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SEPTEMBER... IN THE SUN
It’s true, in England the rain can start
in August, like this year, but September’s the time we think of as the
beginning of autumn proper: leaves turning colour and starting to fall,
temperatures on the way down, clouds banking in the sky and the winds
blowing cooler and wetter.
Not in the Greek islands, though. Greece does have its winter, but not
until January, and its autumn, but not until November. In more southerly
islands, such as Symi, Halki and Rhodes in the eastern Aegean, the
season goes on right through both September and October. Temperatures in
Symi stay in the upper 20s and early 30s until late in October, and that
melancholy fin de saison mood does not fall on the island until the very
last week of that month. In the more northerly islands of the Ionian,
the season’s end may be a little sooner but here, too - on tiny Paxos,
for instance - the balmy days last well into October. On nearby Corfu,
in a village like Aghios Stephanos, the tavernas keep their doors open
all the way through to the school half-term at the end of the month.
In September, though, the children are locked up in school again, so
those of us who aren’t tied to school runs, supervising homework and
organising sleepovers can head south. In Paxos and Corfu, Symi and Halki,
Skiathos and Alonissos, the beaches have emptied, the tavernas have
tables to spare and Greek life has slipped back into its natural relaxed
rhythm. Now’s the time, with the sun still summer-hot during the day but
the heat of the night no longer stifling, with the beaches quieter but
the sea at its warmest after absorbing months of sunshine, to spend a
lazy week or 10 days in the warmth of the Mediterranean, bathing in that
exceptional Greek light and relearning the arts of the simple life.
On some islands, September is also the time for more cultural pursuits
hardly possible in the fierce heat of July and August. Paxos for many
Septembers now has played host to a charming music festival where a
combination of young British and Greek musicians rehearse and perform a
handful of chamber music concerts in venues in and around the village of
Loggos. Organised by the Paxos Festival Trust, the concerts trigger an
annual pilgrimage of music lovers from all over Britain who combine
their love of music with their equally strong affection for this minute
island paradise, whose charm and character the Paxiots have preserved so
prudently from the depredations of mass tourism.
For more information on the Paxos music festival and accommodation in
Paxos and other Greek islands, visit Travel a la carte’s website at
www.travelalacarte.co.uk or call 0207 316 1867 and ask for Tony Wells.
Travel a la carte’s Paxos manager Chris Griffiths can be reached
directly at chris@travelalacarte.co.uk or by calling Skype
0151 324 3458.
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