Probably not twinned with Atlantis, then…

Apologies for the blurry phonecam shot, but the image and not the text is the important thing here. A recent outing to Loutraki found what we believe is this new sign above the Roman baths along the γιαλος, coast, beyond the harbour, possibly erected during the past winter. While the text explains that the baths were part of the 3rd century CE city of Selinus, what struck us was the information in the last line to the effect that there are seven as yet unexcavated sites in the vicinity. So while Homer’s Ocean slowly dissolves the exposed parts of the baths, seven areas may still hide unknown wonders. A project for enthusiasts, perhaps guided by the likes of eminent archaeologist and author Adamantios Sampson, to find and preserve what remains of Selinus?

(We have also been asked to identify the site of the baths for those who have never visited. The map below gives a rough positioning along the γιαλος from Loutraki. Click to view larger image. Just don’t expect Herculaneum…)

Catch of the day

Fisherman Spiros Ramadanis came in this morning and this was his catch.

The names of the fishes are Συναγρίδας (the 2 big ones; great for on the grill!), Σκορπίνα (the red one; great for fish soup), λιθρινι (the pink fish in the middle) and one big crab .

The fish were taken to one of the cars that drive around with fish. Spiros told me he had already sold the fishes to them.

Aegean Airlines/ Nea Anhialos ?

Magnesias News reports today that the Municipality of Volos has conducted meetings with Aegean Airlines to push the airline to take advantage of the Nea Anhialos (Volos) airport.

Aegean Airways is a major Greek carrier with links from Athens and Thessaloniki to many cities in Europe (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aegean_Airlines_destinations) and beyond.

The Municipality is interested in Aegean establishing a presence at Nea Anhialos for “traditional” connections to Europe but also to help develop Central Greece as a destination for tourism from Russia, Turkey, Israel and Cyprus.

The article stated that the airport serves “a region with a population of over 1 million inhabitants and has all the specifications required to operate 12 months a year.”

The airport code is VOL and is referred to as “Nea Anhialos National Airport (Κρατικός Αερολιμένας Νέας Αγχιάλου)” or the “Airport of Central Greece” or “Volos Airport”. It is the same place. See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airport_of_Central_Greece

White sun in the morning…?

Many of us are familiar with the old salt saying, “Red sun in the morning, sailors take warning – Red sun at night, sailors’ delight”. But what does a white sun in the morning mean? That the weather will be hot and humid today with a lot of dust in the atmosphere? There certainly isn’t much “air” for sailors anyway.

No thunderstorms in sight at 16:00 so no need for warnings.

Music festival

This is the poster of the upcoming music festival. It does not mention when the concerts start. We have asked the organizers for that information. For those who don’t know where the church Panajitsa Levidiotissa is. Next to the Asclepion on the waterfront is a road going up. After a couple of meters there is a field on your right and when you cross that field you can enter the small monastery and church. There is also a wonderful path lined with cypress trees on the other side but this way to the church/monastery is more difficult to find. Port Panajitsa is the old port under the church Panagitsa tou Pirgou.

Update: The concerts start every evening at 19:00 and the last day at 18:00 hours (Info from the volunteers office)

SCAN

Scan would like to thank everybody who joined them at the SCAN Charity evening both for coming and making it such a success! They were able to collect more than 500 Euros which SCAN will use to provide winter feeding, medication and further neutering programmes. Thank you all for your generous donations!
Further they would like to thank the Skopelos Volunteers Group who allowed them to use the Orfeas cinema for this event and a big thank you to the musicians, Katerina and her brother who performed beautiful Greek songs.

The SCAN Charity evening was also used to say farewell to Trevor and Maggie who left Skopelos the next day to move to their new home in England. Trevor & Maggie have been devoted members of SCAN for many years and their passionate commitment to SCAN will be dearly missed. All the very best to both of them!!

The SCAN kiosk ( near the municipality cafe) has opened again and we are looking forward to a successful season.The daily opening hours are approx. 10:30 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. and in the high season the kiosk will also be open, as often as possible in the evening. Please spread the word as every EURO counts – the stray animals of Skopelos are in need of help. Scan is also looking for volunteers who might want to help extend the opening hours of the kiosk. Please call Jim (24240-24732/ 6976320332).

Scan recently adopted three stray dogs and successfully send two to Germany and one to England and are always looking for loving homes for the stray dogs and cats on Skopelos! If anybody wishes to adopt a dog or cat please call Britta (24240-22064/ 6934597556).
THANK YOU for your help!
SCAN – Skopelos Caring for Animals and Nature

Weekend junket?

The freighter Evagelistria Skopelou conducted an interesting voyage over the weekend. Normally the ship carries cargo between Volos and the Northern Sporades on a regular schedule. Last week she departed Volos on Wednesday or Thursday and steamed to Chios Island, then on to Leros on Friday before heading to Kos where she arrived on Saturday. The ship left Kos on Saturday afternoon and sailed overnight for Volos where she arrived at 16:00 yesterday (Sunday). On her return to Skopelos later this week(?) we will try to find out what she was carrying.

[click to enlarge] – (green line outbound, red line return)

It is interesting that this GoogleMap vaporized the island of Samos.