2 weeks in the Cyclades (page 4 of 7)

Tuesday 06/03: We set off this morning for a hike. We were deciding between loop 4 and loop 5 (two loops starting from Lagada). But since loop 4 goes through Aegiali and it's a loop, we chose that one starting from there. It's a really beautiful walk with stunning viewpoints. We climbed toward Lagada along a nice, steady path (it's signposted in both directions; we headed east. In hindsight, I'm not sure if one direction is better than the other 🤪). Or, looking back...

After Lagada, the hike continues along a cliffside trail (which goes up and down sometimes, with a few stairs here and there—otherwise, it wouldn’t be fun 😏), with views of Aegialis Bay.









We passed through Tholaria, admiring its impressive church (closed) along the way:





And now, all that's left is to descend back to Aegiali.



Amazing hike (effort-to-scenery ratio is top-notch), done in perfect weather, and we barely ran into anyone (mostly people going the opposite way, which is why I wondered about the best direction for the loop).

I confirm! The Langada / Tholaria / Aegiali walk is really nice... Amorgos is worth the detour in the eastern Cyclades, and not just for *The Big Blue*.

Hi Muriel,

Did you happen to pass by Panagia Epanochoriani during your hike? We could see it for about three-quarters of our walk to Agios Ioannis Theologos, and we could clearly hear the Orthodox hymns coming from Panagia where a service was taking place: https://maps.app.goo.gl/wqANeYQbPBc8sFff6

Marie Paule

No, Marie-Paule, we started the path but it seemed really far (maybe wrongly so), and on top of that, we thought it would be closed like the others (maybe wrongly again), so we turned back and took the main trail instead.

Anyway, we didn’t hear anything coming from the church. Did you guys do the other hike, the one that’s 5 ?

Hi,

I don’t know which document you’re referring to for No. 5. We did hike No. 8 (from the list on the left) in this document: http://www.cycladen.be/AmorgosFra.htm I highly recommend it for the hike descriptions.

Marie Paule

Here’s a map of the island we got in our guest room. It shows the roads, of course, but also the "official" hiking trails.

The hikes are in green and numbered just like the signs on the ground (here, trail 4—the one we did—on the left, and trail 5 on the right... though in the end, that’s not the one you did).

Hi Muriel, Really nice hike. We did it in 2017, as well as the one that continues beyond Langada. This year, if all goes well, we’re planning the Chora/Aegiali crossing. Have a good evening, Jacques

Oh yeah, this one’s definitely longer... but the views must be pretty amazing too.

Hi Muriel,

If it’s the 5th one we did, but we didn’t do the full loop. We came back the same way. Have a great day!

Marie Paule

Wednesday 04/06: Today we’re crossing the island from north to south (it’s not very big—about 40 km—and we’ll take just under an hour to cover the distance without stops on the way back). The road between Aegiali and Chora is gorgeous, with varied viewpoints (I feel like I’m repeating myself 😎):





... though it can also look like this (not unique to Greece, sadly, and we found the islands pretty clean overall):

A quick stop before Chora, with a view of its windmills:

We don’t stop there for now and keep going to the famous Hozoviotissa Monastery. As always, a ton of stairs to get there 😏



... but we eventually make it (okay, I’m exaggerating a little—it’s not *that* long of a climb 😉; apparently, people used to access it by ladders, so I’ll take the stairs! 😏)



Just a few more steps... It’s true—this building is impressive!

Photos aren’t allowed inside. They provide scarves to cover your shoulders and long skirts (very flattering 😎) to cover your legs (for those who don’t know, in monasteries like this, you need to have your shoulders and knees covered, but pants aren’t allowed for women). There are only 2 rooms you can visit, and you can access a small terrace:



From up there, you can see how far you’ve climbed (with the bus at the bottom taking up more than half the parking lot 🤪).



Before leaving, a monk invites us into a small room and offers us a glass of water and one of raki (? seems like this one isn’t alcoholic... which is just as well since it’s only 10:30 AM 😏), along with some loukoums (ugh, I’d forgotten how sweet these things are!).

We then head back to Chora. Like all the "Choras" we’ve visited, it’s a Cycladic village with its churches, shaded squares,

its many flower-filled alleys with white houses where we love getting lost

We parked at the very bottom of the village and walked all the way up to the windmills. From up there, we had a different view of the town



And I wonder why we only ever hear about the windmills of Mykonos (aren’t these just as beautiful?)



All that’s left is to walk back down, get the car, and head to the deep south, where the wreck from the movie *The Big Blue* is located (I’ll have to rewatch it because I don’t remember this wreck at all 🤪).

Along the way, we spot a sign for ancient Arkessini. I read that it was a well-preserved 4th-century BC ancient city... let’s go! The path starts at the (main) church of the village (Vroutsi) and is marked. But after that... nothing! It’s probably near that church we see in the distance:



And those ruins are the remains of houses all around...

