Milos, here we come!
Sunday, September 18th: Athens, Greece > Milos, Greece
We loaded up the car before the sun came up and headed to the Piraeus port to catch a ferry at 8 AM.
We drove onto the ferry and Matt had to take narrow turns (with our rental car that has a wide turning radius) and back it up the ramp with just a few inches on either side. Nailed it.
We took our seats, which looked like airplane seats, but we’re more comfortable, and passed out for the first hour or so of the journey. The ferry had two other stops before Milos, so we wandered around the deck and the ship until we arrived.
When the ferry ported at Milos, we got off and drove to the AirB&B (Balliu Apartments). Greeting us upon arrival was a little old Greek woman and Sean, a tenant that lived in the apartment below. They gave us the grand tour and we were instantly in love with the place. It was newly renovated with a modern yet charming Greek feel. She left us fresh eggs from her hens, butter and cream, jelly, a bread loaf, peach juice and Gouda cheese. The hospitality was unmatched. Sean wrote down restaurant recommendations for all of the major villages in Milos.
After unpacking we walked to Mandrakia - a small village - to get lunch at Medusa. It was hot and sun was beating down, but it was mostly downhill and we found a small beach at the bottom of the cliff along the way.
The wait at Medusa was an hour, but we heard it was worth it so we wandered along the shore. There were access points to the ocean everywhere where people could climb down a set of stairs for a quick dip. We saw Medusa’s famous octopus hanging out to dry on the clothes line, which we later sampled off the menu.
We sat down to eat and decided to expand our palette. We ordered the octopus in vinegar, saganaki, grilled shrimp (which came with the heads, legs and everything in between) and a Greek salad. They brought us a bread basket at the start of the meal, but we learned that if you eat it, you pay for it.
We intended to walk back to the AirB&B after lunch, but the blistering sun persuaded us to call a cab.
With the advice from Sean, we explored the north side of island due to the change in winds. We drove to Sarakiniko beach and explored the moon like rock formations at the edge of the ocean, creating caves and white cliffs. We explored some of the caves on land, swam and Cliff jumped. Matt progressively jumped from higher and higher points on the cliff and Liz peered over the edge of a 12-foot drop while having flashbacks of Devil’s Punchbowl. She finally jumped after 15 minutes to build up the courage.
We all left the beach around sunset and drove to the village of Pollonia for dinner. W ate at Rafiki and had a Dakos salad (tomato, caper, barley rusks, olive oil and goat cheese), shrimp linguine and lamb kleftiko (roasted lamb shank with vegetables).
Accommodations: AirB&B, Balliu Apartments, Milos, Greece
