Sunday 14–Saturday 20 September 2025 sometimes it's hard just to take a deep breath A change of scenery and a slower pace can inject your writing with renewed purpose Our retreat combines writing sessions with group discussions and one-on-one coaching Emphasis is on giving you time and space to write in a supportive environment the retreat is by invitation only to allow for PRIO staff and PRIO associates to sign up To sign up for the retreat, fill out this registration form These prices include exclusive use of the Kavos Bay Hotel and the following: You arrange your own travel both to Athens airport and to Aegina island The costs for room and board will be invoiced from PRIO at a later date Note: PRIO will cover half the costs of the room and board for PhD students at PRIO A full programme will be made available to participants the schedule has two three-hour writing sessions (These sessions are not mandatory – you are of course free to work from your room or anywhere else) The pavilion will be set up so we can do the sessions outside (tables The purpose of having structured writing sessions as a group is so we have the benefit of positive peer-pressure (it is easier to focus and be self-disciplined if you see other people around you doing the same thing) as well as ensuring that we get enough breaks the pavilion should be quiet during the specified writing times enjoy a glass of wine (or other beverage) and have informal discussions about things that concern us all as writers and academics Each participant is entitled to a one-hour coaching session from Lynn or Georgina The coaching can involve commenting on a draft or simply discussing writing-related challenges The sessions take place during the afternoon in a different part of the hotel Note that there is a long break in the middle of the day You are strongly encouraged to take advantage of this time And if you would like an extended break to visit the town The local town of Agia Marina is about a 20-minute walk from the hotel The facilitators will guide an excursion to Aphaia temple on Wednesday morning The temple is about a 40-minute (uphill) walk from the hotel It is one of the best preserved ancient temples in Greece and has its own museum we can have refreshments at the café before walking back The Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) conducts research on the conditions for peaceful relations between states Colored dyes were a significant commodity in the Mediterranean region during the Late Bronze Age unearthed a purple-dye workshop in Area K10 (marked in red) in the Bronze Age Outer Suburb The small island of Aegina is located in the center of the Saronic Gulf The island has played a significant role in the cultural history of the Aegean for thousands of years From Neolithic until Byzantine times (approximately 6th millennium BCE to 10th century CE) the main settlement at Aegina was situated on a small well-protected promontory on the north-western coast this densely built and strongly fortified settlement experienced a period of economic prosperity and cultural heyday exceptional finds and rich graves indicate a complex economically stable social system integrated into an interregional trade network and the emerging cultures of the Middle and Late Bronze Age Aegean In a new paper in the journal PLoS ONE Lydia Berger from the Paris Lodron University of Salzburg and her colleagues describe the site of a purple dye workshop from the 16th century BCE located at Aegina Kolonna The presence of the workshop is inferred from three main lines of evidence: purple pigment preserved on ceramic fragments which are likely remnants of dye containers; dyeing tools including grinding stones and a waste pit; and crushed shells of marine snails whose bodies are harvested for these pigments Analysis of the shells and the chemical composition of the pigments indicate that the workshop predominantly used a species of Mediterranean snail called the banded dye-murex (Hexaplex trunculus) The excavations at the site also uncovered many burnt bones from young mammals The archaeologists hypothesize that these could be the remains of animals ritually sacrificed as spiritual offerings to protect the site of production a practice known from other cultural sites although the exact connection between these bones and the dye production is not yet fully clear This site provides valuable insights into the tools and processes of Mycenaean purple dye production Further research might reveal more information about the scale of dye production at Aegina Kolonna the discovery of remarkable quantities of well-preserved pigment together with a large number of crushed mollusk shells and a few functional facilities allow a detailed insight into the production of purple-dye on the Greek island of Aegina around 3,600 years ago,” the researchers said and procedural aspects of Late Bronze Age purple-dye production at Cape Kolonna PLoS ONE 19 (6): e0304340; doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0304340 This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page If there is one thing Anastasis Ioannou remembers from his childhood it’s his father stuck among his easels of oils and watercolors in the creative chaos of Stavros Ioannis (1945-2009) a renowned expressionist and student of Yannis Moralis young Anastasis would sit at his own small easel And just as all the signs were pointing to him taking a different path to that of his artist parents (his mother was also a painter) and pursuing a career in theoretical physics which is what he studied at the National Technical University of Athens Anastasis Ioannou had an epiphany just before embarking on a PhD that blew it all out of the water – or perhaps put everything in its proper place is what I felt looking at the paintings in his third solo show currently running at the Aegina History and Folk Art Museum through September 15 Ioannou works with his trees in the same way that a portraitist may work with a face or a sculpture with a human figure – Giacometti instantly springs to mind Titled “Into the Trees,” curated by art historian Christoforos Marinos and held in the context of the 15th Aegina Fistiki Fest it is the artist’s second solo show on the Saronic Gulf island after “Harlequins” in 2020 which is where Ioannou (born 1990) spends part of the year and comes as a kind of informal continuation of the work he showed last year on the nearby island of Hydra Ioannou’s oil paintings do not seek the specific or the detail; indeed the dense foliage of spindly trunked trees often resembles shadow or cloud fluid shapes that are never completely formed They do not make us think of the natural world The fact that he delves so deeply into the subject renders him a tree anatomist giving his trees a floating quality or a sense that they have sprung up in the void And even though there are no human figues to be seen and the use of color as a chromatic field reminiscent of Rothko intensify the metaphysical dimension of my images creating a liminal space,” the artist argues His work also draws connections to the history of Greek painting to the way that artists like Konstantinos Parthenis Konstantinos Maleas and Nikolaos Lytras depicted the same theme and Greece’s natural elements more generally Ioannou identifies more with the visceral art of George Bouzianis than with naturalist and post-impressionist trends “The ethereal quality of his work could be associated with the ethereal quality of my trees,” the artist says Enter your information below to receive our weekly newsletters with the latest insights opinion pieces and current events straight to your inbox Aristos is a Newsweek science and health reporter with the London He is particularly focused on archaeology and paleontology although he has covered a wide variety of topics ranging from astronomy and mental health Aristos joined Newsweek in 2018 from IBTimes UK and had previously worked at The World Weekly He is a graduate of the University of Nottingham and City University You can get in touch with Aristos by emailing a.georgiou@newsweek.com. Languages: English either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content Archaeologists have uncovered evidence of an ancient workshop on a Greek island where a valuable purple dye was produced around 3,600 years ago Excavations conducted in the ancient settlement of Kolonna—located on the small island of Aegina off the coast of mainland Greece—have revealed the remains of two buildings from the 16th century B.C The older building is interpreted to be a site where purple dye was produced in the Late Bronze Age, a conclusion based on several finds that archaeologists unearthed in a study published in the journal PLOS ONE "The remains of the pigments are still of high quality You could still use it for dying after 3,600 years," study lead author Lydia Berger with Paris Lodron University of Salzburg