I’m internally fuming at the Greeks for not showcasing their heritage or providing any explanations... Of course, we left the map (mentioned in a previous post) at the apartment... and even if we’d taken it, we’d have realized that no, the ruins aren’t here—we’re only halfway there. We had to keep going down the path behind the church (on hiking trail 3). That said, there’s no sign for ancient Arkessini at the church! No big regrets, though, because there was still a long way to go, and it’s *very* hot today (early afternoon, not a breath of wind). The climb back would’ve been tough! (And from the photos I looked up afterward, it doesn’t seem like there are explanations at the ancient site either.)

Alright, off to Kalotaritissa Beach in search of *The Big Blue* wreck now!

We spot the beach around a bend. It’s so cute! I wasn’t expecting that—what a nice surprise!



Of course, we didn’t bring towels or swimsuits, but we relax by the water for a bit



Before settling in, we scour the place from one end to the other, left to right and back again, looking for that darn wreck (I hadn’t bothered to check its exact location—I just remembered "Kalotaritissa")... no luck.

It’s only when we’re leaving (by car) that I spot it by sheer chance (why did I look left at *that* exact moment?). A quick stop (luckily, there’s *almost* never anyone on these roads), and boom! Got it 😏 You might say, "Was it really worth it?" Well, no—because the beach was *totally* worth it!

Hi there, and thanks for your little report!

... but it can also be like this (even if it’s not unique to Greece, unfortunately, and we found the islands generally very clean)



It may not be unique to Greece, but it’s definitely become a "cultural" practice in this country—and for a long time now.

No, the islands aren’t clean!

Illegal dumping in the middle of nature on Tilos, which is a Natura 2000 site, electricians casually tossing old wooden poles with their ceramics into the ravine right in front of us to replace them with new ones in Karpathos, pebble beaches with as much trash as minerals, etc., etc.

Maybe you didn’t see everything in Naxos, even near the beaches (see attached photos).

There are definitely places in the islands that no longer make me dream...

Hi Michel

No, definitely not—two weeks is nowhere near enough to see everything! Including the things that are pretty disheartening to see! But on the way south to Amorgos, at a spot different from the one in the photo, we saw a sign banning littering (with imprisonment as the penalty, I think) and... there was nothing below it... maybe we just got lucky! On the other hand, in Sicily and in just one week, we saw way more piles of trash than on any of the Cycladic islands we visited. That said, it seems like the Greeks aren’t exactly eco-conscious (very few solar panels or wind turbines on islands that seem perfect for them, and plastic bags everywhere you look...).

Amorgos, still as awesome, thanks Muriel! In my Top 3 of the Cyclades with Milos (#1) and Santorini (especially for Oia)...

Photo of the monastery guardians (at 6:12 AM)...

I took the same photo... without the cats! (And not at 6 AM ). That door is so tiny! Milos was tempting too. On the other hand, Santorini wasn’t a favorite (I’ll talk more about it soon).

It's clear that Santorini is special. My only tip is to book accommodation in Oia so you can enjoy the town at dawn... before the crowds arrive!

We really loved Paros and Sifnos too.

All that's left is to head back down, get the car, and make for the deep south, where the wreck featured in the film "The Big Blue" is located (I really need to rewatch that movie because I don’t remember that wreck at all 🤪).

It was only while leaving (by car) that I spotted it by sheer luck (why did I look left at that exact moment?). A quick stop—perfect timing, since there’s (almost) never anyone on these roads—and boom! Got it in the bag 😏

It wasn’t until I saw the photo that it clicked: This wreck appears at the start of the film, right after the black-and-white "Flashback" sequence where Jacques Mayol (JM Barr) watches from the shore as his scuba-diver father drowns. Enzo Molinari (Jean Reno) rescues a British diver trapped in the wreck using a jack from his old Fiat 500, which is as rusty as the wreck itself. "How much do you value your friend’s life?" Enzo asks the Brit after quoting the price for the rescue. Yeah, I know—I’m *such* a huge fan of this movie (#80s)… 😊

Thanks, that’s all it took to put the Cyclades on my list 😉

Thanks Bruno! Now that you’ve ruined all the suspense, there’s no point in me watching the movie anymore No, just kidding—I’ll watch it again one of these days. I don’t remember much about it except the music (having only seen it once, when it came out… which was a long time ago )

Thanks Bruno! Now that you’ve killed all the suspense, there’s no point in me watching the movie No, just kidding—I’ll watch it again one of these days. I don’t remember much except the music (only saw it once, when it came out… which was a long time ago )

Ah, got it—explains the gaps. I must’ve seen it a good fifty times, extended cut included.

I’m not asking if it’s aged well—you wouldn’t be impartial 😏 Maybe we can get closer to the wreck than from the road...