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The houses in Simi's lower town share a distinctive Neo-Classical style and are all painted in pastel colours. After Greece joined the EU, most of Simi's dilapidated houses were renovated under the municipality's strict guidelines. We were told by a resident of Simi Town that much of this activity has been made possible by foreign investment. The result is lovely, making Simi one of the Greek islands we love most.
Simi having no airport, we arrived in 2007 by boat after dark. We didn't know quite what to expect as only that afternoon had we decided to leave Rhodos two days earlier than planned and go to Simi instead. We were met at the harbour by the French lady who owned our small but lovely hotel. She was very welcoming and recommended a good seafood restaurant. In the morning we saw how beautiful this small island is. We hated having to leave the next day and wondered for a while if we would be able to. Dark black clouds promised a terrible storm as we waited at the harbour, unsure if the ferry for Rhodos would arrive. Eventually, rather than the ferry we expected, a hydrofoil came instead and took us to Rhodos safely but very stressed. The first photo shows the harbour at Simi. In the second we are having a Coke at the harbour and basking in the beautiful sun.
These 1998 photos were taken on the Greek island of Naxos. The first photo features the Portera, the most noteworthy landmark of the island. The second photo, taken from the Portera, shows the island and the causeway.
Crete, Thera (or Santorini) and Symi are our favourite Greek islands, and Sitia is one of the nicest things about Crete. We spent four days here, most of it on the beach, which was very good. It is easy to get around the island by bus, though we rented a car and drove to Kato Zakros in the east of the island. In 2004, when we were there, Crete had very good hotels and beaches, and to get away from hordes of tourists it was only necessary to leave the main cities. Sitia was the best place we found to do this, particularly if swimming is what you want to do. Everywhere on Crete, the people were great - very helpful and friendly.
In 1998 we expected Mykonos, a popular tourist hot spot, to be lacking in charm or beauty, but we were wrong. Mykonos Town was clean and sparkling. The brilliant sun, intense blue sea, and white-washed buildings with their trellises of beautiful rose-coloured bougainvillea made it a pleasure for us to simply walk around and absorb the atmosphere, barely aware that we were sharing the experience with a large number of fellow tourists.
We had a lovely time on the Greek island of Naxos in 1998. The lady from our hotel met our boat and led us through narrow streets and white-washed houses. At dinner that evening, we met interesting fellow guests: one was a reporter for a Toronto newspaper, and the others were a young man and woman who worked as freelance film-makers in Los Angeles. This made for fascinating dinner conversation.
The island of Naxos itself is beautiful and quite large. We had a harrowing time on a bus trip around the island. Although the views were spectacular, every time the bus sped around a sharp corner, we were afraid we would be hurled over the edge into the valley far below.
