Louloudades Square

Ermoupoli was planned as a city of squares, and one of the pleasures of walking through it is the way small open spaces appear between the terraced streets. Louloudades Square is one of these places in the town on Syros, a gathering spot for neighbours rather than a monument. The Greek word louloudas means flower seller, and the name suggests a past in which flowers and plants were sold nearby. It is a quiet corner compared with the grand space of Miaouli Square, which is a short walk away and is the civic centre of the town, so the two make a useful contrast.

Ermoupoli itself dates from the 1820s, when refugees from Chios, Psara and Kasos in the Dodecanese arrived on Syros during the Greek War of Independence. Syros remained formally under Ottoman rule at that time but enjoyed French protection because of its Catholic community, and so it became a haven for traders. The new town was laid out in the following decades with a rational street grid, stepped lanes and public squares, and its architects worked in a neoclassical style, so the buildings look more like those of mainland Greece or Italy than the whitewashed villages of other Cyclades. The Venetian-era hill town of Ano Syros rises above, and the contrast between the old and new settlements is one of the island's most memorable features.

Around a square like this, daily life is easy to observe. Cafes put out chairs, old men talk on benches, children play and shopkeepers look out from doorways. Houses are two or three storeys with shutters, balconies and decorated cornices, painted in ochre, pink or grey, and the paving is marble or stone, polished by foot traffic. In the late afternoon the shade is welcome, and from the upper lanes the Aegean glints between the roofs, and in the evening the neighbourhood fills with people walking home or going to dinner.

The square is an easy stop on a longer walk. From it, lanes lead to the market streets, the Apollo Theatre, the harbour and the stairs toward Ano Syros. Exploring on foot is the best way to find these corners, so a map is useful, and wearing comfortable shoes is wise because streets can be steep. The squares are open all hours and cost nothing, and the quiet hours of the morning or the early evening are the best for seeing them at their most natural.