It must be Symi !
It is 6am and it sounds very blustery outside here in Llanddeiniol in Mid Wales. Radio5Live is reporting on the financial troubles that still face Greece. And E is still in the Land of Nod
It is about time to get up and get stuck into the preliminaries for our regular May visit to Symi. The first and most important task is to get Greyam, our cat, to the cattery. This is no easy task. At eleven years old he has seen this routine twice a year all his life and he just seems to sense that today is the day he has to forego his cat flap and his hunting ground for a couple of weeks. It is the confines of his cat box that is the real issue as once he is in it he loves the trip in the car. His "timeshare" is only 10 minutes away and the girls that own and run the place really spoil him - roast chicken for all the "guests" on a Sunday - now that's a cattery.
Then back to the house and do the recycling, then pack and head for Manchester airport which is about three to three and a half hours in the car. We are booked into the Crowne Plaza for the night and have arranged for the car to be parked there whilst we are away. Anyone who reads my excessive ramblings knows that food is an important part of the holiday so the Crowne Plaza is chosen because it has a first class Thai restaurant.
Our friends P&H will meet us tomorrow morning at Terminal 2 and we will be on the Olympic Germania flight at 09:00 and all being well will be on Symi tomorrow night staying with the wonderful Anastasia (and Sam) in Chorio.
I'm afraid this is the first of what has become a bit of a ritual of sharing my daily mundane observations and gastronomic experiences when we visit Symi. Please excuse any spelling, grammar and boring repetition.
And so the journey starts