Mykonos

Friday April 3, 2009
Spring Break week! 13 students, including myself, flew to Greece to enjoy a week of travel, sun, exploration, and relaxation. Our flight to Athens took off about an hour late, but didn’t affect our travel plans. Once we landed in Athens, we hopped on a bus to reach the port of Piraeus, to take a ferry to Mykonos. I had my first gyro (pita wrap with your choice of lamb, chicken, pork and tzatziki (yogurt sauce with cucumber and garlic), and onions. So delicious! Gyros are a cheap good meal as well, running around 2 euro. The ferry ride was about 5 hours long. Our ship reminded me of a cruise ship, comfortable seating, open areas for dining, and other activities. We made one stop at another island. During the 15 min stop, men came on the ship with big baskets and just started yelling. At first, I was a little concerned, not sure what was going on, and couldn’t understand Greek. A man, who could speak English, sitting near us explained the situation. These men were bakers/candy makers and they get on when ships stop and sell their delicacies. I even got to try one! It was covered in powdered sugar, and was sort of like a gummy, with a caramel flavor. Nothing like anything I’ve had before! I spent the rest of the time reading and catching up on some sleep. Once we docked in Mykonos, our hotel owner, Maria, picked us up. Maria was so nice and helpful, and so cheerful. She explained everything we would need to know, pointed out restaurants to try, sights to see, etc. When we arrived at Villa Vasilis (name of the hotel) I was pleasantly surprised to find a beautiful layout of white buildings set in the countryside of Mykonos. The hotel was located about halfway from town to the beach. I shared a room with 4 other girls, it was sort of like having our own little suite, the room wasn’t connected to anything else. The first night surprised us with how cold it was! We had been expecting (and hoping for) warmer temps, so our packing wasn’t very appropriate!

Saturday April 4, 2009
The weather was sunny but very windy when we woke up. Jess, Suzanne, Jackie, Lizzie, and myself spent the day getting ourselves acquainted with the island. We walked to Mykonos town, taking pictures along the way, and explored the narrow streets. Many of the shops and restaurants were closed. Mykonos, along with the other Cyclades islands, revolve heavily on tourism. The tourist season in this area starts at the end of April and continues through the summer into early fall. We arrived just before the tourists hit, so the shop keepers and restaurants were all prepping for the inflow of people. Walking along the streets, there was a lot of painting, fixing, and other repairs taking place on the outside and inside of all the buildings. While walking along, we saw a peculiar looking pelican. After further research, I found out that this pelican, named Pietro, is the symbol of Mykonos. The original Pietro washed up after a hurricane, and found a new home on the island. After his death, a new pelican was adopted and continues to live there today. After town, we decided to walk to Paradise beach, where the other part of our group was staying. The walk took about an hour from our hotel, but we got to see lots on the way! We sat on the beach for a while. We took a taxi back to our hotel, which are very cheap on the island, about a euro a person. Much less than Rome! For dinner we went to a restaurant on the waterfront that Maria had recommended. I had stuffed grape leaves and chicken souvlaki. I had never had either of these in my life before, and loved them both! Greek cuisine was much more delicious than I had expected.
Sunday April 5, 2009
The weather was very overcast when we woke up, not nice enough for the beach. Maria had recommended that we rent ATVs and explore the island. We drove around, taking in the beautiful landscape, beaches, lots of white houses, and animals. We even found a Starbucks! It was nice to have a little comfort from home. Rome has no chain coffee houses, relying on all local java cafes. These aren’t my favorite, so it was nice to get a caffe Americano. We rode around for about 4 hours, it was lots of fun! For dinner we went to another restaurant recommened by Maria. I had hummus with pita and Kleftiko – a Greek dish with lamb, feta, vegetables, and potatoes all cooked together in tinfoil, and for dessert the local treat of baklava (phyllo dough, nuts, honey) . So delicious!
Monday April 6, 2009
Our last morning in Mykonos was very rainy. We had made it a habit of going to the bakery around the corner every morning, so we had to have one last stop. This Greek bakery rivaled any that I’ve been to in Rome. Their cookies were wonderful, and they made baguettes with feta, tomatoes, and peppers – all for about 1/3 of the price it would cost in Rome. Can’t beat that! Maria drove us to the port and we said good-bye. She had been so accommodating to us, and very helpful. I highly recommend staying where we stayed with Maria if anyone has future plans to Mykonos! We got on the ferry, had a layover in Paros, another island, then on to Santorini. When we arrived in Santorini, the rain from Mykonos had followed us. Our hotel was great, very plain and clean, located in the town of Fira. Two of our friends had been in Mykonos since the beginning of spring break and recommended we rent ATVs for the duration of our stay to get around the island. Jackie and I split the two day rental, only 30 euro/day for both of us. We didn’t want to travel far for dinner, so went to a restuarnat close to our hotel. I had a greek salad and chicken gyro for dinner. After a long day of travel, everyone was really tired, so early to bed!