GREEK ISLANDS
Crete
Delos
Mykonos
Naxos
Paros
Santorini
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Delos, Greece |
Magical Delos, sister island of Mykonos, was first inhabited in 3,000 B.C.
All guide-books and all guides will tell you that no one is allowed, by law, to stay on Delos overnight, but there is a wonderful story about how Lawrence Durrell, the famous Philhellene and English author, managed to do this and have the most magical night of his life. In his book, The Greek Islands, Durrell explains how he gained the cooperation of a boatman, practiced a slight deception on the men guarding Delos, and spent a romantic and spiritual night on the sacred island under the protection of Apollo himself.
Durrell hired a boatman, named Janko, to take him and his wife to the Bay of Phourni, below the old site of the abandoned Aesculapion. He had with him a sack that contained beer, bread, meat, and fruit and he also had sleeping bags. Janko dropped them off early in a very secluded area and then left. This was not unusual, because it was the custom for small boats to drop visitors off, then return in the early evening to take them back.
The boatman came back to Delos, as Durrell planned, but he returned to Mykonos without his passengers. Janko's part in the deception was to make sure the guards saw the boat leaving from afar. He knew the guards would assume passengers were on board, but they were not. Durrell said the evening was perfect with Appolo protecting them, Zephyr controlling the calm breezes, and Aphrodite orchestrating the sunset. They swam nude by the rising moon and came back to drink the warm soup and coffee from the thermos flasks thoughtfully brought by Janko.
Durrell described Delos as "silent and ominous" at night with snakes and lizards slithering about, but he said it was also magical. When the moon gave up its brilliance, they managed to sleep once again and in the early morning the boatman returned. Reluctantly, they boarded the boat this time and returned to Mykonos.
What is it that makes Delos so special? Major reasons are that it has been declared a "Sacred Island" by the Greek government and that it contains ruins of one of the most important and glorious civilizations the world has ever known. The island itself is relatively small—six kilometers long and 1,500 meters wide, but it is monumental in Greek history and mythology.
Delos is not only the geological center of the Cyclades, but was once the commercial, religious, and commercial center of ancient Greece.
from Aurelia's Guide to Mykonos - to read more CLICK HERE
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Delos Travel Tales and Photo Journals |
Rob and Jane are your tour guides for
A Magical Journey to Greece
This was our first trip to Greece, and it takes in a lot of the must-see islands as well as a fabulous archaeology tour of Mainland Greece.
Our trip was 18 days in Greece, but the basic structure could easily be modified to suit your timetable. A Magical Journey visits Athens, Mycenae, Epidaurus, Nafplio, Olympia, Delphi, Naxos, DELOS, Mykonos and Santorini
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Delos Travel Planning |
You can't stay on the island of Delos, but you can visit on a day trip from
Mykonos, Naxos, Tinos, or Paros.
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