He pedals on gaily up the hill, the photographer does. He is an overweight man in his early seventies, why is he showing off? Because he can. He has been fitted with new heart parts. Get up on the bicycle to follow this friendly visitor from Munich, and catch up on him as he stops at the foot of a stairway to catch his breath.
Lock up the bicycles and start to climb the stairs. This is his idea. They are granite steps let into the hillside, and they are steep and uneven. Climb on, and look back. The friend's face is grey and his hands are shaking. Help him to sit down, and wait until he can talk sensibly again, until his dizziness has gone.
He still looks unwell.
Tell him so.
Ask him whether it would be a good idea to call the emergency services.
He says no, vehemently. After half an hour walk back down the stairs to the bicycles. At the bottom of the hill there is a beer garden, stop there and order a large bottle of cold and fizzy water. His normal colours return.
Agree that this could have been nasty.
Climbing stairs up hillsides is no business for old men with heart problems.
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