A few random photos for you today. It’s 5.30, and I’m off out for a quick stroll before settling down to work, although I’ve been up since 2.30 and have already written 2,000 words. I was woken up by a throaty motorbike tearing past the house, and could hear it even through my earplugs. The roaring and racing went on until well after three by which time I was reading the newspaper and having a cup of tea. I shall be asleep again by 9 am. Anyway, no inspiration so a few photos.
Today, I had the idea of looking through ‘Village View’ to see what I wrote on this day in 2013. ‘Village View’ is a collection of blog posts from that year and takes the reading through an entire year on Symi. I thought I’d put yesterday’s entry here and afterwards note what is different in 2021. It’s yesterday’s entry because that’s when I am writing this. So, from Village View, May 24th 2013, this is what was happening on Symi. (The photos are recent.)
A weekend on Symi, what to do?
So, you have a weekend on Symi, what are you going to do? As far as I have heard, the exhibition at the Symi Gallery* is opening tonight, but the poetry reading has been moved to the following weekend, due to the exams taking place at school.
That’s the news out of the way. Weather report for those heading this way soon: Cloudy again today, clearing up later in the day, set for sunshine all the way through next week, less windy today; always warm and smiley at the Symi Dream shop*. Which is where I spent yesterday evening after attending a birthday cake party, or rather, a party with a birthday cake.
And as for things to do this weekend? Well, the weekend starts on a Friday night with live music at Taverna George & Maria (Georgio’s) in Horio.* Very often in the village over the weekend there is also live music at ‘The Secret Courtyard’ in front of Anastasia’s apartments, that might be happening on Saturday. Mandeios* also has musicians from time to time, but I’ve not heard anything definite about those two places as yet. And there is often music being played in Yialos, in Kantirimi and other bars; there’s certainly no shortage of music on the island.
There is the gallery exhibition tonight at The Symi Gallery. There is a boat trip to Turkey on Saturday* (but you will need to have organised your ticket already; the point is: if you’re heading this way and wondering what there is to do, then there is often a boat trip to Turkey on a Saturday, but places are limited). There’s the photo walk on Sunday, be at our shop at 9.15 a.m. for a stroll to Pedi.*
And there are taxi boats to beaches (have they started running now? I’m pretty sure they have)*, and plenty of walks which are good to do while it’s still not too hot. So, plenty of ideas for things to do on Symi there. As for me, well, I have a rewrite session ahead of me so I am not sure if I will be doing anything this weekend apart from unpaid writing.* So, no change there then. Whatever you do, have a good one.
*The Symi Gallery is not currently operating (though it may still exist, I’m not sure.)
*We closed the Symi Dream shop in 2015, because the taxes and constraints put on small businesses made it unprofitable.
*Live music is currently banned.
*Mandeios is now Scena
*No such trips at the moment, and I’m not sure if there ever are because of the costs/taxes the boats have to pay
*No photo walks because there is no shop. However, Pedi is still there.
* I’m pretty sure they haven’t! Well, they may have started as beaches are now open, but I’ve not seen/heard them going out.
*This deplorable situation remains the same. However, you can help it by ordering a copy of ‘Village View’ (or any of my books listed on my author pages, links below). My books are always available from Amazon, on Kindle and in paperback and from Kindle Unlimited. I write under two names:
Ps. And much of what’s in the Symi books is more amusing than this extract.
Symi was buffeted by high winds on Friday night/Saturday morning. On Friday, the wind brought smoke from a large forest fire near Corinth. I opened the window for a better photograph and could smell the smoke which also passed over Rhodes.
On Saturday, when the wind had died a little, and the smoke had cleared, I took a short walk in the sun, and the rest of the day was a strange mix of being too warm one minute and chilly the next. At least, that’s how it felt inside the house. I finished the latest draft of the latest novel and sent that off to the proofreader, so I met my deadline. In fact, I was early, and that’s left me free to wander the hills, thinking up what to write next.
I have other projects I could be doing. I have a book on understanding hieroglyphs to study, models to make, and who knows how much spring cleaning to do. I can see that becoming autumn cleaning, as I don’t really want to tidy the mousandra, or repaint the living room, or do anything else unnecessarily tiresome these days. But, such things must be done at some point.
As for news… More places have opened, and we have more tourists about. I passed a group of four French-speaking visitors on Saturday morning, none in masks (adds angry face), but then, we seem to be back to that ‘we’re okay ‘cos we’re safe’ kind of attitude, and fewer people are taking precautions. On Saturday night, the Trata Taverna opened, as did the Vapori Bar, both in Yialos, and we wish them well, as we do every business on the island. A week today, we shall be in Rhodes as I have an appointment with immigration to have my fingerprint taken, and then I have an appointment at the opticians, which is long overdue. Things to look forward to after seven months of lockdown: paying out for new glasses and (possibly) getting four teeth straightened at capped, though not at the optician. I will go to one of our two excellent dentists when funds allow.
So, here we go into another week, and it’s one where we might start seeing the gradual return of tourism and more settled weather, and hopefully, no more smoke clouds from forest fires.
Okay, so now I can tell you about Blue Lagoon Divers. That’s the company that has taken over what used to be the Symi Dream shop on the Kali Strata, and we couldn’t be more excited! Blue Lagoon is run by Will Zouroudi, and he’s supplied me with some information and photos:
The dive centre, called “Blue Lagoon Divers”, is a PADI dive centre explicitly focused on private dives and lessons. There will be no group dives with people you don’t know, and we only take small groups at a time, aiming for around two students to any one instructor. Safety is 100% the priority. I make sure everyone follows the specific safety rules put in place to keep people safe. With just shy of 4,000 dives underwater, nearly 3,000 hours, thousands of students, and a Master Scuba Diver Training rating, my record speaks for itself.
We are offering everything from two-hour “try diving” sessions to licences up to the professional level. So, if people want to experience what I’ve been lucky enough to experience, and travel all around the world doing, we can start them on that journey.
We have a team of experienced staff whom I have trained myself in various locations around the world. We will be mainly diving off beaches this year, offering a whole host of dives to wrecks and underwater caverns. The locations we dive will, of course, depend on comfort level and experience. Dives can be taken anytime because we build our schedule around our clients.
We provide all the gear needed, including smaller equipment for youngsters. We can pick up and drop off divers and will also provide post-dive refreshments. We can take anyone diving from ages eight to 100.
If people would like to get in contact or book a dive, I always recommend coming and chatting with us so we can help each diver decide what option is best for them. It’s good to note that people should come and book early in their holiday as there is very limited spacing. Also note, there should be a gap of 12-18 hours between diving and flying due to the pressure change.
We have a website, www.bluelagoondives.com, with links to our social media and contact info.
Is it just me, or is there an ostrich in this window?
Sorry to start the day with a bit of an odd question, but I couldn’t think of anything else to start with. I’m just back from a short walk up a long hill and keen to press on with my editing as proofing day approaches. I was sitting at the kafenion the other day, looked up and saw this, and to me, it looked like an ostrich. You will immediately assume I was drinking, and you would be right. I was drinking a frappe, and I don’t usually have caffeinated coffee, so perhaps it was a hallucination as a result of the caffeine. Whatever… This sunrise was not a hallucination, I can tell you.*
And the last photo was taken at the top of the village the other morning just as the sun was hitting the square. Don’t forget that I have a post about a new venture tomorrow, so make sure you tune in for that, and on Saturday, on my other blog, I have news about the next novel, the one I am currently editing.
*PS, I dithered about an or a hallucination; my old-fashioned schooling said ‘an’, but my grammar checker said ‘a’, and I’m still none the wiser.
