Adriana's Symi-a Greek island diary: July 2007

Dragon's Breath

It is another sizzling hot summer’s day on Symi. The worst of the latest heatwave is over in that temperatures are just below 40 degrees rather than on their way to 50. The wind has shifted to the South West and it is very humid. Hazy clouds give the illusion that it should be cooler than it is.

The leaves are falling in fast rustling swirls, turned from crisp green to brown paper by the dragon’s breath that the Mediterranean summer has become. Fires are still burning around Greece and suburban Athens is once again under threat from encroaching flames. The full moon is vivid orange from the smoke particles in the air over Greece.

The nights are hot and still. In the early hours of the morning the distant roar of the power station on the Pedi road as it labours to feed the island’s air conditioners mingles with the restless tinkle of sheep bells and odd squawks as fretful poultry rearrange themselves on their roosts.

Have a good week.

Regards,
Adriana

The View from my Window 12.30 30 July 07

The Aegli has just come in from Rhodes and as the Life and Hope medical hydrofoil is in its slot on the quay the two hydrofoils have rafted up. Everyone disembarking from the Aegli is carrying their luggage through the Life and Hope hydrofoil to get it ashore. In a few minutes the human tide will turn as those waiting on the quay to depart on the hydrofoil carry their luggage through Life and Hope hydrofoil to get it onto the Aegli.

The View from the Symi Visitor 8 a.m 30 July 07

Plain Sailing - Twilight 26 July 2007

Heatwave

>> – heatwave, nature

This is what an orange tree looks like after sustained temperatures in the 40s. Hence the colour, burnt orange! The air is so hot and dry that the fruits are seared despite weekly deep irrigation.

The View from the Symi Visitor 27 July 2007

>> Friday, July 27, 2007 – Mariu, yachts

Some of the yachts from the regatta in the foreground - and Armani's yacht, Mariu, in the high security area outside the police station.

Walking to Work 7 a.m 26 July 2007

>> Thursday, July 26, 2007 – Capers, Chorio, Pedi

Another hot still day dawns over Pedi.

The Kastro in the early morning haze.

A caper bush in full flower - another hour or so and the blossoms will have vanished completely.

The View 24 July - Salamis Glory

The Salamis Glory is just docking. The tourist shops have been a flurry of activity since just after seven, preparing for the Cypriot tourists. As you can see from the masts in the foreground, the Turks are back in town!

The View from my Office Window 8 a.m 22 July 2007

The harbour is empty, as there are no Turkish flagged boats in due to the election.

Heavenly Daze

It is hot and steamy on Symi. Temperatures are rising steadily as Greece moves into another country-wide heatwave. The water-taxis are packed as everyone who can do so heads for the beach. In the afternoons the bus to Pedi is full of bathing suited children with inflatable toys and mindful grandmothers. Every kiosk with a bit of shade has a crowd of ice cream eaters, slurping hastily before it all melts away in a trail of chocolate and vanilla.

Outside the town the hectic chirp of cicadas provides the summer soundtrack as Symi’s stony terraces sizzle in the sun. Small lizards dart through the drought dried leaves, flashes of blue in the gold. The figs are fattening slowly after a dry winter. The last lemons on the trees are hot and empty, all the juice evaporated out through the skins, leaving strangely light and hollow fruits. The cats have become nocturnal animals, sleeping through the day under the rosemary bushes and squabbling on the roof at night.

Symi is now very full and those optimistic souls who travel without booking accommodation in advance are spending a lot of time tramping hot pavements in search of rooms. Unlike many other islands, it is unusual for locals to meet the boats touting rooms to let. This weekend is the official opening of the Symi Festival – a good excuse for Rhodians to take a weekend break and head for Symi.
Today's photograph shows the aptly named 'Heavenly Daze' chugging out of Yialos at half past nine this morning. That is the 8.30 Spanos from Rhodes docking in the background and, of course, the ever essential water boat.

Have a good weekend.

Regards,
Adriana

The Serenade from Cyprus 19 July 2007

>> Thursday, July 19, 2007 – cruise ships, Greece, Symi

Hic Salta

Just to prove that luxury yachts don't always have to look like refrigerators on steriods!

The View from the Symi Visitor Office 8 a.m 18 July

Waiting for the Aegli to arrive from Rhodes.

No room on the jetty for these so they lay at anchor overnight.

The View from the Kali Strata 8 a.m. 17 July 2007

The huddle of humanity visible outside the police station is a large group of recently arrived illegal migrants from the Sudan and Somalia among other places. They have roll call every morning.

Messing About in Boats

It is the season for messing about in boats. The gale force winds prevalent in Greek waters over the weekend kept Symi’s anchorages full and provided hours of happy amusement for boat-watchers in Nimborio, Yialos and Pedi. Apart from all the glamorous comings and goings, sorting out the cat’s cradle of anchors and warps that builds up in Yialos overnight has some entertainment value – for those ashore anyway. The indignant shouts in a multitude of languages suggest that the owners of the boats in question don’t find it half as amusing.

The strong north wind which continues to fan a hundred fires around Greece has also improved visibility locally. Calmer conditions are forecast for the rest of the week which should make life easier for the Greek fire fighters currently struggling to contain blazes on a wide range from fronts in all parts of the country. Two dry winters and an abnormally hot summer make a lethal combination. www.athensnews.gr provides good coverage.

Have a good week.

Regards,
Adriana

Glitzy Yachts

Another hot still summer’s day on Symi. Walking down to work at half past seven this morning, every patch of shade seemed to shelter someone sipping a frappe and watching the rising heat shimmering off the streets and lanes. On the Kali Strata a man was whitewashing the steps, working his way down on his knees with a pail and floppy brush. Down in the harbour the street sweepers were hosing down the quayside with seawater, using a fat pink hose and a submersible pump.

