Tilos 2018 (Dodecanese):

Livadia harbour on Tilos island

I'd last had a holiday on the Dodecanese island of Tilos way back in 2006 with the now long gone British specialist tour company Laskerina. That, in fact, turned out to be their final season in business. I've written about that trip here before and it is fair to say that whilst I enjoyed Tilos I hadn't really seen it as a return destination in the way that Halki has become. However, after a couple of day trips from Halki I began to consider that Tilos was worthy of a prolonged visit and finally booked for June 2018.

Having used Expedia to put together a few short trips (Athens etc) I finally abandoned the safety net of a package holiday to book my first prolonged holiday. Settling on the well reviewed Apollo Studios in Livadia and convenient British Airways flights I found myself at Rhodes airport on the Monday night. This is where research comes in as I already knew exactly where to board the public bus to Rhodes Old Town. Coming out of arrivals you turn left and the bus stop is by a cafe with outdoor wooden seating. At only a couple of euros this bus will save you a fortune on taxis -just don't expect any special luggage facilities! The 40-60 minute bus ride takes you along the coast to the Old Town before terminating at the bus "depot" (it's just a side street in reality). Now to find my hotel the Domus Rodos in the heart of the Old Town. Luckily a helpful woman at the bus ticket office pointed me in the right direction. Put simply, you head back the way the bus has just come then left at the end of the street straight down to the seafront. Turning right here you will find yourself in the walled Old Town with Kolona harbour on your left. This was exciting as there were the Dodekanisos Seaways fast catamarans moored up for the night. All ready to take me to Tilos on Tuesday morning (ticket already booked online through their website). Actually finding my hotel proved rather harder as I soon got lost in a maze of narrow streets and alleys but eventually found it.

Collecting my booked tickets the next morning from the ticket office at the harbour it was soon time

Bell tower of Agia Zoni, Mikro Chorio

to board the Dodekanisos Express for the just over two hour trip to Tilos. Be aware that (at this time anyway) there were no facilities at the harbour for buying water etc but as I found on boarding there was already brisk trade at the bar well before departure time. Powering down the length of Rhodes it was up on deck all the way for me alternating the calm of the stern area with being blasted up in the bows.

First stop is Halki island and I had wondered if this would be the point at which I regretted going on to Tilos. However, Halki all looked just as it ever does and with that reassurance I was excited when we headed off again after a very brief stop. This time the ferry follows the length of Halki before heading on towards the already visible Tilos. Arriving at Livadia I was met my the owner of the Apollo Studios who transported me and my luggage all of the few hundred yards to the studios. It was a nice touch anyway! My ground floor apartment was great with a large patio area to sit in all planted up with basil plants

Megalo Chorio on Tilos island

First day. First walk and it was off to the cliff top path to Lethra beach. Find this by taking the uphill road out of Livadia for five minutes or so then the turning on the right marked for the Ilidi Rock hotel. Just follow this road to the end where a closed "goat gate" will lead you onto the path. Enjoy the spectacular sea views on this circa 45 minute walk but do watch your step in a few places where erosion had undermined the path. Lethra itself is a big stony beach which I actually had to myself being quite late in the day.

Next day was up to the deserted village of Mikro Chorio. Again just follow the uphill road out of Livadia for circa 40 minutes. For a short cut and welcome shade you can scramble up a bank onto a path through a wooded ravine. Find this where the main road turns sharply to the left. Mikro Chorio is highly photogenic with all the deserted houses now thronging with goats and sheep and the beautiful church of Agia Zoni. What I missed on previous visits was the remains of a medieval Crusader Knights castle. This is at the top of the village to the right (looking uphill) and well worth the few minutes it takes to walk up to.

If one deserted village isn't enough for you take the cliff top path to Gera. From Livadia head right

Solar energy on Tilos island

(facing seaward) and just follow the seafront road up the hill at the end of the bay to the chapel of Agios Ioannis then continue on the path beyond. Gera is truly deserted and derelict but, again, you will have plenty of company from goats and sheep.

It's always fun to take a ride on a local bus and I did this to the Capital of the island Megalo Chorio. This is full of pretty blue and white houses and narrow little paths. Walk upwards to the top of the village to see the church of Archangel Michael. High above Mikro Chorio are the ruins of another Crusader Knights castle which, in theory, you can reach via a path winding its way up the hillside. Find the path by going to the rear right (looking towards the castle) of the village. There should be a wooden sign pointing you to the path. Be aware that though this path starts off as an easy walk it does get trickier higher up and, in fact, on this visit I lost the path totally and didn't make it to the castle itself -just ended up fifty foot or so below it with no visible way up. Worse, because I now had the sun directly in my eyes I couldn't see the way down again either! I just had to carefully stow my camera in my backpack and improvise a route down. I now know that there are two key things to look out for. Firstly when you come to a derelict building on the right of the path you need to turn right and head up behind this building. Secondly, the path has lights (sort of) so look out for black electric cables and low level lights at intervals to keep you on track.

Another thing you can do by bus is to take the Sunday excursion (in season) to the monastery of Agios Panteleimon. Essentially the bus does its normal route but then continues up the rather precarious cliff road to the monastery where it stops for an hour or so to give you time to look around. Dating from around 1470 the monastery is well worth a visit and you can roam around at will. On the way back sit on the left hand side of the bus so you can get a good look at the huge wind turbine which forms part of the Tilos Horizons project. Luckily, the bus had sliding windows that I was able to open to photograph the turbine as we passed.

Monastery of Agios Panteleimon on Tilos island

For my final walk I took the bus up to Megalo Chorio and then did the road walk back to Livadia. This would take around 90 minutes if you just did it direct but there are diversions. Shortly after leaving Megalo Chorio take the road on the right marked Caves of Charkadio (or something on those lines). A short diversion to the right takes you to the island reservoir (which was empty when I visited) then back continuing along the road up to the caves. Here you will find a new visitor centre (not open when I was there) and beyond that an amphitheatre with great natural acoustics. Note, this a modern one, not an ancient Greek relic. Taking the path behind the amphitheatre takes you are to the cave entrance itself although, sadly, this is securely fenced off. It was here that bones of pigmy elephants were discovered - you can see these in the museum at Megalo Chorio though I assume they are destined to feature in the visitor centre once open. Once finished here head back to the main road and resume your walk back to Livadia. Shortly on the left you will see the multiple banks of solar panels that (with the wind turbine) aim to make Tilos self sufficient in power in the future. This is a major award winning project that has attracted attention and coverage around the World and was a deciding factor in my choosing Tilos as my destination because of the photographic possibilities.

