We woke up to watch the raising of the sails. It was not too windy, so the crew raised all of he square sails and some jibs and staysails. We all were impressed at the beauty of the Sea Cloud, as we sailed until lunchtime and felt like ancient mariners who depended on Poseidon and Aeolos to get to their destination.
After a delicious buffet lunch on the lido deck we disembarked on our tenders to visit the tiny island of Foelgandros—a lesser-known Cycladic Island most had never heard of. A local bus took us away from the port village of Karavostasis up to the main town of Kastro. In antiquity the main town was even higher up the mountain, but in the 13th century it was transferred to its present location. After the 4th Crusade the Venetians took control. The capital of the Duchy of the Archipelago was on Naxos and they controlled all of the islands of the Cyclades. Some of us hiked up the hill to the Church of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary and some went into the Kastro for a guided walk.
The church is located where the ancient acropolis had been. Above it is Paleokastro, the Byzantine town. We learned about the Orthodox Church, iconography, and Christian traditions. All of us gathered at the end of our visit in the square—over 19th century cisterns—to quench our thirst with Greek beer or rakomelo, a local spirit with honey. Later in the afternoon most of us went swimming in the crystal clear waters of the Aegean. Refreshed and intoxicated by our visit to Folegandros, we returned to the Sea Cloud.
Dinner was alfresco on the lido deck. Fresh tuna bought in Piraeus was among our many choices. Peter our pianist made the evening enchanting with his music. Most of us retired early to be ready for the next big day at the sacred island of Delos.
