Ahhhh....Amorgos

We didn't knowingly save the best until last, it was really just how the ferry schedule ran.   In the planning of this trip we plotted our route between islands based on the most efficient routes of the ferries.  That's the secret to planning a Greek Island-hopping adventure.  When the summer ferry schedules are released early each year check the routes, and the stops on each route, because not all islands are connected by a direct ferry, and doing some research about the routes can avoid time wasting, back-tracking and delays.  

Amorgos was a definite on our list to visit this year and as there is a direct ferry from Kos to Amorgos, it became our final island of the trip, and what a spectacular way to end.  Four nights on this idyllic island could not have been a better finale to our Greek summer.

Amorgos is beautifully picturesque, a wild beauty surrounded by the bluest of blue seas. It has characteristic Cycladic white houses, blue shutters, all adorned with clouds of pink bougainvillea and hibiscus. It's quiet and calm, no crowds, there's no tourist office on Amorgos, and even the ferry ticket office looks like a 1950s movie set.  Speaking of movie sets,  the crystal clear sea around Amorgos provided the setting for some of Luc Besson's 1988 movie, The Big Blue.   Amorgos also has probably one of the most impressive sites in all the Greek Islands, the white monastery of Panagia Hozoviotissa.  It clings to the side of a sheer rock face 300 meters above that stunning blue sea, and is only reached by a strenuous hike up hundreds of rock steps.  It is quite a marvel.

Coincidentally, it was my birthday while we were staying in the charming white cube studio, complete with terrace overlooking the sea, and my only birthday wish was to hike to the Byzantine monastery clinging to that sheer cliff and to swim in the turquoise Aegean waters far below it.

We hired a car to explore this narrow, elongated island.  First we headed up the hill to the white pyramid-shaped pile that is Chora with its crowning mini castle built on a protruding rock at the very top of the village.  There are domed churches and chapels, a row of windmills and the view back down to the port of Katapola is spectacular.  

I'll never forget that hike up to the monastery, it was hot and it was necessary to stop after climbing every 20 or 30 steps to catch my breath, not so much from the incline as from the expansive views of the seemingly never-ending blue Aegean.  Arriving in a pool of sweat at the foot of the white monastery is really just the beginning,  there is a steeper staircase to climb to enter into the low marble doorway of the monastery itself.  As I stepped inside that doorway, puffing and panting and wiping my melting brow, the serene voice of a welcoming monk urged me to 'please...come....sit....welcome' and at once that strenuous climb was worthwhile.   That is not the end of the steps though!  The monastery, literally carved into the cliff, is a series of steep, narrow stone staircases leading to landings and tiny rooms that eventually rise to the entrance of the tiny church at the very top.  At one of the mid levels I was again greeted by a friendly monk offering the most welcomed glasses of cold water (and glasses of spiced raki for anyone needing something a little stronger) and a place to sit in front of the open windows that both catch the breeze and frame the breathtaking views.

Next was a swim far below at picturesque Agia Anna and that was equally unforgettable and oh so refreshing.  We declared it probably the most beautiful of all swimming locations, and as tomorrow we leave the islands and begin to head back to Athens, we thought that this was probably our final Aegean swim in this perfect Greek summer.

Idyllic Amorgos

The view from Amorgos Chora back down to
the port village of Katapola, where we stayed

A glimpse of the monastery of
Panagia Hozoviotissa

It's quite spectacular and the hike up the
winding switchback stone path had me
puffing on this hot late summer's day

Far below the monastery is the tiny bay
of Agia Anna - a most sublime swimming
spot and a location used in The Big Blue

So wild and barren, but that water so
blue and inviting

A tiny ekklesaki above the bay

Where ever there is a swimming spot below
a church there are signs for no nude swimming
or sun bathing

It was well worth the walk down the rocks
to swim at Agia Anna

The best beaches are often not the ones
with sunbeds and facilities.  Because
at Agia Anna there is a church, for 
modesty a change hut has been built -
Cycladic white and blue of course.

Kalotaritissa beach on the southern
tip of Amorgos

At Kafenion o Makis on an unnamed road
 in the tiny village of Arkesini.

A shady rest at Kafenion o Makis for 
coffee, frappe and local cheese pie

We stopped for a coffee,
and cheese pie made by Sophia who now
runs Kafenion o Makis - her grandparents ran
it for 50 years. We'd finished our drinks and
thought our cheese pie order must have 
been forgotten, and when we went inside
to pay our cheese pie was just come out
of the old oven - made from scratch!
 It was delicious!

