As reported in the last message, we got off the ferry on the wrong island, so we decided to make the best of it.
Syros is a rather small island, but its capitol, Ermopouli (which means “City of Hermes”), is a beautiful neoclassical city. We have visited here before, so it’s not difficult to find a pleasant room near the market street. After stowing or luggage, we set off to explore.
The first thing we do is walk to the harbor and check on schedules for outgoing ferries to Tinos – our original destination. We purchase the tickets, and then focus our attention on our current situation.
Having climbed the two high hills of the city, we decide to stay on flat ground for a while and explore the wonderful buildings of the city. We also visit the small archeological museum, which was interesting more for its history of archaeology and archaeologists on Syros than for its meager collection of antiquities. Most of the “good stuff” discovered in Greece is transferred to the national museum in Athens, leaving the local museums with leftovers and copies.
We stop for an iced coffee frappe at a cafe in an alley off the quay. While we sat there, a familiar couple walks past on the street … it was Jeff and Elizabeth Carson, our friends from Paros island. We invite them to join us, and they explain they were returning from a writing project on the islands of Chios and Lesvos. After nearly 13 hours on a ferry, they landed on Syros and were now ready to catch the first high-speed ferry home. We part with a promise to meet again when we arrive on Paros.