in Austria told Newsweek Colored dyes were a valuable commodity in the Mediterranean region during the Late Bronze Age evidence of dye production in this period can provide significant insights into culture and trade at the time The most frequently found evidence for purple dye production at archaeological sites in the Mediterranean comes from deposits of crushed marine snails This type of dye is made from the mucous secretions of one of several species of predatory marine snails that inhabit the region These secretions come from an organ known as the hypobranchial gland "You need thousands of snails to get a usable amount of dye to color some textile," Berger told Newsweek "You can bait the sea snails or just collect them by hand They had to stay alive until they started the processing To get the gland with the secretion they crushed the snails...They heated the secretion for several hours and it changed the color from yellowish or greenish to dark red or purple." Aegina played a significant role in the cultural history of the Aegean Sea—the arm of the Mediterranean in which it is located—for thousands of years From the Neolithic period until Byzantine times (approximately the 6th millennium B.C the main settlement on the island was situated on a promontory on the northwestern coast called Cape Kolonna It is in the Bronze Age eastern suburb of Kolonna where researchers uncovered evidence of the purple dye workshop The existence of the workshop at the site is inferred from three main strands of evidence The first is the "exceptional finding" of pottery fragments with "remarkable quantities" of well-preserved purple pigment which are likely remnants of dye containers The researchers also uncovered tools used in the manufacturing process as well as the crushed shells of marine snails The findings are significant given that pigment residues have rarely been preserved on the interiors of ceramic vessels The researchers then conducted an analysis of the shells and the chemical composition of the pigments revealing that the workshop almost exclusively used one marine snail species to produce the dye—the banded dye-murex (Hexaplex trunculus) along with the spiny dye-murex (Bolinus brandaris) and the red-mouthed rock shell (Stramonita haemastoma) that were exploited in antiquity to produce purple dye The dye made from these snails was valuable because the production process was tedious and time-consuming "You have to know the technology and the method and you need access to the right resources," Berger said there is no evidence during the Late Bronze Age to suggest that it was only produced for a special group of people But in the later Roman and Byzantine periods purple dye made from marine snails was seen as a "symbol of power." During the Roman period, for example, this purple dye was worth more than gold pound-for-pound and the pigment's use was generally limited to the upper echelons of society the use of such purple dye was restricted by Roman law so that only the emperor could wear it The workshop on Aegina represents one of the oldest examples of purple dye production in the Aegean region archaeologists have uncovered evidence of even earlier purple dye production from the early 2nd millennium B.C And previous research on Aegina has documented waste deposits in the form of crushed snail shells indicating that purple dye was already being produced on the island as early as the 18th century B.C.—although the manufacturing site in this case remains unknown "The new finds indicate also a place of production in the settlement from almost 200 years later," Berger said The recent excavations at Kolonna also unearthed the bones of several young mammals—mainly piglets and lambs—that were heavily burnt in the area of the dye workshop The authors proposed in the study that these animals were sacrificed in some form or ritual potentially to protect the production site Do you have a tip on a science story that Newsweek should be covering ET: This article was updated with comment from Lydia Berger and additional information Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground Newsletters in your inbox See all provides evidence that the dye was indeed manufactured on Aegina Kolonna as early as 1,600 BCE by examining the component of the dyes used to make the purple.  The Late Bronze Age settlement of Aegina Kolonna housed workshops for the on-site production of purple dye This discovery offers a fascinating glimpse into the dye technology of the time Here's a brief look at some of the interesting color chemistry associated with Tyrian Purple There is no universal answer to this question The group performed HPLC-UV analysis of the Tyrian purple samples which revealed something a bit strange:  high levels of purple monobromoindigotin (MBI ) and moderate amounts of dark red dibromoindigotin (DBI) lighter red 6,6-dibromoindirubin (DBIR) and blue indigotin (IND) From this pattern the scientists were able to confirm that the dye was manufactured in Aegina.  The primary colors identified by the University of Salzburg group But the term Tyrian purple is often used interchangeably with dibromoindigo If you look for the chemical name for Tyrian Purple you'll find this: 6,6'-dibromoindigo (DBI), a chemical that is (obviously) related to indigo a blue dye that has been used for at least 6,000 years A couple of "colorimetric" problems: Tyrian purple is actually a mixture of at least four pigments which is the "official" name for the dye is dark red Purple + light red + dark red + blue = Tyrian purple Anyone with even a passing knowledge of medicinal chemistry will be familiar with structure-activity relationships (SAR) – the cornerstone of drug discovery incremental changes to an early compound of interest (often detected in a large-scale screen but rarely not good enough to make it into clinical trials) and looking for (hopefully) improved compounds.  This technique helps chemists zero in on the "good" and "bad" parts of the molecule as they interact with the biological target The next round of compounds – made by medicinal chemists or robots – are tested in biological screens The results can then begin another round of SAR to build on the first findings Making derivatives of a dye like indigo (below) results in an impressive array of colors.  Substituted indigo compounds can have very different colors Indigo (left) and dibromoindigo (right) differ only by a bromine substituent on the benzene rings. Yet this is enough to change the electronic properties of indigo, turning it from blue to dark red. (If, for some ungodly reason, you want to dig deeper (hate that phrase) I have written about conjugated single and double bonds which frequently give organic molecules color.) Indigo (left) and Tyrian Purple (right) differ only by the substituents on the benzene rings (yellow arrows) but their colors are quite different.  Can different substitutions produce other colors An large number of indigo dyes have been synthesized and they are not all shades of blue or red By substituting other functional groups instead of bromine the colors change radically Indigo derivatives may or may not be indigo It's pretty cool that the analysis of the chemical dyes in two pottery fragments filled in a piece of Greek history telling us that the ancient Greeks were perhaps better chemists than we thought.  if you find yourself in a snail pit in Aegina perhaps this will come in handy At the very least I hope you enjoyed the pretty colors.  (1) The Greeks manufactured very little Tyrian purple; they weren't especially good at it. But the Phoenicians were which was a major trading port at the time and the dye was sent then sent to other locations (2) Tyrian purple was both rare and valuable Director of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Science Josh Bloom, the Director of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Science where he did research for more than 20 years COPYRIGHT © 1978-2024 BY THE AMERICAN COUNCIL ON SCIENCE AND HEALTH The American Council on Science and Health is a research and education organization operating under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code We raise our funds each year primarily from individuals and foundations LBV Magazine English Edition An archaeological discovery on the Greek island of Aegina has unveiled a Mycenaean purple dye workshop from the Late Bronze Age offering new insights into the ancient production of this valuable pigment This significant find was reported in an open-access study in the journal PLOS ONE by Lydia Berger from the Paris Lodron University of Salzburg colored dyes were highly prized commodities in the Mediterranean region Understanding the production methods of these dyes provides valuable context for interpreting the culture and trade practices of that era Berger and her team describe a 16th-century BCE workshop located in the ancient