Last Post from Syros

We're leaving late tonight to catch a ferry to the mainland to begin the next page of our journey. We wanted to post one last one (filled with pictures) since we don't know when the next opportunity to post will come from. Now that it is time for us to leave the Cyclades, the weather has turned nice (read: hot and sunny) to give us a farewell gift for being such a poop most of the time! Yesterday - shock - we had our very first beach day! Hopefully after laundry, cleaning, and packing, we might sneak over in the afternoon for a last moment with the Aegean.

feeling a bit under the weather?

Octopus in Vinegar (actually quite good!)

someone else thought it looked good too! (the cat later ate bread off Mom's plate!!)

He's there every day we walk by.

Evidently I enjoy taking photos of the Syros animals...

So a quick itinerary for our last 2+ weeks (yikes!) or so goes like this: 5 days on mainland Greece seeing Delphi and jamming as many sites as possibly in on the Peloponnese followed by an (all to quick) trip back to Athens, to see a friend, and really see the Acropolis this time, before flying off to Germany. It's going to be a whirl-wind time there (just in the northwestern corner), packing in a few cities like sardines-in-a-can before taking a train over to the Netherlands where we have a blissful week to explore Amsterdam. We'll try to post when we can but basically we'll be running a marathon and might not have time for pit-stops. :)   (which is a good thing since both are feet at itchy to get moving again!)

Tinos

We did a bit of island hopping yesterday and spent the day on Tinos. We finally were graced with beautiful weather and enjoyed renting a car and taking in the sites. The island is about 3 times larger than Syros and much more lush, but with only 8,500 inhabitants, rather wild. We both fell in love with it, between the small villages, staggering coastline, and humble inhabitants. We're already thinking  of future trips back and to it's neighbor (even more lush and sparsely populated!) Andros.  Enjoy the photos!

Our Green Bug Car for the day!

View from Church

little girl chasing pigons outside church

Tinos the port town

amazing little harbor on the north side where we had lunch

before our ferry home

Ano Syros

We thought we might be able to hide from the wind up in the old Venetian town of Ano Syros. Ano Syros is filled with small walk-ways squeezed in between homes and shops, so we thought the walls of the buildings would provide some protection. (We were wrong!) It was built as a natural fortress into rock and mountain, with gates of the old castle still remaining. It is the oldest (currently still occupied) settlement on the island, claimed to be home to the ancient philosopher Ferekydes. It's currently form was built in the 13th and 14th century by (shock!) the Venetians.  On top of the hill, there is a great, beautiful Catholic church to St. George. Unfortunately for us, it was closed yesterday. 

Ano Syros is the settlement on the left going up the hill.

Signs to help us find our way.

Down the rabbit hole we go!

Bingo! (bad shot - I know)

Wasn't open, but still beautiful shot to Ermopolie and the bay below!

Mykonos!

Yesterday, we took a (long) day trip to the beautiful island of Mykonos. We were hoping to make it a beach trip, as Mykonos has famous beautiful beaches, but alas, the weather did not prove accommodating. Actually, besides not pouring rain on us, the weather was rather UN-accommodating yesterday. It was cold and windy the whole day, the sun going into hiding as soon as we arrived there and not returning until just before sunset. (But, what a beautiful sunset that was!)

So, rather than starting to work on those tans of ours again, we spent the day scurrying about the port town. We spent the morning and early afternoon window shopping and wandering around the windy stone-paved allies. We cuddled in a small taverna, eating a sumptuous tasting menu for lunch (sorry Morgan - no pictures this time).  Walking around, we realized how touristy Mykonos really is - after all, it is one of THE party destination islands in Europe, and really that crowd just isn't us. It didn't help that two giant cruise ships unloaded as we finished lunch, swarming the town like an invasion. Afterwords, found another cafe (hidden from the wind!) in "little Venice" to drink hot nescafes and watch the waves crash and stare at the infamous windmills. We finished wandering through the allies and streets back to the main port street, met the local pelican being harassed by tourists, and watched the sun set over the Mediterranean in the distance. Finally, our late night ferry came to sweep us back home to our beloved island of Syros. Enjoy the photos!

love the cats here! (for you Becs!)

note the waves - those of you who've been here know there are no waves in the Mediterranean!!!

before the weather turned

there's a secret garden taverna down there

Happy Mother's Day Mothers!

Not a bike ride

We did not go on a bike ride today as it is Sunday and most things are closed, including the rental shop. However, we did an awesome, rather intense, hike in the north section of the island down to a beautiful, rather secluded beach. Unfortunately, it wasn't quite warm enough for a dip, although it looks like an excellent swimming cove. James estimated that it was about a thousand feet vertical hike from where we parked down to the beach. (Hiking up went a bit slower than going down!) Happy May Day everyone!

pathway of daisies

the beach is between the second and third land spits and all the way down!

You've waited long enough

for some pictures of Greece. Here's a quick sampling:

(I commandeered Momma's computer for the afternoon. Thought I'd put it to use!) Hope you enjoy!

Further stories

No surprise that we failed at the daily postings of small stories. Not all our fault, as James' computer has been breaking up with us (or more accurately just breaking). Evidently, we'll be computer shopping once we get back stateside.

No one but Morgan appreciated our witty post? We won't bother with such banter next time. But, to continue with stories from Egypt. Other highlights include finally finding a practical use for James' beard.  James was repeatedly mistaken for an Egyptian-American that had come home after the revolution. It was actually a pleasant surprise as the locals paid far less attention to us for that reason, and whatever attention we did get, was about the revolution. Our theory is that tourism has not really rebounded (remember that empty picture?), and so the locals weren't overly bitter about their city being overtaken by foreigners. Either way, we had a lot of fun interactions with the Egyptians on the street. One particular highlight about this was at the Alexandria Library. We were just wandering around inside admiring the beauty of modern and warmth the library has (sorry no inside pictures - camera's weren't allowed) and three University students came up to us to welcome us to Egypt. In the end, we found out they are studying to become tour guides and offered to write our names in Hieroglyphics. It was utterly adorable scenario as they had only learned a bit, and it took serious debate amongst them to decide on how to write them. The best part, was after they finished, we thanked them, and walked away, they found us again to change one of the symbols, twice!

The weather has finally turned nice here - allowing us plenty of sunshine to go hiking and exploring the island. Our plan for tomorrow is to rent bikes to try and cover more area without a car. Plus I think mother is finally running out for household projects for us! :)