Milos Moonscape

We had a great time on Milos, exploring lots of different beaches and eating some very good food and some not so good. Interesting how other travellers' opinions and Trip Advisor reviews can sometimes get it wrong. That said, Milos, is becoming renowned for providing innovative and gourmet food with a twist on the traditional Greek cuisine, apparently catching up to its neighbour, Sifnos. 

Mandrakia - fishing village and beach

We wanted to have lunch at a restaurant called Medusa at Mandrakia,  but the wait was way too long. Looking at the photo below, I'm guessing that octopus would be have been on the menu. 

Octopus drying beside Medusa restaurant at Mandrakia

Instead we found a great little spot by the water on the other side of the island at the little fishing village of Klima. My meal was so delicious and presented so nicely, I only remembered to take a photo after I had hoed into it!

Delicious lunch of squid 

Fishermen's huts at Klima - available for rent

One of the most interesting and surreal landscapes on Milos is Sarakiniko Beach. Images of that beach were the main reason we chose Milos. Those who are fearless jump from the high white rocks into the sea below. The day we went it was very windy and the sea quite choppy,  so there were no acrobatics to witness. There were, however, plenty of people climbing to impossible heights to get the perfect shot and it seems that the order of the day were long flowing dresses blowing in the wind,  allowing for dramatic and theatrical photos. 

Hold on to your hat!

Forgot to pout!

So instead we went to a South facing beach called Paleohori. We swam and snorkelled in more beautiful clear waters with a variety of colourful fish and gliding past large underwater rocks. watched various streams of bubbles arising from the seabed due to the volcanic landscape.

Coloured cliffs surrounding Paleohori Beach

Our last night on Milos we dined at Barriello, owned by the same family who rented out the apartment where we stayed. We were lucky to get in at short notice. So glad we did as the food was exceptionally good as was the service. Soon after we were seated a diner at the adjoining table asked if she could take our photo. Apparently our dinner outfits matched the artwork adjacent to us perfectly. 

Cheesecake Barriello with berries and rocket - appetiser

Carpaccio of oyster mushrooms

Again we were offered a digestive following the meal, this time one called Tsipouro. Very strong! When asked if we liked it,  the waitress then offered us another glass. As Adrian had to drive back to our apartment from the hilltop village navigating a curve every 50 metres, we wisely decided to decline. 

Last sunset over Milos for us

We have spent an amazing four weeks in Greece and would recommend this country to anyone. The number one memory we will take with us is the friendliness and happiness of the Greek people. 

We are now in Portugal, arriving very late last night. There was a glitch with the transfer we had arranged. Despite communication from the hotel, there was no-one there holding up a card with my name. Both the hotel and the driver had been trying to contact me on my Australian number, but I still had my Greek SIM card in. Anyway, finally met up, arriving at the hotel 3:00 AM Greece time!! The front desk man, Telmo, proceeded to give us a run down on all we should see in Lisbon. So there we were munching on Portuguese tarts (Adrian) and sipping on delicious port (both of us) whilst we tried to absorb all the information he was keen to share, but longing for a pillow on which to lay our weary heads. 

Staying on a pedestrian street in a lively part of the town. Looks very interesting.

Off now to explore and perhaps seek out a gluten free Portuguese tart.

Milos Magic

It seems like we saved the best for last. We arrived at Milos Island around midnight from Naxos. It was a 6 hour plus ferry ride, stopping at Ios, Sikilos, Folegrandos, Kimolos and then Milos. Even though our accommodation was only a reasonably short distance away, we didn't fancy walking in the dark hauling cases at that hour of night. There were taxis aplenty at the port all happy to take your money. As usual,  no meter was started and some random guy jumped in the front - supposedly he knew the driver. Comfortable accommodation about a 10 minute walk from the port and very quiet at night. 

Caramelising our dessert

View from our restaurant - first dinner Milos

Free liqueurs (Mastica) and free dessert---yum!

We booked a sunset cruise on board a catamaran which was a wonderful experience, enabling us to see a part of the island only accessible by boats. Arriving at the designated collection point, we realised pretty quickly that we were the oldest by at least 35 years. 

We swam in these beautiful waters - swimming through the cave

My titanic shot!

