Late September on Symi

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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby D and E » 24 Sep 2018, 15:35

Took me ages to master sizing the pics & recall Allan providing me with assistance until I found an App called Image Size which I now use. We are loving the blog from up there in Chorio - from the folk down here in Pedi :D
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 24 Sep 2018, 16:41

I think I need better equipment than my phone and a second hand netbook that I bought from my manager for £100 about 3 years ago. WIFI might help too ;)

Hopefully here are the photos to go with the blog in the correct order.

Last night's view at dinner
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Walking to Emborio
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Lunch in the harbour
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby plee » 24 Sep 2018, 21:50

Hi Gemma, thank you for the blog - I am so excited to be on Symi in 2 days!! I hope I get to say hello to you x
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby silverfox » 25 Sep 2018, 13:12

Missing the views and that salad looks great!
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 25 Sep 2018, 15:57

silverfox wrote:Missing the views and that salad looks great!


It was excellent and the views as always are superb :D
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 25 Sep 2018, 16:01

24/9/18 continued

For dinner I decided to follow in D&E's steps and walk down to the Tolis taverna in Pedi. Although the road is lit by street lights, it can be dark in parts so I was glad I’d packed my mini torch – especially when 2 motor bikes went passed without any lights!

When I reached the taverna there were only 4 tables occupied so I sat at a table next to the sea, enjoying the peace and quiet with the lights from the Pedi beach hotel in the distance and an occasional fishing boat returning to Pedi. I ordered aubergine salad to start, followed by the excellent moussaka and the bill including bread, a small water and a glass of very nice white wine was 15.5 euros. I only managed to eat half the aubergine salad and struggled to finish the moussaka, though some local cats soon moved over from where they’d been meowing at the table behind and helped to finish it off. As it was 20 minutes until the next bus was due I walked back up the road where I met up with A and went to the open mic night at the Secret Garden, listening to Marcus, Steve and George, plus a few poems from a lady called Hazel. It was a pleasant evening listening to music and enjoying a few glasses of wine.

25/9/18
Woke to another hot and sunny day with no shade on the balcony, so after a quick breakfast, I set off past the square before turning right up a flight of stairs and meandering through the houses and ruins to the donkey path. Every time I do this walk I seem to take a different route but soon found the path with its magnificent views over Yialos and Horio. I met one solitary goat on my walk until I reached the little church where 2 goats were enjoying the sunshine on the church roof. I stopped a while to enjoy the view and the peace and quiet, listening to the birds and the buzz of insects with the occasional bleating from the goats. After my rest, and a welcome drink of water, I continued up the path to the road and turned left back towards Horio. I passed the kantina, which was closed, and when the road turned left down the hill I crossed over and walked through the open gate towards the monastery, passing 2 cement mixers, a truck and an old freezer before reaching the monastery gates. I sat under the shade of the large tree, reading my book and enjoying the welcome breeze, before walking back to the road and taking the quiet lane at the back of Yialos towards the church. I made my way back down towards the square via various paths and steps and as the bakery was still open, I bought a cheese pie for lunch (2 euros) that I ate on the balcony with a large tomato. After lunch it was still very hot on the balcony, so I decided to do a bit more walking and walked up to the windmills and down to Yialos via the main road so I could take a look at the new ferry dock. I had to walk in the road for part of the way as workmen are digging a large trench at the side of the road to lay new pipes. When I reached the dock there wasn’t an awful lot to see apart from the Blue Star kiosk and some large poster size ‘postcards’ of Symi on the wall – presumably to brighten it up. The bar/restaurant was closed with everything wrapped in what looked like thick cling film, so I made my way to the harbour where I stopped for a drink before walking back up the kali strata. I’ve just had a visit from Sam, my accommodation owner, who has brought me some fresh eggs so it looks like it’s eggs for breakfast tomorrow :)
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 25 Sep 2018, 16:35

View from Taverna Tolis at night (not sure how well this will come out)
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Open Mic at Secret Garden
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Today's walk
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby D and E » 25 Sep 2018, 16:44

You are certainly getting the steps in Gemma - giving Silverfox a walk for his money :D

We could lie & say we have forgotten the Fitbit charger ...... but :shock:

Loving you’re descriptions of these wonderful walks you go on.

Enjoy Sam’s eggs - these touches are so special. We had a freshly baked chocolate cake attached to our door handle this morning - the generosity of this island is just remarkable.
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 26 Sep 2018, 15:59

25/9/18 continued

Dinner was beef in Metaxa with mushrooms at George and Marias’s, 2 tender fillets of beef with mushrooms accompanied by chips and rice – it was delicious. Tonight I only ordered one course as I know the portions are large and I was full by the time I’d finished. The bill, including a quarter carafe of white wine was 13 euros.

After dinner I popped into the Sunrise to say goodbye to Colette, who is going home tomorrow. It was nice to catch up with some familiar faces and enjoy a couple of glasses of wine.


