end of the hols?
Oct. 29th, 2021 07:43 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ruthct21I'm looking down from our apartment to the beach which is bright with sunshine. It's been full of families all week, many of them British but now it is almost empty. We had an errand in Kalamata this morning and we passed lots of big coaches heading for the road to the airport and north to Athens. It seems likely that many of those were taking people to their flight home after the half-term break.
Meanwhile, one of the main restaurants here is already closed for the winter and we have been warned that others will close or reduce their service after this weekend. When we were here in November last year, Greece was heading into lockdown. The supermarkets and pharmacy were open for trade but the restaurants were either fully closed or operating as take-outs only. No sign of that here at the moment, but then Greece seems to be handling the Covid crisis much more efficiently that Britain. And there are lots of people with holiday homes or expats who are not rushing off, so there will be plenty of trade still.
After the clocks go back on Sunday, the tourist day will shift to a bit later. We will have more or less the same amount of sunshine but starting a bit later in the morning. I have not yet gone into the sea (still recovering my energy!) but Mick is swimming most days and says the water is feeling very warm, presumably from the long hot summer.
On the house-hunting front, we have seen some choice places, both houses and building plots, and more to come. I don't think we have yet had a "Wow!" moment. There has been lots of trade during the past year and more places are coming on the market because people here expect prices to rise in 2022. We have more viewings booked for next week and we will also be going to see a property lawyer, an engineer (equivalent to surveyor) and a specialist in immigration law who can advise us on how to organise our application for the "golden visa" which will entitle us to residency. Our landlady says she will be seeking tenants to stay for a year in her biggest flat: if we decided to purchase a plot and build, we would need to spend a lot of time here supervising. I'd prefer to move into a finished house, especially as most of them are sold furnished.
This evening we will sample an Indian restaurant which has recently opened her in Stoupa. The menu looks very appetising!
Meanwhile, one of the main restaurants here is already closed for the winter and we have been warned that others will close or reduce their service after this weekend. When we were here in November last year, Greece was heading into lockdown. The supermarkets and pharmacy were open for trade but the restaurants were either fully closed or operating as take-outs only. No sign of that here at the moment, but then Greece seems to be handling the Covid crisis much more efficiently that Britain. And there are lots of people with holiday homes or expats who are not rushing off, so there will be plenty of trade still.
After the clocks go back on Sunday, the tourist day will shift to a bit later. We will have more or less the same amount of sunshine but starting a bit later in the morning. I have not yet gone into the sea (still recovering my energy!) but Mick is swimming most days and says the water is feeling very warm, presumably from the long hot summer.
On the house-hunting front, we have seen some choice places, both houses and building plots, and more to come. I don't think we have yet had a "Wow!" moment. There has been lots of trade during the past year and more places are coming on the market because people here expect prices to rise in 2022. We have more viewings booked for next week and we will also be going to see a property lawyer, an engineer (equivalent to surveyor) and a specialist in immigration law who can advise us on how to organise our application for the "golden visa" which will entitle us to residency. Our landlady says she will be seeking tenants to stay for a year in her biggest flat: if we decided to purchase a plot and build, we would need to spend a lot of time here supervising. I'd prefer to move into a finished house, especially as most of them are sold furnished.
This evening we will sample an Indian restaurant which has recently opened her in Stoupa. The menu looks very appetising!