So twelve years after my last holiday on Tilos I finally came back and was very glad that I did. Great natural beauty, fabulous walks to be had, lots of photogenic views and an exciting energy project ongoing. What's not to like? The Cockerel Count on Tilos remains at medium -there are some to be heard but do not expect a mass dawn chorus. Goatiness rating remains high especially in the deserted villages of Mikro Chorio and Gera.

Halki 2017 (Dodecanese):

Chapel by Pondamos beach, Halki

June 2017 saw me making my fifth visit to the Dodecanese island of Halki making it my most visited place in Greece. Here are some notes on my trip.

Early starts, long lunches and leaping mammals:

This year I came on the Easyjet 05.30 flight out of Gatwick. Unlike previous years there didn't seem much point in getting a room at the airport for such an early flight so I just got a late train up from Hastings getting me in shortly after midnight. This only left three hours or so before it was time to head to bag drop off and security. On arrival at Rhodes the Olympic rep asked me to come back in an hour as they were awaiting another flight (the early Monarch from Manchester) so I had the chance for a coffee and catching up on emails. In fact the Monarch flight had just a family of three Halki bound so I was quite impressed that Olympic had a small coach just to take the four of us to Kamiros Skala which we reached at 14.00. As expected we were booked on the 17.30 Nissos Halki crossing so there was time (plenty) for an enjoyable lunch at the Althemeni fish restaurant washed down by my first two bottles of Mythos of the holiday.

In fact, had I paid for a one way ticket I could have got a much earlier crossing on either Fedon or Express Nikos both of which made the crossing around 15.00 - but I realised that would probaly just cause confusion all round and with nobody ready for me at the other end. Eventually the four of us duly boarded and it looked like a repeat of last July when just five of us made the crossing until, after some delay, another full size Olympic coach arrived with around another thirty passengers and we set off for Halki.

Excited enough as I was anyway things hit fever pitch half way across with the shout of Dolphin!

Ferry departing Emborio harbour, Halki

And, yes there it was, leaping out of the water in the wake of the boat. I've probaly mentioned before that in seventeen years of visiting Greek islands I have never seen one (except on fridge magnets, beach towels, postcards and just about everything else you can put a dolphin image on). It was truly a magical moment.

Arrival and studio alarm:

Hyped up by the dolphin event everything was going just great with this trip until on being warmly greeted by Zifos Travel (agents for Olympic) at Emborio I was told I was in Studio 3 at the Dorothea. Now that wasn't in the script as I had specifically booked and had confirmation of a Side Sea View (which is Studio 4 only). Read my Dorothea review posted previously to fully understand the difference but, simply, four has a private balcony leading off the kitchen, three has a front balcony accessed from the communal corridor. Studio three is lovely (I've sneaked a look when it was empty!) but I wanted MY balcony. It seems that Zifos do not get the info (from Olympic) about front/side bookings and it was suggested that I should have made a special request for studio 4 (I'll be taking that one up with Olympic in due course). However, a quick resolution was proposed namely that if four was empty when I arrived at the Dorothea I should take that and let them know I was in that one. A rather nervous ascent of the steps followed but, thankfully, I was greeted by an unoccupied studio 4 and promptly took possession! Next Retsina (six euros this year for a 1.5ltr bottle) cheese, crackers, oregano crisps, peach juice and water were all promptly purchased and lugged back up the steps and I was sitting on my balcony enjoying that spectacular view over the harbour. Home!

Tarpon Springs Boulevard, Halki island

First day storm, A moment of Pride and Meet the Kids:

There's nothing like getting up on that first morning on a Greek island to head out to the balcony with a cup of coffee and soak up that sunshine. This was, indeed,  nothing like that. Storm clouds, bolts of lightening and then rain greeted me early the next morning. That wasn't in the script either. Luckily the rain didn't last long at this point. This being a Thursday morning I knew that the twice weekly arrival of the Dodekanisos Express fast catamaran ferry was due only to find (who says nothing much changes on Halki?) sister ferry Dodekanisos Pride powering into the harbour. This vessel normally runs the Symi route (I transferred back on it from Symi in 2011). Essentially they are both very similar but with Pride being built in 2005 (in Norway) five years after the Express. At least, as a photographer, this was something different to photograph.

I later did my traditional first walk of the holiday to Kania later on (having to put my camera away several times as rain started up again). For variation, whilst descending down to Kania I took the dirt road that goes off to the right. This then becomes a very overgrown road before coming to an end by a large gap in a wire fence.  Passing the sign on the fence (in Greek) that might have said Danger Unexploded Mines but probaly just Private: Keep Out I picked my may down across a very rocky field until I was almost at Kania. Sadly, at the bottom there didn't seem to be any corresponding gap in the fence and retraced my steps back up. Heading back to Emborio I was delighted to meet a family of goats in the road with two very tiny young kids (who bleated at me rather forlornly). Eventually the family moved off into a field leaving just one kid behind -which I now felt personally responsible for (what if it gets run over by the bus?). I saw them all on a later walk so they were fine. Arriving back at the harbour front heading for a Mythos and toasted cheese sandwich at Costas the rain started in ernest and chucked down for a good ten minutes. If seeing a dolphin was a first, seeing a Greek person sheltering under an umbrella was another.

