September Postcards from Symi

Pedi Bay.  Villa Jasmine and the Pedi Katoi/Anoi apartments are in this corner of the bay.  If you walk along this side of the bay you will find the footpath that leads to Agia Marina, an alternative to taking the water taxi.  That is Symi's only power station in the bottom left hand corner, with all the silver chimneys.

Sunrise over the hills above St Nicholas' beach, Pedi bay.  On Thursday morning we woke up to a brief sprinkling of rain just before dawn.  The clouds then drifted gently eastwards to Turkey.  

The Kastro area of Chorio catching the early morning sun.  This old traditional neighbourhood was badly damaged during the Second World War and is slowly being rebuilt.

The Dodecanese Seaways catamaran waiting to depart early on Wednesday morning.  What really caught my eye was the vivid magenta bougainvilleas among the houses on the hill behind.

The Panagia Skiadeni is out of commission until at least 15 September so the Dodecanese Seaways catamarans are particularly congested at the moment.  Not only are they transporting passengers between the islands of the Dodecanese archipelago but they are also bring the freight that normally comes over the the car ferry.  The 9.25 was about 10 minutes late this morning and unloading was a real scrum.  Dodecanese Seaways use wheeled orange bins to rationalise luggage and freight which speeds things up to some extent but the sheer volume of people and goods in a confined space still causes delays.  The orange bins will be picked up again on her south bound journey this evening.

The windows in the hull of this boat have some sort of mirror finish that makes them particularly eye catching.

Bright T shirts drying on a balcony on the Kali Strata.

Due to the water restrictions we don't provide beach towels in our houses and guests are asked to bring their own.  They can be bought cheaply in the harbour. This display seems to be catering for Hello Kitty fans.

Ripe for renovation.  A neglected house in Harani. There is no for sale sign on it though so perhaps the owners are simply far away, in Australia or the USA, and don't know that their inheritance on Symi is peeling away under the summer sun.  As Symi went through various phases of economic decline in the 20th century, Symiots emigrated en masse to far flung places where there was a demand for their sponge diving, boat building and mercantile skills, leaving their heritage behind.

The remains of Lazy Days.  She has been rotting away in the boat yard in Harani for at least a decade and has now finally collapsed into a heap of firewood.