We continued our walk, stopping often to drink the very essential bottled water that we all carried; Sylvia was right, you might think that you are a sun-worshipper, but you have not expeienced hot until you have experienced Symi hot!! And it was only the first week of June what must July and August be like?! I'd find that out next year. So, we met back with the truck on the mountain road and before we began our descent to Panormitis, I noticed that embedded into the rock was something that looked very much like rose quartz - if only I had some tools with which to steal a piece. If I remember correctly, this was before the mountain road had been re-surfaced with new tarmac, and for me this added to the romance of the whole Symi experience.

After a few moments of our joining back with the truck ( and a lovely man driving - sorry I don't remember his name), suddenly Panormitis was visible - it looked so far away as we were so high up on the mountain road. Well, what a magical sight - sparkling turquoise water, the magnificent Monastery, simple whitewashed dwellings to either side of the tower, fishing boats moored, opulent yachts out in the pretty bay and lush woodland all around. I squeeled with delight when I realised that was where we were going!! I had no idea how much I would be affected by the actual experience though.

We had only an hour here before we had to join Captain Yiannis and The Poseidon. The first thing to do was to buy the most delicious cheese and spinach pies from the most adorable old bakery there - mmmmm - scrumptious. Then up the steps to the beautiful pebbled courtyard with shocking pink geranium trees within. I queued up among hundreds of people until I was able to enter the monastery, I had some cash ready as I especially wanted to light a candle for my mum who had died five years previously and this still felt very raw to me. Somehow in that place with all that devotion and prayers for something good, the icons of the saints, the black-clothed women, as I lit my candle and placed it among the others in the tray of sand, I couldn't contain my emotions and my tears gushed down my face and my chest heaved with sobs of a mixture of grief, joy, peace within and happiness. Oh dear. This feeling continued as I visited the museum and read about the two boys and the abbot who had been murdered by the Nazis during WW2. There was the typewriter and the old radio and the photograph of those two brave handsome young men. I wouldn't be able to stop crying for hours after.

The horn sounded and it was time to experience the sail from Panormitis to Sesklia island where we would be able to swim off the boat and enjoy a very splendid bbq prepared by the happy crew of the Poseidon. Sailing away from Panormitis felt like being ripped away cruelly from life itself.