Arriving in Mykonos this morning required us to get up way to early for the scheduled excursion. We typically stay up until about midnight so getting up around 6:30-7 am is tough for us! We got a quick breakfast and headed to our excursion meeting place.
The best part is we were able to dress with no sweaters or warm clothes. It’s very nice weather here. Although since it’s known as the Windy City I’m sure our hair will not hold up! That’s why I wear a hat!
Our tour guide was a sweet young lady that knew quite a bit about her town and was very patient with these people asking her multiple times to repeat something.
Our first stop was at one of 52 beaches on the island, Paradise beach. It was so beautiful and crystal clear. We were not taken to Super Paradise Beach, which requires no clothes and much more partying than our group could handle! 😂 Probably a good move on her part.
While on the bus we saw some beautiful countryside. She gave us some great information about the land and locals such as there are 10,000 residents but 1 million tourists per year. That’s a lot of tourists!
We had a stop for some Ouzo and mezes at a local restaurant. Greeks call restaurants a taverna. Ouzo is a very popular alcohol in Greece. Way too strong for me. I took a sip and after my face turned red with heat, I passed it over to Chuck! Mezes is a snack of hummus, olives, grape leaves, meatballs, pita bread or any variation of Greek snacks. Really tasty. I gave Chuck the meatballs, he gave me the olives.
She mentioned that the houses are all whitewashed because of an epidemic. Wasn’t sure I understood her so of course I had to google it. Way back in 1938 the houses were painted blue and white with limestone and it’s considered a very powerful disinfectant. The dictator ruling Greece at the time, Ioannis Metaxas, ordered all homes to be painted with it in order to curb the disease Cholera. Apparently it worked or so it was believed.
We walked around the village afterwards and visited a beautiful monastery. It was small but so beautiful. They say it’s one of the most photographed monasteries in Greece. It was built in the 16th century and there are still 11 monks that live at this monastery.
When we finished our tour and returned to the ship, we jumped on the Sea Bus or more aptly named a water taxi to head downtown. We walked around a portion of the town known as Little Italy. The area is known for its Venetian-style buildings, which are built right up to the edge of the water. Really pretty
We finally found those famous windmills from the 16th century that were used to grind grain. So beautiful! We could see them from the ship but had a hard time locating them due to getting lost in a maze of white shops with twists and turns. It seemed like we walked forever.
Our trip to Mykonos was wonderful! Reminded me a lot of Santorini. After a busy day and dinner, we are now ready for our final Greek island stop in Argostoli tomorrow.
May God bless you always!
Chuck and Lea Ann
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