An Exotic and Cosmopolitan Air

An unusually empty quay - a cruise ship was expected in so all the gulets had to depart early.  Those little boats visible to the right of the clock tower are available to hire by the day.

 A more typical view at this time of the year.

I wonder who owns this one.  It looks as though one could land a helicopter in the stern.

 A French boutique cruise ship, Le Boleal, visited Symi earlier this week. There was also a much larger cruise ship in yesterday but that had to anchor off Nimborio with the guests ferried ashore in little orange lighters, so I never did find out which one it was.

The train is proving very popular.  Apart from transporting tourists it also takes the children out to Nimborio for their swimming lessons!

The horse and carriage are the elegant alternative to the train.

Elpida's traditional cafeneion and the colourful tourist shops next door.

A quiet moment among the fishing boats.

High season is well under way and every boat and ferry brings more people to the island.  Every language and ethnicity you could imagine seems to be on Symi at this time of the year and the island has an exotic and cosmopolitan air.  Gulets, yachts, megayachts, cruise ships and ferries, all coming and going at all hours, Yialos and Harani are at their busiest in July and August.

Have a good weekend.

Regards,
Adriana

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Melt in the Heat

Rhea, a classic tall ship that visits Symi on a regular basis every summer.

An elaborate neo-classical pediment on the Kali Strata.

This little house near the high school is being restored.  All the old plaster has been chipped off, revealing that as with so many old Symi stone houses, it is constructed from a mixture of stones of varying sizes held together with mud.  Pre-neoclassical, this has stood for centuries and is probably good for a few more.

Aha, the little hire boats are finally in their usual spot by the clock tower.

Traditional Turkish wooden gulets face off against the modern fibreglass brigade across the harbour.

A cruise ship from Cyprus dwarfs the Nikolaos X excursion boat in Yialos earlier this week. This photograph was taken from the balcony of my office, hence the sweep of power lines across the view.  Symi is festooned with power lines in all directions and forests of poles.  They are as much a part of the landscape as the neo-classical pediments.

As the figs ripen in the sun the natural sugars melt in the heat and run out of the fruit.

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