Adrian and I were very amused by the young women on board the catamaran with us, unashamedly posing for photos, preening themselves to maximise "the look" -  lying just so on the net, undoing their gorgeous locks to make sure they were sitting just right over their shoulders and with perfect pouts, they were ready for today's Instagram shot. Adrian suggested I do a Titanic. Having neither the gorgeous locks nor the voluptuous boobs, this was the best I could come up with. Given my spectacular disaster when leaving Santorini, I was tempting fate - might have catapulted off the tramp into the Aegean!

Posing "unashamedly"

Bear Rock

Food and wine were provided and even a Mojito offered and accepted as the sun went down on a spectacular day.

Summer Solstice Sunset

And then I hit the deck! ...so what happened? 

On my way across the asphalt leading to the entrance to the huge ferry with more than a thousand other travellers leaving Santorini, hauling or carrying luggage of varying sizes, I tripped on uneven ground. I did a total face plant, ripping flesh off several knuckles, wrists, palms and my upper lip and bruising both knees. It was awful and left me very shaken up. As the Greek ferries don't hang around long,  we were ushered into the gaping maw of the ferry and escorted via the lift to our seats. But, I am grateful that I did not break any bones. 

[Adrian's account: I was walking across the area where the trucks park before they drive onto the ferry when Fran, who was just in front of me took a dive onto the tarmac.  After retrieving her suitcase (which had been scattered in the fall), I helped her up. She had blood on her face and hands.  She was very shaken up and shaking and a passing passenger recognised that she was in shock and gave her a sugar lolly.  The lady in charge of loading the ferry calmed us down, summoned a crew member to help us and he ushered us onto the ferry, up a service lift to our seats.  Incredibly, Adrian was able to find handkerchiefs for the blood (later discarded), some ice for her swollen lip and some Betadine, anti-bacterial cream and band-aids to perform some basic first aid. During the ferry ride Fran was able to recover from her rather delicate emotional state.] 

We were met by George (of course) at Naxos port two hours later and transferred to our hotel - Hotel Grotta - barely 5 minutes away. This is a small family run hotel with a reputation for great service and amazing breakfasts - known as Mama's breakfast. She must be a very busy Mama. The photos don't do justice to the diverse food on offer. 

The kindness and warmth of the owners at this small hotel in Naxos has been immeasurable. The mother Catiana who greeted us, when told of my accident, immediately offered wine from the family vineyard...wonderful. The next morning one of the adult daughters greeted me with "are you alright?" Then proceeded to give me gluten free bread, snack biscuits, small cake and brownie. This morning, she gave me even more GF food.  I had previously advised them of my dietary needs. 

We have hired a car to see more of the island, exploring the beaches on the SW coast on our first day and today we embarked on a tour of some of the most charming villages in the mountainous areas of the island - Halki, Filoti, Aperanthos, Moni and lastly to a distillery established in 1896, which makes kitron, a speciality lemon-like liqueur only produced on this island.

We had front row seats for some drama in Filoti whilst enjoying a cold coffee under the plane trees at "Taverna Platanos' along with some of the locals. A policeman appeared, complete with a very loud whistle, and proceeded to shoo away any cars that threatened to park on either side of the street near the tavern. He had his work cut out for him. It was quite comical to watch and we thought someone important must be arriving. Sure enough a black Audi appeared with two other cars in tow and out stepped several glamorous looking Greeks. One very attractive lady then proceeded to the cafe, complete with her minder, to shake hands with the locals. And then on to other nearby cafes to do the same. The three old Greek men at the table next to us were nonplussed when she shook their hands, one by one, but were rather more pleased when the accompanying paparazzi wanted to take their picture.  

She totally ignored us as we wouldn't be voting.  Of course they were politicians with the Greek elections only 5 days away. I just happened to be waiting to go to the bathroom when one of the politician stepped out. I gave her my best smile, complete with scab on upper lip and said "Kalimera" and extended my hand to be shaken. She responded "Kalimera" and then shaking my hand (2 handed Poli-like shake) and touching my arm,  made a rather long comment also in Greek. We think she was probably saying "What the hell happened to your lip"? Or maybe she saw my swollen lip and said, "Please don't smile". 

