Sherrie's Cruising Blog (Sailing Catamaran Element): Milos

July 10 afternoon - July 14 morning

We left Naxos heading for Milos (56 nautical miles) at 10:15 am. The wind was on our nose until we rounded the island of Anti Patos. We raised the main sail and unfurled the code zero our light wind foresail. we enjoyed a beautiful sail between 5-6 knots in 8 knots of wind. Of course I had a nap, I find it very difficult to stay awake while under sail.

our view leaving Naxos

another view leaving Naxos

captain Shaun at the helm

We pulled into Kolimnos to see the pools of water that were recommended to us. The ground was weed, sand and rock which isn’t great for our anchor so we made a decision to keep going the extra 13 nautical miles to Milos.

view of Kolimnos

We arrived in Milos harbour at 7:30 PM (9 hour day). Just as we were getting our lines arranged I heard my name being called. Katerina was on the dock. She was there with her mom. The day trip boat Andromeda that her boyfriend Nico owns and runs was just pulling in so she had to run. We both promised to see one another later.

first views of Milos

another village close to the waters edge on Milos

Once we had our stern lines, both springs and one extra midship spring attached and were plugged into shore power and to water we took a walk into the town called Adamas. We looked at the plethora of tavernas and tourist shops. Shaun found us a great taverna to have dinner. The host (an older fellow that reminded us a bit of an older Anthony Hopkins) greeted us warmly like we were family and took us to our table. True to greek tradition we were served our drinks along with an ouzo that was on the house, then our meals and then a dessert with a mastic liqueur. The girls were in heaven as near the restaurant there were several kittens. They were playing happily with them for quite a long while which allowed Shaun and I to enjoy the atmosphere.

It was getting late so we headed back to get the girls to bed. By this point Shaun and I were feeling no pain which is when danger starts…… Out came the gin and tonic. OMG this was our undoing. I passed out just after 1:00 AM and Shaun poured himself into bed after that.

I had forgotten briefly how bad a hangover feels. Thankfully we were able to bribe the girls with lots and lots of movies while Shaun and I recovered (me quicker than him, he forgot that gin gives him headaches).

As Shaun was still comatose I ventured out with the girls to see what the town offered. We found a well stocked supermarket and several touristy shops.

walking in town with the girls

Later that evening we took the girls for a walk along the waterfront and up behind the village beyond the tourist. We then stopped for dinner at Yanko. Shaun and I had a Proschuto, mushroom and cheese pizzas. Shaun added pepperoni and I added pineapple. They were amazing, I hadn’t had a great pizza in a long time. We ran into Katerina again after she returned from her day trip on Andromeda and she mentioned she would see us later.

We brought the girls back to the boat and got them into bed as it was 9:30 PM. Shaun and I were sitting out in the cockpit enjoying the calm and tranquil evening when we decided to watch a movie “The Replacements” (can’t beat Keanu Reaves in this one). Shaun just happened to look outside and noticed some people waving outside, it was Katerina and Nico inviting us to dinner (at 11:00 PM). Off we went with our FULL bellies from our first dinner and met Nico at his boat. He took me on his motorcycle to the restaurant called Navayio. It was so much fun! He has an awesome retro style english motorbike (made in India) for 6,000 euro.

We arrived to see Katerina waiting for us at a table looking out over the bay. Beautiful white lights and quiet ambiance. We had lobster, mussels (the best I have tasted steamed in shrimp broth, ginger and some other spices), fish tartar, bread, salad and for dessert ice cream with cream puffs and watermelon. I felt a little like a hobbit with all of there meals in a day. LOL. Wonderful greek food with great company. During dinner Nico mentioned to Katerina to take his car the following day and show us his families farm and a bit of the island. He also offered Shaun a skipper position on his boat. We all agreed to meet Katerina at Andromeda at 11:00 AM.

We met the following morning and were taken up to the farm. We parked on a street corner and walked up a dirt path arriving at an olive grove. Along the grove we found many fig trees and another fruit tree we think was plum. We arrived to the main house that had a wonderful vine covered veranda. We were introduced to Nico’s mother who served us a greek coffee. The girls were introduced to the kittens. Off they went to play with them. A bit later we met Nico’s father and his sister in-law. We headed back to the car and off to Pollonia one of the other main towns. We met up with a friend of Katerinas for a coffee and then took her for lunch at a Greek taverna. Katerina and I shared our dishes of haddock fillets, rocket salad and fried shrimp in a spicy tomato sauce. Fantastic!

Katerina and I at the farm

the girls with their new kitten friends

Pollonia

Pollen board walk

We were going to go on Andromeda the day trip boat the following day but decided against it due to higher winds and the length of the day (8 hours). The trip was to take us to several areas including Kleftiko (caves that have formed over thousands of years). I later looked back with a small bit of regret for not going on the trip. If you are ever in Milos, Greece we recommend their services (www.andromedayachting.com). Instead of the boating adventure we decided to go grocery shopping and to the mining museum (Milos is famous for their obsidian, Kaolin and sulphur, bentonite). We certainly got our walking in as the first time we went to see if the museum was open it was in fact closed so we headed back to a local taverna with excellent wifi. We then walked back to the museum after it was open at 5:00 PM and then back to the boat. The museum was fascinating, we saw all of the early tools used and the miners clothing. We headed upstairs to see what they had. Jordan loved it as there were samples of several ores with a magnifying glass in each jar to look at them closely. Downstairs there was a video with people talking of the hardships of the early mining on the island of Milos. In the room next door there were photographs of several mines around Milos and also rock formations. Stunning to see.

mining museum

I had been talking about the mussels from the restaurant Navayiu so we invited Katerina and Nico for dinner. Katerina mentioned she was picking her best friend up at the ferries but would meet us at 10:00 PM. During this time Shaun was down in the port engine room doing an oil change as we kept getting oil alarms on our passages. He rigged up a plastic bucket with a motor attached to it to suck out the oil from the motor into the bucket. Time was ticking by and 10:00 was approaching quickly. Shaun was still in the engine room at 9:50 PM so I texted Katerina we would be late. We arrived at the restaurant all dressed up and met Martha Katerina’s best friend. Nico and Katerina arrived and we sat chatting. We ended up eating the asian style steamed mussels, rocket and parmesan salad, and fried red mullet fishes. The restaurant sent us an order of what looked like fried sardines over fresh zucchini and tomatoes. Shaun had steak and potatoes (his first quality steak in months). For dessert we had ice cream with a pastry. I am in love with greek food. We said our farewells with hopes to see one another in the future. As I told Katerina the world is small.