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By Fred Hart, 23/07/2014 22:51

I made the most of today as it is the only day between now and Saturday that I am not travelling.

I’ve spent the day enjoying my (very short) stay on Syros. Breakfast was included in the room rate, and of all the breakfasts I’ve had so far in Greece, the continental breakfast provided here has by far been the best: cheese & ham toastie, a croissant with butter and cherry jam, a hard boiled egg, and a drink: which I was able to take up to my room to enjoy.

In the morning I headed for a nice swim at Galissas Beach – it’s quite quiet at 10am! I spent quite a bit of time there, floating about on the surface of the water, before I returned to my room to have some lunch.

This afternoon I got the bus in to Ermoupoli, where I wandered the streets for a bit. I went to find the t-shirt place where I got my shirt made last year, but had forgotten it closes in the afternoons. Will try and go tomorrow if I have time, if not I’ll find somewhere in Thessaloniki to make a personalised Greek t-shirt for me.

I got some postcards and some stamps – some postcards for my collection (I’ll be putting a photo album together with my postcard, photos, tickets and other things I’ve collected); and some to send to friends and family in the UK. I sat in one of Ermoupoli’s many cafés with a drink and an ice cream while I wrote the postcards.

This evening for dinner it was back to Ταβέρνα Σάββας (Taverna Savvas) – one of our favourites in Galissas from last year – where I enjoyed my μοσχαράκι (beef). Savvas was, as usual, very busy: I had to sit inside, but didn’t mind this at all.

So tomorrow, I go back to Athens. The ferry’s not until 4, so I’ve got time to do things during the morning; I’ll probably get the bus at about 2:15 to make sure I’m at the port in enough time. The 3:15 bus would probably get me in on time but I’d be at the back of a very long queue, especially if it is five or ten minutes late, as it sometimes is.

I’m off to bed now.

Good night,

FH.

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By Fred Hart, 22/07/2014 23:13

Part 3 of my Grand Tour of Greece takes me 144km (89m) to Syros: Capital of the Cyclades, and of the entire South Aegean region.

Getting here was very easy, but did need an early start. I checked out of my hotel in Athens at 6:50 this morning, and waited outside for my taxi. I had prebooked the taxi before leaving the UK – and it arrived right on time at 7. It took me straight down to Piraeus – the whole journey takes no more than 20 minutes, and costs €25. An advantage of taking a taxi was that I was driven right up to the ferry, so didn’t have to carry my cases too far.

For the journey out, I took the 08:05 Hellenic Seaways service, on the Nissos Mykonos boat. We left on time – and arrived on time in Ermoupoli, at 11:30 on the dot. My €30 ticket was an economy class ticket; I sat up on the sun deck, right at the top, and got breakfast from the café bar just below.

A tip for travellers with lots of luggage: You can leave your cases down below; there is storage space in the garages at the bottom – all marked according to destination. Alternatively, do what I did and take them on deck with you – but remember the escalators only go as far as reception…and they don’t go down!

Back to Galissas

For my brief stay in Syros, I am back in Galissas – the small village I stayed in last year. This time though I’m staying in a room at Peter & Tony Rooms. The ground floor is the village café bar, serving a range of drinks, snacks and ice creams. At a cost of €76 for two nights, this is the most expensive part of my trip, but definitely worth it.

Antonis met me at the port and took me to Galissas on his motorbike. He took my suitcase at the front, while I sat on the back, holding on to my hand luggage and bag of shopping in one hand and the motorbike with the other. I wore no helmet, of course – this is Greece: Health & Safety doesn’t really exist out here. Riding on a motorbike (even if just a small, not very powerful one) was slightly scary, but I survived – and secretly enjoyed it.

I was able to go straight in to my room – a double room with a private bathroom, there’s also a fridge, tea/coffee making facilities as well as a knife, fork and spoons – which is quite useful, because I can get lunch, or keep some juice and water in the fridge.

After getting settled in to my room I headed for the beach. Galissas Beach is probably the best beach on the island, but never too busy. It is a shame though that what last year was the quieter end now has a (small) beach bar and a some sunbeds. It’s not a massive amount of sunbeds, but it is enough to encourage a few more people to use that end of the beach, so it’s not as quiet as it was last year.

I also note that a couple of the local tavernas have closed since we were here last. It’s a shame to see places close like that in such a lovely little village, but I guess that is the effect of the financial crisis in Greece at the moment.

After lunch and a siesta in front of the afternoon’s news bulletin on NERIT TV, I got the bus in to Ermoupoli. Forget the €3,90 each way cost for the busses in Leivadia: here, it’s €1,60 each way. It was only a quick trip to Ermoupoli today, to go to the cashpoint and to get a top-up card for my Greek mobile (you can’t top up by debit card on the Greek networks).

For dinner tonight, I went to the mezepoleio Κάππαρη Σύρου, and had chicken fillet and chips – as well as bread and a dip, and a drink – cost €10,10.

Tomorrow, after breakfast I’ll have a morning swim; then I think I’ll head back in to Ermoupoli for a bit of shopping, and then back to Galissas for an evening swim. Tomorrow is effectively the “last day” on Syros I was meant to have last year, before the tour operator sent us back to Mykonos, 24 hours before out flight, with 12 hours notice.

I’m off to bed.

Good night.

FH.