Adventures in Hervey Bay: Friday, June 21, 2019

Friday, June 21st

Today in Mykonos, we took a privately organised bus tour of Mykonos ('Discover Authentic Mykonos' with Mykonos Excursions) - there were eight of us on the tour plus the driver and guide. We were driven out of town to other parts of the island. We saw a traditional village market, a monastery, a local farm, a fishing port and a beach. Another couple on the tour couldn’t do their walking tour so they said we could take their place. We did the walking tour at 5pm - the guide was really nice, but we didn't feel the tour was worth the price the people had paid for it. We saw the village close to where we docked which is pedestrians only.

Steps for the day: 8, 613

Sailing ship in the waters near New Port of Mykonos

Marina at New Port, Mykonos

Driving along the road beside the water near Mykonos

First views of white homes in Mykonos

Beach in Mykonos

Driving out of the city of Mykonos

Our ship, the 'Emerald Princess', in the background on the right

Houses on the hillside in the countryside away from the city of Mykonos

Pretty flowers at the entrance to someone's home

Laundry hanging on the balcony of a home

Photos taken on the drive around the island of Mykonos

Love the white houses of Mykonos - they are white to reflect the harsh summer sun - originally, asbestos was used to produce the white colour - nowadays, white paint is used

Church on the way to the monastery

Blue door / gate to a private home

Selfie of Sue and Mike with a beach in the background

Another blue door on a home - very common in Mykonos

Mykonos International Airport

Another church on Mykonos

Cows in the field on Mykonos

We were surprised at the lack of green on the island

Another church on the island

The Monastery of Panagia Tourliani in Mykonos - is 8km from Mykonos Town in Ano Mera village - originally built in 1542 by two priests - restored in 1767 - its name is after an icon of the Virgin Mary found in the nearby area of Tourlos - Panagia Tourliani became the patroness of the island and is celebrated on August 15th - the monastery has a whitewashed exterior and a coloured dome - a beautiful marble fountain is found in the yard outside the church - in the interior of the church, there is an impressive wooden iconostasis (alter screen) made in 1775 by Florentine artists - there are icons of apostles and saints on the iconostasis as well as scenes from the New Testament - the screen is decorated with green, red and golden flowers - the hanging incense holders are decorated with silver dragons having red eggs in their mouth which show the Eastern influence

Book with Greek writing in the monastery

The monastery has a small ecclesiastical museum - it includes wood carvings, embroideries, vestments, holy icons and the first bells of the monastery

Our tour group peeking along an exterior hallway of the monastery

Sue and Mike under beautiful flowers at the monastery

Marble bell tower at the monastery

A traditional village market - plenty of replica windmills for sale here

The Traditional Mykonian Farm was established in 2012 - it brings all guests close to the traditional domesticated animals and organic farming of a Mykonian Farm - it is located approx. 7 km from the Mykonos town and port - they aim to grow as many organic products as possible - at the Farm, guests have the opportunity to spend some time with our lovely animals, such as cows, pigs, chickens, rabbits, donkeys and goats - they have also the ability to experience all of our organic plants, to take care of them and to participate in day-to-day farming work - guests can also enjoy a traditional Mykonian snack (best feta cheese we've ever had!) consisting of local products from the traditional farm itself

A goat standing on the stone fence at the farm

Placemat for lunch - we were enjoying the food and company so much, we forgot to take photos of the food we were presented with for our snack

Goat in a wheelbarrow on the farm

More goats

Sue feeding the goats

Mike feeding the goat who jumped up onto the stone fence

Mike feeding another goat

Sue holding one of the bunnies on the farm

Cows at the farm

Donkeys at the farm

Sue petting one of the donkeys

A lazy pig at the farm

One of the beautiful beaches on Mykonos

On the way back to Mykonos Town

Mike and Sue at a fishing port on Mykonos

Duck near the fishing port

Another beautiful beach

Sue standing in the water of the Mediterranean

Sue and Mike and a selfie on the beach

Very comfy beach chairs on another beautiful Mykonian beach

Back on the bus travelling towards Mykonos Town

Another church - there are 600 - 800 churches, monasteries and small chapels on the island of Mykonos, which ends up resulting in one church or chapel per local family - local Mykonians are allowed to build their own tiny chapel dedicated to a special saint or event - they are often built on their own property - as part of the Mykonian customs, chapels and churches on the island were built to place the bones of dead family members in a shrine - this is still practiced in modern times across the island