settlement of Kolonna on Aegina The presence of this dye workshop is supported by three main pieces of evidence: preserved purple pigment on ceramic fragments dyeing tools such as grinding stones and a waste pit and crushed seashells from marine snails used for the dye These findings suggest a well-established production site Analysis of the seashells and the chemical composition of the pigments indicates that the workshop primarily used the Mediterranean sea snail species Hexaplex trunculus This snail was a key source of the coveted purple pigment which was highly esteemed in ancient times for its vibrant and long-lasting color The excavation also uncovered numerous charred bones of young mammals The researchers propose that these remains might be from ritual sacrifices intended to protect the production site a practice documented at other cultural sites the exact relationship between these bones and the dye production process remains unclear This discovery provides crucial insights into the tools and techniques used in Mycenaean purple dye production Further research could shed light on the scale of dye production at Kolonna and the role of this dye in regional trade networks The study’s authors highlight the uniqueness of this find: For the first time the discovery of notable amounts of well-preserved pigment along with a large number of crushed mollusk shells and some functional installations allows for a detailed view of purple dye production on the Greek island of Aegina approximately 3,600 years ago and archaeological studies illustrate the technical process and the peculiarities of early dye production proving the existence of a workshop within the Late Bronze Age settlement The presence of such a workshop in Aegina hints at the island’s significant role in the dye trade and the broader economic landscape of the ancient Mediterranean Public Library of Science | Berger L, Forstenpointner G, Frühauf P, Kanz F (2024) More than just a color: Archaeological, analytical, and procedural aspects of Late Bronze Age purple-dye production at Cape Kolonna, Aegina. PLoS ONE 19(6): e0304340. doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0304340 Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email The Parthenon temple on the Acropolis of Athens housed a colossal statue made of gold and ivory carved by the famous sculptor Phidias in 438 BC Two thousand years before the Inca Empire extended its dominion over the Andes a much less known yet culturally influential society—known as the Chavín Phenomenon—had already developed numerous artistic expressions,… while the Byzantine Empire was mired in a succession crisis sought to take advantage and launched his conquest Archaeologists from universities in the United States and Denmark found deep within the Actun Uayazba Kab cave in Belize two small stone tools dated between 250 and 900 AD that… men and women gathered to play a game called Cuju A team of researchers has succeeded in recreating for the first time in a laboratory experiment a phenomenon that until now only existed as a theory in the realm of… the Cantonal Archaeology of Aargau carried out a rescue excavation between early May 2024 and the end of March 2025 The Egyptian archaeological mission affiliated with the Supreme Council of Antiquities announced the discovery of a group of defensive structures and a system of moats that could indicate… In the southeastern area of the city of Rome archaeologists excavating inside the Triton Baths within the monumental complex of the Villa di Sette… Why did some animals from ancient eras become fossils while others simply disappeared without a trace Receive our news and articles in your email for free You can also support us with a monthly subscription and receive exclusive content The Greek capital hasn’t given up all of its secrets yet despite evidence to the contrary in this day and age of rampant tourism and social media posts from – seemingly – every nook and cranny in Attica has made it his business to root out its unseen facets Such facets include three imposing World War II fortifications that lie forgotten just a short distance from Athens’ southern coast including labyrinthine tunnels and hidden underground structures on the island of Aegina not far from the better-known Temple of Aphaia Combining his love of war history and urban history Kyrimis recently carried out a field study on the islands of the Saronic Gulf where he located the remnants of the three naval fortifications built during the dictatorship of Ioannis Metaxas Kathimerini spoke with the researcher about the Saronic Defense Line on the occasion of the release of the second edition of his study “Underground Naval Fortifications in Attica by the Hellenic Institute of Naval History “I was surprised when I first heard about World War II naval fortifications on Aegina an island best known by Athenians as a weekend destination rather than a piece of modern military history,” said Kyrimis “I started with the archives of the Naval History Department the body responsible for safeguarding and managing the Hellenic Navy’s Historical Archive I spent many hours there and discovered that the Navy at the time was working on an ambitious plan to fortify the Saronic in such a way as to prevent the enemy from landing but also from passing through,” he says was established under Ioannis Metaxas in 1936 with the aim of controlling naval passages it divided the entire country into six naval defense areas (NAP) headquartered in Piraeus and responsible for the Saronic Gulf they devised a plan on how to block enemy forces if they attempted to attack the Salamina Naval Base and the port of Piraeus This involved building three naval forts: at Perdika on Aegina’s southern coast at Cape Tourlos on Aegina’s northern coast and one more on the islet of Fleves off the coast of Vouliagmeni A few more auxiliary structures were also built but these were the main fortifications,” Kyrimis explains “If the enemy wanted to land in Athens or attack Piraeus with their ships they would have to pass either through naval mines or narrow sea corridors between these three fortresses With a firing range of up to 20 kilometers these fortifications effectively ‘locked’ in anything passing in front of them They even built all the forts underground so they could not be spotted and destroyed It would be almost impossible for an enemy ship passing by to see them it would be even less likely that it would defy the cannon fire to destroy it,” he adds The fort at Tourlos had the biggest area of oversight and was armed with four cannons had been stripped from the decommissioned frigate Limnos “It was quite an accomplishment and would be extremely complicated even today,” says the writer were detached from the frigate at the Salamina Naval Base and transported to Aegina and then hoisted all the way to the top of the hill overlooking Tourlos where massive holes had to be excavated to accommodate the guns and their towers the walls of these bunkers were buttressed with 60-80-centimeter walls made of fortified concrete and topped with steel was turn the hill into an unsinkable warship!” Kyrimis’ study contains all sorts of fascinating technical details about the fortifications’ equipment such as that their turrets were equipped with two guns each and were installed within a specially excavated hole A trench of sorts was dug around each turret to accommodate auxiliary spaces such as ammunition storage and steering systems The forts were also equipped with impressive searchlights featuring 2-meter diameter mirrors which were hidden underground to avoid detection and raised by a special mechanism They additionally had an underground electric station with four German diesel generators reflecting the expertise that the Hellenic Navy had acquired from the Germans “This is a historically interesting tidbit which chose to cooperate with the French on the northern border at the so-called Metaxas Line,” notes Kyrimis the Navy instead put its trust in the Germans and three consultants were sent to Greece from that country in 1936 to share their know-how – and sell German products in the process the Navy had foreseen beds for the men manning the forts The consultants recommended replacing them with (German-made) folding metal cots Similar purchases were made of German air-filtration devices to be used in the event of an attack with chemical weapons.” The Navy also planted hundreds of trees on Fleves and Aegina explaining that this served two purposes: “First to camouflage the forts from the eyes of the enemy in the air and for reasons of self-sufficiency as the men could grow fruit the fields surrounding the forts were often leased to citizens These trees allowed the Navy to make some money hide from the enemy and have access to food we’re not talking about simple concrete constructions the bar had to be set very high for these