So, where are we walking to today? Well, how about a wander around the old village of Horio, a place often missed by day-trippers. If you’re staying on Symi, even for a few hours, it’s possible to get up to the village by bus or taxi, or by foot. You can also hire cars and motorbikes, so there is no excuse for not visiting. When you do, you should explore the lane and the real village. You’ll see plenty of views but don’t miss the details.
I was looking through some photos Neil took recently, and a while ago, and found several that just show you details from properties and places in the village lanes. Maybe you can save a couple of these and, when you’re up here, take a walk and see if you can find them. Here are a few for you to look at. Regular visitors to the island may be able to recognise some.
As we missed our usual Saturday photos, I thought I’d put up a few from Neil’s archive today. Some may have been taken in the summer, some last year, some last week. It’s a bit of a jumble.
Before that, an update from the desk. The Witchling is back from beta readers and a big thank you to everyone who volunteered, read, replied and helped the book become better. It’s now in its last stages of checking before being set out, but will still be a few more weeks before it’s published. Which give you enough time to read the first in the set, The Saddling (19 reviews! The most of any of my books, who will make it 20?). This and all my other books are free if you have Kindle Unlimited, by the way. So you can also pick up all the Symi books under that arrangement – links in the righthand column >>
The weather has warmed up, though it’s cloudy and a bit windy today (Sunday). If you’re planning your Symi summer sojourn, you may like to know that the Dodecanese Seaways timetable will soon be released covering dates right up until October. Their message said it will be out on 10th February so you might want to look out for it. Okay, so now the photos.
Sponge tour
Symi coloursOctoberLast yearA summer night partySummerMusic in the squareNimborio, August
A slight change to our usual Saturday Symi Photos today as there’s news about the 2018 Symi International Film Festival. I’ll be back with updates and photos next week.
Meanwhile, here’s what the film festival organisers have sent me:
Submissions are being accepted through FilmFreeway and Festhome. There are modest fees for entering films into the festival. Just click on one of the links on the website.
Categories:
Short films under 20 minutes
Feature Films
Films made on or about Symi
Premieres (world or in Greece)
Student films (evidence of being a student is compulsory).
Early Deadline 31 May 2018
Standard Deadline 30 June 2018
Final deadline 15 July 2018.
Suffering a mind blank today and have to get on with the edits for ‘The Witchling’, so will post a few of Neil’s photos for you. These were taken the other day. Maybe I’ll have more to say tomorrow.
Kalo Mina! Just a quick walk along the lane today, but it’s an enjoyable one and one that many visitors to Symi may not know about. It’s easy to find, this lane. Once you are in the village square, head towards Lemonitisa on the path that leads from the western corner of the square. There’s only one way in and one way out of the square, and it’s not the lane that leads towards the shops, so you can’t go wrong.
Delivery made, back to the shop
Its takes an S bend up a slight incline and then slopes upwards a little, but it’s not a steep gradient. You can turn left up some steps and into the other parts of the village, or right and down through the hillside to Yialos. You pass the bins on your left, not the most pleasant of landmarks, but an obvious one. Keep going past a few houses, and you have views down to the sea and the harbour. Further, you come to another corner, and there you can see the back of Yialos and over towards Nimborio and Turkey beyond.
Towards the hills and terraces.
You can also look across to the hills and see terracing and some small farms, a few scattered houses that have been built recently – and I mean one or two built in the last ten years or less, and, if you keep going, you will see the Kataractis and the further hillside of Horio, with the Vigla beyond. You can carry on and then turn left into the back of the village and up to the Castro, or right and down to the back of Yialos on the old and original path to the harbour.
Classic Symi view
I like this lane and not only because we currently live on it. It gives you great views and has a charm and character, and is unlike many other lanes in the village where there are often walls on either side of you. It’s open and offers both sun and shade along with its views.
Symi in the green of winter
There, a quick walk and something else to put on your ‘things to do on Symi’ list for when you come and visit next. You do have a visit planned, don’t you? I hope so.