26/9/18
Woke to a sunny day with a strong breeze which was very welcome – as long as you’re not travelling on a ferry. Attempted to make an omelette for breakfast with Sam’s eggs – though I didn’t have any cooking oil and there was no fish slice so it came out more like scrambled egg, but was very tasty with lovely yellow yolks.

Today I decided to have a beach day before the weather changes and walked down to Pedi and through the gate where I took the path to St Nicholas beach. 15 minutes later I was walking down the steps to the beach, just as the first taxi boat arrived. After paying 3 euros for the sunbed, I settled down at the far end of the beach relaxing with my book. When the second ferry boat arrived the swell from the boat caused a wave that went right under my sunbed taking my sandals with it – luckily my bag was on the table! After retrieving my sandals I decided it was safer to move to another sunbed under the shade of the tree. I had lunch in the taverna where I ordered the tuna salad with lettuce (8 euros) rather than the tuna dip. The bill including water and bread was 10 euros. The salad wasn’t the best I’ve had and the bread was very hard so I might bring my own lunch if I come back.
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 26 Sep 2018, 16:16

Beef in metaxa with mushrooms
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A day at the beach
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 27 Sep 2018, 16:50

Last night dinner was at M and A’s. M was going to do a BBQ but changed it to a chilli as it was meant to be windy. However, there was only a gentle breeze as we sat out on the balcony all night, watching the sun disappear and the large orange moon appear from behind the mountain and rise into the sky. It was another lovely evening with good company, admiring the view and eating A’s excellent chilli.

27/9/18
Woke to a mixture of sunshine with some grey clouds. After breakfast I walked to the supermarket to re-stock up on provisions, before walking through Horio and up to the Kastro. I love the panoramic views from up here and after walking up to the little church, I settled down on one of the walls overlooking Chorio and read my book for half an hour. On leaving, I took the path in the opposite direction and wandered in a vague left and upwards direction, walking up steps and along alleys until I joined the quiet lane at the back of Horio. When I reached the main road I crossed over and took the road to Agia Marina cemetery before continuing on the path over the hill to Zoodohou Pigis Vrysi monastery. As it was starting to rain I sheltered under the big cypress tree for a while but it was only spitting and didn’t last long. I stayed up there for a while reading my book and admiring the views over Horio and Pedi, before setting off back – passing the ‘posh’ kantina, complete with portaloo and artificial grass. I would have stopped there for lunch but the kantina was closed, though there were still tables and chairs outside so I’m not sure if it has closed for the season or not. I continued down the main road for a while before turning left along a small road/path and made my way back to Horio via a variety of paths and steps, passing a very smart stone building with a red roof. I arrived back at the Kali Strata opposite Zoe’s taverna and bought a cheese pie from the bakery for lunch which I ate on the balcony. The breeze was quite strong and I noticed that Anastasia had removed one of my outside chairs (I only need one anyway) and the chairs from outside studios 1 and 2. I’m not sure if that’s due to the predicted high wind or because there are new no guests expected – studio 2 has been empty since I arrived.

After lunch I walked down past the school to the harbour to see if the ferries were still running. There was at least one day excursion boat in the harbour, plus the Dodekanisos ferry which was due to depart at 1630. There were also some very expensive looking yachts. After a wander round the harbour I returned back up the Kali Strata.
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby silverfox » 27 Sep 2018, 17:53

Great updates Gemma!

You are certainly getting plenty of walking in and not the easy routes either. Putting me to shame for sure!

I'm retracing all your steps in my mind.
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 28 Sep 2018, 07:50

silverfox wrote:Great updates Gemma!

You are certainly getting plenty of walking in and not the easy routes either. Putting me to shame for sure!

I'm retracing all your steps in my mind.


Hmm, this is the man who walks up the hill from Yialos to Horio every day! I find the Kali Strata hard work but not sure I could walk up that road every day ;)

I'm struggling to add photos as my phone keeps saying low memory but will try again later.
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 28 Sep 2018, 15:44

At 8pm I walked back down the Kali Strata and went to the Dolphin for dinner where I ordered the pollo pasta which was delicious. The bill with a glass of wine and a small bottle of water was 12 euros. The waiter brought a complimentary glass of raki with the bill. Unfortunately I don’t like raki and had to leave it, but it was a nice gesture. The harbour at night is stunningly beautiful all lit up, with the moon half shrouded in cloud high up on the hillside. As I’d already walked up the Kali Strata once that day, I caught the 10 o clock bus back to Horio and popped into the Sunrise for a nightcap.

