Author: Cheryl Brooks

We had sailed past the island of Paros a number of times in the past, but were always en route to somewhere else in the Cyclades such as Santorini, or Naxos, which is just 8 kms away.  We determined this time around that we would make a point of stopping there for a few days and explore what had looked to us, peering across at it from the deck of a huge ferry, to be a picturesque town with pretty beaches and bays full of boats, large and small.  What a gem it turned out to be!

The island of Patmos in the Dodecanese group is widely revered as the place where St John the Evangelist wrote the Book of Revelation.  We had sailed past the island on a number of occasions in the past but hadn’t stopped off, as we were always en route to somewhere else.  This last visit, we determined to add Patmos into our itinerary as we were staying on Kos, only a 2 hour trip on a fast ferry.  This beautiful island is relatively small at barely 20 sq. kms, but has a lot to offer for a short, relaxing stay.

Whenever we go to Greece we like to do a combination of places that we know well and love to return to, while adding in a couple of places we’re yet to see.  This last visit, the first of our new destinations was the island of Kos, one of the Dodecanese group of islands located in the southeastern Aegean Sea.  Like so much of Greece, Kos is rich with ancient Greek and Roman landmarks such as temples, shrines, villas, an ancient Agora, picturesque villages, beautiful beaches, and a splendid 15^th century castle that dominates the town.  Other historic layers emerged as we explored the historic capital.