Through the Porthole

 

Goody’s is the only ‘conventional’ fast food diner in Rethymno, and is well positioned at the Square of the Unknown Solider to take advantage of the hustle and bustle of the harbour strip. It’s always teeming with people, and is very popular with families. There was a McDonald’s on the harbour strip for several years but it didn’t last very long – at least Goody’s, despite being fast food, is a Greek business, and not a massive multinational. I can’t say I’ve sampled the food myself, as the quality of the local food (plus the great home-made pizza & pasta restaurant just up the road) is just too good.

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Relaxing on the Boat

 

Rethymno attracts all sorts of travelling visitors who like to moor at the marina and sample the many delights that this beautiful port city has to offer. I was walking around the marina enjoying the late afternoon sun when I saw this group of friends on their boat playing a board game. The backdrop of the locals walking up and down the harbour strip and the man fishing from the rocks made this too good a photo opportunity to miss.

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Night-time Kiosk Stop

 

I think this is probably the most popular kiosk in Rethymno Old Town, and is right next to one of Rethymno’s Ottoman era minarets. The kiosk does a roaring trade in cigarettes and ice creams, making it an essential stopping off point on a night out. It is also opposite what is probably my favourite bar in the world.

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Cigarette Break

 

The lady supervising the kiosk in Rethymno harbour took advantage of the mid-afternoon lull in business to take a cigarette break and look out over the harbour water in contemplation.

The afternoon sun was very bright (particularly this close to the equator!) so I’ve used a radial filter tool to ‘burn’ the clipped background highlights, and added some slight dodging to the lady sitting in the shadow to bring out some details.

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Froyo Bar

 

Froyo (frozen yoghurt) was THE must have snack in Rethymno in summer 2013, with a good half dozen (at least) cafes springing up to take advantage of the trend. This particular bar was perfectly sited on a corner in the Old Town near Rethymno’s harbour, offering its customers the perfect location from which to watch the city’s comings and goings.

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Afternoon Meeting, Rethymno Harbour

 

These two ladies were enjoying a bit of a catch-up at a taverna in Rethymno’s harbour during the mid afternoon lull between lunch and supper, when all the tourists go walkabout. You can see one of the taverna’s waiters off to the side also taking the opportunity to catch his break!

I didn’t have a flash on me when I took this, and because of the strong sunlight I had to overexpose the background in order to have enough light on the ladies in the foreground. I used a little dodging in the foreground, and the radial filter burn tool in the background to recover some of the blown highlights.

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Moped Delivery

 

Moped delivery rider during the mid morning rush in Rethymno Old Town. I was impressed that he managed to keep the ciggy on the go whilst he manoeuvred through the melee!

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Chaplin’s Bar

 

A view into Chaplin’s bar on a late afternoon in Rethymno. Chaplin’s in one of a series of bars on Eleftherios Venizelos street, which is a strip which runs from the town’s harbour to the marina, and is the hub of much of the town’s vibrant nightlife. As can be seen from the photo, Chaplin’s caters for different music tastes compared to lots of the other bars on the street, offering a classic blend of the rock and roll greats.

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Cat Sleeping in front of Marco Bicego Jewellers, Rethymno

 

I managed to capture the highly rare sight of a cat taking a nap here (!). I loved the look of his positioning underneath the poster advertising the jewellers, particularly as the model in the advert is very striking with her electric blue eyes matching the azure blue of sign for the ‘Sun Beam’ shop next door.

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Varda Kallergis, Rethymno

 

This is one of Rethymno’s side streets which links Eleftherios Venizelos (the marina strip) with the centre of the modern area of Rethymno. This street is full of shops selling all manner of tourist gifts – belts, bags, natural sponges and knives seeming to be the most popular.

Mannequins often prove a useful focal point in street photos (particularly as they stay still, so you can take your time framing them), and the ‘interaction’ and contrast between a mannequin and a real person in a photo can often be fun. As I composed this I realised that with the shopkeepers standing outside of their respective shops and the mannequin in the foreground there was an unbroken line of female subjects in the photo.

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