28/9/18
Woke up to rain – though it had stopped by the time I’d finished off Sam’s eggs for breakfast (scrambled this time). There was still a lot of grey cloud around but I decided to make the most of the slightly lower temperatures and walk up the Vigla – with a couple of plastic bags in my back pack to protect my camera, phone and kindle if it started raining. I walked through the village and on the donkey path where, instead of going straight on, I took the path on the left going up the hill towards the main road. When I reached the road I turned right and continued walking until I reached the sharp left hand bend where I continued straight ahead, taking the moni-path to Aghia Ekaterini monastery. This was a lovely path with beautiful views over the valley and a few goats to keep me company. When I reached the little monastery (gates were locked) I sat on the wall for a while admiring the view whilst listening to the birds tweeting, the buzz of insects and the occasional goat bell – it was beautiful. Two ladies stopped for a chat on their way to Nanou and one of them had read my blog :) . I walked on and re-joined the road and after about 15 minutes walking took the path on the left up to the Vigla. It was very windy, which meant the climb wasn’t too hot. The views from the top are breath-taking – you can see for miles, right over Yialos, Horio and Pedi and far out to sea.

I made my way back to Horio via the road and stopped for lunch at the Olive Tree where I had a very nice salad bowl with pita and a large bottle of water – followed by a slice of chocolate cake that I spotted when I went in to pay the bill and ate back on my balcony. The bill was 12 euros and it was all delicious.

Unfortunately there are still no photos as my phone keeps saying 'low memory' when I try to upload them and when I've tried to open them on the netbook from my email account I get a message saying that the server is down. I will try again later - or tomorrow.
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 28 Sep 2018, 16:59

View from the Vigla
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Lunch at the Olive Tree
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby silverfox » 28 Sep 2018, 17:43

Well done Gemma!

It's not a stroll to get to the top of the Vigla but well worth it!

The food and drink tastes even better after such a walk. :)
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 29 Sep 2018, 16:05

28/9/18 continued

For dinner I went to Zoe’s where I ordered the chick pea balls followed by the beef stifado. I asked if I could have a smaller starter and Zoe said that it was small, however when the 5 plump and tasty fritters arrived there would have been plenty as a starter for 2 IMHO. I ate 3 and wrapped the other 2 up and took them home – I’ll put them in the fridge for emergency rations in case I can’t get out if the bad weather comes. The stifado was also very tasty but came with far too many chips – I left over half of them. Bread arrived but was refused as I knew I’d have no space for any bread. The bill including half a litre of house white was 23.5 euros. Complimentary sliced apple with cinnamon followed the meal.

29/9/18
Woke to a sunny but very breezy day. I decided to take advantage of the breeze by doing some laundry, before settling down for breakfast on the balcony. After reading my book for a while, I decided to head for the beach and have a swim and took the familiar walk down the road to Pedi and on the path to St Nick’s. There were a lot less sunbeds than when I was there earlier in the week – probably winding down for the winter now that a lot of tourists are heading home. After paying for the sunbed (3.50 euros so I either got the price wrong the other day or it’s gone up) I went for a dip in the sea. The water felt cold initially but I soon acclimatised and enjoyed my swim in the clear blue water before settling down with my kindle for a couple of hours. I decided to skip lunch at the taverna and mid-afternoon headed back to Pedi where I had a late lunch of a cheese and ham pie followed by an ice-cream from the kiosk – very healthy! I burned off a few calories by walking back up the hill as the bus drove past.
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 29 Sep 2018, 16:13

Dinner at Zoe's my food/photos doesn't look half as appealing as D&E's!
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 30 Sep 2018, 14:11

29/9/18 continued:

Dinner was at M and A’s where A made an excellent pasta bolognese. It was another relaxing evening in peaceful Horio, watching the lightening over Turkey in the distance. On my way back to the Anastasia I stopped to chat with some people outside Lefteris in the square and had a very nice glass of rose wine whilst discussing the walk up the Vigla.

30/9/18
Woke to cloud but no rain and when the sun popped out it was very hot. After a leisurely breakfast and some time spent reading, I set off towards the windmills watching the Sebeco arrive down below in the harbour, before making my way to Pontikokastro on top of the hill. After admiring the view (I do a lot of that on Symi) I made my way back the track and walked down the main road to the harbour. I couldn’t see the workmen so stepped over the flimsy barrier and walked down the path. The workmen were halfway down the hill and have filled in most of the trench at the side of the road so it shouldn’t be long until the path is open again. At one point I had to negotiate round a large round wooden object that took up most of the path (yes the path is closed for a reason!) before making my way towards the workman stood at the barrier at the other end of the path. I expected at least a frown but the workman just smiled at me as I made my way round the barrier.

After having a mooch round the harbour, which was much quieter than usual, I walked passed the boatyard at Harani before making my way to the church on the hill above Nos beach. I relaxed and read my kindle whilst a luxury yacht was moored out at sea below. Lunch was a chicken gyros in the harbour, before I made my way back up the Kali Strata.
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Re: Late September on Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 30 Sep 2018, 14:18

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