Warmer by the Day

A ewe and her lamb graze on daisies among the ruins in the top of Chorio. 

That is Pedi Bay in the background.

May Day passed in a flurry of sandy rain showers that turned the sky pink and grey over Southern Greece. This unsettled weather is typical of this time of the year as warm air from Africa meets cold air from Europe and we can expect more red rain and squalls before the summer heat arrives and the meltemi blows away the dust. Although the sky is hazy and visibility poor one advantage of this weather is that, as it comes from North Africa, temperatures are in the twenties so it is by no means cold and the sea grows warmer by the day. The water taxis should start operating in the next few weeks although the beach tavernas don’t usually start operating fully until June.

Dressed over all, this pair of British yachts were flying the flag

for the Royal Wedding on 29 April 2011

Symi is getting busier with day trip boats coming in every day from Rhodes. The Dodecanese Seaways and ANES are both doing day excursions from Rhodes, as is the Nikolaos X, so visitors can choose between a high speed catamaran, the Proteus car ferry or a purpose built excursion boat. We are also seeing more yachts as over-wintering boats clear out of Turkey and make Symi their first port of call for summer cruising in the Aegean.

It is traditional in Greece to put a posy or garland of flowers outside ones house on May Day. These are usually garden or wild flowers or a mixture of both and the flowers remain until at least the Festival of St John in June. This is a lovely way to celebrate the old-fashioned damask roses blooming in many gardens here at the moment, as well as the first bright flush of pelagoniums and the last of the wild flowers. I photographed some which caught my eye on my walk down the Kali Strata steps this morning.

Have a good week.

Regards,
Adriana