151. Mykonos

Where: Mykonos, Greece
When: July 23, 2007
With: Rachel, Lucy and the Contiki crew

The Greek island of Mykonos has many famous attributes: beautiful scenery, a lovely main town, and even some history. However, despite all these wonderful things, the Mykonos reputation for being a massive party island is usually what precedes all. And as we sailed to Mykonos after leaving Istanbul, we did our best to get into the appropriate party spirit (I mean, twist my arm).  

The best part of traveling by cruise ship is that the transportation from island to island is part of the journey. Instead of stressing out over catching a flight or having to focus on a drive, island hopping on a boat allows for a couple drinks and a good night's sleep. And with Mykonos as our next destination, we were definitely going to take advantage of the perks of boat travel. 

It was formal night on the cruise ship, and we were all ready to continue to use our all-you-can-drink package. When our waitress would approach our massive table that always demanded another round, she didn't even bother taking down our orders. She just smirked, handed us her notepad and let us write down our drinks ourselves. I'm proud to say that we learned the cruise ship shorthand for red wine (RW) and white wine (WW). 

The night evolved from "classy" into an international game of flipcup in our formalwear. It was Aussies vs. Americans vs. Canadians. Our poor waitress that had to keep bringing us beer, but at least she kept smiling. 

Then the dancing began. 

And hilarity ensued...

And then a push up contest...?

And finally a pajama dance party in someone's cabin.

Oh to be young again...

Anyway, you'd think with all that partying, we'd be too tired for Mykonos. But think again, we were youngin's and this only got us more excited for the island. 

When our boat docked in Mykonos, I was again shocked by how blue the water was. They aren't joking that its the same blue that's on the Greek flag. And in contrast to the rocky, craggy terrain of the island, it seemed even bluer. Which also made the houses look even whiter. Is it obvious yet that I thought this view was absolutely stunning?? Even with my old crappy camera you can tell. 

When we got off the ship, it was sooo windy, but it was such a nice relief in the hot sun. It took us ages to get off the dock because we couldn't stop oohing and aahing over the beauty of one of Greece's smallest islands. 

We first took a walk around the harbor. It felt like being in a postcard. This is what I pictured Greece would look like. 

We met the local mascot, a pelican named Petros. Legend has it that 50 years ago, a fisherman came upon a wounded pelican and nursed it back to health. Since then, it's never wanted to leave and the locals all look out for him. While this isn't the original Petros, the tradition is honored to this day. 

Lucy, being in veterinary school, was very keen to pet Petros. 

Continuing around the coastline gave us more views of craggy shoreline, sugar cube homes, and that blue, blue water. 

A famous sight in Mykonos: the Mykonos windmills. People have been taking advantage of all that wind for almost 400 years now, when windmills first started cropping up on the island. 

By the water in our matching grey cover-ups.

We then took a turn inland to wander through the island's main town of Chora. The loud wind of the shoreline seemed to suddenly disappear as we strolled down the narrow, quiet lanes. The walls seemed to quietly absorb the voices of patrons as they shopped the local boutiques selling all kinds of touristy wares. And the windy streets were easy to get lost in, a specific design intended to confuse any marauders or pirates who may attempt to sack the city. 

After our exploration of the town, it was time to experience the wilder side of Mykonos for which it gets its reputation. We piled onto a local bus that would take us through the middle of the island to Paradise Beach, where all the resorts were. It was one of the scariest bus rides of my life. The bus was packed to the hilt, with people standing all the way up the aisle to the windshield. The road had one lane, no guardrail and was very, very high up. We had to close our eyes and just remember that the bus driver does this for a living everyday and knows what he's doing. 

After a very nerve racking ride, we arrived at the Tropicana and were ready for a drink to take the edge off. 

The beach was crowded but beautiful. Palapas lined the sand right to the water that was a beautiful ombre of tan and turquoise. While the water was warm, our guide had warned us of sea urchins that lurked, and without a clear idea in my head of what a sea urchin actually looked like, I decided to enjoy the ocean from the shore (a rare thing for me to be scared out of the water). 

But we didn't hang out on the beach for long. We decided to move our spot to the bar. And to kick things off right, we ordered the Tropicana's famous "Devil's Tongue" cocktail, a mix of 14 different liquors in one delicious, green drink. 

The MC for the afternoon was an interesting man. Lacquered up in body oil, this guy wore a most interesting banana hammock and definitely made us laugh and cry all at the same time with his sleazy European accent. 

And so the dancing began in this "anything goes" atmosphere. It was one big international party where everyone was happy and we couldn't have been in a more beautiful place. I know it looks like it was just wild and raucous, and maybe later in the evening it became that, but at this point, it was actually just good fun and happiness. 

And who better to party with than our new group of international friends?

As the sun began to set, and the alcohol began to sink in, the water suddenly didn't seem like such a scary place. (Ironic because according to our guide, this is when the sea urchins seem to get the most people, after a few drinks). 

Around early evening, it was time to head back to port. The bus ride didn't seem so terrifying this time around. We had a very confusing wander through Chora, but luckily the windy lanes didn't stop us from making it back to the boat in time. In retrospect, it was probably for the best we left when we did so that the Devil's Tongue didn't get us all stuck on Mykonos (not that that's a bad thing). 

Mykonos was amazing. In our one day, we got to appreciate the beauty of this little island as well as its fervent party scene. It was the best of both worlds, but certainly not enough time. We were definitely all partied out, but it was totally worth it. 

Next up was a hot and hungover day in Patmos and Ephesus!