Dealing with it!

Monday
Many firsts today: the first bath sitting in the shower stall with a hand shower and a plastic bag on my cast. Trying out the new pink crutches that Oswaldo bought for me as well as sinking - finally - into a sturdy black wheelchair (hopping around on your left foot is just not that enjoyable). Learning to maneuver around in the wheel-chair - "It's just like driving the boat," said Oswaldo, who never let me drive his! But I'm getting the hang of it. Still iffy about the crutches - the fracture is very recent, but the wheel-chair? I own that thing. First outing:

Rather scary to jolt along so close to passing cars, and especially to negotiate all the curbs where Atheneans could have put some ramps! Oswaldo pushing the heavy combination of me and the wheelchair, sometimes uphill and across gravel, to see the Temple of Zeus, which closed the instant we reached the entrance. We decided to walk partway through the National Gardens, where we found a pretty café and took a break with iced Expressos. Then on we went, finding the road that took us past the presidential palace, secluded behind a wall I saw from this height

and which was guarded by two statuesque Greek guards

and also by these guys, busy on their phones and with a stray dog for company.

We had now made it halfway to the hotel where we were meeting Susan Haack for dinner, so we gamely decided to continue as we were. This involved several dramatic moments with kerbs and traffic, and some breaks just for breathing; and as we passed by, people would stare at us wondering, perhaps, what on earth???

But we made it to the hotel, where I had to be lifted up the shiny marble stairs by two porters (no ramp) to a nice cool gin and tonic. I tried my first visit alone to a spacious bathroom, which did not have a cubicle for a wheelchair - a new challenge, but I survived. For a tall person like myself it's odd to find my image looking back at me from the very bottom of the mirror.

Our subsequent dinner with Susan in a cozy outdoor restaurant, filled with jolly diners, was very pleasant. The Greek food is wonderful, perfectly Mediterranean light. 

We took a cab home and sat on our balcony to enjoy the beautifully lit ruins. 

We've decided to just go ahead with our program as planned. It will not always be easy, espcially Santorini with the many stairs. But if the crutches are too scary, I can always sit on my butt and take the steps one at a time. It will be fine.