Julie and Kat were arriving by plane to Skiathos on the 4th so we decided to take a little excursion to check out this island and pick them up. We hadn’t been to Skiathos since our honeymoon in 1983. We got a nice little room at Pension Babis near the port – well near except for the steep climb up to get to the rooms! We rented a car to explore. We were so underwhelmed by Skiathos. It’s been over-developed. The south side starting at the port and old town is just resort after resort. The traffic was bad and it just wasn’t very appealing. We went to Koukounaries beach which is supposedly rated the best beach in Skiathos and a top beach in Greece. Wrong. I’m sure it is beautiful in winter with its miles of golden soft sand and pine tree forest that lines the beach. But in summer it is not – just miles of umbrellas stacked three deep and throngs of people.
We zipped over the North side of the island which is not developed at all – in fact the roads are not even paved. There are some lovely beaches, miles of pine trees and minimal facilities. We stopped at Mandraki beach where there is a welcome little pop up cafe running on generators that provides shade, cold beer and hot food with views thrown in for free.
Our highlight was a stop at Monastery of Eikonistria. It’s no longer an active monastery but its kept open by Mrs. Argiro, a 72 year old woman who has been the caretaker since 1986. She was so happy to see us and talk to me in Greek. The story behind this monastery is that a monk named Symeon saw a light shining in a group of trees near a chapel during the Ottoman empire days. He found the source of light and it was the icon of the Theotokos (Virgin Mary). Eventually a monastery was built near the site. The icon is not kept at this monastery now – it is at the main church in Skiathos town. The only services held at this monastery are on its feast day on Nov 21st and on the first Sunday in July when the finding of the holy icon is celebrated. The name of the icon Panagia Iconistria comes from the word “moving” – maybe because the icon was tree was moving and the icon looked like it was swinging?
Back in town we did have a nice meal at a place called Mesogia which had been recommended by the folks at Babis Pension.
The next day we went to part of the Sunday liturgy at the Three Hierarchs church in town, then drove over to the more famous Monastery of Evangelistria (Annunciation of the Virgin Mary) where we got to hear the last bit of their liturgy over the microphones. The place was packed with Greeks and tourists wandering the museum, gift shop and the grounds. This is a well maintained monastery with a museum of church history as well as island and Greek history. It was a haven for revolutionaries during the war for Independence against the Turks. It is said that the first Greek flag was designed, sewn and flown here. The monastery is located among pine and cyprus trees in a beautiful and dramatic setting.
At noon we picked up the Denton girls at the airport, wandered the old town for a bit before we hopped on the boat to gladly go back to Skopelos.