Greece 2023

We've seen many dogs since arriving in Greece (and loads of cats!), but they mostly lay around and barely notice passersby. On our mountain bike tour, we had seven (yes, seven!) barking dogs come running through the woods at us, but Vasilis calmed them down and it was a non-issue. We learned when confronted with a dog to ride slow or stop, put the bike between us, and talk to them in a comforting voice. While dogs are common, bites not so much. We should be so lucky. After leaving Piana, at the bottom of a hill, three dogs came running out, barking, and they were at my heels before I could even react. One big brown dog bit me in the right leg, and then they ran off. Tom watched this from several feet back. We went a bit further, and a car stopped to see if I was OK. Another very kind Greek woman gave me kleenex and antiseptic wipes after we saw that the bite had pierced the skin. She was trying to figure out how they could get me and my bike the six miles to the hospital when I told her I was fine -- it really didn't hurt that much. She said I should go to the Tripoli General Hospital once I got into town, because this could have been a stray dog without shots. So...that's what I did. I was clearly a low priority at the hospital, probably both because it was a modest bite, and I was a foreigner. It took a couple of hours, but they finally got me in, cleaned the wound (not gingerly 😠), and gave me a prescription for an antibiotic and a tetanus shot. Being election day, only one pharmacy was open. That part was amazing though. Within about 10 minutes I had my prescription and they gave me the shot. 38€ total (about $42) at the pharmacy. I don't know the cost of the hospital exam -- they told me to come back Tuesday to pay (apparently the people who can take money are off until then due to elections - ha!). At the hotel, we met some of the other riders, and get this -- one of them got bit too, and by the very same dog!! His wife is a doctor, who had antibiotics with her, and he is up to date on his tetanus, so no hospital for him. We've since also learned that there is no rabies in Greece -- hooray! I'm fine -- it's a little sore, but not terrible.Read more