Regatta time:

Small boats in Emborio harbour, Halki

Sunday 18th saw the Channel Regatta come to Halki when 23 yachts gradually arrived and moored up together. Organised by the Offshore Yachting Club of Rhodes and the Marmeris International Yacht Club this is a three stage race taking in Rhodes to Symi, Symi to Halki and finally Halki back to Rhodes. It certainly made for a lively evening with speakers set up on the harbour front and loud music being played -quite a contrast to the normal peaceful atmosphere but, I thought, made for a nice change. The next morning they all set off -again with music playing from one of the yachts.

Walk to Lagonia, Mist and close encounter with a well:

I saved this lengthy walk till near the end of my holiday. Taking the road to Kania I turned off by the old power generators -there's now a sign post for Areta here. Through the two gates and then a steep clamber up the rocky hill. There is a path of sorts but I struggled to see it at times. With a stone wall on my left I kept going upwards and then bore left when the wall did. A further climb away from the wall took me to the welcome shade of some olive trees. From here there is a steep clamber taking you up to a gap just below the summit which brings you out onto a huge valley sweeping down to Kania which you can see far below. This is where I went wrong and instead of bearing right for the track to Areta I just kept moving round the island just below summit level -sometimes with a defined track and sometimes improvising. Eventually after about 90 minutes (total) I reached the steep ravine of Lagonia. From here I could have descended into the ravine and up the other side before continuing on and eventually ending up coming back down the road to Emborio.

Nissos Halki ferry arriving at Emborio, Halki

However, I decided to call a halt here as I had no idea how long that stage would take and, worryingly, a thick sea mist was now rolling in and covering the summit ahead. I had no idea how thick that mist was likely to get but I did realise there was no chance of finding my back down if I couldn't see ahead. Back tracking I kept looking back to see the mist slowly advancing on me -no rush then! This is the point at which I realised I was about to walk into a deep uncovered well next to the ruins of an old chapel. Thankfully I stopped just in time and I was very pleased when I was finally making my long descent back to the Kania road - Emborio visible ahead.

As ever, the time to return home came and we set off on the Nissos Halki at the fairly civilised time of 07.30 (I've had earlier transfers in my time). Boarding the coach at Kamiros Skala I was a bit surprised to have my name called out. It turned out that I was the only one catching the noon Easyjet flight home and the coach made a special stop at the airport just for me before taking the rest of my fellow travellers off to kill time before their later flights.

The end of another two great weeks on Halki. I have a feeling that I may visit a different island next year but I can certainly say I'll be back for a sixth visit in the future.

Tilos 2016 (Dodecanese):

Livadia harbour on Tilos island

On my three previous visits to Halki I have always made a day trip to Nisyros and its active volcano. For a change this time I decided to visit Tilos where I had a two weeks holiday in 2006. Not only would it be interesting to revisit the island after some ten years but it would also be a good opportunity to get some stock photographs. The only images of Tilos I had were just of the harbour front taken from the ferry whilst en route to Nisyros (Tilos is roughly the mid point of the journey from Halki to Nisyros).

It was great fun stepping aboard the Dodekanisos Express yet again and powering over to Tilos. The initial part of the circa 45 minute journey takes you past Kania beach then right up the length of Halki. Pulling into Livadia harbour was, of course, very familiar but it felt strange to actually be getting off there. Really, nothing much seemed to have changed once I got to exploring the town. I had some fun trying to spot the apartment where I stayed years before. At the time this was above the office of my holiday company Laskerina (sadly no longer in existence). I'm pretty sure I found it but as it is now a private house couldn't be totally certain.

One of the highlights of my holiday there had been walking up to the old abandoned village of Mikro Horio

The abandoned village of Mikro Chorio on Tilos

(about 45minutes walk) so I made this my first mission there. I knew there was some sort of off road shortcut there but couldn't remember where to pick it up so just used the road. I found it coming back however. After leaving Livadia and just past the side turn to Ilidi Rock hotel the road turns at right angles to the left. At that point scramble up the bank on the right where there is a rough path heading upwards through a ravine. This cuts out a lot of the road journey and provides some very welcome shade.

The old village is fascinating to walk through and you may well encounter sheep and goats scrambling about in the narrow streets. Not everything there is derelict - the churches and chapels are maintained as is the music bar where holidaymakers can come at night (they run a minibus bus service to and from Livadia). Sadly, it doesn't open until 11pm so no chance of a refreshing drink!

Back down in the harbour I had a great photo opportunity when yachts taking part in the Rhodes Cup race started appearing round the headland. Just a few at first then more and more kept coming. Eventually they all moored up together in the small inner harbour. I'd never seen so many in one place before. From looking at the boats it was obvious that people of many different nationalities were taking part in the event.

Rhodes Cup yachts moored in Livadia on Tilos

What I didn't have time to do on this visit was to take the bus to the far end of the island to see the Capital of the island Megalo Chorio. You would need to be fairly confident of the return bus times if doing this to ensure you didn't miss your ferry home. You could walk back along the road which I remember as being roughly two hours (with breaks) having done this on my last visit.


It was certainly interesting and enjoyable seeing Tilos again and the abandoned village was just as much an experience as I remembered and very photogenic. I know that many people split their holiday between Tilos and Halki and the short distance between them makes this very easy to do. I will certainly be returning to Tilos next time I stay on Halki. There was a low Cockerel Count on this trip but the Goatiness rating is high due to so many being around the old village. Regards, David.

Halki 2016 (Dodecanese):

Emborio harbour on Halki island

July 2016 saw me making my fourth visit to the lovely little Dodecanese island of Halki. I've posted here twice before on the island and as little has changed there (thankfully) I'm keeping this report down to some specific points rather than writing a full review of my two weeks there.

Departures and Arrivals:
Things got off to a great start when after queuing for check in at Gatwick for some time I realised I was heading for "The Gambia Experience". I'm sure that would have been lovely but it was The Halki Experience at the next check in that I was hoping for. A slightly delayed departure for the Enterair flight but pleasant and friendly cabin crew made up for this. I had slight concerns about the ferry connection due to the late arrival at Rhodes (especially when the Tilos bound couple in front of me were told they were being overnighted) but I was soon on a mini bus heading for Kamiros Skala. This was the first time in four visits it had been a mini bus rather than a full size coach and it became clear why after boarding the Nissos Halki when I realised there were just five of us making the crossing. I've never been in July before but I had expected it to be much busier than my last two visits in June. I have to say it was quite an emotional moment when we arrived at Emborio harbour -with a real sense of home coming.

