Snails, Plastic and Rick Stein

The snails are back!

Wind patterns on the water in Pedi.

The acorns are plumping on old valonia oak at Lieni in Chorio.

Dusting off the outdoor heaters.

All wrapped up against the rain.

Symi's various cafes, bars, tavernas and restaurants don't have much in the way of inside seating, if any at all.  Instead they use a combination of awnings and clear plastic 'tents' to provide shelter for their customers during the autumn and spring months when there is the possibility of rain and chilly evenings.  It may seem like camping but they are surprisingly effective, particularly when combined with the heaters above.

The much anticipated rain did not come to much on Symi - about a millimetre late on Friday night, just enough to make patterns in the dust, and then another 2 millimetres early on Sunday morning which brought the snails out in their droves.  I was out with the salt cellar, saving my seedlings from the ravenous slithering hordes.  Saturday, the day which was supposed to be really stormy with heavy thundershowers, turned out overcast and very windy but with no rain. There is no more rain for the foreseeable future but temperatures are a bit lower than usual for this time of the year - mostly in the low twenties now with night time temperatures around 17 degrees centigrade and quite breezy.

Many of the seasonal businesses have now packed up for the year, particularly the ones owned by Athenians such as the new beach at Petalo.  They are usually only active in the peak months of July, August and September anyway.  The cruise ship Salamis Filoxenia was in yesterday and the Blue Star this morning brought a lot of visitors to Panormitis, judging by the convoy of mini buses heading up the hill.  One advantage of the slightly chilly weather is that there are lots more day-trippers from Rhodes visiting the island so the cafes are busy.  Rhodes is much more exposed to the wind so those who are not interested in wind-surfing off Ialyssos are on Symi, sipping lattes and people-watching in Yialos.

One late season surprise visitor was celebrity chef, Rick Stein. Wendy ran into him at Giorgio and Maria's taverna in Chorio yesterday.  He fell in love with Symi while shooting the kitchen shots of his BBC series, 'From Venice to Istanbul' in one of our houses back in 2014.  Sofia's House, the villa that he used is unfortunately no longer a rental property but we have plenty of other houses if you want to enjoy Symi like a celebrity.

Rick and Sarah Stein with Wendy Wilcox, the proprietor of Symi Visitor Accommodation.

Have a good week.

Regards,
Adriana

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Celebrity Chefs and Cloudbursts - Late October on Symi

The water taxis will soon be hauled out of the water for the winter.  In the meantime the owners have started wrapping up the seats etcetera in black plastic bags.  I took this photograph on Wednesday, when the light was bright and sparkling and the clouds had not caught up with us yet.

Not much activity in Pachos this morning.  The roads are wet from overnight rain.

A rain-streaked sunrise at 8 a.m. in Yialos.  

A new construction on the waterfront in Yialos.  It is being painstakingly built with dressed local stone.  As Symi's architecture is protected all new buildings have to blend in with the old.  This will be a splendid structure when it is complete.

Pigeons being fed on the quay near the clock tower.  I'm not sure if the train is coming or going but there aren't many takers for rides around the harbour now that the weather has changed and the tourists have faded away.  That is the Blue Star Diagoras in the background, en route from Piraeus to Rhodes and Kastellorizon.  She was waiting for the ambulance to arrive as there was a medical emergency to be transferred to Rhodes.  The Diagoras will pass through Symi again this evening on her reciprocal route.

Most of the yachts now are cruising folk waiting for the end of the month when they go to wherever they are over-wintering, often in marinas and boatyards along the Turkish coast.

A peaceful scene in Yialos, Symi.

An elegant black cat by the bridge in Yialos.

Yes, it is true that celebrity chef, Rick Stein is on Symi at the moment, filming for his latest cookery programme about Mediterranean cuisine in one of our properties,  Symi Visitor Accommodation has been in tentative negotiations to arrange a book signing before he leaves the island next week.  We will know more once he is closer to completing filming and there is a clearer idea of when he might have time available in his schedule.  Once we have firmer details we'll put them up, here and on our Symi Visitor Accommodation Facebook page.

We have had a few showers but so far the heavy downpours expected have passed either to the north or the south of Symi and it has been far wetter on Rhodes than has been the case here.  The weather is expected to improve in time for the Ochi Day parade on Tuesday and then closing in again with more rain and unsettled conditions expected next week too.

There are very few visitors staying on the island now and although the 'Symi' day excursion boat is in from Rhodes, the streets are deserted.  Just a few small huddled groups in the cafes along the front, wondering if it will rain again.  Those shops that are still open are having big end of season sales as it makes sense to try and get rid of stock rather than pack it away in what may well be damp storage until April so there is many a bargain to be had if you are looking for beachwear.  Finding more appropriate clothing for the changing season is more of a challenge and we have to go to Rhodes for practical winter wear unless a passing gypsy hawker has what we need.

The bus came back from Rhodes on the Blue Star on Wednesday afternoon so normal service has resumed, much to the relief of everyone who lives up and works down or has to commute between Pedi and Yialos.

Have a warm dry weekend.

Regards,
Adriana

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Summer Postcards from Symi

This little boat in the Pedi valley has not seen the sea for several years now.

Sunrise over Pedi.
The trees in the foreground are mainly kermes oaks, sometimes called holly oaks, and provide a welcome green belt in the heat of summer when the hillsides have turned to dusty gold.

From the same vantage point as the previous photograph but looking across the valley.
That is the Taxiarchis Hotel partially masked by the chapel bell tower.  Other places in the picture include the Chorio Hotel, the Little Blue House, Olympic Holidays' Anastasia apartments, our own Zoe's apartments, popular watering hole the Sunrise Cafe and the new Hidden Courtyard bar.

The morning rush hour in Yialos, Symi's main port - water taxis heading for the beach.
The one in the foreground has just returned empty and will dock to fill up again.

The Blue Star ferry, Diagoras, coming in at 8.15 on Tuesday morning.
This has been amazingly punctual this year.

Later in the day - a yacht weaving its way through the bows of the Panagia Skiadeni, the Symi, the Proteus and the Dodecanese Express.

Yachts and gulets overnighting outside the police station and clock tower. That is a little row of hire boats with Harani and the Odyssea apartments in the background.

One of the routes down from Chorio to Yialos.

I wonder who is on the mega yacht.  According to various media reports, Greece in general has been well supported by various Hollywood stars and other celebrities this year, including Bradgelina, John Travolta and Shakira.

And finally, a small detail from a roof in the harbour.
One of the few remaining Turkish style roofs left on the island. This belongs to Chrysalis, a delightful little boutique at the bottom of the Kali Strata.

I hope you have enjoyed these photographs from Symi, a small island in the Dodecanese, Greece.

Have a good weekend.

Regards,
Adriana

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