ambitious projects “The standards were very high indeed,” Kyrimis confirms “They were so strict and demanding that these three forts were often referred to as ‘Attica’s Metaxa Line,’ being likened to the well-known fortifications on the Greek-Bulgarian border.” these remarkable yet little-known structures erected by the Hellenic Navy to fortify critical passages of the Saronic Gulf were never used in combat hidden and battle-ready within their underground turrets perhaps the enemy would have attempted a landing or an attack on the naval base but they knew we had taken precautions to protect ourselves Even though they never had to defend our waters as a significant part of the region’s air defense relied on their anti-aircraft guns Kyrimis says he hopes that the Hellenic Navy starts taking better advantage of these “impressive but largely unknown” fortifications by opening them to the public at least a few days a year and Paris Lodron University of SalzburgThe Kolonna archaeological site on the Greek island of Aegina along with the snail and resulting powder used to make the pigment known as Mycenaean purple A recent study has detailed the discovery of a Bronze Age dye workshop on the Greek island of Aegina. Analysis of the workshop uncovered crushed marine snails used to create the famed pigment known as Mycenaean purple (or Tyrian purple to the Romans) a color prized in antiquity for its vibrancy researchers also discovered tools and pottery fragments used to make and store the dye Charred animal bones at the site also point to the possibility of ritualistic animal sacrifices to bless the production of the dye researchers are hopeful that this new find will unveil further information about trade and culture on Aegina and its role in the Mediterranean world during the Bronze Age Berger/PLOS ONEA pit at the Aegina site where sea snails were crushed to make Mycenaean purple dye Archaeologists began their excavations on Aegina at the Bronze Age site Kolonna located in the northwestern portion of the island archaeologists discovered the ruins of two buildings from the 16th century B.C.E researchers discovered pottery fragments with well-preserved purple pigments They also unearthed tools such as grinding stones and the crushed shells of marine snails researchers realized they had discovered the ruins of an ancient dye workshop researchers knew that Bronze Age Aeginetans produced the purple dye “We found relocated waste deposits (crushed snail shells transferred to different places) in different parts of the settlement so we knew that the Aeginetans produced purple dye somewhere in or near the settlement but we did not know exactly where,” Lydia Berger the study lead from the Paris Lodron University of Salzburg told All That’s Interesting in an email Most evidence of dye production in the Mediterranean included the use of marine snails dye makers would collect the mucus of these snails to create the vibrant purple color used in their prized pigments “To obtain the desired dye, the hypobranchial glands of the snails, either extracted by opening the shell or as a component of the fully crushed mollusk body, were mixed with some salt water and left steeping for a few days in suitable containers, vats, or vessels,” the archaeologists wrote in their study, recently published in PLOS ONE Chemical analysis of the pottery fragments and dyes revealed that the workshop exclusively worked with the banded dye-murex snail (Hexaplex trunculus) one of the three main marine snail species in the Mediterranean Researchers also unearthed the charred bones of many mammals which may have been used in ritualistic animal sacrifices to bless the workshop and ensure smooth production of the dye Berger/PLOS ONESeveral pottery artifacts dyed with Mycenaean purple that were found at the Aegina site the island of Aegina was a key player in the Aegean region Its main settlement on the island was called Cape Kolonna the island was well-connected with the Aegean trade network during the first half of the second millennium B.C.E “Aeginetan pottery was traded to many regions of the Aegean world And especially they had intensive contacts with Minoan Crete In the Middle Bronze Age they imported not only products but also new technologies from Crete.” The presence of this dye workshop paints an intriguing picture for archaeologists the purple dye produced by this workshop would have been a highly prized item Mycenaean purple was incredibly expensive and rare The process of making it likely required 12,000 marine snails to produce just one gram of dye not taking into account the hundreds of hours of labor required to catch the snails It was so precious that it was once worth more than gold and even inspired a Roman law mandating that it only be worn by the emperor, according to the University of Chicago Its origins date back to the Phoenicians of the Levant This dye was most famously produced in a workshop in Tyre Lebanon — hence the Roman name Tyrian purple Archaeologists’ discovery of this dye workshop in Aegina has provided them with more information about the island’s role in the ancient world and what type of trade relations existed between it and other areas in the Mediterranean thousands of years ago After reading about this Mycenaean purple dye workshop, learn about the piece of Tyrian purple dye that was recently found in England. Then, discover some of the most fascinating facts about ancient Greece. The Man Who Pays His Way: Greek mainland hopping – and why a 180-degree turn is sometimes the only way home I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice at this location on a lonely road in the wilds of the Greek peninsula of Methana it was one that he and his Mercedes were uniquely placed to solve That was the essential information he needed to know about whether to drop me at the Saronic Ferries office rather than the quayside helpful holding up the requisite number of fingers to indicate the fare The driver was well worth the €10 I handed over He was the final element in a journey that had started early and optimistically on the island of Poros I was booked on the last British Airways flight on Friday from Athens to London Heathrow I could have taken the high-speed ferry from the island of Poros to the main Greek port of Piraeus But I had arrived in that fashion, and I wanted to explore more of Greece on the way to the capital So instead I hopped on a shuttle ferry to the mainland and proceeded to hitchhike north to Methana A ferry would be leaving at 2.10pm for Piraeus giving me plenty of time to reach the airport John Humphrys – the excellent former presenter of the BBC Radio 4 Today programme – is rumoured to have a property on Methana But he was not among the people who gave me lifts The theme continued with Costas (civil engineer specialising in holiday homes for foreign buyers) then a building supplies merchant who took me to the pretty fishing village of Vathi Finally Miltiades drove me along part of the road that meanders around the north of the island He was another civil engineer: evidently lots of foreign property buyers besides Mr Humphrys are attracted to Methana The main tourist attraction in Methana is a volcano and Miltiades dropped me off at the start of the trail presenting idyllic views over the Saronic Gulf The hike involves some scrambling over rocks and stops short of the summit (or at least I did lacking both the courage and equipment to complete the last few vertical metres) With over two hours remaining before my ferry to Piraeus/Athens I was quietly confident of hitching to the port was fondly anticipating a Greek salad and coffee while I waited for my ship to come in only one vehicle had passed – and that was Miltiades coming in the opposite direction on his way back By 1.30pm – ferry minus 40 minutes – no other vehicles had passed. In such circumstances there was no option but to try a Reverse Wolfgang. This little-deployed technique relies upon Rule One of hitchhiking in Europe: however bad the situation, if you hang on long enough a German tourist will come to the rescue. But he or she may approach from either direction. Wolfgang and Regina, from Cologne, turned up in a camper van travelling in the opposite direction, and kindly picked me up. They (or at least Wolfgang) were reliving his 1980 adventure by motorbike. They took me whence I had come – to the village of Vathi, where at least there were signs of traffic. Ferry minus 20 minutes: I strode out on the road to the port, which is when the taxi saved the day. At the Saronic Ferries office, I bought the ferry ticket and hurried to the quayside – where it became clear that the ship was running late. At the taverna next door I asked: Can you make me a Greek salad and a Greek coffee in time for the ferry? They could, and did, as my ship came in. The waitress ordered me to eat the last olive from the dish, helped gather my effects and ensured I walked up to the vessel just in time to join the other foot passengers on board. From the deck I watched the muscular terrain of Methana retreat. I will return one day to complete the circuit – but I may need to contact Mr Humphrys first. The rest of the journey from Piraeus to Athens airport went implausibly smoothly... and at the airport I learnt all the planes to London were at least an hour late. Thank goodness for that salad. Simon Calder, also known as The Man Who Pays His Way, has been writing about travel for The Independent since 1994. In his weekly opinion column, he explores a key travel issue – and what it means for you. Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies {"adUnitPath":"71347885/_main_independent/gallery","autoGallery":true,"disableAds":false,"gallery":[{"data":{"title":"MethanaVolcano.JPG","description":"Volcano on the Methana peninsula, with the island of Aegina in the background","caption":"Sunny outlook: the volcano on the Methana peninsula, with the island of Aegina in the background Sunny outlook: the volcano on the Methana peninsula, with the island of Aegina in the background rule one: a German tourist will always be along eventually","description":"The Man Who Pays His Way: Greek mainland hopping – and why a 180-degree turn is sometimes the only way home Create your free account to receive personalised content alerts and Re:action our weekly newsletter of the top chemical science stories handpicked from a range of magazines journals and websites alongside insight and analysis from our expert editorial team Tell us what you think. Take part in our reader survey By 2024-06-14T08:30:00+01:00 The dye Tyrian purple can be produced by fermenting mucous secretions from certain species of sea snails Chemical analysis of ancient pigment samples has helped archaeologists identify a site on the Greek island of Aegina where the dye Tyrian purple was manufactured 3600 years ago the researchers conclude that the settlement of Cape Kolonna contained a purple dye workshop that may have practised ritual animal sacrifice was an extremely valuable dye associated with nobility throughout the Mediterranean region during the Bronze Age The dye is produced by fermenting mucous secretions from sea snails Several different species of snails can be used to make a purple dye but only three Mediterranean species were exploited at economically relevant levels – the banded dye-murex (Hexaplex trunculus) the spiny dye-murex (Bolinus brandaris) and the red-mouthed rock shell (Stramonita haemastoma) The final shade of textiles dyed with Tyrian purple could range from greenish–blue to purple–red depending on the species of snail used Archaeologists from the University of Salzburg the main settlement on the island of Aegina found two pottery fragments with well-preserved purple pigment adhered to the interiors HPLC-UV analysis of the samples revealed high levels of purple monobromoindigotin (MBI ) and moderate amounts of the dark red dibromoindigotin (DBI) lighter red 6,6-dibromoindirubin (DBIR) and blue indigotin (IND) Location of the Greek island of Aegina where the Tyrian purple workshop was found Although IND and its isomer indirubin (INR) can originate from plant dyes the researchers found no INR in the pigment samples which is considered a strong identifying marker for Tyrian purple led the authors to conclude that the excavated dye is indeed of gastropod origin the high MBI and lower DBI content of the pigment suggests that the purple dye produced at Cape Kolonna was almost exclusively made from the banded dye murex Of the 2364 gastropod shell samples found and identified The researchers hypothesise that the other species represent either accidental additions to the snail catch or snails used for food rather than dye production the team believes that the high homogeneity of the snail species present could indicate that they were hand harvested In addition to tools and facilities for processing the sea snails the researchers found calcined and burnt bones identified as belonging to young piglets They theorise that these young animals may have been sacrificed and burnt as offerings to protect the purple dye workshop L Berger et al, PLoS One, 2024, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0304340  Site powered by Webvision Cloud authentic Greece was 16 years ago on a family holiday to Cephalonia We drove around the island in a Fiat Panda with a hole in the roof my sister and I shrieking as water leaked onto our heads every time the car turned a corner we zig-zagged our way down pine-covered cliffsides to beaches where the water was so turquoise you would think it was the Caribbean it was trips to fishing villages and tavernas where we ate fish not long shaken from nets before heading back to our unconsciously shabby-chic bed and breakfast It was run by a lovely old couple called Nana and George who would get out a pack of cards and ply my dad with ouzo so much so that one night he asked them if they had ever thought about giving the place a new lick of paint In the years that followed I continued to visit the country but never quite found the same untouched Greece I craved in the different islands I visited; Rhodes had too many shops selling fridge magnets and shot glasses Santorini was more selfie sticks than souvlakis and the tourist-to-resident ratio in Mykonos felt about a thousand to one • 19 of the best Greek island cruises In a country that gets 33 million tourists a year it seems almost implausible that somewhere so beautiful and close to the capital — it’s a 40-minute speedboat ride from Athens — could remain under the radar But it has: for the past 60 years or so Kea has been the secret weekend getaway island for well-heeled Athenians who come on a Friday evening to hide away in the holiday homes they have built in hills still speckled with shepherd’s huts and separated by crumbling stone boundary lines It’s always a few degrees cooler than the capital thanks to a near-constant sea breeze that is the island’s natural air conditioning Lucy Perrin beside one of the eight-metre-long infinity pools that look towards the ocean at One&Only Kea IslandThe real blessing is that it’s not accessible from the capital’s main ferry port which is the gateway tourists use to island-hop to the better-known Cycladic isles that the first luxury opening on Kea is part of the One&Only collection; a brand known for its ability to find locations that are just as exclusive as the hotels themselves • I’ve been to more than 40 Greek islands — this one is my favourite I’ve brought my mum along — I couldn’t risk any more ouzo incidents with my dad — and we arrive at a pier on the island’s west coast are 63 villas that jut out towards the Aegean like giant clay beehives using locally sourced stone and built using traditional construction methods the mastermind behind some of the world’s fanciest hotels including Amanera in the Dominican Republic Here he has taken the best bits of Greece — the light and fabrics in every shade of blue — to create minimalist open-plan spaces with vaulted ceilings floor-to-ceiling windows and walls made almost entirely from giant slabs of thickly cut marble Guests at One&Only Kea can sip cocktails overlooking the AegeanRUPERT PEACEThere are luxurious statements; firepits in the private courtyards planted with pomegranate trees curved sofas with stacks of carefully curated novels each themed around Greece and eight-metre-long infinity pools that look towards the ocean It’s here where I spend hours watching out for dolphins and tracing the occasional distant red hull of a ferry heading to Crete its passengers blissfully unaware they’re drifting past something much more special Villas are stocked so well that guests could quite easily stay put for their entire stay with everything from jars of lemons and limes for cocktails to sunhats yoga mats and thoughtful essentials such as mosquito repellent tucked away into bedside drawers Those who do wish to explore the rest of the resort can summon a butler with a golf buggy at the tap of a WhatsApp and whizz guests around grounds bursting with trees plants and herbs; close your eyes and you could be hovering over a pot of pasta because the scent of thyme At the top of the hill are two jade-green marble infinity pools surrounded by cabanas where staff appear with sun cream Equally impressive is the three-floor spa — the biggest out of all One&Only resorts at 1,700 sq m — where therapists use local natural ingredients plucked from the island such as pomegranate and lavender to soothe and smooth every ache and wrinkle It’s the first massage I have had where I’m not asked how firm I’d like it to be and that’s because there’s only one setting: extremely The focus is on relieving pressure points and while at times it’s wince-worthy on the whole it’s completely worth it; when it finishes I feel like I’m