Syros

We arrived in Tinos today and have a much better internet connection. This post will have covered the past few days while we were on the island of Syros (picture on the left), specifically its capital Ermoupolis, a wonderful historic city to explore with many well-preserved yet still-functioning examples of 19th century Neoclassical architecture. Our stay was full of adventure and Rob did a fabulous job of getting us around with his use of the Greek language. Yes, we did climb to the tops of both hills you see pictured; the hill on the left is known as 'Ano Syros' (Upper Syros) the original Catholic settlement before an influx of refugees in the mid 19th century arrived during the Greek Revolution. In the second picture we are having lunch in a beautiful pedestrian street behind the main road along the harbor. All of the food we had while on Syros was delicious. Afterwards we strolled up and down the lanes of a city that felt like tourism was an afterthought, at least at this time of year. Most of the businesses and restaurants clustered around the harbor, while our hotel was about half way up the hill among residential neighborhoods--check out Kate's photos of our balcony view at noon and sunrise--good shots! Although the weather was fantastic, we saw few tourists save those we found on the beaches on the west side of the island. On the second day we relaxed in a cafe overlooking the harbor and then took an island bus to the 'resort' of Galissas but found it basically empty for the season. No worries, as one solid taverna was open and we had fine views of the sea, as you can see from our self portrait high up on a cliff looking west over Galissas Bay. Overall we were amazed at how friendly and welcoming everybody was in town compared to Athens and would definitely recommend a visit to Syros.