AUGUST 2010
03 August
New Anchorage
We have motored further south down the Evia Channel and reached Porto Rafti on the mainland coast of Greece about 50km east of Athens by road. A month after faltering and still without a clear-cut diagnosis we are in the final throws of getting an MRI in Athens and also have my NZ doctor (fellow yachtie) in the loop too.
A month of no walking, absolute bloody pain that is still unresolved, that responds to rest but reappears on getting vertical. We are obviously now behind sched for 2010 and we will be reassessing things when we have a clear diagnosis. The jury is out on where we go if I need specialist attention, here in Greece, the UK or maybe back to NZ.
Have always lived by the adage you just don’t know what’s round the corner, which is why we are doing this circumnavigation thing. But it has to be done whilst the head, heart and body are still willing....looks like P has cut the corner with the body!!
05 August
MRI at Last
Yippee!! have had the MRI today at the swanky Athens Medical Centre (read expensive) and the preliminary diagnosis by the radiologist lass was obvious damage to the Lumbar Spine at L4/5 but a formal diagnosis must come from a consulting Orthopaedic specialist next week.
10 August
Definitive Diagnosis
We have consultation with the experts and they confirmed I have a herniated disc which surprisingly I am relieved to learn because it confirms it’s an injury related condition only. Recommended fix is a surgical procedure called a 'Microdiscectomy' that without complications will relieve pain immediately but require 6 week recuperation.
Immediate Invasive Solution Offered
I was introduced to an Orthopaedic Surgeon who also diagnosed me and we discussed my lifestyle and he reaffirmed the operation as the best way forward.
The cost is NZD16k+ if everything goes right and they can do it tomorrow... so we go away to think about it !!
We return to Musketelle at Porto Rafti to gather thoughts and needless to say Google the microdiscectomy procedure..... and this is where things start to unravel because for each successful story there are 10 negative reports by sufferers saying at all cost avoid the operation with numerous complications sighted. After the delays of the previous month things are now moving at lightening pace. We call to delay the procedure.
11 August
Skype Consultation with NZ doctor
Got back in touch with Dr Alex our NZ doctor and he gave me a balanced opinion for both the Invasive solution and also the non-invasive solution and naturally leaves the decision to me. B and I talked it through and concluded that we were against the knife but that if things did at any time take a turn for the worse we would not hesitate to have the operation.
We send a CD copy of the scan to him in NZ so he can look himself and get another opinion from a local specialist. To speed the delivery B goes to Athens Airport which is between Rafti and Athens to send from an airport based courier but ends up being directed to the airport Post Office. They offer a range of options one of which was a trackable deal operated by Hellenic Post with a 5 day delivery to NZ......it ultimately took 3 weeks not helped by NZ Post acknowledging they had it mislaid in their system whilst back in Greece we were castigating the Greek PO service.
12 August
We Opt for Non-Invasive solution
At the expense of throwing our cruising plans in the air I made a decision opting for the Non-Invasive solution which Dr Alex suggested would require a minimum 3 months rest avoiding any stress and strain but requiring a simple exercise regime as the pain progressed from Acute to Chronic.
Being a yachtie Dr Alex recommended the first exercise involve patient being dangled into the tide over the stern of Musketelle in a harness around the abdomen allowing the body to relax and stretch to relieve pressure on the spine.
Whacko it started helping and progressively I became ever so slowly more comfortable with the pain changing profile but certainly not going away. I quickly learned what helped and what hurt. Surprisingly some of the worst pain now started to occur when horizontal with pain increasing at night and this went on for over a month night in night out. Not happy!!
The tedium of being restricted like this is really getting to me and providing an instant insight into ageing !! and I don’t like it !!
During this time we were neatly positioned at anchor in the bay at Porto Rafti with multiple swims each day the real lifesaver in the heat and it was here I started to get off Musketelle for brief visits ashore for other than hospital visits. Did not go far, normally just to the nearest taverna to relax as best I could but it was a start and each time I got more distance on the crutches. But also had some days when things went backwards so knew I was certainly not out of the woods and that the operation might still be required.
