Sifnos Island, Greece
Sifnos was known in antiquity for its riches, more specifically for its gold. The myth states that the islanders paid homage to the temple of Apollo once a year with the gift of a golden egg. A decision was made here to “cheat” the temple by sending a gilded or gold plated egg instead. Apollo discovered their ruse and called upon his father Zeus to make them regret this decision. An earthquake was arranged and the gold mines fell off from the island, into the sea and were flooded forever leaving the island much poorer than before. Sifnos is known today for its pottery, charming villages and nice beaches.
We arrived in the port of Kamares just before breakfast. The Captain and the deck crew had us alongside and ready to explore the island in good time. Our motor-coach arrived and we were off to the other side of the island to visit one of the main villages. The village of Kastro is on the east shore with a great view of the Aegean below. Stella and Ellie, our Greek guides, led us through the narrow alleyways and around this very quiet community. They explained to us that the town was arranged, and the houses constructed, in such a way that it way easily defendable against raiders or pirates, and it permitted an easy getaway if necessary. There were also many artifacts that were incorporated to the relatively modern constructions that were from an ancient acropolis buried beneath the foundations of the Kastro. We walked along the outer path to view the Aegean stretching off to the northeast and then took a moment to enjoy a coffee before returning to the port. Most everyone chose to get off early and enjoy a walk through Kamares on their way back to the ship for lunch.
There was time in the early afternoon for a siesta, a short walk or a swim from the sandy beach in the port. A bit later we set off to the southeast side of Sifnos. Chryssopigi church is located on a narrow peninsula in Faros Bay. There is a baptismal out near the point that offers the best view of any baptismal that most of us have ever seen. Ellie and Stella took some time to give us more details about the Greek Orthodox religion and then took us inside to explain the construction and detail of this lovely church. We departed Chryssopigi to head out for the sister villages of Artemonas and Apollonia in the interior of the island.
Artemonas is the second largest village on Sifnos and its buildings show a significant Venetian influence. We took a small footpath from this town and wound our way down the hill. There were many photo opportunities and great views along the way. At the end was the largest village and capital of Sifnos, Apollonia. There was time to poke into a few of the local stores along the square and inspect the neighborhood bakeries. Then we were on our way back to the ship. Sharon Grainger did a presentation on pomegranates before dinner followed by Michelle who talked to us about our plans for Santorini tomorrow and explained about the explosive geologic history of this island and how it came to be what it is today. After dinner, some guests chose to venture ashore and inspect what “after hours” options there might be in the port while others just enjoyed a walk along the shore.
