Delos and Mykonos
The Panorama remained at anchor off Cape Sounion through the evening, lifting her anchor in the early morning hours and traveling a short distance to the center of the Cycladic Islands, a very appropriate way to begin our journey in one of the most famous archipelagos of the Mediterranean Sea. Just before breakfast, we anchored once again, very close to the island of Delos. This tiny uninhabited island was once the sacred center of the Cycladic world, and this morning we would explore the ruins of this archeological site in hopes of bringing to life the Cycladic culture.
After breakfast and the customary announcements from our expedition leader, a local tender tied up alongside the Panorama and our group was invited to make the short passage to Delos and begin our morning tour. Stella and Effi, our Greek guides, split our group and headed out into the ruins and began the story of this extraordinary place. Delos was the birthplace of Apollo, the sun god, and his sister Artemis, the goddess of animals and the hunt. The island was founded as a sacred site and place of worship in 1000 BC. Due to this status, the island quickly became a pilgrimage destination and was the center of worship in the Cyclades by 700 BC. The name of this archipelago; Cyclades, refers to the circle of islands that surround the island of Delos and this tiny two-mile-long island still remains one of the most important archeological sites to visit in the Mediterranean.
The island itself is fairly flat, with one hill, and is virtually covered with ruins. At one time, at the height of Cycladic culture, 30,000 inhabitants called this small piece of land home. The island became so important and so venerated that no one was allowed to be born or to die on the sacred site of Delos. Our groups spent the next couple hours exploring some of the major areas, from the official port where we landed to the Sacred Way, the Italian market, the site of the Terrace of Lions and finally, what was the residential area for the once quite large population. At each stop our guides vividly described what the ruins represented and what life would have been like so many centuries ago.
A museum at the center of the site was open and contained many of the statues and artifacts found while excavating the site. Our groups had a chance to explore this, and then spent some free time in the shade out of the relentless sun…enjoying a moment before heading out once again to explore another section of Delos. Many of our group headed up Mt. Cynthus for spectacular views of the surrounding waters around Delos and the nearby island of Mykonos.
All too soon it was time to return to the Panorama for a cooling and refreshing swim, a wonderful Greek buffet lunch and some time to rest before the afternoon’s activities. Once back on board, it took only moments for nearly everyone to change into a swim suit, and jump into the refreshing, clear waters that surround the island of Delos. Summer had arrived only a week ago, and the heat wave of Athens had followed us out into the Cycladic Islands! How nice to be able to step off the dive platform of the Panorama and enjoy a relaxed swim in the cooling waters of the Aegean! Refreshed, we adjourned to the dining room to enjoy a lunch of specially prepared traditional Greek dishes.
As we were finishing lunch, our captain ordered the anchor lifted and we began a slow and short passage to our next anchorage just off Little Venice, the most picturesque side of the island of Mykonos. Our captain and expedition leader had obtained permission to remain at anchor in this location for the entire evening and we were allowed to use our own tenders to transport our group ashore. Mykonos is one of the better known Cycladic Islands and one of the busiest. In the 1960s Mykonos became famous for its classic Cycladic architecture of white buildings, blue trim, windmills and narrow stone streets, creating a labyrinthine ready-made for exploration.
Our late afternoon was spent doing just that…wandering along narrow streets that often led out to the sea and another group of cafes where one could stop, enjoy a coffee, an iced drink, a cocktail and a moment of reflection at the end of our first shipboard day in the Cycladic Islands.
