Kythnos Island, Greece
Kythnos Island is a sparsely inhabited island visited mostly by Greeks and sailors. The sailors come here due to the beautiful and well-protected anchorage that we utilized ourselves for the mornings’ activities. There are not many foreign tourists who make their holiday on this island. It is known locally as Thermia due to the abundance of hot springs on the island and these springs are used by some local spas as well.
The ship arrived to the island during breakfast and the captain and crew had the anchor secured in good time. Everyone arose at a leisurely pace and made their way to the sandy beach at the head of the bay. This was the last opportunity for water activities and some time for personal exploration of a remote Greek island. Above the landing and just to the south was a family church perched at the top of a small hill. Many of the guests hiked the trail up to the church and it afforded a good view of the anchorage, Kythnos Island and the waters surrounding it. Kayaks were available and there were a number of guests who explored the shoreline and some of the small sea caves in the area while others went snorkeling or just enjoyed the sand on the beach.
Everyone returned to the ship by lunchtime and the Panorama departed the anchorage as we finished our meal. Once we cleared the protection of the island the crew put the sails up and secured the main engines. The seas were a bit lumpy but the brisk winds got the Panorama up to six knots of speed as we made our way toward mainland Greece. It was a nice way to spend the afternoon. Later on our Greek guides Effie and Stella led an informal talk about modern Greece and they followed this with a question and answer session.
Before dinner Captain Britzolakis made some farewell comments and Sharon, Michelle and Mark shared a slide show of their images from the week. It was a nice end to a fine week.