In addition to ANES’ increased island-hopping options and the Dodecanese Seaways connections, the Tilos Sea Star has also become a regular feature of Yialos this year.

The police car has just gone past, siren wailing, accompanying a lorry load of economic migrants to the police station. This is the third such group to arrive on Symi this week. I wonder what they think of the glitzy yachts and obvious wealth they see around them as they are transported round the harbour in the back of an open truck, day trippers parting to allow the convoy through.

Have a peaceful weekend.

Regards,
Adriana

The View from the Kali Strata 12 July 2007

Just before 8 this morning, when the mist still lingers over the water.

The View from the Symi Visitor 11 July 2007

The Symi has just left to return to Rhodes via Panormitis.

A Touch of Whimsy

Seen in Symi harbour at midday 10 July 2007.

The View from my Balcony Early this Morning

Empty Kegs

While the latest edition of the Athens News gave ample coverage to the horrendous forest fires that have devastated vast tracts of Pelion and Mount Parnithia National Park, Symi has been wreathed in smoke from similar blazes around Bodrum on the Turkish coast. Saturday’s sunset was as painted vivid orange and scarlet and the evening breeze smelled of burning pine forests. This part of the world is a tinderbox in the summer as high temperatures and desiccated vegetation make a lethal combination. The thermometer reached 42 degrees again yesterday.

One of today’s photographs shows the ‘beer wagon’ departing, laden with empty kegs and crates of empty beer bottles. This is a regular sight throughout the summer as keeping the island’s population and visitors fed and watered is a major exercise. If it isn’t here, it cannot be eaten or drunk – and no shop, bar, taverna or restaurant can risk running out. It is just as well that we have the cavernous hold of the Symi ferry to transport such things.

The harbour generally is very busy now as more and more yachts, power boats, caiques and day boats are in operation. Finding a berth on the quay in the evening involves a lot of shouting and hectic whistle-blowing on the part of Lefteris, the mooring man. Over in Pedi the aggrieved toots of the waterboat reveal that once again yachts have tied up on the wrong side of the quay and are blocking the waterboat’s berth.

The technicians have been busy installing air conditioning in our office (at last, at last!). It is a very neat and discreet installation too. We are looking forward to testing it.

Have a good week.

Regards,
Adriana

A Tapestry of Sound

It is a spectacularly misty morning on Symi. With humidity close to 100% the island is cocooned in pearlescent light – a dramatic contrast to the desiccating heat of recent weeks. The departing gulets with their old fashioned lines and quaint rigging look like ghostly pirate ships as they disappear into the mysterious distance of Nimos.

The clouds are slowly burning off as the day warms up. South westerly conditions are expected to prevail for the next few days so it will remain humid with temperatures in the low to mid thirties.

Cine Symi, the Symi cinema club, has started its July film season as part of the Symi Festival. The films are being shown in the playground of the junior school in Chorio and snippets of the soundtrack drift across the valley. The summer evenings on Symi are a tapestry of sound woven out of snippets of music, distant conversation and the laughter of children. Everyone lives outdoors at this time of the year – it is one of the pleasures of the climate that the chairs, tables, sofas and television sets of suburban living can migrate out into the garden until the downpours of winter resume in October.

Have a peaceful weekend.

Regards,
Adriana

On the Walk to Work 5 July 2007 - Kali Strata

The View from the Symi Visitor Balcony 4 July 2007

The Tilos Star is visiting today. As it does a day trip passengers are not allowed to carry luggage. Fortunately both the Proteus and the Aegli now supply connections with Tilos.

Regulars will notice the dramatic change in the house next to the bus stop which is having a beautiful face lift.

A Snake Came to my Water Trough...

Apologies to D H Lawrence!

The Greek heatwave has broken and although it is still hot, temperatures are within normal ranges at the moment and there is a light breeze drifting across the water. The leaves have started to fall, scorched by last week’s searing temperatures, and the last lettuces have turned to paper.

Yesterday afternoon we found this elegant snake in one of our irrigation cisterns, lapping at the last of the water. We helped him up the plank with a little assistance where he waited in the shelter of the tiles until we had finished cleaning and refilling the cistern. We always leave planks in the tanks for snakes and other fauna so that they have a means of escape – a legacy of the days when we were living afloat and had a scramble net over the side for the benefit of the ship’s cat.

Work has resumed on the new sports’ facility in Chorio and on Friday I chanced to look out of the window just as one of the trucks laden with shaped reinforcing rod rumbled past. At the front and the back of the bin, singularly at odds with the rusty contents, were several brand new and virgin white double bed mattresses, wrapped in shiny polythene, lashed end on.

Have a good week.

Regards,

Adriana

Yialos 8 a.m 2 July

Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)

About this Blog

I sailed into Panormitis Bay, Symi, by chance one windy July day in 1993 and have been here ever since. The locals tell me that this is one of the miracles of St Michael of Panormitis. A BA graduate with majors in English, Philosophy and Classical Civilisation, the idea of living in what is to all intents and purposes an archaeological site appeals to me. Not as small as Kastellorizo, not as touristy as Rhodes, Symi is just the right size. I live on a small holding which my husband and I have reclaimed from a ruin of over-grazing and neglect and turned into a small oasis over the course of the past 22 years. I also work part-time for Symi Visitor Accommodation, helping independent travellers discover and enjoy Symi's simple pleasures for themselves.

This page is kindly sponsored by Wendy Wilcox, Symi Visitor Accommodation.