Up early to see about our trip to Mykonos. At 08:00, we checked with the travel agency about the hydrofoil, but he said to check back at 09:00, so we went to a bakery and got a couple of cream filled pastries. I had orange juice, and Richard had coffee. After we ate, I hurried back to the pension to shower, and Richard stayed at the bakery to sketch. After my shower, I started back to the bakery, but Richard was on his way down. When he saw me, he said, “Dinner out is a go.” (A pop culture reference from the movie Spy Game.) The hydrofoil was already on its way to Santorini from Crete.
The wind had calmed considerably overnight. We then went straight to the travel agency and bought tickets from Santorini to Mykonos, and also bought tickets from Mykonos to Athens for Saturday. We still didn’t have hotel reservations in Athens, and we were considering just taking our chances that one would be available. However, that will be Saturday night, and in the past, the hotels in Athens have filled up fast on Saturdays. We’d decide what to do about this on Mykonos.
We checked on the bus that went to the port to catch the Hydrofoil, but the bus was leaving at 09:30, and we hadn’t packed yet. We’d have to take taxi, but back at the pension, when Richard asked about checking out, Petros himself was there and said that he’d take us down since he was going anyway. We could save a little money. He would leave between 10:00 and 10:15. The hydrofoil left at 10:40. We’d also have a little extra time. We went back to our room, and Richard showered, and we finished packing. When we went down to try to pay our bill, the woman would only take cash, no credit cards, so I had to run back (up hill) to the exchange for more money. Not long after I returned, Petros loaded us into his wife’s car and drove us to the port, all the way asking us about our travels, where we’d been, where we were going, and also bragging on his wife’s car, a Toyota Yaris. Looking down from the caldera, we could see the hydrofoil steaming into port.
Hydrofoil
At the dock, we unloaded our packs, thanked Petros for the ride, and walked to the departures terminal.
Hydrofoil
The hydrofoil was larger than I expected. I thought it was a small little thing with seats on deck exposed to the elements, but it was quite large, not anywhere near as large as a ferry, but a good sized ship and held probably a hundred passengers. We stowed our packs and walked to the front of the ferry so that we could see forward, just incase we experienced a little seasickness, which can happen on a hydrofoil.
Inside the Hydrofoil, looking out toward the front.
The passenger compartment was completely enclosed, with windows all around. Soon we were on our way to Mykonos.
The hydrofoil sailed north, skirting the western coast of Ios and docked at its port town. We were docked only a short time, and then we were on our way to the western coast of Naxos where we also docked. Then we were on to Mykonos. We docked at about 13:30, at the same dock were I’d gotten off the ferry sixteen years ago. Neither of us had any problems with seasickness.
Arrival in Mykonos
The woman at Pension Petros had given Richard a recommendation for a good Mykonos hotel, one name Orpheas. We looked for a sign and short saw a little woman holding one with large letters “Orpheas.” The rooms were 40EU.
The woman loaded three people from France and the two of us into her small car. A very tight fit. She drove us around the dock to the east and up into the little town.
Entrance to our room in the Orphaeus Hotel in Mykonos.
She showed us our room, which was quite nice, but said that we could have another that was larger for 50EU. We took a look at it and decided that we’d rather have the larger room.
Richard's Beds
It has a small bed for Richard and a large double bed for me. Richard had gotten the double bed on Santorini, and I’d slept on the smaller one. This time we’d switch.
My Bed
After getting our key, Richard and I walked down through the labyrinthine streets (all whitewashed) to see if we could get a seat on a boat to Delos tomorrow morning. We found the dock and saw the boats, but they will not take passengers to Delos until tomorrow morning. The ticket booth was closed.
Ticket Booth for Boat to Delos
Times for departure: 09:00, 10:00, and 11:00. If the weather doesn’t get worse over night, I’ll finally get to see Delos.
I have a major chapter in the second volume of The Mysteries that is set on Delos. During the Persian invasion, and after the Persians’ defeat at Salamis, the Greeks mustered their fleet on Delos, be were afraid to venture further into the Aegean because of Persian warship. That fall, as the battle of Plataea was occurring on the mainland, the Greeks held a council on Delos to decide if they should venture further into the Aegean and fight the Persian fleet for control of the Aegean. My chapter in The Mysteries concerns this council and how the Greeks made to decision to cross the Aegean and fight the Persian fleet.
Walking the streets of Mykonos.
That evening, we walked the streets of Mykonos a bit, and then ate at a nice restaurant. Richard wanted a pizza, but I wasn’t very hungry, so I just had a Greek salata. Both were good, but not exceptional. When we got the bill, Richard asked the waiter to explain the charges. Seems that the bottle of water that he served cost us 2EU, and we were charged a cover of 4EU for the bit of bread and olives. We didn’t leave a tip. First time we felt screwed after eating.
Lighthouse in the dark on Mykonos.
After dinner, we walked the docks looking at the lighthouses all lit up and also the city lights reflecting off the water in the bay.
The lights of Mykonos in the harbor at night.
That evening while getting ready for bed, we wondered if we’d get any sleep at all. Our room was right on the main artery, and the motorbikes were so loud that we thought that we might never get to sleep.