Aug 15 Thursday
Day 5
The morning was relaxed.
We have a split crew today. Christine, Rich, Paige, Renee and Kareen go
in to camp at 4:00 and work until midnight.
John and I will be going in at midnight and work until 8:00.
We had a lazy cup of coffee by the seaside where John and I,
again, solved the world’s problems.
There seems to be a never-ending supply of problems that the world and
its people create.
At 1:00 Kim took us to the Home for a Day Restaurant. It is owned and operated by Nick a very nice
man who used to run a for profit restaurant and then began operating this
nonprofit establishment. Those who have
run restaurants may not see the distinction.
But Nick in not out to make a killing.
His mission is to serve refugees.
This is Nick after he served us lunch.
Nick spends his days cooking and serving food to two groups
of people. The refugees on the island –
they eat for free and the volunteers who come to serve the refugees by working
at one of the NGOs.
Side note: NGO is one of the Non-Governmental Organization
that serves around the world. EuroRelief
is the NGO that runs the services at Moria.
The Greek police provide security, EU High commission for refugees
process the paperwork. Doctor’s without
boards (an NGO) care for children and pregnant women. The Greek government provides workers that
collect trash and clean (sorta). The
Greek military provides 3 meals a day for folks. EuroRelief does everything else. Keeping of records, passing out doctors
appointment times, distributing food, clothing and sleeping bags, providing
tents and setting them up, providing some security. And through it all smiling and talking to the
people here. Moria is difficult. The people keep coming. And the process that the government runs to
make decisions about asylum is practically non-existent. Hundreds of people come and almost no one
leaves. They are not locked in here. The gates and fences deter people who do not
belong from coming in. But even that is
a farce. The police don’t check papers
and there are open gates and holes in the back fence. They don’t leave because they have no place
better to go.
Nick runs a van back and forth from Moria to At Home for a
Day. The refugees eat for free and the
NGO folks pay a donation. I was told
that the food is always good but sometimes better. Today it was much better.
We sat outside at a long table that we shared with a man and
his daughter from Amsterdam. He has been
working here and fund raising for the refugees since the crises began in
2015. He was here this trip on vacation
to bring his daughter. The daughter was
15ish and was very pleased to show off her new tattoo.
We wisely sat in the shade.
There was one of the refugees inside the restaurant from Afghanistan
who was an excellent artist and was doing henna tattoos for those who wished
to have one.
The people of Lesvos have been hurt by the refugee
crisis. Tourism has slowed way down even
though when you go to the tourist area on the North of the Island there are no
refugees around. Consequently, if you
are planning a vacation to a Greek island you can get quite a bargain on
Lesvos.
A nice volunteer lady from Portugal was serving food. The name of the restaurant “Home for a day”
is very descriptive of how the place operates.
Like home, you are called to lunch and you don’t get to pick what you
want from a menu. You just eat what is
set in front of you. Our friend from
Portugal sat on the table: bread, Greek salad (I ate the tomatoes, onions and
feta. Richard ate my cucumbers.),
poached eggs with a tomato olive oil sauce over it (This dish was misidentified
by Richard as ravioli when it was first sat on the table. It was delicious. Nick was very closed mouth about his recipes
or I would make you some of this.), spaghetti with mushrooms and other tasty
stuff, roast lamb shanks that were to die for, and rice. A feast fit for a king!
Home for a Day is located a few miles from Moria camp and is
on a beautiful spot on the bay. There is
a nice swimming area and a cove on the bay for boats. They send vans to Moria to bring some of the
boys and girls to eat and swim.
Decorating the outdoor dining area was an old boat.
The obligatory cat under the table.
The not quite so frequently seen cat in a box.
The boat harbor.
This was a table top painted by one of the refugees who came here to eat.
The swimming area by the restaurant.
After lunch we returned to our hotel and the evening shift left
for Moria about 3:30. John and I slept
from 3 until 11:00. At midnight John and
I started our shift.
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