"Treasures of Cruising the World" with Bill & Mary Ann: Report #98 Mykonos, Greece April 7, 2017 Friday Partly cloudy & 60 degrees Part #1 Of 4 87 Pictures

Mykonos is an island belonging to Greece that is located in the southern Aegean Sea. Reportedly a pure paradise, it is a most popular vacation destination with millions of summer visitors. The draw here are the white sandy beaches (including at least four that are no-clothing optional), deep blue waters, and a hopping nightlife. The island consists of 33 square miles of white-washed villages with a population of 10,000 residents. Ancient settlements date back to the 11^th century, with fishing as the primary industry. Today, the main industry is tourism.

To dive into the history here, there were 3 tours you could take through shore excursions. They ranged from 3 to 4 hours for $90 to $115. One trip went to Mykonos Town by bus to see the village and the monasteries with snacks. Another tour was to see where the jet-set played on the wild beaches and partied with the nightlife crowd. Places for the movie stars and artists were pointed out, as well as museums, narrow streets, the white-washed houses, and the famous windmills. A taste of ouzo was included. Finally, there ws a ferry transfer to the nearby island of Delos. It was the mythical birthplace of Apollo and Artemis. The island is completely uninhabited and the tour is of ruins.

Having heard of Mykonos for many years, we were happy to get off the ship and take the free shuttle to Mykonos Town, about a 10 minute drive from the ferry pier. Guess we were lucky to have the use of the ferry dock, or else we would have had to tender here today. There was a strong breeze blowing, but not enough to keep us out of the port.

It turned out to be a most beautiful day weather wise. It was not too hot, and if you were able to stay out of the breeze, it was most comfortable. We assume the bus stopped at the tender boat landing, since there were buildings here to indicate there was a terminal. We simply walked past the buildings, and went out a gate that connected to the walkway that led to the old town. Following the water's edge, we eventually came upon a series of cafes along the waterfront. They were just opening for the morning, with offers of breakfast and coffee. It wasn't too crowded yet, as many folks had taken tours.

We passed by a small sandy beach with a boat harbor across from it. Rounding the corner, we came upon a museum and a typical Greek church, although it was miniature compared to the churches we saw yesterday. Only this church had a blue domed roof. All the rest, including the Church of Paraortiani (actually a group of 5 churches) were completely white, so white they appeared to have recently been painted.

This is about where the old city with a complicated labyrinth of narrow streets and alleyways began. We found our way to what they call Little Venice, which is simply a neighborhood of old houses built dangerously over the edge of the sea. All of these connected houses have been turned into taverns and bars. We happened to spot Carole, who dined with Martin and us last night. She was waving from one of these taverns, indicating that she was taking photos of something. We went around the point to find there were six ancient windmills on the cliffs, one of the most recognizable landmarks of Mykonos. So of course, we navigated through the little cafes that lined this narrow walkway, and climbed up the hillsides to get a close look.

Once out of the sheltered old town, the winds were chilly. We can see why these windmills were constructed here, to take advantage of this wind. We think that these windmills were used to grind grains, such as wheat and perhaps corn. They had a constant supply of wind to do the work. Each windmills was fenced, so you could not see what they looked like on the inside. All but one of these had roofs made from grasses. They had deteriorated to the point that birds had made them into nests.

There was a slew of tourists up here, although we bet in the middle of the summer season, you probably cannot move up here. From here we made our way back into the maze of cobbled narrow streets of the tourist area. It was interesting to find so many shop and café owners were sprucing up their places with new paint. Mostly the trims of blue, turquoise, red and grays were being re-done. Some were white-washing, and other workers were repairing the cobblestone streets. That led us to believe that we were among the first of the cruise ships to stop here so far.

Passing friends Jim and Jessica, they asked us where Little Venice was. Actually, we had already been through that area, but did not realize it. That was the row of taverns built over the water's edge, and where we saw Carole waving at us. By the way, we had asked a waitress in one of the bars if they served lunch. Her answer was no, they only served toast. Well our version of toast is "toasted" bread, usually served with butter and jams. Not the same here, as our friend Carol explained at dinner tonight. They are "little eats" or tapas and appetizers you would eat with cocktails. Now that makes sense, because we saw this sign on cafes while in Piraeus. One such place was called American Toast…..now we know it was not a breakfast spot only.

