FOURNI: "Scribblings" and PhotoGallery. [Click on pics at foot of page to enlarge]
I found Fourni quite different to any of the islands I had previously visited. It's a slightly eccentric sort of place with a strange air about it. For one, I have never seen so many black-garbed "widow-women" around. They seemed to be everywhere. You almost feel as if you are being stalked!
The port village of Fourni is unremarkable in architectural terms, although I did rather like the tree-lined main street, which leads from the jetty up to the quaint square about 100m further up from the port. The port/harbour area and adjacent promenade is not all that attractive. Large and functional, it is home to one of the biggest fishing boat fleets in the Aegean.
One can leave town by one of two roads. Both rise as they leave town. If you head towards Kambi it climbs quite steeply and soon you are looking down on the coves and beaches below. It can be quite a schlepp to get down to some of them.
The port village comes alive at evening time. Everything that is likely to happen on Fourni happens here. The waterfront is lined with tavernas; mainly of the fish variety. The fish is great, but the service can be painfully slow. With virtually no concession to tourism, the owners don't feel obliged to have to impress anybody, so everything happens pretty slowly. You can wait up to twenty minutes to have your order taken and then another thirty to be served. But, what the heck, there's nothng else to do!
Yes . . . Fourni is "traditional" and "unspoilt", and is definitely worth a visit. You'll have an extremely relaxing holiday. My suggestion, though, is to head straight out of town, over the hill to Kambi - a quiet hamlet with three tavernas and a nice sandy, uncrowded beach. It even has a quaint beach bar "kiosk" made from a ship's container! Stay at Studios Rena up he hillside. It has some huge terraces and fab views. [Tel: 0030-22750-51364; Fax: 0030-22750-51209]. You don't need to move away from Kambi for the entire duration of your stay!
Fisherman. Town harbour
Main Street
Town Square
Backstreet
Rent Rooms! Fourni Town
Fourni Town. View
Kambi Beach
Kambi Beach
Hamlet of Kambi
Petrokopio Bay
Rock-garden. Kambi
Kafeneion. Fourni Town