Sunday, July 20, 2008
Life, Travel

Sail away


A Mediterranean adventure in Greece

By Beci Falkenberg

One by one, 18 hearty souls negotiated the swaying gangplank to board the Panagiota, our motorized wooden sailboat, for a seven day Greek Island-hopping bicycle tour. Destination: the picturesque whitewashed villages of the Cyclades Islands southeast of Athens and the mainland. With 1,400+ mostly uninhabited islands, Greece is scattered like marbles in the azure waters of the Mediterranean, Aegean and Ionian Seas.

Shortly after departure, strong winds forced the captain to alter our destination from the wind-prone Cyclades Islands to the calmer waters of the Saronic Gulf coast, closer to the Greek mainland. Fortunately, over the course of the week, the winds would eventually shift allowing us to experience the best of both famous Greek archipelagos.

We began our boat/bike hopscotch tour with four islands on the green and fertile Saronic Gulf. Each ride started at sea level, spiraling up narrow serpentine country roads. “Up, up, up,” quickly became our mantra. Who would have guessed that Greece is 80 percent mountainous terrain? If the long, steep ascents didn’t have our hearts pounding, the sheer magnitude of being engulfed by the endless expanse of brilliant blue waters, olive groves, towering pine forests or tumbleweed deserts, would and--of course, the twisting roller coaster descents, pure Red Bull adrenaline rushes.

Anticipating the gems ahead on each island escapade kept us pedaling. On the volcanic island of Poros, strikingly built into the slopes of the hills, we found the remains of the Sanctuary of Poseidon and an enormous clock tower perched high above the city. The island of Aegina blended beauty, commerce and antiquities. Donkey-driven carriages carried tourists along a crescent shaped harbor brimming with yachts, fishing boats and stores rich with the aromas of the island specialties: sweet sun-dried fruits and fresh pistachios found in every conceivable form (even pistachio oil soap).  The imposing Temple of Aphaia, with its massive rows of towering Doric limestone columns and sweeping panoramic vistas, provided the ideal setting for our Greek picnic lunch. White sugar-cubed blue-domed churches and blue shuttered white stucco houses dotted the hillsides winding back down to the city harbor.

We rested our legs by catching a ferry to Hydra, formerly a popular artist enclave, which exuded a more exclusive upscale vibe with its classic red-tiled white stucco houses, outdoor harbor-front cafes, art galleries and posh gift shops. The only permitted mode of transportation up its meandering cobblestone streets are by foot or donkey taxi.  In contrast, on Ermioni, a sleepy fishing village with pine tree-lined sandy beaches, racks of fresh caught octopus sun-drying outside Greek tavernas (mom and pop cafes), and locals mingling on the streets into the night, we felt like extras on an old Hollywood Greek movie set.

There’s nothing like the smell of fresh sea air and exercise to stimulate the appetite, although our appetites never needed encouragement. From our boat’s shoebox size galley kitchen, the cook and two shipmates magically transformed fresh, simple, ingredients into the most flavorful unpretentious meals … true Mediterranean cuisine at its finest.

Breakfast typically consisted of thick creamy Greek yogurt, honey, cereals, fresh fruit, eggs and bacon. We never tired of lunching on authentic Greek salad, rich broth-y homemade soups and the likes of plump stuffed tomatoes with fresh roasted vegetables. Our dinners were heartier entrees of Greek lasagna, fresh seafood pastas and stuffed rolls of grilled calamari. The local fish deftly seasoned and grilled served with tzatziki (a creamy mix of yogurt, cucumber, lemon juice, onion, dill and garlic) and fried potatoes, or a deckside hibachi barbecue of grilled lamb skewers, chicken, beef and exotic octopus, provided plenty of variety. Fresh ripened melon wedges, honey-kissed baklava or a simple scoop of ice cream garnished with a cookie added a light sweet finish to the meals.

Sailing on to the Cyclades Islands, we found the landscape dramatically more arid, desert-like and rocky. After a seemingly endless climb to Kythnos’ mountaintop hamlet of Chlora, famous for its winding alley streets decorated with painted flowers and geometric patterns, we refueled with Greek ice coffee, wine and mezedes (small plates) at a hilltop patio café.

Steep, twisting mountain roads continued to be the norm. On Seriphos, they lead past the Byzantine monastery of the Archangel Michael, complete with chapel, alcoves, manicured walkways and bright flowering trees. In the stone fortress-like village, compact tidy houses covered with blooming vines, cozy cafes and artisan gift shops welcomed us at the top of the climb. On the island of Kea, noted for its terraced fields and beaches, we hiked the footpaths to the giant smiling stone Lion of Kea, honored, according to Greek myth, for ridding the island of water nymphs.

Back on our boat, we dove into the pristine blue-green Mediterranean for a relaxing swim in a protected cove or idle nap shaded by the billowing sails. An after-dinner guitar singalong led to a spontaneous slumber party under a canopy of stars.

As we reached the end of our carefree Greek Neverland adventure, I wrestled with the question, “Do I really have to grow up?” SP