Simi, Dodecanese Islands
If you’re reading this issue of Travel Squire you have Greece on the brain and probably, quite soon, Greece on your itinerary. I advise you to pack lightly for carefree island hopping, and leave a corner of your carry-on for a few sponges. Don’t worry about overweight, there’s nothing lighter than a sponge. Besides which, they’re terrific presents. A real sponge – not the cheap fakes on your sink – look exotic, feel wonderful on your skin, and wash out to last forever.
Sponges live in seabeds throughout the world, but the finest quality come from the Mediterranean. Those clear warm waters that attract you and me also attract Phylum Porifera, proving that sponges may not have brains (or nervous systems) but they’re not dummies. They’re also an environmentally friendly catch since, when they’re cut loose from their habitat, the remaining “root” quickly regenerates. That’s one reason they’ve been around for at least 750 million years. Another is that most sponges are hermaphrodites, which you’d have to say is the pinnacle of safe sex.
Speaking of sexy … sponge diving, practiced naked, was the main industry of Kalymnos, Simi, and other Greek islands for 200 years. Young men wearing nothing but a knife in their teeth, a net around their waists, and a heavy stone in their arms dove to thirty meters and stayed underwater for three to four minutes. Their prey was an oddly shaped porous animal that attaches itself to rocks and is covered in a slimy black membrane. Which makes you wonder who ever thought to cut one off, squeeze and pummel it until all the sea-slush (“gurry”) came out, then take what was left to the bathtub. It’s a mystery right up there with the first artichoke taster.
Every Aegean island you’re likely to visit has sponges for sale in stalls along the harbor. They come in different qualities, colors, and sizes, and if they’re the real thing they aren’t cheap; expect to spend from $10-$30. Pick the fairly dense ones that don’t shred in your hands, dunk and squeeze them to be sure you like the feel and then bargain for a better price since you’re going to be buying more than one. They’re tricky to gift-wrap, but I’ve never had a friend who wasn’t thrilled to receive a sea-scented, weirdly shaped authentic luxurious sponge.