It’s Sunday morning as I write and we’re home from Rhodes. I’m currently cooking lunch for my birthday party (slow cooker, easy) and trying to get a nasty virus off Neil’s laptop (not easy). The sun is shining, it’s very warm, in the sun, and everywhere is calm. The celebration of Evangalismos and then the Independence Day parade have happened too. I am sure I have lots to tell you about our trip to Rhodes, but I’ll do more of that during the week, but here are a couple of moments that stuck in my mind and then a few photos. More details to follow.

I made two notes in my notebook, both of which I thought were rather funny. The first happened when we went into a place to arrange tickets. We have been using the agency for ages and so always get a warm welcome and have a quick catch up on the news with the agents. We called in there on Wednesday morning, and our usual lady was looking pensive. After the hellos and greetings, it was, ‘How are you?’

She didn’t look very happy. ‘I am having a very bad day,’ she said. ‘I am distracted.’

Indeed, she did look very worried about something. ‘Oh no. Nothing serious I hope. Is everything okay?’

She thought deeply for a moment and sighed. ‘I am cooking fish later, and I can’t decide how to do it.’

I know, it’s a very stressful thing, cooking fish, but I am glad that was the only issue.

Later in our trip, we sat down for a late lunch at a taverna we have used before. It has a huge menu, and some of the things are different. That is, different from the usual Greek cuisine menu. So, when I see Cannelloni, for example, I think, ‘that will make a nice change.’ So I ask, ‘Do you have cannelloni?’

‘Well,’ the waitresses replied. ‘I just saw something in the kitchen, but I’m not sure what it was. I’ll go and find out.’

I thought that was funny as well. We also had some successes: good health check reports, great time with our health insurance rep who met us and drove us around, set up the appointments and looked after us. We also did lots of walking, 25,000 steps one day which fair confused my FitBit as I don’t normally do more the 4,000, some sitting in the sun, meeting friend for a lazy lunch afternoon in the Old Town… lots of things to tell you, but right now, I have a Normandy chicken to prepare before I go and chillax for the rest of the day. Still, we’re back, and the blog will be back to normal now. Here are a couple more random photos from Rhodes.

Summer is on the way

I went to Yialos yesterday forgetting that I hadn’t charged my camera battery. I was able to get one shot and that was it. But still, I’ve got other images still to share and I’ve now ordered a spare battery.

The photo I took shows you the doing-up work now going on at Georgio’s, ready for the summer to come. The rendering is coming off ready for a new coat. It’s not the only place undergoing preparations for summer. Later in the morning, we stopped at Lefteris’ kafeneion where Yiannis was painting the steps and the outside of the café. There was more work going on in the harbour as well, with the International re-doing its inside and outside, though it looks to still be open, and work happening at the bar on the corner by the kiosk, as was. I’ve heard that the kiosk, now closed, is going to be a tourist information point, but I’ve not read anything to back that up yet. I know there has been some controversy over this so I’ll wait to see what transpires before speculating further. (Update, two minutes after preparing this post for posting: I just read that the kiosk was demolished on Tuesday morning.)

It’s amazing what a change in the weather does. It was much warmer, no need for a coat and there were several day trippers on the island. They’d come over from Rhodes on the Dodekanisos, I guess. The other day we saw athletes over here for the day, playing football (and maybe basketball) in the inter-island competitions. Symi teams won at least two matches that I know of. But on Monday, the visitors included people from abroad, tourists in shorts and with backpacks, families and also locals from Rhodes. There was almost a summer atmosphere to the place and, if the season is starting this early at least in Rhodes, it bodes well for the summer ahead. Fingers crossed for a good year for all.

Today, Tuesday will be the last blog post from me for a few days. It’s my birthday week and I’m taking a few days away from blogging to have a life. I mean, to chill out and relax, get my annual health MOT done and enjoy myself, not that I don’t enjoy myself when blogging. So, I’ll leave you with a few more images taken recently and remind you that, if you want your regular Symi fix then make sure to look at Adriana’s blog on Friday, and Monday, and every Friday and Monday into the future.

Weekend catch up
The cold north wind has calmed down and, looking at the days ahead, it looks like the wind direction is changing. That’s going to help warm things up a bit. It was still a bit chilly when we went down to Yialos on Friday to collect any post that might have arrived. A new kitchen light in a large box was waiting at the post office. It wasn’t heavy. It’s still in the box as we need to get an electrician to come and fit it for us. I’m okay with basic things, like changing a plug or a light bulb, but when it involves making a hole in a ceiling and cutting wires, then I’d rather leave it to the experts. Hopefully, that job will get done during the week.

There’s a lot more work going on down in Yialos now as businesses prepare for the summer. Up in the village, such preparation is harder to spot, if it’s happening at all. There are some changes afoot but, so far, only rumours about what’s happening to some of the businesses in the village. For example, I’ve heard that Mandeio’s might be taken over by another entrepreneur, the same goes for the Windmill, and the souvlaki shop once again has ‘for rent’ signs outside. The new bakery shop, next to Sotiris supermarket, seems to be doing well and will be well worth a visit when you come to Symi. Preparation work has started at The Olive Tree. Yiannis is back at the Rainbow Bar more often these days; he sometimes doesn’t open during winter mornings, but he’s there now getting things ready, and it’s a place to stop off at for coffee in the mornings. The Herb and Spice shop has been open in the evenings all winter, and the other village shops have been open as usual. Georgio’s has been open all winter too, and we’ve been a few times. The other tavernas will no doubt soon start to prepare, though Easter is still a few weeks away. That’s the time of year that most people aim for when it comes to getting ready for the summer visitors. So, it’s slowly starting to be ‘all go’, even up here.

