Syros
Our voyage from Athens to Syros overnight was short, just over 70 miles. There was a moderate amount of motion on the ship overnight but it felt a little like rocking us to sleep. We docked in Syros about 8 AM. Our tour didn’t start til 9 so we had time for a quick breakfast of fruit and coffee before heading to the meeting point for our tour. Syros is a small city with a population of only 26,000 but it is the capitol of the Cyclades region of Greece which includes more well known islands such as Mykonos.
We were surprised to find a full size bus waiting for us outside of the ship given Syrois is such a small city and is not a common stop for cruise ships.
Our tour started at the port in the city of Ermoupoli and took us fronm there to a fishing village and 2 churches. The island does not have the white stucco, blue domed architecture one thinks of with Greece. Instead in this area. The buildings are mostly beige and white stucco with flat or gently sloping orange clay roofs, As our bus traveled to the 3 stops our tour guide, Peggy felt compelled to point out every detail repeatedly to the point we thought we were cramming for a geography lesson. She must have pointed out the Aegean Sea and Kini beach at least 30 times as well as the fact the island uses bamboo to prevent erosion. Every few minutes she informed us how far we were from Ermoupoli and the direction we were from it. I’m sure she is proud of her island . We did find the repetition quite entertaining however.
Our first stop was a small fishing village where we walked out to the end of a small pier. There were a few guest houses and cafes in the townm but thiswas primarily a fishing village.
The island is very dry so the landscape is quite barren. There are wells but there are also desalination plants which allows the island to farm in greenhouses and grow olive and citrus trees.
Our next stop took us up into the hills to the Santa Barbara Orthodox Monastery, Only 3 nuns live at this monastery which also houses a preschool. We were able to take photos inside the church which we were told is often not allowed at many Greek churches.
I found the nun who showed us through the church very phiotogennic. She was also very gracious, and while she didn’t speak much English, she did an excellent job showing us tthough the church and pointing out what is most important to her.
The outdoor courtyard of the monastery had beautiful views and David found a cat friend who lives at the monestary. We saw lots of cats all over the island. As we headed back to the bus, Peggy pointed out a hill where rose colored marble used to be mined.
Heading back to Ermopouli, Peggy pointed our Kini Bay, the greenhouses and the bamboo another 15 or twenty times. I do believe I could pass a Syros geography lesson. Back in Ermoupoli we stopped at The Assumption of the Virgin Church. More than half of Syros is Catholic and most of the rest are Orthodox, which Peggy also pointed out at least 20 times. From the outside the church was fairly plain looking with some simple grillwork at the entrance. Inside however it was as ornate as the Orthodox Church, and looked very similar. It was surprising how little seating there was in each of the churches. At the exit of the church, just inside the front door is a small painting of the Virgin Assumption behind glass that was painted by El Greco when he was very young. It felt strange to see a painting of such value where it sits with no one from the church watching it.
This concluded our tour..We thought about heading back out into the town but decided instead to board the ship and have lunch outside on the pool deck at he small sit down restaurant called the Patio. It was a beautiful afternoon to sit in the shade and enjoy a really good light lunch.
It was also nice to have some time to just wander around the ship and enjoy the afternoon. When we got back to our cabin to enjoy a little time on the veranda, our butler stopped by with tea and scones. This is something they do every afternoon for suite guests. Just a few hours later it was time for dinner. We definitely need to put the breaks on the eating, but the food on the ship is really very good so it is hard to resist. Tonight our dinner was at the other specialty restaurant, Prime C which is primarily a steakhouse. The food here was outstanding. For appetizers I had a shrimp Caesar salad with extra anchovies (I love anchovies) and David had crab/lobster cakes. For dinner we both had steak Diane. We both chose the smaller portion, which to me was more than enough. For dessert there was a special Greek pastry similar to a baclava which was made with local ingredients. The entire dinner was outstanding.
After diinnerwe attended the Captain’s welcome toast and a performance in the theater. Being a small ship, the performances are limited but the 4 dancers and 2 singers were excellent.
After the performance it was time to call it a day. Tomorrow we head to Mykonos for a full day tour.