May Postcards from Symi

Pretty petunias outside the Vapori bar, one of several attractive bars and cafes in Yialos, Symi's main harbour.

Fresh fish at Symi's fish market, by the bridge in Yialos.  Just remember, this is Greece so you have to be up early if you want fresh fish.  By 10 or so it is all gone.

VE Day - 8 May 2017

I wonder how many thousands of soldiers have marched past this balcony in the last hundred years.

Greek oregano, rigani, growing wild on the terraces of the Pedi valley.  That black and red blob is a butterfly.  I was up on the road above, looking down, and hadn't realised the butterfly was there until I downloaded my photographs.

May Day in Chorio

Nearly done.  Only about 60 or so steps still to go!

It was extremely windy on Monday night and for most of Tuesday.  The super-sized Greek flags for the VE Day parade on Monday put a lot of strain on the flag poles. The one outside the customs house nearly took off, despite a couple of guy ropes. The ones on the bridge are just slightly bent at the top.

One wonky flagpole with the Kastro, Lemonitissa and Chorio on the hill in the background.

It will take a while to get used to seeing the Poseidon without her masts.

The view from the Symi Visitor Accommodation office today. 

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A Merry May Posy of Photographs for You

The view from Symi Visitor Accommodation today - bright bunting for Monday's VE Day parade and hooray!  The first water taxi is back in its berth!

The upper reaches of the Kali Strata, fresh whitewash gleaming in the early morning sunshine.

The next section down, below the bend.

The whitewashing team, contemplating the job ahead.

Morning glory lights up an old garden at the top of the Kali Strata, near villa To Plio.

Another old garden in Chorio.

The ubiquitous plastic tablecloth - what would we do without it?

May Day

There are still plenty of wild flowers about.

Amazingly, there are still some poppies around.

Olive blossom

The yachts are back.

Anvil clouds build up on the horizon every afternoon.

Courgettes

You have to be up early to catch courgettes in blossom as they shrivel away in the heat of the day.

The Poseidon is back and ready for the first round the island excursions of the season.

Abundant honeysuckle on the Kali Strata.

May Day

May Day

One really cannot improve on Mother Nature.

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May Postcards from Symi

The bunting was up again at the weekend, this time for a weekend regatta rather than a parade.  I took this photograph just before the municipality's cherry picker, in the middle of the photographer, started to take the flags down.

Monday morning, Yialos, Symi

Tuesday morning, Pedi, Symi

This old windmill in Chorio has been a successful small restaurant for many years.

One of Symi's gracious old neo-classical mansions.

The big yachts are starting to arrive.

Sleeping beauty.

Yialos colours.

Yialos colours too.

The work on the restoration of the customs house is proceeding apace.  The rafters arrived this morning.

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Symi Blues and Golds

Early morning sunshine gilds the old stones of a neglected mansion on the Kali Strata.

A pocket handkerchief rose garden in Chorio.

A serene face looks out from the pediment of a mansion on the Kali Strata.

Early morning departure from Pedi.

Bees pollinating prickly pears in Chorio.

I spotted this cat taking the early morning air in an abandoned house in Chorio.

The merchants of Symi admired the louvred shutters of France but louvres are expensive to make and maintain so they came up with this poor man's alternative by nailing overlapping slats onto a base.  While you don't get the air flow, they are a lot easier to maintain as the inside is completely smooth and they don't let in the clouds of summer dust either.

Morning glory in a wild garden near the high school at the corner of the Kali Strata.

Colours and textures on the Kali Strata.

Sheep may safely graze - a flock winding along a path through the Pedi valley.

May is drawing to a close and many things have happened, including the loss of our friend, Wendy's partner, Ged Horton. There was a tremendous turn out for the funeral on Wednesday and it was gratifying to see how many people made an effort to be there, including two friends who came from England for the day to show their support.  Many local businesses even closed for a few hours so that the owners or staff could attend.  Symiots and expats alike mourned together and celebrated together. Symi is like that.

The island is getting busier although Symi is still a lot quieter for May than it was even a year ago.  The islands with airports and big resort hotels are picking up some of the slack as nervous tourists look for an alternative to Turkish Aegean resorts but the quieter niche market islands like Symi that require a bit more time and effort to reach and don't have the facilities to attract package holiday companies remain quiet with lower booking rates than they enjoyed before the financial crisis. Many of the people visiting Symi at the moment are either regular visitors or are friends and relations of regular visitors who are highly motivated to come here.  Even the holiday companies like Olympic Holidays that used to be full from early May have very few people on Symi these days.  If you are looking for a quiet, uncrowded holiday destination, it seems as though Symi might well be it!

If you are thinking of a last minute June holiday please email us on symi-vis@otenet.gr for information about availability and rates.

Have a good weekend.

Regards,
Adriana

  

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