Dorothea Studios:

Restored chapel at the Crusader castle on Halki

My plan here worked and I was delighted and relieved to get the same delightful studio as last year. This is the one at the top with a stunning panoramic view over the harbour and its own private balcony at the side. See my review and photos of the Dorothea in an earlier post here. The lower studios have a view which is partially obscured by the roof of the houses in front and the other top floor one has a balcony that you enter from the corridor so is less private. Look for "Side sea view" when booking. The TV didn't work any more than it did last year but I stand by my claim that this is the nicest Greek island property I have ever stayed in. Only a couple of other apartments at the Dorothea seemed to be occupied when I got there and in the second week just one other that I could tell. In fact, many of the holiday properties around the village appeared to be empty during my stay -maybe it is a July thing. Only the Nissia properties showed much signs of life including the one at the top of the steps behind the Dorothea -which I eventually realised was the Laskerina property I stayed in for my first visit in 2005!

Retsina:
I know this is a subject dear to the heart of many so a quick word on the subject. I mainly used the Lefteris supermarket -being closest to my studio and my 1.5 ltr bottle of Restsina started off at 5euro. To my horror supplies ran out a few days into my holiday and I made to the trip to the Petros supermarket only to be charged 7euros for the same Restsina! Thankfully, Lefteris soon received fresh supplies though price now migrated to 5.50euro. They did run out a second time but had the alternative of the 500ml bottles at 2euro so substituted with those.

The Church of the Holy Trinity above Chorio on Halki

Walks to Kania:
I've posted before that the upgraded Kania beach isn't to my personal taste and much preferred the unspoilt cove it used to be - with just a lizard or two for company. Nethertheless, I still always enjoy the road walk to there and back (I just leave out the stopping bit in the middle!). It's always good to see those bee hives are still there as they always have been and those two huge abandoned trailer things are still parked up at the side of the road. I made a more concerted effort this year to try and see what they actually were but lack of any name plates or signage on them left me none the wiser. Some sort of refridgeration units connected to the old fish farm? Something to do with road building or power lines? In fact I was on the right track with power lines as a regular on the excellent Halki Visiting forum informed me that they were emergency generators intended for use during power cuts. It seems they arrived, parked up and were then never used. Looking at them now I think it safe to say they never will be used.

Castle renovation:

Old stone building by Emborio harbour on Halki

I reserved judgement on this last year as the work was very much in progress. I have to say that, overall, they have made a good job of this. Much easier path to reach it and some interesting and informative signage here and there. If I was afraid that it was going to become a crowded tourist attraction I needn't have worried -I was the only person there -as previously. A couple of minus points were that the numerous tall shrub like plants have now regrown inside the castle walls making photography difficult. It looks like having completed the work no further attention has been paid to it. It may well be that there is no budget available for this. Secondly, I was disappointed to find that the restored chapel was locked. I had hoped to see what they had done inside. Maybe it gets opened on special occasions (my visit not being one of them!).

Orange alert and Apaches:
My holiday this year certainly co-incided with a lot of events both in the UK and elsewhere. One such event was the attempted military coup just across the water in Turkey. This manifested itself on Halki in the following week when we had two ribbed patrol boats with guns fore and aft turn up in the harbour followed shortly after by two Apache helicopters thundering low over the island. I thought it was some kind of excercise but it turned out that the Greek military had gone to Orange Alert (combat ready) after reports of some Turkish military attempting to head for Symi after the failure of the coup. That was about it really but we did have the boats return a few days later before heading back towards Rhodes

The Greek flag flying at Emborio on Halki

Celebrity glamour:
My time in Halki was livened up by the presence of an U.S. actress (not a household name in the UK but she has appeared in numerous television and film roles). Initially on a yacht moored in the harbour, her and her family later moved to apartments close to mine. What was fun was that every night she organised games for the children on the harbour front. I never worked out exactly what the game involved but it consisted of her directing individual or groups of children to various points around the harbour (some sort of strategy game I guess). They all seemed to have a good time and one night there must have been fifty or so taking part! I'm not mentioning her name to maintain privacy (and she may well want to return to Halki another time).

Halki 2016:
So the end of another great two weeks on my favourite default island. As always, it is the little things that make it good. Toasted cheese sandwich and beer at Costas. The chickens clucking around by the cemetery. The goats on the road to the castle. And, of course, Prevelis gliding into the harbour with all the drama and excitement that causes. Cockerel count and Goatiness ratings were medium for this trip. I never thought I would return to any island four times but Halki has lured me back and, no doubt, will again in the future.  Regards, David.

Dorothea Studios review, Halki (Dodecanese):

Front windows with a great harbour view

Last June I made my third visit to the little island of Halki which is near Rhodes in the Dodecanese island group. Read my previous post on Halki here: Halki review .Travelling with Olympic Holidays I stayed in the Dorothea Studios at Emborio. A new post about my 2015 trip to Halki will follow in due course but meanwhile here is a review of my apartment.

View of Emborio from the window

The Dorothea Studios qualify as simply the most delightful accommodation I have ever had on a Greek island. I was in the number 4 studio, which along with number 3 is situated at the top and front of the building. Large, light and airy with lots of wood panelling - with a colour scheme of traditional Greek white and blue - the studio was a joy to stay in for two weeks.

Two large shuttered windows faced out directly over the harbour affording views of both the village and all
the nautical comings and goings -from the serenity of small sailing and fishing boats chugging in and out to the drama and excitement caused by the arrival of the massive Athens-Rhodes ferry which calls several times each week.

Private balcony at the side

I also had a side balcony leading off from the kitchen area which again had great views towards Nissos island and the harbour front. I was able to take countless photographs without even leaving my studio!

