FAREWELL TO MYKONOS

MYKONOS - SEPTEMBER 2007

In ancient times Delos was highly populated, but religious rules specified that no one should be born or die there. Thus, Mykonos, at a short two km distance, became very important as a supply island. Around the time of Alexander the Great the island became a very important commercial centre. Nowadays, from sunrise through late night, Mykonos is always alive. The sunset by the windmills is one of the islands musts!


"ORNOS BAY - A great place to spot the yachts that come to the island with the beautiful people of the Hola and alike..."


"LITTLE VENICE - The buildings by the water are one of the most pictured spots in Mykonos!"



"THE WINDMILLS are probably the most famous icons of Mykonos"



"SUNSET SHOW - Legions of photo catchers join at Little Venice and at the windmills for the sunset show!



"COLOURS - Little Venice shows different colours during the sunset show. The sea was rather rough that evening..."


"FLYING - Sometimes an airplane crosses the air"



"SUNSET BY THE POOL - Mykonos provides you with some great sunsets. At the Santa Marina, by the pool and reflected in a window, one may enjoy some fabulous sunsets..."




"SUNSET BY THE SEA"


"CRUISE SHIP - Many cruise ships come to Mykonos every summer. Loaded with thousands of tourists they provide an interesting movement to the island. Arriving usually by midday, they leave the island between 9:00 and 11:30 pm. Great chance to get some decent pictures (if you have a tripod... ;))!"



"CHURCHES - White churches are at every corner"


"PORT - The port of Hora at night"


"MYKONOS PELICAN - Legend says that in 1954 a fisherman stumbled upon a wounded pelican. He decided to take care of the creature, and once he regained his strength set him free. But the Pelican did not depart, and decided to make Mykonos his home. Petros, the Pelican, was then officially declared as the mascot of Mykonos. When the first Petros passed away in 1986, her loss was deeply mourned. So, Jackie O came to the rescue of Mykonos’s grieving people and donated another pelican to the island, Irene. The Hamburg Zoo had also donated a second Petros. Some years ago, there another injured Pelican (Nikolas) was found in Mykonos and nursed back to normal. So now three Pelicans can be seen wandering around the harbour"

RHAPSODY IN BLUE

MYKONOS - SEPTEMBER 2007

Mykonos has some wonderful hotels; the Santa Marina provides you with an incredible Rhapsody in Blue! A pretext for this blog to return to its original basics: images speak far better!!










"ROOM WITH A VIEW!"


"ORNOS BAY AND BEACH - On the other side, we have Mykonos Bay"


"TUNEL"


"ST. GEORGE -The Chapel, in blue!"




"PRIVATE BEACH"



"SANTA MARINA RESORT"


"SWIMMING - With Miss Dana, London"


"CRUISING"


"SAILING"


"SEA WATCHING - My favourite sport!

WELCOME TO MYKONOS

MYKONOS - SEPTEMBER 2007

Alive all day and all night, Mykonos, a dry and arid island that owes its name to the son of the King of Delos, is - according to mythology - the result of one of Hercules' twelve tasks: when he killed the Giants and threw them into the sea, they petrified and turned into rocks, forming the island!

In the time of Alexander the Great Mykonos was an important trade centre. From 1207 until 1537, when the Turks controlled Greece, Mykonos was under Venetian rule. During the Greek Revolution against the Turks, in 1821, the island played an important role. After the independence of Greece in 1830, Mykonos started to recover its former power. Modern tourism started in the 1950s, but it was in the 60s and 70s, with Jackie Onassis among others, that the jet set made it one of the most cosmopolitan destinations of the Mediterranean!

One of the smallest islands of the Cyclades, Mykonos is however also one of the most famous, thanks to its beauty, history, and character: rocks, white houses, sandy beaches, Mediterranean sun and the deep blue Aegean Sea make it an Eden for its almost 11,000 residents, including 4,000 foreigners.


"WINDMILLS - The windmills are a famous landmark of the Island"


"MYKONOS TOWN OF CHORA, i.e. «The Town» in Greek language, a.k.a. the Greek St. Tropez, is the capital of the island, and where the largest part of the population resides"




"PORT - The central harbour is an attraction, with its esplanade, lined with cafes, bars, shops and churches"


"SILVER SEA"


"PANAGIA PARAPORTIANI, a whitewashed group of four chapels in typical architectural style, is one of Chora's landmarks"



"WHITE CHURCHES"




"STREETS OF MYKONOS - Narrow, whitewashed, with white houses and blue windows, small yards, bougainvilleas, little chapels and hidden piazzas as well as colourful shops are there to be discovered"



"RESTAURANTS - Chez Maria and Chez Catherine"


"THE WHITE SHOP - With everything white, there is even a white shop..."



"THE AEGEAN MARITIME MUSEUM, founded in 1983, is housed in the home of Nikolaos Sourmelis, the Master of the "Enosis", a ship that helped the Cretans during their war of independence from the Ottoman Empire. The Aegean Maritime Museum rescued and restored the "Armenistis" lighthouse (built in 1890) that operates in the Museum's garden"


"SHADOW PHOTOGRAPHER"