There was a scattering of high end shops here, however most of the stores were of the boutique quality. There were so many good choices if you were in the market for some new clothes. We felt the prices were high, as much as three times more for some items we have seen elsewhere. Our only purchase was a 2 Euro shot glass, since this was our first visit here, and we have fun collecting them.

It was time to find a good place for lunch. Since this was our final Greek port, we thought we should try some of their cuisine. A place by the name of Taverna Nikos caught our eye. Maybe it was the cute bulldog that was sitting on the patio staring at us. Or the checkerboard tablecloths that drew us. No actually, it was the fact that there were few people here, and there was plenty of room inside the café…out of the wind.

Turned out to be an excellent choice. We ordered a salad that consisted of the sweetest tomatoes, sliced cucumbers, green bell peppers, and some red onions. Kalamata olives were in the center. We sprinkled this with vinegar and olive oil from the bottles on the table. A basket of slice bread arrived, although we did not order it. Then we shared one order of saganaki, fried cheese. So good. That was followed by a serving of meatballs in a tomato sauce with spaghetti. This dish was called soutzoukakia. Two Amstel beers, ½ liter, were perfect with the meal. Another treat was sharing a slice of baklava, a national delicacy. It is made with a thin pastry dough, and filled with pistachios and soaked in honey. If it is made correctly, it melts in your mouth.

Now the biggest event of the day took place while we were eating. We had heard of the mascots of Mykonos….two adult Dalmatian pelicans that have the run of the old town. Never expecting to see them, we almost fainted when this pelican and his handler strolled over to our tables in the tavern. The man stopped and pulled a fish out of his pocket, and the pelican lifted his extra-long beak, and swallowed it whole. Much like a begging dog. We got some great photos, then the man left the dining room and went back outside. What a total kick. This bird was not small, as Dalmatian pelicans can be up to 6 feet from the tip of their beak to their tail feathers. They weigh up to 21 pounds. Later we read in our bird book, that because of the loss of habitat, this bird is globally rare. It is listed as a vulnerable species. One couple sitting across from us said that where they live, the pelicans are not liked by the fishermen. They must eat their weight in fish daily. This particular pelican had pink-tinged feathers, leaving us to think he is fed something other than fish.

As we left the restaurant, we found that the pelican had followed his keeper into the kitchen of the café, which was separate from the tavern. This bird was trying to climb over a crate of bell peppers to get into the kitchen. The chef was chopping legs of lamb into chunks. We suspect that he feeds the pelican pieces of the raw lamb, perhaps contributing to the bird's color. Shrimp could do that as well, like the color it gives to flamingoes.

We made our way back to the shuttle, but not before taking a million photos. In hind sight, we could have walked back. Never thought about that until we were already on the bus. Oh well, we had lots of computer work to keep us busy until we sailed away at 5:30pm.

Once again, the real sail away was in the Crow's Nest. Not for us, as we still went to the aft pool deck. It is the best place to get the best photos. It was cold, but not as bad as yesterday. According to the Captain's sail away talk, it sounds like we can expect rough seas, high winds of 50 MPH, and some rain as we head towards Malta. The only good news he had was that our clocks could go back one hour tonight.

One of our tablemates was missing tonight, so we had room for Carol, our resident watercolor instructor. She is such a nice person, and well-traveled of course. She has visited often enough to become a welcome addition to our little family.

A few of us went to the show this evening, which was a performance by a classical guitar artist from Greece, according to his name….Dmitris Dekavallas. Cannot go wrong with this type of show, as you can sit back, and simply listen to the music. Most of us were beat from 6 days of ports, so tomorrow's sea day is most welcomed. And so is the extra hour.

Bill & Mary Ann

PS Our perk of flowers or wine, liquor , or sodas or water has a limit of $40 per person every two weeks. Therefore, 17 sodas fall under that $40 limit. Keep in mind, we used to get four 12 packs, which was more than generous for sure.

Cannot remember if we addressed the foreign money question. We used to order the money before we left, but it is difficult to get the amounts right. So we buy it either on the ship, or on shore at a local money changer. Unless it is an emergency, we try not to use credit cards. One passenger happened to come to the desk as we were buying euros this afternoon. His credit card had been hacked, and he was asking for help to resolve it with a phone call to his credit card company. Oh boy….been there done that. And they did say yes, he could use their phone without paying a charge.

A Mykonos fishing boat