Tales of a first-time visitor to Symi

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Tales of a first-time visitor to Symi

Postby Irene » 02 Oct 2016, 13:47

Well, I've enjoyed reading all your travel reports so much that I thought I ought to add my own!
Wednesday 14th September:
The alarm went off at 6.30 so that we could get the horses done ( I love them dearly but was looking forward to a week without mucking out!) We left home in Scotland at 10 and 3 trains later we arrived at Manchester airport at 4pm. My daughter and I met up with my sister who has been to Symi 6 times and was looking forward to showing it off. Our flight was delayed by 2 hours which wasn't too bad compared to the morning flight which was delayed by 10 hours! We passed the time by having a light meal and sharing a bottle of fizz to get us in the holiday mood.
The flight was uneventful and we arrived at Rhodes airport in the small hours of the morning. We were taken to a grotty hotel but at least we had the chance to put our heads down for a couple of hours.
Thursday 15th:
We had a great sail on the 9.30 ferry and the view as we approached Symi was every bit as spectacular as I had been led to believe. We were met at the harbour by the Olympic rep and very quickly we were dispatched to our accommodation: my daughter was staying at Irini and my sister and I were in the Anastasia apartments. By this time we had had a couple of hours sleep in the past 32 but we were on holiday and didn't want to waste any time! We met my daughter down at the harbour and took the high road over to Nimborio. The views were amazing but it was incredibly hot. We had a very welcome meal in the taverna followed by a relaxing couple of hours swimming and sunbathing. We made our way back into town via the road and then,very slowly, made our way back to the apartment. We arranged to meet up at the pizza place down at the harbour where we had a pleasant meal and shared a litre of wine . By this stage the effects of lack so sleep were really starting to kick in so we decided to have an early night. This time our walk up the Kalistrata was even slower!
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Re: Tales of a first-time visitor to Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 02 Oct 2016, 21:25

Great start Irene and looking forward to hearing more about your trip :D
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Re: Tales of a first-time visitor to Symi

Postby Irene » 03 Oct 2016, 11:23

Friday 16th:
We had a very lazy start to the day and enjoyed a delicious breakfast of yogurt, figs and honey on our balcony. It was gloriously sunny and we had great views down to Pedi bay. As the night before had been so hot, my sister, C, decided that paying for air con was essential!
With a bit of difficulty, my daughter, E, found her way up the Kali Strata to meet us and we headed off to St Nicks beach. Pedi was so pretty and provided lots of photo opportunities. The path over to the beach was easier than I had been anticipating, although the views were distracting! C could not believe how busy the beach was when we arrived. In all her previous visits she had never seen it like that. Managed to find sun beds and enjoyed a swim in the wonderfully clear sea. By mid afternoon the beach started to get quieter and we moved over to the rocky side of the beach to ensure maximum sun and headed over to the taverna for a pleasant lunch.
We spent a relaxing afternoon swimming, reading and sunbathing. The wind started to pick up and we decided to make our way back about 5.30. We had to battle against the wind which created a virtual sand storm. By the time we got to the Pedi road it had got so bad that we were walking single file. At one point we glanced round to see E doubled over and in obvious distress. Something had struck her on the head and blood was streaming down her face. Several vey kind locals came to her aid providing water and towels. Fortunately, we found that the wound was small and close to her hairline. E was too proud to accept the many offers of lifts and so we eventually made our way home slowly. C is a vet and thought that the wound was not too serious but we ought to get E to a doctor. The pharmacy in the village was closed, as was the doctor in the harbour but we managed to get some supplies from the pharmacy at the waterfront we got E back to the Irini apartments where C carried out some first aid. With all the blood cleared away the actual wound was fairly small but it was still very traumatic for us all!
We had planned to eat up in the village that night but it was so late by that stage that we decided to return to the Dolphin. As we were still in our swimsuits and shorts, with hair full of dust and sand, we needed somewhere to hide!
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Re: Tales of a first-time visitor to Symi

Postby Val » 03 Oct 2016, 13:33

What a dreadful experience for you all. Hope your holiday improved after such a traumatic event. You were very unlucky there and look forward to reading about your less eventful days later in the week.
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Re: Tales of a first-time visitor to Symi

Postby D and E » 03 Oct 2016, 16:45

Quite an incident and as you say traumatic for you all - did you get to the bottom of what caused this ?