The kitchen area had a good selection of crockery, glasses and utensils and a kettle was provided. The shower was astonishing for a Greek island -shower curtain, fitting for the shower head and a powerful blast of hot water which put my shower at home to shame. Hot (very) water was available whenever I used it.

The studio has two comfortable twin beds and there is an additional double sized raised sleeping platform

Forward view from the balcony

accessed by steep wooden steps.

It's hard to find fault with this lovely accommodation (I couldn't get the television to work but I'm sure that would have been dealt with if it had been sufficiently important enough to me to report it). A light on the balcony would be a nice addition -if only to see if any flying objects have landed in your Retsina!

I thoroughly enjoyed my stay in the Dorothea and have re-booked the same studio for Summer this year. Worth noting that the other studio has a harbour facing balcony which you access from the corridor rather from the studio directly. This might bother some so look for the studio with the "side sea view" when booking if you want the one I had. Regards, David.

ETA Anyone considering a visit to Halki should check out the excellent and informative Halki Visiting forum. I have been looking at this for many years but I have only recently got round to signing up as a member. I have know idea why it took me so long but I am glad to be there now :)
Check it out with this link: Halki Visiting forum

Lipsi (Dodecanese):

Lipsi Town. Copyright: Toth Harald/Dreamstime.com

I travelled to the lovely small Greek island of Lipsi (Lipsoi) back in August 2004. Situated near the far end of the Dodecanese chain between Leros and Patmos I made the transfer from Rhodes in a not especially big wooden boat -pretty much like a fishing boat with seats added. I mention this because the transfer was not especially smooth due to hitting the tail end of Hurricane Charley which had recently caused much damage across the USA (it probaly wasn't connected at all and just a localised storm, but it made for a much better story). With a heady mix of tiredeness and excitement I thoroughly enjoyed the experience of plunging through enormous waves showering the interior of the open boat with spray. I probaly should have taken the situation a bit more seriously especially when it was announced we were pulling into the shelter of a nearby island - only proceeding again after a coastguard helicopter had flown overhead presumably checking whether it was safe for us to continue. I'm pleased to say that after over four and a half hours transfer we reached Lipsi safely. The rep for holiday company Laskerina congratulated us the next day for surviving their longest ever transfer from Rhodes!

By now, the sun had set and armed with a small map set out to find my accommodation. The Calypso apartments are, in reality, barely a five minute walk from the harbour but by the time the road had petered out into a track near the top of the hill I soon realised that my map reading skills needed some work and had to backtrack down the hill. Arrival at the apartments was made all the better by the sight of a cow happily grazing in a field in front of the property. This must be the only small Greek island I have visited where I have even seen a cow let alone had one by my accommodation (daylight later revealed that there was, in fact, a whole herd of them and that the "field" was actually a vegetable patch which the cow had got into before munching its way through the produce).

Setting out in the dark for the essential Retsina and food supplies proved a success when I found a mini market in the maze of small alleys and roads that make up Lipsi Town. Problems only arose when I realised that I didn't have a clue where I was or how to get back to the apartment. This is where I (eventually) worked out my invaluable technique of heading downwards until I reached the harbour front again. Then it all became clear and I spotted the road home (this time avoiding the unwanted excursion to the top of the hill).



Blue seas and sky of Lipsi
Copyright: Serban Enache/Dreamstime

Waking up on the first morning on a new Greek island is always exciting but on Lipsi it was extra special when at 6.00am I woke to the sound of masses of clanging bells. Rushing to the balcony there they were -dozens of goats being herded across the hillside by a man on a horse. I had never seen that many goats before or since and for that Lipsi gets the top Goatiness rating of Astronomic. This spectacle was repeated a number of times during my stay as the goats were moved to new grazing areas. The taverna menus on Lipsi could probaly also get a Goatiness rating of their own but, as a non meat eater, I won't dwell on that!
By comparison the Cockerel Count for Lipsi only rates as a modest medium.

One of the big standout features on Lipsi is the hundreds of small chapels dotted around the island -far more than I have ever seen elsewhere - giving the whole island a rather spiritual feel. Most of these are privately owned and built by families on the island. The spiritual feel came to a head with the annual Festival of Panagia Harou on August 22/23. This religious festival attracts many to the island and the days leading up to it saw ferry loads of arrivals including senior priests from nearby Patmos and even a military band in full uniform (who actually stayed next to me at the Calypso!). On the day a spectacular procession set off from Lipsi Town comprising the band, armed soldiers, priests, islanders, visitors and a good number of tourists drawn into the atmosphere. This makes its slow way uphill to the old church of Panagia Harou for a special service. Even as a non religious person, the whole event was moving and powerful -not least the desperation of a man pushing an (obviously) very ill woman in a wheelchair. Weaving his way through the crowd up the steep hill to reach the front of the procession in order to receive blessings from the priest on arrival at the church.



Another big event of my stay was the Greek Wedding. In town for dinner I came across a big party of people in the main square all eating and drinking at tables that had been laid out. My first thought was that this was another festival event (especially as no bride and groom were visible at that point). On and on the music and singing went late into the night -and then through the night! By early morning I just had to go and see just what was happening and arrived back at the square for the truth to be revealed. The celebrations then continued well into the afternoon until eventually I saw from my balcony the whole party making their way along the road out of town. It was certainly another unique experience for me.



Lovely Lipsi.
Copyright: Serban Enache/Dreamstime

Lipsi has many small coves and beaches most of which can be readily reached by walking either on the main road or using goat tracks. One I especially liked was Katsadia (about 40 minutes walk) which boasts a couple of nice tavernas. Further up the island (about an hour) is Platys Yialos which also has a taverna. Shallow water extends a long way out here which I liked and you may find yourself being joined by a family of ducks which like to swim in the sea. On the way to Platys Yialos there is a road to the left which takes you down steeply to Kimissi beach. From the beach there is a spectacular series of steps carved out of the cliff face leading (eventually) to a small chapel. According to our Laskerina rep this was once the home to an elderly hermit leading a solitary life high up on the cliff.  Certainly in 2004 there were a number of signs of previous habitation there suggesting more than just a good story. Be warned, the steps are steep and tiring both ways and when you get back to the beach the only way out is the steep concrete road heading uphill. You will need plenty of water for that walk!

