Touring to experience Greek Food
20th June to 4th July
Whenever we welcome onboard family or friends we generally have a loose itinerary always dictated by the wind and where those joining us hope we can go. What was special welcoming Scott and Paris onboard was they came with the agenda of seeking out Greek Food experiences and so from the day they stepped onboard our task was to nominate where we were going, their task was to find the food experience. And that they did.
Stepping out for dinner
After a long flight from Australia Scott and Paris arrived into Olympic Marine with just enough time to freshen up and set out to the Marina Restaurant Kaleo to have their first of many Greek Salads, Grilled Seabream and Octopus with fava beans. The tastings had begun and they didn’t disappoint.
The following morning we were on the road for a long drive day to Meteora as we detoured via the ancient ruins of Delphi. Morning coffee the now standard “Cappuccino Freddo” was in the town of Arachova, a traditional village with red tiled roofs that sits on the side of Mount Parnassus. It had a surprisingly European feel to it and with its cobblestone streets that disappeared up lane ways, we all agreed that had time allowed it would have been the perfect place to spend a night. It’s proximity to three ski centers makes it a popular destination in winter and for us on our way to Delphi just 8km’s away it would have been a prefect base from which to explore. Perhaps next time.
The stadium
This was our third visit to the Delphi Archeological museum and the Ancient Ruins of Delphi and they still continue to impress. The hike to the top of the ruins to view the 178m long Pythian Stadium, that was built in the second half of the 4th Century BC worked up a good appetite for our late lunch. The Stadium is said to be the best preserved Stadium in Greece with the starting line almost intact. With a seating capacity of around 6500 people it would have been a spectacle to behold in its time.
Lunch was at Epikouros Restaurant in the town of Delphi - the village having been relocated in the late 1800s to allow for excavation of the ruins of the Sanctuary of Apollo. The restaurant had an amazing view of the valley stretching all the way to the Gulf of Corinth and the seaside village of Itea. There may have been a little overordering of food but some how we managed and again no complaints.
The next two nights we stayed in the quaint boutique hotel of Tsikeli located in the small village of Kastraki at the base of the pinnacles of Meteora. Having been here only last year it was a bonus to be back to explore the area. We managed again to tour three monasteries. Revisiting Grand Meteora and Monastery of Varlaam (still our favourite) and for the first time the Monastery of St Stephens. Time prevented visiting the Monastery of the Holy Trinity so still a reason to return in the future. We followed the coast road on our return trip with glimpses of the Island of Evia in the distance and lunch in the seaside town of Kamena Voula where we dodged the British menu and found an alternative restaurant for more calamari, Greek salad and gyros.
Back onboard it was time to start island hopping. 1st Stop the island of Kea in our favourite bay of Voukari where we tied stern to using the handy rusting pillars that we believe may be the remnants of a boat building industry in time passed. Scott and Paris headed off to explore the old town of Llouida and battle spider webs and wasps to find the Statue of Leo - a lion statue dating back to 600BC carved from the granite rock around it. As always the old town with its white washed buildings and twisting pathways impressed.
Icecream, cocktails, dinner, brunch the next morning and more icecream. I believe that was the order of the menu. Voukari not only has a great Icecream shop Kayak, but several very nice restaurants making eating out a very easy and enjoyable option particularly as they are all just a very short dinghy ride from the boat.
A leisurely departure the next day we moved around the corner to the bay of Sounion with Poseidon’s Temple as our backdrop. Paris and Scott headed ashore to explore the temple whilst we were on anchor watch as the harbour became a parking lot for sailing vessels. The view in the evening light is always worth the congestion and chaos.
Friday 26th July we departed early for a 40nm sail across to Epidavrous on the Pelopponese’s. Always our safe harbour to run to when the winds are building in the Cyclades. Tied stern to the rocks we had our own back yard swimming pool to enjoy. Unfortunately the Ancient Amphitheatre both large and small were in the middle of the summer festival with live performances making a visit to either, unless for a Greek Tragedy Performance, not viable, so we opted to take the chance to chill relax and enjoy the anchorage that we had relatively to ourselves. Of course there was more indulgence in Gyros, ice-cream, orange cake, coffee and cocktails.
The next island on the agenda was Poros. Three nights on anchor gave plenty of time to explore the village, seek out the bakeries, and for the first time we ventured out on the little Red submarine to see what extra sea life may have been surviving in these busy waterways. It was worth the giggle. Poros was definitely the place for super yachts to be on our arrival and for the first time we encountered a Super Yacht with its own Super yacht for the toys.
Tuesday 30th June
Another early morning start as we crossed from the Saronic Gulf back to the Cyclades islands of Sifnos in the bay of Vathy. Vathy was bustling with families on vacation so getting a taxi to the old town the following morning took some patience but finally Taxi No 7 came to our aid. The only disappointment of the day was the croissant shop in Apollonia was sold out. It is a very good day when this is the worse thing to happen.
Mandraki Bay Milos
Our final island for this run was Milos where we were so fortunate that the weather conditions allowed us to anchor in the northern bay of Mandraki. Scott and Paris had researched the restaurant Medusa so to be able to anchor in the bay without any other boats and to arrive by dinghy was a definite bonus.
Enjoying summer in the bay of Mandraki
Following our meal which was more about the people watching we did a run in the dinghy around the bay to Sarakinko cliffs. With the sea perfectly calm it was a very special experience to be able to explore the cliffs from the water in the setting sun without day boats and hundreds of people that descend daily upon the cliff faces.
From Mandraki Bay we moved around to the main harbour of Milos passing on our way the distinctive boat houses of Klima. A car was hired and thanks to Andrew’s skill of squeezing the car through spaces not designed for two vehicles safely we managed to traverse the northern half of the island by road revisiting Sarakino Cliffs, cooled off in the waters of Plathiena Beach, visited the Christian Catacombs, ate icecream in Pollonia and had the best stuffed Squid of the trip at the restaurant Astakas Cafe on the foreshore in Klima.
Athens Bound
All too soon Saturday the 4th of July was upon us and Scott and Paris were off to Athens for the last leg of their holiday and continued itinerary of searching out good food experiences. It had been a lot of fun and very special to have them onboard.
And as for the Food Experience Stand outs….
