Symi Christmas Decorations

After a showery Saturday and sunny Sunday, it is a cool calm Monday on the island of Symi with only a light breeze riffling the water of the harbour. High wind-blown streaks of cloud hint at the strong winds to come later this week as Greece prepares for another bout of wintery weather. The Ionian is already being buffeted by the same low pressure system that has brought winter to the Alps, Italy, Croatia and Albania. Gales, heavy rain and thunderstorms are forecast for the whole of Greece from Tuesday night onwards until well into the weekend. There will be a slight drop in temperatures in southern Greece so Symi will remain fairly mild but areas to the north are preparing for the cold.

Here on Symi the municipality is taking advantage of this last dry spell to work on the official Symi Christmas decorations and small artificial trees are being set up along the promenade in front of Pachos in Yialos. The photographs show a group of trees waiting to be placed and workmen busy attaching one to the pavement. For an idea of what these look like at night when the lights are on, please log onto our webcam. Symi’s pretty neo-classical architecture turns into Toyland over Christmas as the island’s seasonal decorations are as small in scale as the houses themselves. As most houses are only one or two narrow storeys and have very limited internal space and few if any gardens, householders like to decorate the balconies, terraces, external stairways and pediments of the houses themselves rather than try to squeeze trees etcetera into the salon. All over Yialos, Chorio and Pedi dainty doves, boats, angels and other traditional motifs shine among the shuttered houses. Some people even go to the extent of outlining the architectural details of the house in flashing light tubes, not always with the results intended!

Have a good week. I am off to clear my gutters before the rain starts.

Regards,

Adriana