Amorgos windmills on the ridge 
beside Chora

Amorgos, like most Greek islands
is mountainous and the coastlines
are spectacular

It's wild and barren, but we think it
is beautiful

An after dinner walk around the village
of Katapola

Amorgos is an island of hibiscus
and bougainvillea

...and more bougainvillea and blue domed
churches

This cafe in Katapola probably has
not changed much since the 1950s or 60s
and the history of Amorgos can be found
in the pictures on the walls

The cafe is also the ferry ticket office

A comfortable hammock on our terrace, and another moment of magical Greek island living!

Just Kos

Another Dodecanese island to be explored, and this one is so far east Aegean it's just 2 kilometres off the coast of Turkey.  Why Kos?  Just 'cos, we keep grinning to each other, and just 'cos it's only a quick 40 minute ferry ride from Kalymnos.  Interestingly, the Greek spell it Cos and people from Cos are called Coans.

Kos town is cosmopolitan (get it? last one, promise) and commercialised. It's large and packed with holiday makers, a very popular destination with Brits, it appears.  It's been described as a "Brits Abroard" destination.  Kos's main attractions are its beaches and its rich archaeological history.  We mainly know of Kos as the home of Hippocrates, the father of medicine and we're keen to visit the Sanctuary of Asklepieion,  the ancient site that was a healing centre and medical school, built in the 3rd century BC after Hippocrates death and to continue his teachings.  It's named after Asklepios, son of Apollo and protector of health and medicine.   

We rented a moto-scooter to explore Kos and our first stop was the sanctuary. It is beautifully situated on a green hill of cypress trees, and it is a little bit mind-blowing to walk through the ruins and to think that major contributions to modern medicine began here twenty four centuries ago, and that the Hippocratic Oath that sets out the ethics of medical practice still used today and as I walked around in awe thinking of the links between this ancient place then, and now. 

The Asklepios is three extensive terraced levels, and each level had a different function.  The first level was a healing sanctuary and housed treatment rooms, consultation rooms, a fountain, and later Roman-era healing baths of varying temperatures.  Up a marble staircase and there are the remains of the 4th century BC Temple of Asclepius, and restored columns of the Temple of Apollo.  The next impressive staircase and the third level has the remains of the crowning glory - the largest temple, and along each side were rooms for patients and visitors.  A final marble staircase takes us up the the grove of cypress trees dedicated to Apollo, a performance by the chorus of the thrumming of the summer cicadas, and a panoramic view over the sea to Turkey.  

Wandering around ancient ruins is one of our favourite things to do in Greece, and as we scootered around Kos we were delighted to find the Roman Odeon - a marble amphitheatre built during the Roman occupation of Kos in the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD - and incredibly only re-discovered in the 20th century during excavations in the area.

A two night stay in Kos was just fine for us, 'too touristy' for our liking, and now we're waiting for our ferry to take us to our next destination, the Cycladic island of Amorgos.  Small, quiet, less-developed Amorgos ... ahhhhh, sounds perfect.

The first level of the Asklepion of Kos

In an arched niche on the first level 
is the 'little temple of Xenophon' 
referring to a Coan physician from the
1st century AD, Gaius Xenophon

Cypress groves surround the Asklepieion

Love wandering around ancient
Greek excavations

We've hardly seen a cloud during this
past summer - but over the past week
 in Kalmynos and Kos when the clouds
appeared the humidity shot up, it's
the first time we've ever experienced
humidity during a Greek summer. Reliably
the Greek summer is hot and dry. Perfect.

Roman Odeon amphitheatre 4th century AD

Marble stairs and the original stage - amazing

Colourful Kos

A wander through old town

Colourful, tourist-loving Kos

Loved these trees lining the streets of Kos

Had some wonderful food at Patrinko taverna.
Stuffed zucchini flowers and dolmades were the
best ever!

                          * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

(Of course there is another reason we knew of Kos. Only a few years ago it was horrific to read media reports and see vision of the plight of, mostly Syrian, refugees arriving on remote beaches of Kos.  I know the asylum seeker crisis in Europe has most recently shifted to the plight of refugees fleeing Ukraine, and while we saw no refugees in Kos, it's an uncomfortable truth that there remains on Kos and neighbouring islands hundreds, probably thousands, of asylum seekers awaiting settlement.)  