levitating off the bed though: the indoor-outdoor infinity pool looks ethereal spilling out towards the resort’s sheltered bay where the cyan water appears green one moment and blue the next has a cascade of traditional white houses with blue shuttersGETTY IMAGESOf Kea’s 30-plus beaches the resort has easily bagged one of the best with a small cove that feels like the Mediterranean in capsule form; a string of giant silver-barked eucalyptus trees and a dusting of soft quickly becomes our favourite place to eat Mediterranean dishes are given an Asian twist and I tear into dishes such as sea bass cooked on a Josper grill served with grilled pak choi and perfectly tender wagyu beef skewers with a sweet and spicy soy sauce • 15 of the best Greek islands to visit in 2024 Those who want drama from their beaches can find plenty underwater Kea is a mecca for technical divers who can swim inside the wreck of Britannic which hit a mine during the First World War There’s also a German aircraft that ran out of fuel and remains on the seabed looking almost exactly as it did when it sank to the seafloor in the Second World War Without Padi certification — or the bottle to dive 60m underwater — I opt for some easy-going snorkelling instead spotting the black beady eyes of an octopus eels that shoot between rocks like javelins and the holographic shimmers of parrotfish one of four ancient Greek city-states on the island A 90-minute hike skirting waterfalls and through pine forests reveals the remains of an amphitheatre between two deserted beaches along with a pair of temples dating from 500BC but that also means it doesn’t have the crowds of the capital — you would be lucky to spot even a handful of other sweaty tourists who have made the hike here the capital of the island and one of the prettiest places I’ve visited with its cascade of traditional white houses with blue shutters clinging to a cliffside each linked by winding cobbled alleys with walls painted in a citrus palette of lemon and tangerine Karthaia is one of four ancient Greek city-states on the islandGETTY IMAGESRickety tables and chairs spill into the centre which is lined with rows of pretty shops selling handmade jewellery and bakeries with wood-fired ovens where locals come out with arms laden with bags of spanakopita a flaky pie stuffed with feta cheese and spinach The town is car-free and is possibly one of the only places in the country where donkeys are still used to transport supplies to the centre We peek inside the former house and studio of the renowned Greek painter Alekos Fassianos that has been kept just as he left it — a desk scattered with paint brushes mugs on worktops — and at dinky 13th-century churches where candles flicker with flames not long lit in prayer Everything feels paused in time; a slice of Greece that has somehow remained in a time capsule The only decor at the family-run tavernas are flowers planted in giant chopped tomato tins and I ask Yannis — the owner of one — if he has any spare He rustles around in the back of his kitchen before presenting one that I decide I’ll fill with kitchen utensils when I’m home; a souvenir that feels just as authentic as the island itself This article contains affiliate links that can earn us revenue Lucy Perrin was a guest of One&Only Kea Island Salamina is close to Athens’ main port of PiraeusALAMYAlso known as Salamis this Saronic isle is so close to Athens’ main port of Piraeus that it’s essentially a suburb Such proximity doesn’t necessarily translate into popularity however — Salamina’s profile is almost nonexistent because what this island has in abundance is history with tales of ancient naval battles traced in its Salamina Folk Art and History Museum. Explore colourful neighbourhoods in Salamina town and the village of Ampelakia then take a dip at sand-and-shingle Iliakti beach but the waterfront Votsalakia Hotel is a handy (and affordable) option.Details Room-only doubles from £50 (votsalakiahotel.gr) The Ekklisia Isodia Theotokou Church on the Aegina portGETTY IMAGESFurther out in the Saronic Gulf (but still within an hour from Piraeus) is Aegina this overlooked isle is also packed with history Its main town has streets and a waterfront lined with attractive neoclassical mansions (one of which was the home of Nikos Kazantzakis Aegina is known for island-grown pistachios Bed down at the new LaLiBay Resort & Spa a five-star beachfront retreat with sunset views in Aiginitissa.Details B&B doubles from £187 (lalibay.gr) Agistri lends itself to lazy beach daysALAMYAegina may be chilled but things get sleepier still on nextdoor Agistri The relaxed air lends itself to lazy beach days (Megalochori Skala and pine-backed Dragonera are the nicest options) horse riding and scuba diving too if you’re visiting early or late in the season Reward any exertions with lunch at a charming seafront taverna such as Yialos Fish Restaurant in Skala or stick around for cocktails as the sun goes down behind the island Stay at Skala’s Aktaion Beach Boutique Hotel which has a decent spa and beachfront views.Details B&B doubles from £62 (aktaionbeach.com) Evia is the second-largest Greek islandALAMYPiraeus is not the only port serving Athens Rafina is a handy jumping-off point for a different set of island adventures whose southern portion is packed with vineyards empty beaches and impressive landmarks such as Dimosari Gorge’s waterfalls Although there are plenty of beach resorts HF Holidays has a week of guided walking in April (based at a beachfront hotel in Karystos) that takes in the local highlights.Details Seven nights’ half-board from £1,319pp (hfholidays.co.uk) The village of Dryopida on Kythnos islandGETTY IMAGESLavrio offers up different island-hop options to the others then tour the whitewashed villages of Chora (the capital) and Dryopida pausing also at at the archaeological site of Vryokastro part of which was long ago submerged by a rising sea which have been a valued resource since Roman and Byzantine times is the go-to hotel.Details B&B doubles from £124 (yfeskythnos.com) Become a subscriber and along with unlimited digital access to The Times and The Sunday Times you can enjoy a collection of travel offers and competitions curated by our trusted travel partners Sign up for our Times Travel newsletter and follow us on Instagram and X Staatliche Museen zu Berlin The pedimental figures from the Temple of Aphaia on Aegina (c 500/490–490/480 BC) are among the most famous and beautiful of all Greek marble sculptures they have formed part of the precious collection of the Munich Glyptothek since 1827 The Aegina sculptures depict the two Trojan Wars: Greeks and Trojans are entangled in violent conflict stands majestically in the centre of both pediments began work on completing the missing sections of the sculptures in the classical style these restorations were the subject of controversial debate and they were finally completely removed in 1963–1965 to mark the 200th anniversary of their discovery the Glyptothek put on display in Munich new artificial-marble casts of the original sculptures with Thorvaldsen's restored sections once again in place These ensembles are now on display in the rotunda of the Altes Museum the Aegina sculptures enter into dialogue with the Rotunda's resident sculptures of Greek and Roman gods likewise restored in the early 19th century and for the first time can be seen in the round with their original classical decoration and colour U-Bahn: Museumsinsel (U5)S-Bahn: Friedrichstraße Sun 10:00 - 18:00Mon closedTue closedWed 10:00 - 17:00Thu 10:00 - 17:00Fri 10:00 - 17:00Sat 10:00 - 18:00 Annual membership Staatliche Museen zu Berlin from just 25,00 EURAnnual Passes for the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin Tel 030 - 266 42 42 42 (Mon - Fri, 9 am - 4 pm)Questions | Bookings | Feedback Jet2.com and Jet2holidays have added three Greek islands to their programme in response to strong demand for the destination National sales manager Simon Marshall revealed Poros Aegina and Leros are now available to book for summer 2025 at the sister companies’ annual conference Sicily for summer 2026 – becoming the tenth Italian airport served by Jet2 – and Jet2CityBreaks adding Tallinn to its Christmas Markets programme for winter 25/26 Customers can reach Poros and Aegina via flights to Athens airport from Manchester with ferry and private transfers included in a Jet2holidays booking Leros is accessible via Kos airport which customers can fly to from nine UK bases next summer: Birmingham Customers travelling on a Jet2holidays booking to Leros will have ferry and shuttle transfers included Addressing delegates at Jet2holidays’ tenth annual conference for independent travel agents Marshall said continued demand for Greek holidays had led to the expansion Flights and packages to Palermo meanwhile will be available throughout summer ’26 from Manchester with