It’s Clean Monday, the start of Lent, and we should be talking about seafood and fasting, but let’s talk swimming pools instead. Now and then I pop into some of the Symi-flavoured groups on Facebook just to see what topics are the talk of the day, and then, if they inspire me, I talk about them here. Recently there were questions about boats and ferry timetables not being available, and ‘Will there be a boat to Symi at 5.43 on August the 17th-and-a-quarter?’ and suchlike. The printable answer to which is, ‘Wait and see when the timetables come out.’

Recently, I’ve noticed a few enquiries about swimming pools, not all of which are met with sympathy.

When people ask me if Symi has a place with a pool, I tell them we are surrounded by one, but you have to remember that not everyone feels confident in the sea; even when it’s calm, you can walk in on sand (St Nicholas, Giala, and a small area in Pedi), and you float because it’s so salty. For some, a holiday is all about reclining by a pool, dipping in and out, reading the latest Jackson Marsh (ahem), and now and then wandering over to the bar for another cocktail. Each to his own. If you’re a poolside tourist, then Symi will disappoint because there are very few places with pools. Off the top of my Monday morning head, I can only think of the Old Markets Hotel and Iapetos Village, though I am sure someone told me there was one somewhere else, at a property I’ve never been to… and the Opera House is also building a small pool which will be ready for this summer. Anyway, the point is, yes there are a couple of places with pools, but they are small and because of building regulations, under cover and so, often quite cold, and they probably aren’t what you might be thinking of.

For example. This is a shot of the swimming pool at the Castellum Suites in Rhodes; a typical city hotel kind of pool.

And these are photos I pulled from the internet, from Trip Advisor and A Hotel Life. The first, shows Iapetos, the second, the Old Markets (it was the only photo I could find).

As you can see, there’s a difference.

So, the quick answer to the question, ‘Are there places with swimming pools?’ is yes, but…

What there are more of are beaches, and if you’re okay in the sea, you’ll have a field day. Or rather, a beach day, as long as you don’t mind pebbles, and as long as you are aware of spiky sea urchins (in places).

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Some more photos of places in Rhodes to end the week. I’ll give you more details about this hotel next week, or whenever I remember, as I took some shots of some of the buffet, and it’s very impressive. A few minutes after that, a swarm of overnighters arrived from Sweeden and Norway and the kitchen was kept very busy.

As were we during the day when we walked another six or seven miles around parts of the city we’ve only driven through before. There are some stunning buildings left over from the early 20th century Italian occupation, I’m guessing, some wide boulevards, and – even better to see – some places where the modern building craze has avoided ancient ruins. We’re home this evening on the ferry, and have been able to keep our room until late afternoon for an extra €20. That means, for two nights, seven meals each, all drinks, coffee, snacks etc., will have cost €140 in total. The last time we were here and ate out, a decent meal set us back something like €60.00, so you can see you get value (and many of the usual eateries are closed to prepare for the season, leaving fast food (no) or classier joints). Anyway, more about that another time. I’m off to have my six-course breakfast, so I’ll leave you with some photos. Have a good weekend.

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I’m being brief today as we’re back in Rhodes for three days, and I’m coming to you from a hotel room. We’ve got bits and pieces to do and one of them can only be done today, and as there’s no boat to suit on a Thursday, we came over yesterday morning. This enabled us to take our time, and to spend a couple of days at the Castellum, a hotel we’ve stayed at before. Last night, we chatted to some nomads who wanted to settle in Turkey, but now can’t, so are spending their time alternating between EU and non-Eu countries until the wife gets her/European Irish passport, when they can settle in Greece. They are staying at this hotel because all your meals and drinks are included. When they started here a few weeks ago, it was €35 a night for them both (for us, it’s now only €55.00). When you think that includes three meals a day (and the food is fabulous), snacks, drinks, tea, coffee, water, cleaning, bills, TV and great rooms, it’s a pretty cheap way to live.

On the walk here, we took a road not so often travelled (by us), and it struck me that, as with Symi, when you get off your usual beaten path, you see so much more of interest. I’ll try and get some more photos today, but we came across magnificent buildings like this one…

We also discovered to my delight that we are staying between two music shops, and each one is only a three-minute walk away. One was closed last evening, but the other was open, so that was me contentedly browsing for half an hour. The thing about music, for me is, I don’t know what I want to learn or have a go at until I see the score, so browsing the physical pages is the way to go – you can’t do that online. I picked up some Debussy, had a look, and put it down. (It was for thirteen fingers, but only two hands.) I wasn’t going down that route, something grade six or seven is comfortable, so I opted for a new-to-me Mozart Fantasia in C minor, and a more grade eight-ish transcription of Vivaldi’s Four Season, which I thought might be fun on the old Joanna (Piana/Piano, for those who don’t get the slang). I also indulged in a set of duets for me and Harry, though these will be for his sight reading, as they are about grade two, and he’s working on his four.

So, that’s me all caught up in a brief post, and now I’m off for my all-inclusive breakfast.

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No, I didn’t see him there, of course, because he died some time ago (1990), but when I was there recently I passed by his old house. This is one of those places you might not know about, and might not think to visit, but should you find yourself in Rhodes with spare time, waiting for a ferry or something, you might want to pass by and take a look.

The Lawrence Durrell House (Villa Kleobolus) is a little villa by the old Turkish Cemetery and the Mosque of Reis, right next to the Casino. It has also been described as the gatekeeper’s cottage, which it may have been, and it’s right on the edge of the road, so easy to view. Durrell was there from 1945 to 1947 and was working for the British government because Britain was overseeing the Dodecanese for a while following WWII. The British administration was using what is now the casino, so the villa/cottage was handy for work. As Information Officer, he supervised the publication of three daily papers, in Greek, Turkish, and Italian.

I am not sure of the status of the property today. I read that ‘it houses the Association of Literature and Arts but it was closed’, but that was in a review on Trip Advisor, so… I’ve never seen it open for any reason, it doesn’t look used, and I’ve never seen anyone going in and out. I’m sure you could find more info about the place on a trip to Rhodes, I only mention it as something of interest to see while you are there. Also nearby, you will find the soup and salad bar (more or less opposite) which is a handy, healthy and relatively cheap place for lunch.

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Today, a few colourful images to brighten up what’s started as a cloudy and windy day. 14 degrees outside at 7.00, but colder in the house and certainly colder in the office. Things will warm up though, as I set about considering the next story to write while I wait for the last one to come back from the proofreader.

Meanwhile, the photos. Some streamers left over from a party or early carnival event, our first hibiscus flower of the year, a cyclamen seen with many others during a walk, a pink sky of a few months back, and the green of spring out there in the Pedi valley, or nearby, I can’t remember exactly. I’ll leave these with you as I set about my notebook and research material.

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