It was very much touch and go around this time and although the pain profile was clearly changing ever so slowly for the better I was loath to discuss it with B because this whole thing is really testing our resolve, absolutely destroying our cruising plans and schedule requiring us to make decisions that we really don’t want to make. At times we were both silently assessing and mulling over all options, one of which was the unspoken prospect of having pull the plug on the circumnavigation altogether and put Musketelle on the block !!
But one decision has already been decided for us. Timing now dictates we will not be heading across the Atlantic this season. Which opens the door to numerous other options that do require Discussion and Decision making.....
Decisions Decisions Decisions
If the operation is required........
Do we have the operation in Greece, France,UK or return to NZ or even Australia ?
Where do we layup Musketelle for winter.....
Do we stay in Greece at Messolonghi Marina ?
Do we consider even crossing to Italy, if P is up to it ?
Do we return to Turkey where we know the ropes, and is P up to it ?
We don't want to stay on Musketelle for the winter and need somewhere to recuperate........
Do we go home to NZ for the summer ?
Do we go to France
Do we go to the UK
Do we rent a pension in Turkey
What do we do with WiFi ?
who is coming along nicely under tutilage of her new owners
16 August
On the Move
So with these options pending we departed Porto Rafti and headed south to round Cape Sounion a little over 6 weeks after we entered the Evia Channel a journey that should have taken 2/3 days. We round the stunning Cape with prominent temple to spend a few pleasant nights anchored off the town of Vari before heading the short distance further west to Zea Marina near Piraeus the port area for Athens.
On arrival Zea Marina persevered with the crutches and got off the boat for a few meals at nearby restaurants then discovered riding the bike was easier than hobbling on the crutches so enjoyed exploring the marina precincts.
The reason we have come here is because we are en-route to Messolonghi Marina which is on the Gulf of Corinth to the west requiring us to transit the Corinth Canal to get there and Piraeus is on the way. Also we need to talk to Greek Customs who have a main office at Zea Marina about a 'Bi-Lateral Agreement'.
What Bi-Lateral Agreement?
We have issues about leaving Musketelle in Greece beyond 3 months just as there are for us with Greek Immigration. NZ has a bi-lateral agreement with Greece that overrides certain regulations under the 'Schengen Agreement' that would assist us but can you believe none of the border control and customs officials know anything about it and just shrug their shoulders. To make matters worse the NZ Embassy in Rome (that also covers Greece) was of no help when we phoned them. So now our plans for laying over in Greece really are up in the air and we are sitting at Zea Marina literally making a decision on whether it’s worth spending $600 going through the canal tomorrow to checkout Messolonghi or returning to Turkey !!
The Customs officials at Zea turn out to be no better than elsewhere with most staff more interested in 'social networking' on the office computers.
17 August
We Turn Back !!
Now to people who have an aversion to turning back this is a real conundrum but it’s looking like a no brainer. The cost of staying in Greece and Turkey might be similar, but the Turks give the impression they like us and welcome our contribution to their economy and their rules for staying are clear-cut. In contrast the Greeks are negative on all counts and furthermore there is political uncertainty and unrest among the natives at the economic austerity measures being introduced that might mean we have trouble when come to leave Greece next year.
So Turkey it is !! and that’s one big decision sorted.
20 August
Back to Vari
From Piraeus we motored back to the anchorage at Vari halfway between Athens and Cape Sounion where we stayed for 10 days, relaxing in the sun with swimming the major activity for the invalid. I made giant steps forward here with the multiple swims really doing me good although sometimes I overdid things much to B's chagrin. Shore visits were not successful.
31 August
End of the Summer Pain
Time to get going we have just 15 days on our visa to be out of Greece. So we hop down to Cape Sounion for an overnight stop on the last offical day of the Northern Summer anchoring under the floodlit temple atop the Cape and swim in the last rays of the official summer sun.
Tomorrow morning 1st day of a new month and a new season, we will start going back as we head East for winter with the Turks.
