Hot and Sleepy

It is a hot and sleepy day on Symi. In the lane Dino’s wife has draped white tarps over the shop display to keep the afternoon sun off and is sitting in the shade mending shirts. On the front men have been at work on the frame work for the awnings all day, hence the line up of café chairs and marble tables in the Webcam Wave spot (no, we have not started serving ouzo and nibbles from the Sunflower Laundry, no matter what some of you might think!)

I went to Datca on Saturday, making use of the new Symi II service currently on offer from ANES. It is good for those of us who live and work here and only have a few hours off but for first time visitors I would recommend going on the Poseidon or the Triton and making a day of it. When we arrived just after 12.30 those who had gone over on the Poseidon had already finished doing the market and were settling into lunch and cold Efes. Unfortunately it is no longer possible to go shopping and then dump everything on the boat before going for an exotic lunch – the boats are now in an international quarantine zone on the far side of the bay, behind a metal grille, and access is restricted. This also means that bored members of the party (this does happen – I speak from experience having once been to Datca with a teenager in tow) cannot return to the boat to sleep/sulk. However there are plenty of waterfront cafes which I noticed were full of those whose retail therapy had exceeded their physical carrying capacity. Meat, fish and plants are a customs no-no but few tourists are likely to want to buy those things anyway. The fruit and vegetable market is a visual delight and the market is also good for things like sumac and pomegranate molasses which are not readily available elsewhere.

The new addition to Symi’s skyline is striking visible from the sea. While Datca’s windfarm is on the low-lying isthmus and comprises at least 30 windmills, Symi’s solitary turbine is on the highest peak and towers above the antennae on the Vigla and the ancient gaze of Kokkimides.

Have a good week.

Regards,

Adriana