October 18, 2025: The Greek god, Apollo, and Windmills!

October 18, 2025 cjbishop@yahoo.com

We awoke, still underway, approaching the island of Delos. It is small (1.32 sq. miles) almost in the center of the Cyclades archipelago. It is one of the most important mythological, historical, and archaeological sites in Greece. Why? It is considered to be the birthplace of Apollo and Artemis. Time for a discussion of Greek god hierarchy. Zeus was the “king” of gods. He was married to Hera but had an affair with Leto who caught his eye. Leto gets pregnant with twins (Apollo and his sister Artemis). Hera banishes the pregnant Leto from any land. She ultimately finds her way to the island of Delos which, supposedly was not attached to land or the sea bottom so it did not violate Hera’s orders. This is where Apollo and Artemis are born and why Delos is so important. Apollo was the god of archery, music and dance, truth and prophecy, healing and diseases, the sun and light, poetry, and more. Artemis was the goddess of the hunt (and the wilderness, nature, vegetation, childbirth and chastity). Greek gods had a lot of responsibility!

Our group (minus Michael) enjoying morning coffee before departing.

We have to anchor here and this is our mode of transportation to land. Hmmmm.

We are given a room card each time we leave the ship and return the card when we return to the ship. That way they know if everyone is on board.

The zodiac can take 10 people at a time. The procedure for getting on/off was handled well.

There were always two men helping us to board the boat.

Selfie as we headed full speed to shore.

After experiencing the Acropolis of Athens the island of Delos is a bit of a disappointment as there is not much to see in the way of still existing temples. It is covered mostly with piles of stone that were once grand temples and homes. At one time the population of Delos was 40,000. Niki says that the attitude of the government is to not try to recreate the old temples. They prefer to simply maintain what remains. The lack of money for restoration is obviously an important part of that decision. There is a small museum on the island that contains some interesting artifacts found there, especially those related to how people lived.

The area where people disembark their shuttles.

Map of what they think it looked like in its heyday.

Cats, cats and more cats. They are well taken care of.

Remnants remaining from the original temples and homes. Not much to see.

The marble slab has a slope and hole, making one think it might have been used by a butcher or fisherman.

This was obviously the home of an important person.

A window facing the street- very unusual. Thought to be a bank because of holes where bars would have been located.

Cisterns were required to catch the small amount of rainwater that fell here.

What they believe one of the buildings looked like.

Original stair leading to the temple of Apollo.

The lions of Leto. These are replicas. The originals are in the museum.

A small but well furnished mueseum that focused on what people used in their daily lives.

Frescos found on the island in their small museum.

Wall paintings from the entrance of an important person’s home.

The original lions now safely stored in the museum.

A lot of credit goes to Niki as she got us to the archaeological sites before the other hoards of tourists arrived on the larger ships. It was appreciated by us all. We were back on our ship for lunch as we worked our way to the touristy island of Mykonos.

Oh oh. The bigger cruise ships have arrived. Luckily we were leaving.

We board the ship on the aft swim platform. It worked efficiently.

This is a popular stopping point by “bare boaters”.

Every day there was a changing variety of cheeses available on the luncheon buffet.

Each warming tray had 2 meal selections so there were many options.

Our group enjoying the sun and a beverage as we sail to Mykonos. L-R Chuck & Yvonne Bishop, Michael & Sheri Flynn, John & Elizabeth Kozleski.

Mykonos and Santorini are probably the most famous of the Cycladic islands and the ones that most tourists visit. Mykonos has a population of 10,700 and is known for its nightlife and its attraction for alternative lifestyles. It is also known for its old windmills, which are there because of the winds prevalent in the area. Mykonos was an important trading center in antiquity and was ruled by many including the Romans, Venetians and the Ottomans.

We had a brief walking tour and introduction to the town by Niki and then left on our own to explore the island town (also called Mykonos) for several hours. The town is loaded with restaurants, souvenir and higher end shops and bars, with prices that surprised me!

The small harbor at Mykonos. Only small boats are anchored here.

They even have a sandy beach. The fancy resorts are located outside the town.

A tiny chapel on the waterfront, used by fisherman.

The popular “take a picture in a frame” tourist thing.

Plush seating at local restaurants on the waterfront.

Typical narrow street with small shops and restaurants.

Another small chapel. There are 600-800 on the island, mostly built and maintained by families.

A door in Mykonos to add to my collection of door photos.

Many people took time to take a picture in front of the high end Louis Vuitton store.

We stopped for an evening drink on the waterfront before returning to the ship and paid 22 euros for a drink! The big disappointment (to me) was that there are no longer any pelicans wandering through the waterfront restaurants looking for a handout. When we were here in 2008 that was one of the fond memories I had of this island!