Well done for writing the blog - very interesting - and hope you continue to write and hope that the rest of the visit went smoothly.
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Re: Tales of a first-time visitor to Symi

Postby silverfox » 03 Oct 2016, 18:59

Hope the rest of your visit is care free Irene.

We love these blogs so many thanks for your time.

The Pizzas at the Dolphin are very nice! :)
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Re: Tales of a first-time visitor to Symi

Postby Irene » 04 Oct 2016, 17:58

Thanks for the kind comments. Struggling with technical issues today, so trying this as a test
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Re: Tales of a first-time visitor to Symi

Postby Irene » 04 Oct 2016, 23:36

Saturday 17th

We awoke to another glorious sunny morning in Symi. The weather has been hotter than I was anticipating at this time of year but I certainty wasn't complaining; factor 30 suncream, hats and lots of water and we were ok.
After a leisurely breakfast we popped into the local supermarket for some picnic supplies before meeting E (by this time sporting a golf ball sized lump in addition to the cut, but otherwise none the worse for her adventure)
We headed back down the road to Pedi and spent some time taking photos of the little boats near the chapel. Once through the gate C lamented the absence of scent from the vegetation which accompanied this walk when she visited in May. However we decided that the warmer sea and evening temperatures more than compensated for this!
The beach at St Nicks was slightly quieter than the previous day and we spent an enjoyable few hours swimming and reading in the sun. The water is wonderful here: so clear and warm, I have already swum more often in the past few days than I have in years. Again we were amongst the last to leave. C decided to take the water taxi back so that she could book our Posideon tickets for the following day. E and I walked slowly home, admiring the views of the late afternoon sun sparkling on the water.
Dinner that evening was at Georgios, oft frequented by C in previous trips. It turned out to be music night and very soon all the tables were full. The poor young man who was the sole waiter spent his time running from one table to another and it did make for rather chaotic service - E got her main after C and I finished our delicious mousaka! It was all very entertaining, aided by copious supplies of red wine!

A nightcap at the pretty Sunrise Bar was a fitting ending to another fantastic day on Symi.
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Re: Tales of a first-time visitor to Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 05 Oct 2016, 07:03

Sorry to hear about the incident with your daughter's head :shock: Glad she is ok and hope the lump soon goes down.
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Re: Tales of a first-time visitor to Symi

Postby Irene » 09 Oct 2016, 21:47

18 - 21 September

I confess that I have been so caught up the current blog from D&E that my own retrospective musings have lost some of their appeal!

There are just a few things that I wish to add. Our accommodation at Anastasia was very good with excellent views and a friendly host. I would happily return although C is keen to go back to Taxi Archie where she has stayed many times.
The Poseidon trip was every bit as good as all the comments on this forum had suggested. I will long remember the pleasure of swimming that day. C had been twice before and on each occasion she had been seasick ( she does admit to being extremely susceptible and was probably the only one to suffer that day). I'm pleased to report that this time she had no ill effects and was able to partake of the excellent BQ!
I will return to Symi soon. The only negative aspect to the holiday was the length of the journey, so maybe next year I will have to stay for 2 weeks!
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Re: Tales of a first-time visitor to Symi

Postby Gemma1 » 10 Oct 2016, 07:42

Yes the length of the journey is the main reason that I'm not returning to Symi for a week next September. For 2 weeks it's not too bad but I only had 6 nights on Symi and arriving home at 6am in the morning after being up all night isn't ideal. I've booked a flight to Chania flying from my local airport for September 2017 and will spend a week exploring parts of Crete that I haven't visited before. When I return to Symi it needs to be for 2 weeks as a week just isn't long enough.

Glad you enjoyed your week on Symi Irene :D
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Re: Tales of a first-time visitor to Symi

Postby D and E » 10 Oct 2016, 16:28

Hi Irene - I have really enjoyed your take on Symi as it is so interesting to get the insight of a first time visitor. We often think we could get to Australia as quick as we do to Symi sometimes but I am afraid we are smitten and a year without Symi would be unthinkable for us.

So glad to read that you intend to return.
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Re: Tales of a first-time visitor to Symi

Postby Eliza » 11 Oct 2016, 18:02

Thank you I have enjoyed your blog very much. So pleased you like Symi,after all we could all be wrong. :-)
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