Sunday 30 September 2018

Medic-ame and went

So we experienced some bad weather.  None of our roof tiles got blown off.  The lemon trees got a long deep drink.  A drip started dropping in one room but it was contained in a bucket.  The only nuisance, the sound of that drip all night long.

Greece got battered.  Small boats got sunk. Rivers overflowed, waves blew yachts onto the beach, houses were flooded but not around here.   K's little boat got buffeted and many buckets of rain water had to be pumped out of the bilges but it survived to sail another day.  

We watched fascinated as the storm passed over the Ionian sea, across the Peloponese, through the Cyclades, up into the Sporades and finally over to Turkey.

Not so fascinating was the force of the wind thumping the olive trees outside our window.  The worst damage on the island was a fallen tree near the beach which fell on power lines and blacked us out for a few hours.  80 year old Vaso came down during the power outage to make sure it wasn't just her power that was out.  A fragile figure wearing her husband's old threadbare  dressing gown and a pair of plastic beach shoes.  Her hair was standing on end after the bout with the wind as she battled to our gate.  After a glass of raki and the present of a bottle of our homemade vinegar she struggled back through the gale, up the slope  to her house.  I watched with bated breath to make sure she wasn't blown away like Shirley Temple in the Wizard of Oz.  Not even a cyclone can stop Vaso.


A waterspout photo-ed out in the bay of Poros

  

Our front garden
Maybe the peppers will produce more fruit now after this plentiful watering.  They were the only plants left 
The weeds are sure to appear like magic in a few days

Our friend, David Kaikas, returned safely to Athens on the bus and then strode out in the eye of the storm.  He took another bus and wrestled through the wind and rain to see the site of the battle of Marathon.  Here the Athenians defeated the Persians and a runner brought the good news to the people of Athens.  That's how the idea of the modern marathon started.

Mad dogs and englishmen
Tramp out in the eye of a storm!

He got happily drenched and later spent a few hours in a hotel room drying his clothes with a hair dryer 
And lived to fly home the next day

Now I know what it's like when a mediterranean hurricane (medicane) blows through Poros.  I hope they don't become a regular occurence in these times of climate change

13 comments:

  1. Glad you survived with only minor damage.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've just got a lot of sweeping and cleaning to do inside and out. Everytime we opened the door a wall of leaves was blown inside.

      Delete
  2. Climate change brings with it many new phenomena, here 30 degrees and a little rain, like tropical weather.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have noticed the summers are changing. We are definitely getting more rain in the summer. July was quite wet this year.
      As long as it doesn't get any hotter here!

      Delete
  3. Nasty; I don't like strong wind. Cold here today with an icy blast coming from the North. Brrrrr.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I do not like the wind at all. It whiatles around the house and sounds quite frightening. Fortunately it is still quite warm here but not swimming weather anymore

      Delete
  4. Gosh I am glad you are all ok and no damage.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sol, I'm glad you commented. One of the ports that had continual coverage was Porto Heli. It got hit really badly. All the harbour roads were knee deep in mud and sea water and quite a few fishing boats and yachts were either sunk or washed up on nearby beaches. It is not the safest of harbours! The waves came over the jetties and walls and smashed onto land. The sea water was a very dark browny red colour from all the dirt washed down to the sea. We were lucky our harbour was more sheltered from these winds

      Delete
  5. So good that you didn't get any big damage!!!

    And Vaso is amazing. Came to see if she was the only one, without power!!! Maybe she just wanted to check in, with other people, during the rampage.

    So glad you didn't get the damage, of other places.

    🍁 🎃 🍁

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We were glad to see her. All our phones were out in the area and she locks her gate so it is difficult to get her attention sometimes and see if she is ok.

      Delete
  6. We heard about the storms in Greece and I thought about you and hoped that you were safe. Vaso must be a very strong women to battle those winds. It's snowing here at the moment!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I got the shock of my life when I heard the door bell. We were discussing how to get hold of her and lo and behold she appeared ... in the middle of a hurricane , well, almost a hurricane.
      She has strength of body and character and will probably outlast us all

      Delete
  7. Wow,that sounds scary!! Glad you still have your roof! Don't know if you can see mine, if you see any tiles off will you let me know and will send the guys round. Hope all calming down and back out in deck chairs... look forward to seeing you next year lol x

    ReplyDelete