If my arrival on Lipsi was a stormy one, my departure was a rapid one. With a 6.00am ferry and suitcase pickup at 5.00am I was awoken by a knocking on the door. When I pointed out it was only 4.00am I soon got corrected -my watch had mysteriously lost exactly one hour. That explained why Katsadia beach had emptied of people rather early the previous day and why there had been virtually nobody at the taverna when I went out to dinner! Instead of a leisurely cup of coffee on the balcony and a last look around at the apartment it was a case of throwing stuff in my hand luggage and heading for the harbour. Not the best way to end a lovely two weeks.

Lipsi is a charming small island with lots of great walking to be had -and all those goats. Of course, there may well have been some changes and development since my visit so some research is advised. Lipsi is in my top four Greek islands and one that I would love to revisit one day. Regards, David.

Halki (Dodecanese):

Emborio village

I visited the lovely Dodecanese island of Halki (Chalki) in 2005 and again in 2010. Slightly over an hour by sea from Rhodes this little island is barely 10km long and has a permanent population of only around three hundred people. Of course, this number is increased in peak season both by tourists and people coming to work on the island. Nethertheless, even then you could not describe the island as crowded and you will be able to walk for miles barely seeing another person.

The main centre of population is the port of Emborio where the ferries arrive and, to my mind, the approach to Emborio is one of the most attractive views of any of the Greek islands I have visited. Pretty pastel coloured houses, the imposing white Town Hall, the bell tower of the Agios Nikolaos church (the tallest bell tower in the Dodecanese) and, above all, the tall stone clock tower all make for a stunning first impression.

Agios Nikolaos bell tower

Now for a word about that clock tower. On my first visit the time on the clock was always twenty past four which led to speculation that, perhaps, the clock was a bit noisy and was stopped during peak season (slightly reinforced by a resident confiding that the major holiday company to Halki at the the time -the now defunct Laskerina Holidays - "encouraged" locals to keep music and noise down during the holiday season). However, on my return five years later, time had literally stood still on the island and it was still twenty past four. It turned out the explanation was simply that it was broken and was too costly to repair, though I have read on the internet that some funds might be in the offing so maybe time has restarted by now.

Emborio has a small selection of tavernas and cafes on the harbour front and a couple of mini markets as well as a bakery for fresh bread and cheese pies. One feature of the village is the number of old derelict stone houses, often with trees growing in them which certainly made for good photographic subjects. On my second visit quite a few of these had been restored to life though a good number still remained. Do visit the Agios Nikolaos church where as well as the bell tower there is also a pebble mosaic "Hoklakia" courtyard. Intricate designs are made up of numerous black and white pebbles from the sea and make for interesting photographs.

Chapel above Pondamos beach

Going right (facing seawards) from the harbour it is a fifteen minute walk to Ftenagia beach where there is a taverna and good views of the uninhabited island of Nissos which lies just outside Emborio harbour. The alternative local beach is that at Pondamos which you reach in about ten minutes by taking the main inland road out of Emborio. This actually has sand (imported!) and an excellent taverna which became one of my regular lunch venues on the island. For variety, when returning to Emborio take the right hand fork in the road which takes you round past the islands cemetery which has a beautiful large domed church. If you want to do some cockerel counting just past the cemetery there were a number of chickens wandering in the road both times I visited and, I expect, still there.

For a longer walk head for Kania beach by taking the inland road from Emborio and then the first turning on the right. This is quite a climb up into the hills above Emborio and then down into Kania. This is just a pretty rocky cove which you might even get to yourself. In 2010, there were no facilities there at all but I gather there is now some sort of temporary taverna in peak season (though do not rely on that!). Allow 45 minutes or so for the walk there.

On my first visit I took the islands taxi to the Monastery of St.John which is near the far end of the island and is the sight of a major festival each August. Maybe it was just me, but I felt rather unwelcomed by the few people working there and left after a brief look around. On the plus side, the long walk back (a good couple of hours) was highly enjoyable and offered excellent views over the island.

Old windmills above Emborio

One thing you won't fail to notice are the three stone windmills that stand on the hill above Emborio. These make a good walking destination and you will get a great view down onto the harbour when you are up there. Take the road on the left just past the small army base on the cemetery road to get up to them. A word of warning: do respect the "no photography" signs by the base -military subjects are considered sensitive in Greece just like anywhere else.

For me, one of the highlights of both visits to Halki was the walk up to the medieval Knights of St.John castle which stands high above Emborio. Take the main inland road past Pondamos beach and keep going uphill to the old (mainly derelict) village of Horio. This will take around 30 minutes or so. Upon

Crusader Knights castle

reaching Horio walk up to
wards two small chapels and then scramble up a path to reach the castle. There were no concessions to Health and Safety when I was there and I was able to explore the castle ruins at will -standing up on the ramparts to enjoy the view and exploring inside the castle chapel (just be careful not to fall down the very
deep looking well!). As expected, there are great photographs to be had here.

One of my interests when on Greek islands is watching (and photographing) all the activity in the harbour and Emborio certainly has plenty of that. Look out for the regular Dodekenisos Seaways fast catamaran, which is the one you are going to get if you take a day trip to Nisyros island to see the volcano (see my previous post on Nisyros). You could also pay a visit to Tilos using this as well (tickets are available in advance from the travel agents in the harbour). Several times a week you might see the massive ANEK lines ferry come in which always looks impossibly big for a small harbour. Notable on Halki as well is the regular visit from the water boat which brings in precious water from Rhodes.

ANEK Lines Ierapetra L ferry

Cockerel count on Halki is medium but Goatiness gets a high rating here. Don't be surprised to meet goats wandering along the road both in Emborio itself and further inland.

Halki then, a Dodecanese island full of charm. Not overly touristy at all. Lovely walks, a castle, boats and goats! Halki is in my top four favourite Small Greek Islands -and I'm delighted to say I'll be returning there in 2015 giving it the distinction of being the only island I have made a third visit to. Regards, David.