Three politicians

Three policeman

And several minders and paparazzi

The village of Filoti

Little church high up in the mountains at a crossroad

View from the little church

Suffice to say that our excursions around the island to see some of the traditional villages and way of life would not be possible unless Adrian was willing to drive. 

Our hotel room has a great view of the doorway (portaro) of the Temple of Apollo - an iconic symbol of Naxos - which stands on a small island joined to the town by a short causeway. The tyrant Lygdamis started building it in the 6th century BC, but it was never completed. 

It is wonderful to see sunset on the summer solstice from our hotel as we did tonight whilst enjoying a glass of wine. 

Iconic image of Naxos - Portaro of the Temple of Apollo

82 Steps

We enjoyed our three night stay in Santorini, staying in Firostefani. It is further up the rim of the caldera by a 5 minute walk from Fira, the main town, where cruise ships disgorge thousands of tourists each day. We had an errand to run in Fira the day we arrived for my friend Ann to find Nic the jeweller. Weeks before we left home, Ann had lost one of her favourite earrings which she had previously bought here. Using Google maps we navigated the narrow streets of Fira, full of shops and stuffed with travellers, in search of a replacement earring. We eventually found Nic 

Our little apartment was very comfortable, adjacent to the pool, with a small hot tub. Our glutes got a workout every time we went anywhere as there were 82 steps to climb. And that was just the beginning - steps up and down everywhere on Santorini.

We had planned a quiet time here, recharging our batteries, sitting by the pool, eating, drinking and admiring the views. And sitting by the pool was very relaxing.

Enjoying a cuppa and the view

However, on our first full day we decided to take a "stroll" after breakfast and ended up walking 10 km up and down steps and paths, gravel, rocky and in parts, paved, all the way to Oia. On seeing the white township way in the distance, Adrian commented "we're not walking there". But we did and it was really interesting allowing many different views of the island. 

Oia-  the white area at the tip of the island

Maybe halfway

Along the way at some high vantage points, we saw several models being photographed dressed in glamorous gowns with metres of material in striking colours. No hair dryer was required to get the "gusty" look. The wind took care of that!

Fortunately we started relatively early and it took us 2.5 hours. The entrance to the top part of Oia has an attractive wide paved pedestrian zone which became congested as the streets narrowed and the throngs of tour groups clustered. So we jumped on a local bus and headed back to our digs. 

It seems that white is the designated colour to be worn on Santorini to emulate the whiteness of the surrounds. Lots of shops sell white goddess-like gowns with the Greek symbols embroidering the neck or waistlines. I didn't get one!

Ventured to the public bus terminal on day 2 to grab a bus to Perissa Beach, one of the famous black sand beaches of Santorini, laden with all the requisite paraphernalia . Chaos reigned at the terminal, with buses reversing and people milling everywhere. Neither the ticket seller nor the drivers could tell us which bus of 6 parked there was going to Perissa. Unfortunately on arrival at the beach, it started to rain. As we wandered along the beach café strip we stopped to look at a menu and the spruiker seized his chance. “Do you like wine?...Come in, we give you two free glasses” That, with the increasing rain, sealed the deal. Then as we were getting ready to go they presented us with another two free glasses of wine!! A brief reprieve from the weather allowed a short stop on the black sand, before rain sent us into another café for a hot coffee. 

Lunchtime view at Perissa Beach

As mentioned, we have been enjoying the Greek wine., both red and white.  One I really enjoyed and remembered from Persephone, our walking guide in Athens, was a red from Santorini, called Mavrotragano…delicious and full bodied.

Last dip in the pool at Agnadema apartments

There is no denying that the views on Santorini are stunning, and we are glad that we have seen it, but we  are happy to move on to our next destination - Naxos Island, the largest island in the Cyclades - and hopefully a slower pace. The delightful porter, Guiliano, from our apartments,  carried our suitcases to the top of the 82 steps, hoisting one on his shoulder and the other in his hand. He certainly deserved the tip we gave him, having also carted them down the 82 steps a few days earlier. 

If we thought the bus terminal was chaotic, the port was worse. But after the trucks and cars were loaded, it was time for the thousands of passengers to load, streaming across the asphalt pulling and carrying their luggage.

All was going well and then I hit the deck!