We had a little time to explore Parikia before sailing. Went to the Church of Ekatontapillani Cathedral and Baptistry. Built in 600 AD. Designed by the same architect who built Hagia Sofia in Istanbul. But this is a living active church and hasn’t been stripped of its ornamentation so I thought it was more impressive than Hagia Sophia.
Got to see how garbage gets picked up from houses on the tiny alleys. A skinny garbage truck zips right on through.
Throughout the islands there were dried wreaths hanging on doors. These are left over from May Day (protomaio) celebrations. On this national holiday it is traditional for people to go to the countryside, have picnics, gather flowers, and make them into wreaths for their homes.
The wreaths remain on the doors until June 23rd when June 23rd which is the Feast of St.John. Many villages have celebrations where the villagers (adults and youth) will jump over bonfires made from May Day wreaths .
We motor sailed to Sifnos because our captains motto must be “why sail when you have a motor? “. Wind was on our nose for a direct heading but isnt that why sailboats tack?
Exploring Sifnos
Sifnos is a lovely island full of many wow inspiring moments. We docked in port of Kamares Med moor style alongside many others. One thing our crew is very good at is mooring in tight spots with strong winds alongside idiots…malaka is the Greek word for the less experienced.
First they let out about 300 meters of chain and then back into a spot.
We rented a car in Sifnos and explored the island. We found some special places – Kastro traditional village, Chrysopigi Monastary and Platia Gialos beach community.
This was a very fun day with the five of us – Ann, Jim, Maria, Bill, Julie. Lots of good conversation and laughter.
Kastro village
Wow. A beautiful mountain village with lots of history and views to the sea. It was the ancient and medieval capital of the island and much prettier than the current capital of Apollonia. Not many shops and cafes. Even has a Roman Sarcophagus in a street. There are old paths around the edges of the village where we were able to look down on the Chapel of Seven Martyrs on a spit of land jutting out to sea.
We found a very funky Cuban themed bar overlooking a bay. The decor inside was Che theme and outside were piles of empty Havava Club rum bottles. Fresh mojitos prepared by a hippy yiayia.
We met a young couple at this bar and shared some stories. They recommended some places to visit on the island. She is Dutch. He’s Greek & French and they live in Belgium.
Chrystopigi Monastary
We reached this monastary just as it was closing. These monks picked a prime spot on the sea.
Dinner at Water & Salt in Plata Gialos
We had a lovely seaside dinner at a family owned farm to table taverna in the seaside community of Platia Gialos. Nero & Alati (Water and Salt). We went into the kitchen to choose and weigh our piece of fresh swordfish and order rest of our shared meal. I did most of the ordering once I figured out all of our preferences.
A local dish I want to try at home is chickpeas in (wood) oven in a clay pot. Dry chickpeas, onions, oil, water and salt.
