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SHOW NOTES: This is the second of several episodes which contain various recordings during my voyage this summer in Greece. Neil Fletcher and Jack Andrys were my guests and are also previous contributors to this podcast. During the week that they were sailing with me we made several recordings of observations and stories we had tell along the way. Most of this episode deals with our experiences on the island of Nisyros, where we stayed in the small harbor town of Palloi this past June. The almost deserted town Jack mentions is Nikia, and the restaurant ‘on the main drag’ where we were the only patrons all night is located in Mandraki. Jack also shares some of his knowledge from his previous careeer as a professional diver, including the dangers of hyperventilating before going down….
We arrived at Nisyros after an invigorating sail of about 40nm from Astypalaia, with a fresh breeze mostly on the beam but later clocking round to our quarter, bringing a medium swell and following seas by late afternoon.
Like most of the Dodecanese islands, Nisyros has a rich history. According to the historian Herodotus the island changed sides between Athens and Sparta a couple of times in the Peloponnesian War, and later fell under the yoke of the Byzantine, Venetian and Ottoman Empires before passing to the Italians in 1912. It didn’t join the Greek State until 1948.
Local legend has it that Nisyros was formed by the god Neptune, who ripped up part of the neighboring island of Kos and used it to bury a love rival. The more scientific explanation is that it was separated from Kos by an enormous volcanic eruption 160,000 years ago. Whatever the truth, the island’s main draw these days is a large caldera that dominates the south eastern section of the island which makes an excellent short trip if you happen to find yourself docked in Palloi or Mandraki.
The caldera saw major eruptions in 1871, 1873 and 1887, but these days its eruptions seem confined to gentle smoke and sulfurous gases issuing from assorted spots in the crater. The entrance fee is gentle too – just three euros a person.
From the crater you can clearly see the dramatic church atop the neighboring town of Nikia. The Greeks love to demonstrate their piety by building their houses of worship on the most prominent peaks, but this does have the added benefit of great views when you get up there. We visited the church and wandered around the almost-deserted town, as Jack mentions in the podcast.
We also enjoyed a great meal with spectacular views at Andrioti’s restaurant, which sits astride the town entrance. You simply can’t miss this place…. nor should you. The food and service were first class, and view is something on which you cannot put a price. The three of us cooled down with the local Mythos beer, followed by Saganaki (completely addictive fried Greek cheese), a grilled vegetable assortment and braised local rabbit served with rice. We shared their ‘famous’ Choko Volcano dessert and a panna cotta. With coffee the bill came to a very resonable 36 euros for three. For more on Andrioti’s, their Facebook page can be found HERE.
After such an ambitious day’s activity, we headed back to Palloi for some ouzo and (in Jack’s memorable words) ‘a few cleansing ales’.
Here is a short GoPro video of the return to Palloi.
As for Palloi itself, the small harbor is well set up to service the visiting sailors, and the harborside tavernas offer far more than just calamari and retsina. No sooner did we tie up than we were gently offered services including freshwater showers (3 euros), laundry (10 euros) and scooter, ATV and car rentals (starting at about 15 euros). The restaurants, which all offered free wifi, were located perhaps ten paces from our boat, which meant once you got the code you could, if you were so inclined, answer your email without even leaving the cockpit.
During our two days in Palloi we sampled as many of the tavernas as we could, but the standout would probably be Taverna Ellinis, where the three of us had yet another excellent meal, including possibly the best presented Greek Salad I’ve ever seen and some superb local sardines. But we also found the Captain’s House and Aphrodite’s well worth visiting too.
Like all of the towns we visited on this trip, you have the option to do as much or as little as you wish. Plenty of our neighbors confined themselves to simply sitting in their cockpits reading for a day or two, rather than trying to be too ambitious in traversing the island, and that works just fine too. And should you decided to leave the boat for an hour or two, any of the harborside tavernas make a great spot to enjoy a quiet ouzo and watch the world go by….
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©2015 Franz Amussen all rights reserved
Sailing in the Mediterranean Website
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Audio Sailing Lessons by Franz
Sailing! Learn to Sail: Basic Keelboat Certification Lessons for the ASA 101 Exam
https://gumroad.com/l/Eiig
Sailing! Learn to Sail: Basic Coastal Cruising; Lessons for the ASA 103 Exam
https://gumroad.com/l/PvOYK
Sailing! Learn To Sail: Bareboat Cruising Certification Lessons for the ASA 104 Exam
https://gumroad.com/l/bwXh
Sailing in the Mediterranean Website
https://www.medsailor.com