I left Syros a couple of days ago and caught the 0100 boat to Samos, another Greek island, which lies one and a half hours away from the Turkish coastline by boat, just off the coast of Asia Minor.

During the trip I met Suzy, who’d slept through her stop.

“Oh well, shit happens,” she said, “I’ve always wanted to check out Ephesus, so figure I’ll go take a look.”

Her Life’s List includes seeing all of the Seven Wonders of the World. Unfortunately, between the two of us, we couldn’t figure out which, apart from Ephesus (and I didn’t even know that one), the others were.

Does anyone know?

Finally made it to the island of Samos after a 6 1/2 hour boat ride for Syros. I leave here this afternoon at 5 p.m. and will be in Turkey an hour and a half later. From Kusadasi, I’ll take the bus directly to Istanbul. Only a 12-hour trip…

With invite in hand and sun setting over Syros, I stopped by to see the preview of Kalliopi Lemos’ exhibition “Rites of Passage” tonight (I really am trying to open myself up to more cultural activities), which is showing at the Art Gallery of Cyclades June 4-24.

From glamorous to grunge, gracious guests to buffet grazers, there was plenty to look at in addition to the small exhibit of the sculptor’s work, pieces of which include cocks flying and lavia laying. The “intelligent” crowd (which I confess not to be a part of) stopped by each piece to stare intently and rest their chin on their hands looking for the deeper meaning behind the work, “what exactly is the message she’s trying to convey with this piece of molded white clay nested in reeds and sitting on sand?”

For more information about the artist and her work, visit www.kalliopilemos.com. There are also additional photos on my Flickr.com pages.

 

To ensure my second attempt at visiting the Loukoumia-making factory was a success, I stopped by during the morning. Finding it was just a case of following my nose. On the road to Galissas from Finikas, just by where the cows and goats are dozing, a smell of burning sugar prevails.

I pulled back the screen door and walked inside.

Continue reading this entry »

For the last two days, since I checked out my hotel at noon, thothika, I’ve desperately tried to sit down and come up with things that are interesting, witty or intelligent to write. Not just about Syros, but anything. For some reason, I’m having difficulty. And it seems to be getting harder the longer I’m traveling. My grammar has leapt out of a window somewhere and my vocabulary is fast becoming non-existent. I’m getting to the point where I think I should perhaps just stop the writing entries all together.

I even put together the beginnings of a silly steamy novel which popped into my head while floating in marina.

The protagonist is a 30-something singleton who has no idea what she’s doing with her life but will eventually find the answer, or at least part of it, during a brief encounter with a man she meets from England.

“When Emma Carney first arrived on the Greek island of Syros, which lies at the center of the Cyclades, she had no idea what to do with herself, or her life. Why had she even come and what exactly what she hoping to achieve by being here? Bob, on the other hand, knew exactly what he was wanting. Sex, and plenty of it.”

Well, that’s as far as I got with that idea before getting bored titless again.

“You’re like a little girl in a toy store,” my father said to me this morning on the phone. “You keep picking up things you’ve never had or tried before, and then as soon as you’ve got what you want, you get bored and change your mind.”

He’s absolutely right. Continue reading this entry »

As I walked back from the beach today a car came down the hill from behind and pulled up so close he might as well have pushed me into the hedge. Stopping at a slight angle so the nose of his gold-colored Honda cut in front slightly, I got the distinct impression he wanted to chat. From behind, and seeing my blotchy red sun-burned legs my ass must have become a prime target.

“Ja!” the bare-chested Greek said with a big smile spread across his face. “Hi! You go down?”

Yeh, I bet you’d like to.

Oh, you mean down the hill, a ride in your car? Sorry, for a moment there, by the way you approached me, I presumed you were some greasy horrible pervert looking for a good time.

What I actually said was, “Okhi efkaristo, no thanks, walking walking, fabulous exercise! Efkaristo anyway.” You tosser.

Yes, another lazy day on Paradise Island…

Or in this case, Turkey.

Having only been in Syros for three days, I’ve decided to rest for a while, to study the place and its people in depth. On An Alphabet wants to slow down and breathe for one month. I need to be in in a place long enough to get to know people. Traveling alone is getting hard at times, I admit. Continue reading this entry »

After a few hours swimming at Finikas, a quick kip before heading out at 2300 hours for the evening (everything starts very late here and your body clock is completely screwed), and much less alcohol than last night, I’m now sitting at one of the waterfront cafes drinking copious amounts of coffee and munching on a fresh-from-the-oven croissant. As John Williams, a Welsh implant, told me, “Another lazy day on Paradise Island.”

Have just re-read previous post. So we’re all on the right page, “bang bang” was alcohol induced rather than squeaky bed induced