Milos and the slow boat that got me here…

After my plans changed on Ios I had a good day touring that island and made my way back to the port where I dropped off the car and collected my backpack from left-luggage.  My departure for the island of Milos was supposed to be at 16:40, but as Sea Jet 2 came and went I was worried about my NEL Lines Aqua Jewel, a ferry that at one time must have been the ultimate in fast boats but now chugged along at a near sedentary 15.5 knots.  Pretty slow, but then again I am not in huge hurry to get anywhere.  It finally arrived and only 1 1/2 hours late.  We pulled out of the harbor and I said goodbye to Ios and sat under the stern pergola watching the islands go by.  Most of these are not more than rocks jutting out of the blue sea, uninhabited by men but teeming with seabirds and, in some cases, goats.  We stopped at Sikinos, Folegandros, Kimolos and finally arrived at the port of Adamas on Milos, my home for the next few days.

Milos is a big island in some ways, or at least feels that way.  Like Santorini it is what is left of an old volcano and there are spots on the coast where you can swim and when your feet hit the sandy bottom the sand is warmer than the surrounding water.  There are hot springs and the rock formations that speak of an island formed by fire, wind, rain and the grinding hand of man.  Due to the volcanic deposits there has been mining on Milos for over 11,oo0 years and there are whole areas that have been carved away in this effort to supply the world with sulphur, building stone, and other mineral deposits.  I will check out the Mining Museum on Monday and the Archaeological Museum Tuesday to learn more.  Milos is also home to early Christian catacombs, much older than Rome’s, which makes sense since the Christians were here long before Rome saw its Christian heyday.

The beaches here are wonderful.  It is still shoulder season and there are not many tourists.  It is not hard to find large stretches of sandy  strand with no one around to disturb my sunbathing or swimming.  I drove around the island today and sampled two spots, one a large (2km+) sandy stretch just across the harbor from Adamas and another on the southern side.  This second required me to walk down a washed out road where I found myself in a private cove of caves, clear, warm blue water, and smooth, wind shaped rocks which were comfortable to lay on as I basked in the sun.  Truly a blessing in the busy world to have no sound other than the wind and waves.  Tomorrow I head off to the west side of the island to an even more remote area where there are supposed to be 6 stretches of white sand beaches far enough away from the main towns to be all but deserted.  I think I’ll bring lunch.  It is times like these that I take off my watch and forget to put it back on.  Time is not so important.

I have not taken any pictures yet, but I will.  I am still getting my bearings.  The food is so-so.  I had an alright meal tonight in Plaka.  Not nearly as good as the dinner in Ios but it was serviceable.  I think tomorrow I’ll stay closer to the port and try a seafood taverna.  I have a hankering for gavros…

JDCM