MOSQUITOS & CHICKEN BREASTS

Here on the Greek island of Rhodes the crush of the cruise ship crowds are annoying, sorry but it's true. They swarm the medieval Old Town of Rhodes giving you no chance to hear the ghosts of the Knights of Rhodes, the horse hooves on the cobblestone streets, the flash of a door opening and seeing into a past life, dressed in a knight's armour. Wonderful memories of being here in quieter times. But I will return at night or early morning when the ghosts speak to me.


Now I am immersed in present moments, very present, because I have been eaten alive by mosquitos!!!! My face and eyes swollen up, I resemble Quasimodo the hunchbacked face of Rhodestown. I spent my first night sitting up in the white marble tiled bathroom with a frozen chicken breast on my face! It helped with the swelling and was the only thing in the fridge. So what to do?

My friend Perry whose apartment I am staying at, had to go to Kalymnos Island to get his boat out of drydock and ferry it to Rhodes and then to Lindos for the summer tourist season---I was supposed to go with him but not with swollen eyes.

BTW, if you go to Rhodes, visit Perry at his boats along Mandraki Harbour or moored in Lindos. His two boats are the Free Spirit and the Discovery.

Desperate, I called his mobile. Perry told me to go to the supermarket and buy a little mosquito machine. Huh? I asked his friend Irini about it and she agreed. So I went and the shop owner knew immediately what I meant. For those also suffering with the scourge of European travel in Springtime = mosquitoes, it's a little plug-in thingy with a liquid bottle and it puts the bugs "to sleep" and keeps them away 100%. What it does to your own lungs I have no idea, but I figure it's not for long. Springtime in Rhodes (May) is beautiful only if you use this little machine like all the Greeks do, every household. The next night I slept like a baby all night, and even ate the defrosted chicken breast for dinner!

Here is a restful contemplation to do from my friend back home that helped me to sleep (soulflow.ca):

"Time to take another deep breath and relax. Come into yourself letting everything else go and say, 'Just me'. Sit quietly. Just be with yourself for a few precious seconds letting everything else go. Be there long enough to feel what's going on inside. Are there emotions bubbling up that need to be addressed or is there an emptiness that gives way to a sense of feeling grounded? Just let it be. It is perfect the way it is so just let it be. When you're ready intend to let inner healing carry on inside and come back to the space you're in."

Yasou!

[Photo copyright by M. J. Milne 2011: Free Spirit Boat; Perry Painting His Boat.]