Head for the Shade


It is a sizzling sunny day on the small island of Symi. The heat is shimmering off the stone pavements and visitors working their way around the tourist shops that fringe the harbour proceed slowly from one pool of shade to the next, fanning themselves with their sunhats and frantically finishing their ice creams before total meltdown. Judging by the clink of glass and the growing stack of empty crates outside Pachos downstairs, cold beer is moving well today. The’ no parking’ cones are in position around the harbour front and the municipal police are clamping down on illegal parking in Yialos. At this stage the date for the annual traffic ban in the harbour has not been announced but it can’t be far away. Traffic is banned at peak periods so that day trippers don’t have to dodge cars in the middle of the day and overnight visitors can enjoy their meals in the waterfront tavernas without exhaust fumes and passing vehicles disturbing the ambience.




It is quite definitely beach weather and there is only one water taxi still waiting on the quay; the others are all out, whizzing along Symi’s rugged coastline, dropping off and collecting patrons at the different beaches. As most of Symi’s beaches are inaccessible by any other means and it is a long hot walk to the few that can be accessed on foot water taxis are a very popular means of transport at this time of the year. Apart from the water taxis operating out of Yialos there is also one operating out of Pedi that serves the beaches at St Nicholas and Agia Marina.


The long range forecast for Greece as a whole and Symi in particular is hot, hot and hotter. Even in breezy Rhodes midday temperatures are in the high thirties which means that rocky Symi will be over the forty mark for the next few days. Time to grab another ice cream and head for the shade of my olive grove.

Have a good week.

Regards,

Adriana

Anthony –   – (Wednesday, June 16, 2010)  

So the dates for the annual traffic ban in the harbour "have not yet been announced? I wondered during my visit last month why the signs which still say the ban lasts from (I think) mid-May to mid-October were being completely ignored and the police were doing absolutely nothing about it!

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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.


Adriana Shum

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