Lazy Days on Symi (Dodecanese):

Fading beauty of Lazy Days on Symi

When I wrote my full post about Symi last year (Symi island ) I briefly mentioned the lovely old excursion boat Lazy Days which has been crumbling away in the Harani boat yard at Yialos for years. I've just recently edited the images and have been uploading them to my various photo agencies - giving me an excuse to publish them here.
Of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I found this boat utterly charming and wondered about its history, where it had been and who had been on it. Most importantly, why had it ended up here in Yialos. Some of the answers were on the boat itself with peeling signs advertising Moonlight Cruises and excursions to Lindos (on Rhodes island).

For more information I turned to the excellent and informative symivisitor.com . This is a site I had looked at a lot before my trip to Symi in 2011. There's a host of information about the island on the site and even a webcam looking towards the harbour which you can look at (note: these are updated stills, not a live video feed!). Even better the site has a chat page (just click on the link there)
which is a forum all about Symi -with active contributions from both permanent residents of the island and visitors new and old. Pretty much anything you want to know about Symi is there and if not just ask. Someone on the forum is sure to have an answer for you.

Lazy Days excursion boat on Symi

Before I went most of my questions were about ferry schedules and what was likely to be operating (2011 saw a lot of industrial action in Greece and, indeed, I was delayed by an Air Traffic Controllers strike on my return journey). In the end, my flight arrived too late for the last ferry anyway and I had to stay on Rhodes until the next morning. As I said in my previous post, this was the only time ever I had failed to reach my destination island on the same day.



Where to find Lazy Days in Yialos (click to enlarge)

Obviously, on my return, who better to ask about Lazy Days. The forum came up trumps with all sorts of memories of actually travelling on it, old photographs, and an approximate date of circa 1995 for when it had arrived at the boat yard. The concensus seemed to be that there was some kind of dispute between various owners of the boat and that as a result Lazy Days had just been effectivly abandoned there for all those years.
Interestingly, views about Lazy Days ranged from how charming it was through to it was getting to be an eyesore. We do all, indeed, see things in a different way.
The big question that had to be answered before writing this post was Is Lazy Days Still There? Needless to say, the forum provided the answer when two regular visitors posted this month about walking past Lazy Days. It seems it has substained more damage from storms last Winter but, yes, it is still there.
So, if you are heading for Symi, take a walk past the clocktower on the left of the harbour and a few minutes later there she is. I hope you appreciate her as much as I did. Do you have any memories of Lazy Days? Feel free to comment below. Regards, David.

Edited to Add (October 2014): Sadly, the Symi Visitor Facebook page recently posted that Lazy Days is no more. Not clear if it is being broken up -or just collapsed through natural causes. We'll always have the photographs though.....

Tilos (Dodecanese):

Tilos Sea Star in Symi, 2011

I spent two weeks on little Tilos in August 2006. Situated between Rhodes and Kos, Tilos is some 14.5km long with a population of well under a thousand (actual reported figures vary). Staying at the harbour town of Livadia I was well placed to watch the comings and goings of various shipping -not least the islands very own fast catamaran ferry boat the Tilos Sea Star on which I had made the transfer from Rhodes. Built in 1989 in Norway it started service on Tilos in 2000. There's more about the Sea Star in my post about Symi where I saw it again in 2011 (pictured).

One of the big things about Tilos was that it was the first Greek island to ban hunting and shooting (circa 1987) and is subsequently a haven for wildlife -birds in particular. With over 100 reported bird species it has been designated an Important Bird Area, not to mention an EU registered Special Protection Area, so if bird watching is your interest Tilos may well be worth considering for a holiday.

Approaching Livadia

I don't know a lot about birds (other than the Herring Gulls on my window ledge) but I do know an elephant when I see it and Tilos has one of those. This was actually a prehistoric pigmy elephant whose bones were discovered in the Kharkhadio caves. You can visit these caves but, in 2006 at least, you couldn't actually go in them. What you can do is go to the island museum at Megalo Chorio (the Capital of Tilos) and see the assembled bones there. Megalo Chorio is a pretty village with a few tavernas and shops at the further end of the island from Livadia. There's an island bus you can catch to there. When I went I decided to walk back to Livadia which, though quite a long walk, was well worth it. Probaly also a good chance to look for all those birds if you know your stuff.

Ferry arrival, Livadia

Another outing (coach trip this time) was to the old monastery of Ayios Pandeleimon. You can have a good walk around here and look inside the monks cells. There is also a fresh water spring here which you can drink from or fill your bottle with. Inevitably, the water is said to have no end of health giving properties and I would probaly be able vouch for that if I hadn't just stuck to the Retsina provided for lunch on the trip!

Ayios Pandeleimon monastery

A highlight for me was a walk to the old abandoned village of Mikro Chorio which lies inland of Livadia (30 minutes at most). Here you can walk along narrow alleyways of derelict stone houses. You probaly won't see any/many other people while here but expect to encounter numerous goats and sheep also wandering round the same narrow alleyways. The predictable result was that myself and livestock managed to startle each other at every turn. Just be ready to step smartly out of the path of fast moving animals. Rather incongrously the only non derelict building here was a music bar/club that opened at night. I assume only in the peak season.  Whether this was also frequented by the goats and sheep I didn't get the chance to find out.

Whilst in Tilos, consider the opportunity to take a day trip to the island of Nisyros and the volcano there (see my earlier post). Certainly in 2011 Dodekanisos Seaways were running a scheduled service taking in Tilos and Nisyros (just under an hour long trip). As I previously wrote, it is a great experience.

Cockerel Count on Tilos ranks as Medium but the Goatiness rating gets a High (mainly thanks to my Mikro Chorio visit).

As ever, note the date of my visit as things can change. Feel free to comment by clicking on the comments box below. Regards, David.