two weekly services on Tuesday and Friday; Birmingham with weekly Wednesday services; and Newcastle International Flights to Tallinn for winter 25/26 will run from Manchester in response to the increasing number of customers looking to visit Europe’s Christmas markets Jet2CityBreaks will operate two weekly trips from each of the three airports from late-November until the week before Christmas Marshall said: “The launch of five brand-new destinations is fantastic news for independent travel agents and comes on the back of demand for our award-winning holidays no matter what time of the year it is “It is great to be spending time with independent travel agencies at our annual VIP conference and to be telling them first-hand that they can now offer their customers even more summer sunshine and Christmas markets magic “Greece and Italy continue to be summer favourites so we are adding even more choice thanks to the introduction of Poros and the addition of magical Tallinn expands our Christmas Markets programme even further for next winter.” Jacobs Media is a company registered in England and Wales their counters quietly ticking beneath a shower of jasmine These meters double as a handy place to hide house keys when the residents are away At Dimitrios Antonitsis’s house on Hydra the meter is in a small wooden cupboard painted silver and etched with the word “Poems” Every summer Antonitsis puts together a slim volume of verses that passers-by have left in this literary letterbox."},"children":[]}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","attributes":{"value":"Antonitsis has a knack for bringing thought-provoking art to unexpected places a summer-long exhibition in the island’s dilapidated high school featuring artworks by a mix of Greek and international artists critics and curious tourists traipsed up"},"children":[]},{"name":"paywall","children":[{"name":"text","attributes":{"value":" the hundreds of steps from the horseshoe harbour to view the pieces each of which had been carefully carried up the hill by stoical donkeys and sweaty porters a parched shard of rock separated from the Peloponnese by a narrow strait Twenty years later what was an oddity is now mainstream,” Antonitsis says over iced coffee at Isalos a quayside café where he habitually holds court A case in point: this summer Jeff Koons is staging a site-specific show at Hydra’s old slaughterhouse Moody comic strips by the choreographer Dimitris Papaioannou — “painted in squats in the 1980s Antonitsis says — hang beneath vintage photographs of uniformed cadets while blobby little canvases by the Austrian artist Erwin Wurm lean on top of model ships One whole classroom is occupied by a dinosaur sculpture made of smashed-up plastic chairs Salty-haired visitors in flip-flops wander in on their way back from the beach; others float in on the enormous yachts moored offshore carrying Chanel pochettes and lapdogs."}}]},{"name":"image","attributes":{"id":"ec16bcfa-9f6e-4a97-88a9-8ed2bd8c4a48","display":"fullwidth","caption":"Donkeys on Hydra on the top floor of the Historical Archives Museum an enterprising and well-read American named Josh Hickey has set up the Hydra Book Club Inside Hickey’s “community bookstore and cultural project” half a dozen tables are stacked with new old and rare books written or inspired by the poets writers and troubadours for whom Hydra has been a muse “It’s like this never-ending story that starts in the 1930s and still goes on today,” Hickey says."}}]},{"name":"ad","children":[]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"When the modernist painter Niko Ghika returned to Hydra in 1936 a 40-room mansion built in the 18th century by his seafaring forebears His brilliant coterie soon followed: Patrick and Joan Leigh Fermor “We sat on the terrace under the starry sky and talked about poetry we played chess — it was like life in a novel,” Ghika recalled."}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"“Ghika created this artistic aura on the island “The cross-pollination of Greek and foreign minds was very fruitful.” By the time Leonard Cohen arrived in 1960 a straggle of nomads with literary and artistic ambitions had settled on the island forsaking electricity and running water for naked swims “The society was far more conservative than on Mykonos or Mallorca But there was more of an engaging intellectual life here It wasn’t so much about drugs or debauchery There is still “a diverse and tantalising collection of human beings sprawled about these rocks and ledges on a hot cliff far from their native lands” Charmian Clift noted in "}},{"name":"italic","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Peel Me a Lotus"}}]},{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":" her evocative account of bringing up three children on erratic royalty cheques here in the 1950s The island’s geography and atmosphere encourage an easy intimacy You can’t help running into the same intriguing characters drinking at inappropriate hours at the Pirate Bar by the port diving off the rocks below the café-bar Hydronetta or dangling off the water taxis that service the pebbly beaches — although the crowd is more exclusive now and the tab considerably more expensive."}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Go into the upper part of Hydra town and you’ll discover the more introspective side of the island Languid cats stalk the sun- dappled alleys and pomegranates hang low over whitewashed walls In the home (now a museum) of Panayiotis Tetsis the late painter whose tender portraits and ethereal landscapes soften Hydra’s austere lines and intense light everything is as his grandparents left it: red marble floors dusty bottles of cherry brandy and hand-dipped beeswax candles Hydra is one of the few places in Greece where the architectural fabric is intact — the island is under archaeological protection a living monument inhabited by dreamers."}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"One of these is Stephan Colloredo-Mansfeld a rare-vinyl dealer who grew up here in the 1980s so it was easy to be a bohemian artist,” he recalls gazing at the mauve dusk seeping into the harbour from the veranda of his magnificent house which moonlights as a recording studio and artists’ residence."}}]},{"name":"inlineAd1","children":[]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Colloredo-Mansfeld encourages experimentation and collaboration charging musicians and artists whatever they can afford to pay I wanted to bring back the purity and innocence of freely existing and creating — the joy of being disconnected.” It’s a romantic notion a yearning for a simpler way of life threatened by technology tourism and commercialism."}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Hydra attracts the contemporary art elite and is no longer affordable for most charismatic dropouts but the nearby island of Aegina draws artists from Greece and beyond Whereas Hydra’s paved alleys commemorate naval heroes on Aegina the streets are named after the writers and artists — Nikos Kazantzakis Yiannis Moralis — who adopted this unassuming isle an hour from Athens Many discovered Aegina because of Nikos Nikolaou a prolific painter and set designer as well as a master host and bon viveur."}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Born on Hydra Nikolaou and his family moved to Athens after his young father died in the 1920s buying and selling the furniture of refugees which decorates the charming seaside home on Aegina where he spent time from the mid-1960s until his death in 1986 “Nikolaou built it after he married my Aunt Angela,” says Theodore Zoumboulakis an architect who has transformed the stone and concrete outhouses where he spent his boyhood summers into three exquisitely calm suites “They had dinner parties every night and spoke endlessly about art This house is a beautiful time capsule of a more innocent age.”"}}]},{"name":"image","attributes":{"id":"9e65d603-a5d9-442b-87d0-19f3dc332806","display":"primary","caption":"Hydra the suites are decorated with original antiques and works by Nikolaou as well as designer lamps and furniture from the Zoumboulakis family’s gallery in Athens An arresting metal sculpture by Nikolaou’s best friend a continuing dialogue between the two artists and the island they loved."}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"It is soothing to wake up to the muffled honk of a passing ferry and a visit from the two resident cats fluffy white Schnuffel and slinky black Kitsos Every morning he’d go to the market to buy food and he’d always get cheap fish for the cats he’d buy them red mullet as a treat,” Zoumboulakis tells me over an alfresco breakfast on the veranda The scent of ripe figs drifts in on the sea breeze."