Sifnos – Exploring Apollonia and Beyond
We are really happy with Pension Morfeus. Not only is the hospitality exceptional but the room itself is lovely. It is really clean and modern with brightly coloured furnishings that makes the room feel light and bright. Through the window in the bedroom looking towards the back of the hotel there are views of fields leading to a crop of low lying hills. From the terrace looking out to the front of the hotel there is a barrier of bamboo plants which acts as a windbreak from the beach and the harbour just beyond. The terrace outside the room is bright and spacious and there is a lovely well tended garden at the side of the hotel.
Now it’s time to get out and explore. From what we have deduced – the island’s bus station is located in Artemonas which is in walking distance of Apollonia. We catch the first bus of the day up there.
Once in Apollonia we stop at Hotel Anthousa and Patisserie right in the centre of the town for breakfast. Before we leave we given a biscuit each from the patisserie.
Walking through the village, we find ourselves on a path to the next village of Pano Petali. The path continues on to the village of Artemenos where we stop in the pretty square for a cup of tea. We can smell the freshly baked produce coming from the nearby bakery. The one things that doesn’t escape our notice is the pottery chimney pots which are a well known feature of the island and the produce of some of the islands famous potteries.
We continue down an almost deserted road towards the windmill which now provides accommodation for tourists. It is a bit overcast today but that doesn’t detract from the amazing view of neighbouring islands. I’m sure the islands we can see are Anti Paros, Paros, Naxos and maybe even a bit of Sikinos and Ios (pushing it a bit!). I don’t think I have ever seen so many islands from one vantage point like this before – it was pretty amazing!
From here we can also see the village of Poulati. It is very hard to resist to keep on walking to keep discovering what is around the corner. We do keep on walking along the coastal road until the road almost grinds to a halt. Down below we can see what we think is the Kastro but it looks so far away. To get to it we need to start walking through farmland and down winding paths that look quite labyrinthine from where we are standing. Peter goes on ahead to explore and I wander around photographing the wildlife!
Peter confirms that it is the Kastro we can see in the distance but because we have wandered off the main path it is difficult to see how to get there. So close and yet so far – but we decide to call it a day anyway. We head back through the same little villages again in reverse. As we pass through Pano Petali again, an elderly lady waves her arms to Peter to attract his attention. She beckons him to climb the steps to her little balcony and through gestures asks him to unpeg her washing from the washing line (like being at home eh Peter!).
We have just missed the bus back to Kamares and it is 3 hours before the next one. We decide to go to the bakery near to the bus stop to have a cup of tea and some baklava and Kanaifa to warm us up – it is getting a bit chilly.
Because the temperature has dropped so quickly we catch a taxi back to Kamares. The sun is already beginning to set on the surrounding hillside. The lovely warm orange hue bounces off our walls back in Pension Morfeus. We are then treated to the pinkest sunset I have seen in a long while.
After a shower and change we head out for cocktails on the beach at the Captains bar on the recommendation of Matt Barrett’s Travel Guide.
We then take short walk to one of the beachside restaurants to eat. Peter has goat and I have (gemista) stuffed tomatoes – all washed down with a bit of ouzo! I’m loving the Sifnos Vibe already!