Symi (Dodecanese):

Looking down on Yialos harbour on Symi

Symi, 41km from Rhodes, is often described as having the prettiest harbour in Greece. That's certainly some claim but there is no denying how charming the pastel coloured neo-classical buildings around the Yialos harbour look.
I spent two weeks on Symi in June 2011 (well it would have been two weeks but flight/ferry timings meant an overnight stay in Rhodes both ways). Dissapointing because this is the only Greek island trip ever where I did not reach my destination on the same day.

I was lucky enough to have an apartment directly looking over the busy harbour which certainly provided plenty of entertainment watching the boats come and go - not least the Blue Star Ferries ship Diagoras (a vessel so large it manages to block most of the harbour off when in dock).

Yialos/Gialos (take your pick) has plenty of tavernas and shops and even an excellent Italian pizzeria and is certainly at the bigger end of what I define as a small island. It is, of course, all relative. Somebody used to the bigger islands such as Rhodes, Kos, Crete etc would regard Yialos as tiny. Things certainly got busy during early afternoons as numerous excursion boats pitch up with day trippers from other islands. There was even a burst of nostalgia when the Tilos Sea Star arrived - I had last been on that in 2006 (it broke down)*. However, after lunch and a look at the umpteen souvenir stalls that take up one side of the harbour they were all gone again.

High above Yialos lies the older village of Chorio.  You have three choices for reaching Chorio: the Kataraktis -a steep and rather slippery cobbled path/donkey track up the hillside (I had to sit down in the shade after tackling that one). Better to take the Kali Strata a series of some 350 steps which start in the town centre and twist and turn up the hillside with old houses (shade!) on either side. There are even a couple of handy tavernas on the way up if you fancy a rest.
The third route is to simply follow the main road up. Not, on the surface, very appealing but as you get higher there are great views (and photos) to be had looking down onto the harbour. There is also a bus available (timings varying).
Chorio, is a mass of little alleys and paths amongst the old houses and great fun to explore. You'll probaly get lost at some point but you are never far away from civilisation. There are also a number of tavernas up there as well.

From Chorio you can walk the road down to Pedi Bay, a pretty little harbour with a few boats and several tavernas. The bus calls there as well.

Yialos at night on Symi

Back in Yialos, I walked round the left hand side of the harbour where there is a boat building/repair area with a number of old boats piled up. I was fascinated by a fairly large sized former excursion boat called Lazy Days. It seems it has been beached there for years due to some kind of ownership dispute and is slowly falling apart. The signs on the boat advertise Moonlight Cruises and trips to Lindos (Rhodes). If it hasn't totally collapsed by now its probaly still there.

Continuing on from Lazy Days you can take the coast road passing Nos Beach (the small "town" beach) with a taverna and sunbeds. The road gives good views of the rocky coastline and after around 30 minutes you reach the beach and harbour of Nimborios. Again, there is a taverna here.

Looking down to Yialos village on Symi

For a change of scene you can take a day trip to Turkey (offered by various boats in the harbour). Symi is only just off the coast of Turkey so it's a short journey. Sadly, I missed this opportunity as I only had a few weeks left on my passport. You are required to have at least six months validity to enter Turkey. I'm not sure why this matters for a day trip -but never mind.

There are lots of boats/water taxis which will take you to beaches further along the Symi coast and to the monastery at Panormitis. Now, this is where I missed out and didn't take any of these. I'm not really a beach person and didn't want to be stuck on one all day waiting for the return pick up. Poor research was my mistake here as I failed to realise that these beaches would have been a good launch for interesting walks and worse still, this is where all the goats are. Lots of them. On the beach. My Goatiness rating for Symi would have been extremely low based on just one goat (in a paddock at that) in Yialos. But I would have been wrong. Not wrong on the Cockerel Count though - Symi ranks as high with a truly spectacular dawn chorus of crowing echoing around Yialos. Possibly the best I have ever heard anywhere (we'll overlook the one that couldn't crow properly and just issued something akin to a scream). Regards, David.

Tilos Sea Star at Yialos harbour

* The Tilos Sea Star is actually a superb fast catamaran of which the island of Tilos are rightly proud. It didn't break down for long and actually we were just relieved we hadn't ploughed into a dolphin or something.

Nisyros (Dodecanese):

Table for one at Mandraki

Nisyros isn't an island I have ever stayed on but have made two day trips to in 2005 and 2010 - both while staying on Halki island. Nisyros is readily reachable from Kos, Tilos, Halki and to a lesser extent from Symi and Rhodes (you can get there and back but my 2010 timetables for Dodekanisos Seaways fast catamaran service wouldn't allow for much time on the island - that could, of course, have changed).

Mandraki, the port town, has a number of tavernas (mainly on the seafront) and there are lots of little lanes and alley ways to explore. Standing high on the cliffs above the town is the Monastery of Our Lady Spiliani together with the ruins of a Crusader Knights castle.

However, the main thing of interest on Nisyros is the still active volcano. The last significant eruption was in 1888 but the volcano is far from extinct.

On arrival at Mandraki you should find one or more stands offering trips to the volcano. This wasn't expensive (circa 12 euro last time) for the 30-40 minute coach ride and an expert guide throughout

Attempting to fry eggs in a volcano

offering a wealth of information on the volcano (and Nisyros in general). Outside of peak season you could, I suppose, hire a taxi there and back (but do research this beforehand).

When you get there you can walk down into the moonscape like Stefanos crater and explore at will. Yellow sulphur deposits cover a lot of the base of the crater and the smell is pretty strong. Large fumaroles (fissures) are dotted about and have bubbling hot mud in them. The whole base of the crater is warm and from time to time jets of steam suddenly emerge from the ground catching the unwary visitor by surprise. The first time I went there somebody brought along some eggs and cracked them open on the ground. Well, it's not so hot that they fried - but did provide a good photo opportunity for everyone there!

Tourists walk in the Stefanos volcano on Nisyros

Near the crater is a small cafe where you can get drinks and a snack before heading back to Mandraki.

It was certainly a fantastic experience and well worth the effort to visit, especially knowing that the volcano could/will erupt again in the future - an organisation called Geowarn keep it under constant monitoring both on the ground and from space. Regards,
David.