Trips throughout Greece

Athens - Pireaus - Cape Sounion - Poros - Santorini - Zakynthos - Rhodes - Mikonos - Delos - Corinth - Theater of Epidauro - Nafplio - Mycenae - Delphi - Arahova - Ioannina - Vikos Gorges - Meteora - Messenia and Peloponnesus

Mikonos is one of the Cycladic islands, located at a distance of 6 h. by ferry from Athens . It is one of the most typical and known islands thanks to its luminosity and the white of its houses, to the mills and the churches.
From 13th to 18th centuries it belonged to the Venetian, and afterwards to the Turkish, until the Independence war of Greece (1821-1830). The island, with a difficult access due to winds, has always been a refuge for corsairs. Because of the adverse conditions of the sea here, many skilful and expert sailors grew in the island. They were very useful for the Greeks in many of the battles during the Independence war.
We disembarked and a car coming from the hotel took us and afterwards it left us near our room. The car was expensive but they told us that it was compulsory to pay the car in order to stay at the hotel. We arrived to the hotel that we had booked two times (see trip to Rhodes) and we checked that is was a quite decent apartment.

Mikonos is perhaps the most typical of the Greek islands, but at the same time one of the most commercial and moderns. The place has turned into a gathering island for young people, especially for gays. It is a fashion destination with a great night atmosphere. However the village conserves its charming and there are many activities to enjoy. Despite the heavy tourism the place is incredible.

It is a complete pleasure to move through the narrow streets that offer surprising corners: the cubic houses with smoothed angles due to the lime layers, the balconies and the adorned windows full of colours and flowers, the typical exterior stairs and the yards. You have to let yourself loose in any corner, to explore and wander across a very calm village during the day, because it is a present for your sight.

But there are many more things. You can see artisans, donkeys, taverns and more than 300 chapels in every colour. Mikonos has been historically crowded with pirates and they used to promise the building of chapels if they escaped from the problems in the sea. This is the reason of such a huge number of chapels in the village.
The houses and churches have been painted so many times that they show the edges round shaped and the facades in a brilliant white colour.

At the extreme of the village we found the famous mills of Mikonos . One of the mills still works. Very close from here we visited the lovely tiny district called the "Little Venice" because it reminds the Italian city, due to the little houses with balconies and viewpoints over the sea.

While coming back to the village we admired the odd church of Paraportiani , that is formed by the superposition of 4 or 5 independent chapels. They can be distinguished because you can see the bell tower of each one. This church is one of the most ancient in Mikonos (16th century) and one of the most spectaculars.

We entered some other small chapels to enjoy the heavy and golden decoration full of orthodox icons.
There are several museums but we opine that this is not the most interesting of the island.

Pay attention to the Greek old people calmly sat below a shadow in any corner doing their own business, without any hurry. Their features weather-beaten by the sun and their traditional costumes give them this authentic looking.

There is another surprise. Some years ago a pelican used to walk through the village. He was called Petros (Peter) and he died in 1985. Since then there have been successors. Nowadays there are two couples of these curious birds that don't hesitate to have a walk across the streets and to look for some food, under the astonished look of the tourists. We found them in a street pretty far from the sea.

The food is nice and varied, and you can find prices and menus for every budget. We tasted a gyros pitta sat in a terrace located in a tiny square crammed with Greek fast food restaurants.
In the afternoon we went up to the Boni mill, from where we contemplated a magnificent view of the city and the port, and even some islands such as Delos or Renia. The sunset was splendid.

During summer nights the village must be an immense disco, so be ready for noise. We arrived in the beginning of October and the music could be heard in the distance across the whole village because it was really loud in some locals. So imagine in summer. You can find accommodation near or far from the going on, depending on your preferences. If you want to rest and relax, consider this point. The prices rocket during summer, and not only the accommodation.

We went to Paradise Beach as well, as we had been told that it is worth a visit because of the people you can find there, with the techno music to the full and the body culture. However, as we imagined, it was quite tranquil, as it wasn't high season.
We couldn't resist to go out at night in Mikonos and to see the pubs and atmosphere that are so famous in Mikonos. There were many people and open pubs despite it was October.
You have to take into account that the strong winds that often blow use to cause that the ships couldn't leave for days.
Mikonos is the best starting point to reach Delos.