Mykonos New Port in the background (our ship is docked there), Old Port in the middle of the photo and one of the famous Mykonian windmills in the front on the left

A windmill which has been converted into a home

One of the famous windmills on Mykonos

Mykonos Town with our ship in the background

Mike and Sue sitting on a stone fence near Mykonos Town

Agia (Saint) Anna Church - we saw this one on our walking tour of Mykonos Town

Photos taken in Mykonos Town on our walking tour

Mandalena Mavrogenous statue - in the Central Square of Mykonos Town - during the War of Independence (1821 - 1828), many Mykonians actively took part in the war - one lady who stood out with her courage and valour was Mandalena Mavrogenous - she was a lady of aristocratic lineage and had a huge fortune at her disposal - she donated all her fortune towards the funding of the War of Independence - it was largely due to her fiery personality that convinced the Turks to retreat, especially from Mykonos - she was a skillful leader and won many battles and even led military expeditions in Europe - as a mark of respect to the great lady of Mykonos, they built a statue to her

Cobblestone streets at the waterfront in Mykonos Town

A cafe along the waterfront of Mykonos Town

Agios Nikolakis (Saint Nicholas) Greek Orthodox Church - found in the Old Port of Mykonos - characterized by its distinctive blue dome, black and white tiled floor and starry-night painted ceiling - named after Saint Nicholas who lived in the 4th century and is the patron saint of fishermen and sailors - while the churches in the Old Town of Mykonos belong to the Greek Orthodox church, each one was built by, and is still maintained by, a private local family - having a chapel is a matter of familial pride - on that Saint's feast day, the family invites a priest to preside over a service here, followed by a big party to which the entire community is invited - chapels in this seafaring town were often built to give thanks for the safe return of a relative - many local fishermen still light a candle here each morning before heading out to sea

Boats by the waterfront (Old Port) in Mykonos Town

The Town Hall of Mykonos is a typical building of local architecture, but has the only red terra-cotta roof on the island - the pillars are marble as is the well-worn bench under its porch - it was originally built in 1785 primarily to serve as a residence of the then Russian Count, Ivan Voinovich, during the Russo-Turkish War - inside there are six well-stocked libraries with a rich collection of books and manuscripts - it has been renovated a number of times, but has still retained its elegant architectural features

Different styles of architecture in Mykonos Town

The 'JackieO' Bar

More Mykonian architecture

The Church of Panagia Paraportiani - its name means: Panagia is 'Virgin Mary' and Paraportiani is 'standing next to the entrance door' (meaning that the church was next to the castle door) - it actually consists of five small churches that were built one on top or next to the other - the church of the Virgin Mary sits on top of the other four churches and looks like a dome - the oldest church in the group was built in the late 14th century while the other churches were built in the 16th and 17th centuries

Mike taking a photo of the Panagia Paraportiani church

Panagia Paraportiani Church

Pedestrian streets of Mykonos Town with shops on both sides - many souvenir shops there

The 'Veranda' cocktail bar in Little Venice, Mykonos

Ioanna's Knit Works shop

Shop in Mykonos Town

Cute blue gate and stairs leading to the blue door of a home in Mykonos Town

The windmills on the ridge called 'Kato Myloi' - they catch both the northerly and southerly winds, which combined blow nine days out of ten - thanks to the strong winds blowing pretty much throughout the year, the use of windmills became widespread and continued on for a long time, from the 17th to the 19th century - the locals brought their crops and even carried the merchandise from the port straight to the windmills for immediate processing - technology has taken its toll in the processing methods and the windmills had to be give up as an option - nowadays, most of the windmills have been abandoned while some have been preserved in pristine condition there are five intact windmills plus the bases of two others

Buildings along the waterfront of Little Venice, Mykonos

Another church in Mykonos Town - 'Holy Church of Panagia Rodari Katholikon' (Catholic Church of Panagia Rodari) - the only Catholic church on Mykonos - it was constructed in 1668 and was renovated in 1677

Mike standing in front of the Parthenis, a cash only clothing store - love the architecture - very typical blue and white colours

Sue in front of the windmills

Sue and Mike in front of the windmills

A windmill under renovations

Our walking tour guide is on the right - she is leading us to the church in front of her - when we were visiting the church, we met the woman who takes care of the church (along with her family)