23/6/2010 We arrived at the wharf for a boat trip to Symi, an island close to Rhodes. The ferry is one of the slower ones that also takes cars and trucks and was quite full - at least 300, quite a few Greek tourists and some other bus groups. Anyway it got quite blowy and the swells came up and the Greek old women sitting next to us started throwing up - went on for at least an hour, quite noisy luckily it was windy so not too smelly. Di could not look and had her ears and nose blocked for the worst of it! I was able to enjoy my book as there was little talking and jibbering.

Symi's main port, called Gialos, is a beautiful small port town once a thriving timber boat building and sponge diving town which is now based on tourism. We saw a group of about 12 Pakistani labourers unloading two 5 meter steel U beams for a renovation which had to be carried up and down many stairs. We went to a lovely waterfront restaurant, Tholos, recommended by the proprietor of a café on the hill on the other side of town. The boat then took us to another small harbour, Panormitus where there is a monastery and 2 small museums - one of the monastery and the other more interesting about sponge diving - better trip on the boat back to Rhodes. For dinner we went to Nireas, a family seafood restaurants and had scallops and had crab cakes.