Walking on the island of Nisyros
By Helen Grubner. Filed in Uncategorized |
Palli, Nisyros
Today I have seen the sunrise and the sunset and now it is time to sit and write my blog as Greece play Argentina in the World Cup. Only two Greek males watching the game live here in the hotel lobby, however, they are making enough noise for a large crowd which is a little distracting to me but nevermind.
I set off from Mandraki shortly after 0630 hours this morning to walk to the small fishing village of Palli some 4km away. Every day here the weather is hot, very hot, however, some days are quite unpleasant whilst others such as today, thanks to a breeze are pleasant. To the north the small island of Gyali where pumice is mined is clearly visible then just a kilometre or so down the road you come to Loutra, famous for it’s spa springs with sodium and sulphur rich waters and a maximum temperature of 48 degrees C.
Approximately one hour of walking and I arrived in Palli. Ordered and enjoyed a particularly good frappe (iced coffee) at a harbour front taverna as all the yachties ate breakfast on board their yachts, then bought a delicious milopita (apple pie) from the local bakery and sat down on the beach to eat it. I had come prepared to swim, however, after an hour decided to make my way back to Mandraki, wearing shorts and bikini top, hoping to maintain my suntan. Also checked out Loutra on my return, however, made a decision to give a bath a miss, I think mainly because I simply did not feel inclined to shut myself away in a hot bath on my own.
This afternoon I have walked a considerable number of k’s through the alleyways of Mandraki, as well as making my way up the stairs to the Monastery of Panagia Spiliani (Blessed Virgin Mary of the cave) only to find all doors closed which was disappointing. Somehow it signalled to me that it was time to find a Cafe for an ouzo and to finish reading my book ‘Hotel du Lac’ by Anita Brookner – good read. During daytime hours Mandraki is humming with all the day trippers who arrive by boat to visit the volcano, however, come evening and the place is very quiet – in fact, many tavernas do not bother to open and tonight I had to search to find a place to eat. Settled on Taverna Kalikatsos – more Italian really than Greek but rather tasty, interesting food where I had a very good chicken souvlaki. Situated right on the seafront, it is necessary for plastic blinds to be lowered when wild weather arrives otherwise the diners may encounter an unexpected shower. Tonight came a close call as the waves pounded into the shore and over the wall on to tables and chairs where the waiter had been remiss in lowering a blind.
Just now, Yiorgos came in to tell me he sighted an owl in the kitchen – coffee colour, however, it has gone into hiding somewhere. We have tried in vain to find it – now off to bed as almost midnight. Perhaps tomorrow I will visit the volcano.