0800 – Currently talking to a couple of other boaters on the dock, discussing, what else …weather and what it may or may not do. We thought we as Canadians talked about weather a lot…..it affects life here much more. Winds are variable from the North. Regardless of what they are, we will be going into it. Sucks because for the past two weeks we have had South winds which have played in our favour. Not so anymore. Decision time is in two hours. We either take a ferry to Mykonos, and leave the boat here or beat our way there and then haul back. In some ways the ferry might be simpler because the trip back would be easier. We will have to choose soon….
0850 – After discussions with our friends on the dock (one from South Hampton UK, the other from California but living in Sweden) we are leaning towards the ferry and a night away from the boat. We are told that the marina in Mykonos is horrible and far from the town. Also, we are told that Mykonos is the most expensive Island and busy. We think perhaps that a regular ferry over today at 1100, find a place to stay, see the city, then take a boat to Delos tomorrow to see the ruins, then back to Mykonos, and then we will retrace our steps back to Seriphos, Kythnos, then back to Athens. Besides, how can one come to Greece and not experience the ferry culture?! So we will be foot tourists for a couple of days. Better to have the boat in a safe harbour rather than be afraid to leave it.
If we have learned one thing here, it is be flexible in your plans and allow lots of leeway in your timing. We would have liked to make it to Tinos as well, it is supposed to be something to see the faithful crawling on their hands and knees to the church on the hill. and the dove cotes are supposed to be something special. Next year! I think you could come here for 20 years and not see it all.
0915 – Are listening to the weather report…for our area the forecast is N-NW winds, Beaufort 6 – 7…..our decision stands, the current winds don’t seem like they agree, it’s currently blowing at about 6-7 m/s, but why tempt fate, and we are in a harbour too so that makes a big difference.
0930 – Have decided…fery to Mykonos. Our neighbour from South Hampton who keeps his boat here in Greece came to tell us what the NAVTEX said, it agreed with the radio forecast, still bad. We said we’d decided on a ferry, he said wise decision, made us feel better when a seasoned veteran said that and said that he was hoping to get out in a day or two.
1000 – Quick packing job, make sure all the lines are secure, close all the through hulls and turn off the electronics. Return the scooters, zip by the internet cafe to upload, grab a croissant, buy two ferry tickets, head for the dock. Wait for the ferry.
1100 – We are on a Sea Jet 2. Fast little (relatively speaking) thing. Pretty much like the Harbour Lynx. We sat upstairs. Out around the corner we saw Captain California leaving the harbour (didn’t get his name …dubbed him Captain California because he is originally from there…he asked for the web address…. so if you read this, let us know how your trip went, we saw you rounding the corner and saw what you were in for, didn’t look like a fun ride).
Didn’t look bad as we rounded the corner towards Naoussa. We thought to ourselves, gee, we’re wimps, it was do-able ….relatively big and lumpy, but do-able. As we neared Mykonos we changed our tune. Wild is the only word to describe it. Swells coming from two directions, wind whipping off the tops of the white caps between the swells. Water shooting two decks up on the ferry. It was definitely NOT do-able! We certainly made the right decision.
When we docked, we almost got blown off of our feet as we got off the ferry, the wind was that strong! We walked off the ferry and were immediately accosted by the throngs of hotel owners looking to hook us for a room. We’ve not seen anything like it in our travels so far, and it apparently only gets worse. A woman was jogging alongside us as we were trying to get away. We finally cleared them and were almost around the corner when I could see another person running after us out of the corner of my eye. A gentleman called out to us, always a sucker for an English/Irish/Scottish/Aussie (take your pick, I love them all) accent we stopped as he was calling “Hang on, hang on”. He handed us a small brochure and said his establishment was in the Lonely Planet Guidebook and there was “no bullshit like some of the others”. We decided to hear him out. When we asked the prices, they were higher than some of the others we had heard, but still relatively reasonable. We thanked him and went for a drink.
Sitting down, having a beer, listening to accents around us. Definitely Canadians next to us….yup, an older couple from Toronto, just arrived Thursday. Chatted for awhile, they are heading for Manaus next year, cruising all the way up the Amazon.
Decided we should go find a room, especially after watching several more big ferries deposit weekenders. Hunted down Zorzis Hotel, liked what we found, the price was OK, we have a room for the night. Not just a room, but a real bed and a real toilet…and best of all, a real shower! What a treat!
We scoped out the tickets to Delos for tomorrow, relatively reasonable, and went for a walk….or should we say we went for a sandblast. The wind is absolutely screaming through here! We were wiping sand out of our eyes, noses, teeth and ears. Grit was literally between our teeth.
We descended into the maze of streets and alleyways, did some shopping and found a little hole in the wall gyros shop with a million people crawling in and out …always a good sign..
Note: If you find something you like in Mykonos, just buy it. Don’t say to yourself, I’ll come back for it ….because you will wander in circles for three hours trying to figure out not only where it was….but where you are. We have decided that loosely translated, the word Mykonos actually means “to wander in confusion for hours on end”.
We finally got fed up trying to find a shirt that Kirk had seen and went for a hike up to higher ground. We could see some old walls and windmills up on the hill and we spent quite some time trying to get to them before we finally came to the conclusion that they were on private property and therefore not accessible. We hiked back up around the top, picking sand out of our eyes as we went. And did I mention the temperature? Very chilly to boot. Got some great photos from up high before heading back down a footpath we came across. We stopped back at Zorzis to wash the sand out of our pores as best we could.
Back in town we looked for a place to eat …stumbling onto the shirt store that we had looked for over an hour earlier in the process. We decided on a seafood restaurant in an area they call Little Venice. Overpriced, like absolutely everything here, but good just the same. We watched the sun set and avoided the splash from he waves. The waiter called us brave because we chose to sit on the edge.
After dinner we stopped at a little bar on the waterfront, Katerinas. The list of drinks outside had caipirhinias on the list, hadn’t had one for some time, figured they probably wouldn’t make them right, thought what the heck. Ordered two and were surprised to get something that appeared more like a margarita…and with lemon. Kirk went back to the bar and asked what they had made us…..they said what we asked for. Took a sip, definitely made with cachaca…but lemon not lime ….asked why no limes and the fellow didn’t know what a lime was …guess that answered that question. Oh well, it was drinkable so we sipped them and enjoyed the view.
Note: When in Mykonos, ask prices before you order.
Kirk went to pay, 22 Euros! 11 Euros a drink! Insane! We stopped at a store on the way back to the hotel and bought a bottle of wine. Got back to the hotel and the owner told us that the average price for any cocktail in Mykonos in the evening is 10 Euros. Crazy!
Tomorrow we will do Delos and then head back to Paros and the boat. Then we will begin our journey back to Athens.
