Day 5

Day 5

Skyros 2021 · 14. October 2021

The morning started with a somewhat tricky task. The car key was locked in the boot. So some of us first became car thieves. Then it was time to get to work.

One group visited the KITA in Skyros today, which is about to open. Various renovation works, such as filling, painting and laying floor tiles were the tasks. When we entered the room, we were all shocked. Everything was old, light knocks against the wall caused the paint on the wall to peel off. Despite all these averse feelings, we also accepted this challenge. Three of us freed the wall from the peeling by roughly scraping everything off with a spatula. In some parts of the wall, pieces came along, along with a depth of 2-3cm. All the dust had to go before we could paint the walls. For this reason, we swept the floor first. With a filler we filled all the holes so that the wall was more or less even again. Now we had to wait until the first surfaces had dried. During this time, we covered the floor with a roll of kitchen paper so that no paint got on the floor. Painting the walls went quickly. During this time, we dismantled the old television. Of course, we also brought a new television. The mounting of the new TV went smoothly. At the end we cleaned the whole KITA so that the children had a good as well as clean start. We all agreed that our efforts had helped a little. At the same time, we knew that much more needs to be done because all the walls are broken. The kitchen is very old and rusty, also the rooms are damp and also badly lit. A possible project for next year is therefore to renovate the whole KITA.

Marta was allowed to visit the hospital of Skyros. She had many expectations and hopes to see special differences to Switzerland. Arriving at the hospital, everyone was a little confused. Not everyone was informed by the hospital management that she was coming today. She first sat in the ward room, where one cigarette after another was burning. A sympathetic nurse explained to her that she should not have too many expectations for special cases. This hospital, she said, was more of a “health centre”. They would take in emergencies and, depending on the degree of injury/crisis, transfer them further to the nearest hospital on the mainland. On the in-patient side, they have nursing aids, trained nurses and specialised female doctors. Cases like pregnancies or serious car accidents, do not find a permanent place here. She was guided through the “centre” with exciting stories and information. Unfortunately, she could hardly perform any activities independently, as the hospital staff were not informed that she was coming as another staff member to help. However, there was not much acute going on today either. Several people came to the hospital to have a Corona test – or even to get vaccinated. Several flies could be seen or heard in the ward rooms, and of course cigarettes were burning again. Outside the window, however, she discovered the most shocking thing. The area was completely surrounded by a flock of sheep. There were also chickens among the flock. She thought to herself several times what would happen if such an animal walked into a hospital like this. So hygiene differences were strongly apparent. Nevertheless, she had a great time and was very pleasantly surprised that the staff was so upbeat and friendly despite the lack of space and professional equipment. However, she concluded by saying that she had learned a lot again from today.

Another group dedicated themselves to food and hygiene material shopping. Using lists, they went shopping at the nearby supermarket. After the material was all filled into bags, they took it to the needy people. Some of the people told their life stories. It was very impressive and touching to hear them. One elderly lady was so grateful that we provided her with some materials that she offered us a chocolate in return. These were a little tarnished but still tasted delicious.

At 3:30 pm we all met together in our storage room, because Silvia (social worker) wanted to have a talk with us, giving us feedback from the residents and giving us important character traits for life.

Michael, Pascal, Alexandra and Ladina visited the music school in the evening. They played music with the children and gave them lessons. They had a lot of fun.

In the evening, our whole Swiss For Greece group was invited by Dimitri (harbour master) to a wonderful dinner as a thank you for our work. They had cooked and prepared the meal for us. Mostly Greek specialities were served. Besides a Greek dessert, we were surprised with a Swiss For Greece personalised cake. They used this as a birthday cake for our great Michaela (Mica). This celebration was also breathtaking. After this great time we thanked the people who made tonight possible and are already looking forward to seeing them again next year.

Highlight Michael

I was allowed to visit the music school again. First of all, I received a warm welcome. After a private concert for me, I taught some students drumming. I was able to teach them some simple grooves. It was noticeable that music connects people, no matter what language you speak.

Highlight Marta

Today I was in the hospital of Skyros. The building was very small, even the nurses told me that this “ward” is only used for emergencies. Then the patients would be sent on. Hygiene differences were many, obvious features that showed that the people here do not have the good resources we have in Switzerland. However, the people were surprisingly friendly and put up.

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