost cell phone. Used the opportunity to upgrade my SIM card to support mobile data. That stuff can spoil you.
I also changed my email and Facebook passwords at first opportunity after losing the phone. No damage seems to have been
done to those accounts, thank goodness. I had never done banking or other business by phone. So the worst I suffered from
that affair was a long worried flight. Worries then, relief now.
What ho... a bird on the wing ...
... and a bunch on the ground.
It rained for a couple of days, more or less over the weekend. As usual here, the rain was not steady all day.
It came and went, rarely staying more than a couple of hours at a time. I waited it out and read my new Economist on
a covered sidewalk in front of a new town cafe.
When the rain cleared late afternoon, the sky over the harbor made for delight.
Notice the second, very faint rainbow visible under the tree on the right.