Also during this week, we have a few days in Rhodes planned, health checks, meetings and some shopping, plus a few meals out and about, no doubt. It’s our annual ‘health holiday’, and the appointments are now all booked. Just need to call the hotel, book the boat tickets and prepare for getting up very early for the boat. We have cover in place to make sure the cat is fed, and everything else is up to date, so a couple of days in the big city (or equivalent) lie ahead and this means there probably won’t be a blog for a couple of days later in the week; I’ll let you know nearer the time.

In other, more local news, there’s a sign up outside the optician’s in Yialos announcing that the optician will be here for eye tests on 26^th March, the day after Greek Independence Day. If you want to make an appointment, just call in and book a time. I used them a couple of years ago for my reading glasses and found a very cheerful and reasonably priced service. The optician’s, should you wish to know, is in the square where you also find the post office, next to Mina’s clothes shop and the cake shop, Fotini’s wine shop and just behind The International restaurant.

So, it’s early Sunday morning as I write, I have a couple of things I want to do, like a new blog post on my writer’s blog ‘Writing Thoughts’ and some chasing up on the new book cover. Did I tell you? (Can’t remember.) I’ve asked the designer of ‘The Saddling’ to produce a new book cover for ‘The Judas Inheritance’ and, after that’s done and I’ve saved up, I’ll get new covers for the other books bit by bit. On ‘the Saddling’ front, my editor has not been well, but we should still be on track for April/May for publication. And so, on and into Sunday, once I wake up, and it looks like it’s going to be a clear, calm day ahead.

Symi Saturday Photos

As it’s Saturday, we are having some more photos today. Make sure you also look out Travelicious World later today or tomorrow. My recent article for them should be published this weekend. It’s about Castle Bran in Romania and the (non) Dracula connection. The more clicks and likes it gets the more chances I have of being offered more posts on this travel blog. Click the Travel Guides link at the top and scroll down to see the latest posts. Thanks.

So, a few images from Symi to end the week. Some taken very recently and others from a couple of weeks ago; you can see how the weather changes here at this time of year. Have a good weekend and I’ll see you back here on Monday.

Home News from Symi

With a north wind blowing about the house, it has become colder again. A far cry from the 40 degrees heat of summer, but I am not complaining. What I am doing is taking some spare time to catch up on a few jobs, one of which is a new cover for ‘The Judas Inheritance.‘ This time I am using the same cover designer who worked on ‘The Saddling’ for me. I’m looking forward to seeing what he comes up with. This means that there will be a new edition coming out soon; same interior, but different cover. My intention is to work through all the books over time and have this company design the horror/thriller novels, and maybe the comedies – but I might find another designer for the Symi related books. Time will tell.

Meanwhile, here on Symi… We were down in Yialos the other day, and I noticed many businesses are now preparing for the summer. There is a lot of work going on. The Herb and Spice Corner shop is having a revamp, the front of the Olivar’s building in Trawler Square is being renovated, Vapori Bar has started on its tables and chairs, and several other cafes and tavernas have work going on inside to prepare the furniture and floors. It won’t be long now…

I have been setting up our annual health MOT through our insurance company, AXA. This will mean a trip to Rhodes, something we do every year now, and a few days over there to see the specialists, get the results and do some other business, like seeing our solicitor for various things to do with civil partnership and wills. We’ll also have time for sightseeing, or seeing the same sights as we tend not to wander very far from Rhodes New Town, not having a car. Also, our appointments are in the mornings and, by the time they are done with, we don’t feel like going too far from the hotel and places we like to see. Slow, lazy shopping is the name of the game. That’s next week and, before then, there are boat tickets to organise (5.00 in the morning Blue Star, yum) and a few other homely things to get started on.

Our recent good news is that Neil’s Irish passport arrived safely. We were advised by the Irish Embassy in Athens, and the lady there was more than helpful. All documents, once we had them, were sent with the form to Athens, she checked them before sending it all off to Dublin, and it was back within a couple of weeks. I think being in a diplomatic bag might have helped to speed the process along. What it means, of course is that Neil is now safe from the jaws of ‘Brexit’ (as long as Ireland stay in the EU and arrangements remain as they are, but we all know things can change). And, once the civil partnership is finalised, I should be fine too, though I won’t be an Irish citizen, sadly. Not unless we live there for three years out of five or something. So, you should have your Symi Dream blog running for a few more years yet, no matter what. I hope. That’s if I can keep coming up with bits and piece to put on these pages; sometimes that’s a hard task – like today, as you might be able to tell.

But what I did find today, which might be of interest, is s short article from a website called Planetbell.me, a travel and photo blog from a chap called Jeff Bell. It sounds like he was on Symi just out of season (back in 2013) but what he wrote then is still pertinent today. Have a look at the blog post here: Is Symi the most beautiful small town in the world? (No need to answer that. If you have been here you will already know the answer.)