Kalymnos and the sponge divers

What a surprise is Kalymnos!  A small rocky outcrop of an island in the Dodecanese near the coast of Turkey.  The island is small, just over 110 sq kms, so I guess we were expecting quiet, perhaps a bit forgotten in time and not as luxurious as some of its better-known neighbours.  Oh, how wrong we were. Over the past weeks as we've travelled around and met Greek people who have asked us about our summer travel destinations, they are at once enthusiastic about some islands - Tinos and Astypalea, for example, and then, well, less enthusiastic about others, Kalymnos for example.  And now that we have arrived on Kalymnos we're really confused about their reaction. The first thing that we noticed as we disembarked the ferry at the Kalymnos port of Pothia (nearing midnight) was the broad, vibrant port promenade lined with ships from simple to uber luxurious, and a kilometre sweep of brightly lit cafes, tavernas, restaurants and shops still full of people enjoying the warm summer's night.  Even at midnight it is easy to see the difference in architecture now that we're in the Dodecanese - gone are the white washed cube homes, the Kalymnos port is distinctive for it more classic shaped peak-front homes of pastel colours and all shades of ochre.

We've rented a traditional town house in the old neighbourhood of Pothia, just steps from the harbour.  It's immaculately restored.  Between the kitchen, living room and bathroom (on the first level) and the bedroom and terrace (on the top level) sits the original and very elegant iron spiral staircase.  It's beautiful and it is also a visual reminder to limit one's evening liquid intake - negotiating the steep, narrow spiral in the sleepy hours looks a little treacherous!  

The neighbourhood is a collection of alleyways, white painted stairs, hidden courtyards with a mixture of restored and unrestored homes.  Common to all are small overhanging balconies with decorative iron railings, and external spiral staircases of all designs and colours.  It's a busy neighbourhood and it's great to watch from our first floor verandahs the goings on below - daily life, kids playings, the noise of 2-stroke scooters always with a safety 'beep' as they round a corner, dogs barking, greetings called, and conversations that sound as if they're happening right next to us.  Our host, Eleni, left us a note; SOS it said, "it is a busy, traditional neighbourhood, the windows have extra sound protection, so when you want to relax, close all the windows and turn on the air-conditioner!" How right you are, Eleni, with the windows opened it really is as if everyone is living in each other's homes.  Eleni, and then her own children, grew up in this home. Her father died last year at 98 years old and was the captain of one of the last sponge diving vessels before the sponge blight ended the industry in the 1980s.

We rented a car and driving around the island it is obvious to see that Kalymnos has enjoyed great prosperity due mainly to its long history as the sponge diving capital of the Mediterranean.  As we leave Pothia and drive into the interior we pass many large and elaborate homes with commanding seas views.  

The road north follows the continuous sheer cliffs of the mountain range that run like a spine through the the island. In recent years Kalymnos has become a paradise for rock climbers from all over the world.  The barren and rocky limestone mountain ranges apparently are full of escarpments, crags, caves and grottos that climbers love to hang off.  Obviously, we're not here for the climbing, our sport is more leisurely - finding the best cafe with the best sea views and breezes, exploring the fishing villages, the most turquoise water to swim in, an afternoon walk, maybe an archaeological site to explore, or a museum and then the exhausting choice of which taverna to choose for dinner.  

It was a beautiful 4 night stay in picturesque Kalymnos, the friendly welcoming locals, the great seafood, the beautiful landscape, and rich history, we loved it all.  We saw something else that we haven't seen much of this summer - clouds - but don't be fooled by those pretty fluffy white clouds though, the humidity had us dripping!

Kalymnos harbour

Dive right in to Kalymnos!

Nike the winged goddess, Pothia harbour

A restored sponge diver boat in Pothia,
Kalymnos's harbour

Vintage Kalymnos

'skafandro' - the sponge diver's suit was 
introduced around 1865 - previously the
divers were naked.

Kalymnian sponges

While walking around our neighbourhood
we saw this large smooth stone bolted to a
pedestal, it's called a 'skandalopetra' and it's
a flat stone weighing about 15kgs that the 
naked sponge divers would tie to themselves
to enable them to sink quickly to the bottom
of the sea.

coastal views

Mirties

Cafe with a view of the tiny neighbouring
island of Telendos

Under a canopy of flowers and trees we
had the loveliest stop along the coast road.

A welcomed shady and cool terrace

The beautiful Drossia cafe, Mirties

Kantouni Beach

Nojito with view

Kantouni 

At Mamouzelos seafood restaurant this
carpaccio with sea urchin was extraordinary!

'our' street in old town Kalymnos

just part of the beautifully restored 
traditional home we rented, steps
from the harbour.

The pastel and ochres of Kalymnos, in
the Dodecanese. So different to their
white-washed Cyclades neighbours,
but equally lovely.