}}]},{"name":"inlineAd2","children":[]},{"name":"interactive","attributes":{"id":"d435c833-564d-4acb-9e1f-ca618dff9ec3","display":"primary","url":"https://components.timesdev.tools/lib2/in-article-puff-1.0.0/in-article-puff.html","element":{"value":"in-article-puff","attributes":{"deck-id":"47906"}}},"children":[]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"En route to the archaeological site of Kolona paths between the pine trees lead to rocky perches and tiny coves where you can swim in solitude An old man clambers ashore with an octopus poking out of his trunks The scene is like a movie set that doesn’t quite know what period it’s in: turreted 19th-century piles shrouded in flourishes of bougainvillea a horse and carriage bearing a bride."}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Aegina’s port town was briefly the first capital of modern Greece The neoclassical grandeur has faded to something infinitely more comfortable: snug cafés in thick coats of vivid paint and exceptional "}},{"name":"italic","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"ouzeri"}}]},{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":" such as Skotadis where gourmands gather for crisp red mullet and battered zucchini dipped in whipped tarama."}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"“Lots of well-known artists Nobody bothers them,” says Nektarios Kontovrakis a painter and sculptor to whom Nikolaou was a mentor and lifelong friend Kontovrakis inherited his teacher’s generosity and joie de vivre: he picks me up and drives me to his home high above the harbour for tea The garden is a trove of sculptures and mosaics but all the Athenian intellectual elite would decamp here for the summer,” Kontovrakis says “Foreigners made Hydra what it is — the American artists and wealthy outsiders who bought houses there but Aegina is more accessible in every way You have everything within easy reach: a lively town antiquities and secret beaches.”"}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"He’s absolutely right Over one weekend I meditate in the frescoed chapels of Paleochora slip into the hollow trunks of 2,000-year-old olive trees at Eleonas listen to pale nuns chant in Byzantine tongues at Chrysoleontissa Monastery eat the biggest beef chop of my life in the mountain village of Anitseo boat-watch in the molten twilight and swim by a sliver of moon there is Athens — a twinkling blur on the horizon but Aegina is the most beautiful girl next door.”"}}]},{"name":"inlineAd3","children":[]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"italic","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Rachel Howard was a guest of "}},{"name":"link","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Nikolaou Residence"}}],"attributes":{"href":"https://nikolaouresidence.gr/"}},{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":" which has room-only doubles from £68 a night Seven nights’ self-catering for three at Dimitrios Antonitsis’s house from £1,310 ("}},{"name":"link","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"hipawayvillas.com"}}],"attributes":{"href":"https://www.hipawayvillas.com/home/details/138"}},{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":") then take a boat to Aegina and Hydra"}}]}]},{"name":"image","attributes":{"id":"346c7338-2762-46d6-a457-b56e97c100ca","display":"fullwidth","caption":"The guesthouse at the Writer’s Home Serifos"}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Vici Theodoropoulou fell in love with the unspoilt Cycladic island of Serifos and eventually built herself a stone house her home is a short stroll from sandy Karavi beach in the pretty hamlet of Rammos The little guesthouse in the garden is a peaceful retreat Guests can dip into a growing library of Greek literature in translation and help themselves to fruit ripening in the verdant gardens."}},{"name":"break","children":[]},{"name":"bold","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Details"}}]},{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":" Seven nights’ B&B in the main house from £1,605 ("}},{"name":"link","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"thewritershomeserifos.com"}}],"attributes":{"href":"https://thewritershomeserifos.com/"}},{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":") then take the ferry to Serifos"}}]},{"name":"image","attributes":{"id":"fc55783c-68aa-4477-a7d6-b926a25063b1","display":"primary","caption":"Shila Athens","title":"SHILA ATHENS","credits":null,"url":"https://www.thetimes.com/imageserver/image/%2Fmethode%2Ftimes%2Fprod%2Fweb%2Fbin%2F2d080ccc-6e1d-11ec-87c8-7ab22098d3fb.jpg?crop=2220%2C1480%2C0%2C0","ratio":"1500:1000","relativeHorizontalOffset":0,"relativeVerticalOffset":0,"relativeWidth":1,"relativeHeight":0.9899665551839465},"children":[]},{"name":"heading3","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Shila Athens"}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"A 1920s townhouse on a pedestrian street in downtown Athens Shila feels more like an artists’ salon than a six-suite hotel Distressed pressed plaster walls are hung with a rotating collection of paintings photographs and ceramics by contemporary artists such as William Roper-Curzon All works are for sale and shipping can be arranged The sultry parlour and tranquil roof garden often host art happenings whose delicate work has a frisson of eroticism."}},{"name":"break","children":[]},{"name":"bold","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Details"}}]},{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":" B&B doubles from £165 ("}},{"name":"link","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"shila-athens.com"}}],"attributes":{"href":"https://www.shila-athens.com/"}},{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":") Fly to Athens"}}]},{"name":"image","attributes":{"id":"9eea555f-0cf3-4f2a-893d-4b9d85f1e749","display":"primary","caption":"Sterna Nisyros","title":"Nisyros - Sterna Residence","credits":null,"url":"https://www.thetimes.com/imageserver/image/%2Fmethode%2Ftimes%2Fprod%2Fweb%2Fbin%2F4135961a-6e1d-11ec-87c8-7ab22098d3fb.jpg?crop=5006%2C3337%2C0%2C0","ratio":"1500:1000","relativeHorizontalOffset":0,"relativeVerticalOffset":0,"relativeWidth":1,"relativeHeight":0.9878626406157489},"children":[]},{"name":"heading3","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Sterna Nisyros"}}]},{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","children":[],"attributes":{"value":"Not much was happening in the hilltop hamlet of Emporeios on the far-flung Dodecanese island of Nisyros until the artist and designer Greg Haji Joannides came along in 2014 He converted the 17th-century stone tower that crowns the village — and has commanding views over the volcanic crater and the Aegean archipelago — into an artists’ residency that is occasionally available to rent Faithfully restored and daringly modernised the interiors are an eye-catching blend of whitewashed stone walls see our Greek special in tomorrow’s Sunday Times — including cinematic Spetses location for Olivia Colman thriller The Lost Daughter; Santorini’s quieter sister island; and how to get the most out of foodie Thessaloniki TV historian Bettany Hughes on why Greece will always be her “spiritual home”"}}]}]}]}]},"summary({\"maxCharCount\":200})":{"type":"json","json":[{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","attributes":{"value":"Old-fashioned electricity meters are a fixture outside almost every Greek island home their counters quietly ticking beneath","slug":"hydra-and-aegina-the-greek-islands-drawing-the-arty-crowd","categoryPath":"/travel/inspiration/hydra-and-aegina-the-greek-islands-drawing-the-arty-crowd-9nj9pm0fs","__typename":"Article"},"Image:bc4736f6-963e-49df-97a3-cea6184de55b":{"caption":"The harbour on Aegina","credits":"ALAMY","title":"Waterfront with Ekklisia Isodia Theotokou Church in Aegina town and moored old fshing boats One attendant after another fusses over me bringing fresh frui","slug":"a-foodie-cruise-of-the-greek-islands","categoryPath":"/travel/inspiration/a-foodie-cruise-of-the-greek-islands-272vcsqqv","__typename":"Article","summary({\"maxCharCount\":105})":{"type":"json","json":[{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","attributes":{"value":"We have only just arrived on Silver Moon and I already feel like a celebrity with an entourage One"},"children":[]}]}]},"summary({\"maxCharCount\":125})":{"type":"json","json":[{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","attributes":{"value":"We have only just arrived on Silver Moon and I already feel like a celebrity with an entourage One attendant after another"},"children":[]}]}]},"summary({\"maxCharCount\":145})":{"type":"json","json":[{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","attributes":{"value":"We have only just arrived on Silver Moon and I already feel like a celebrity with an entourage One attendant after another fusses over 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green-blue"},"children":[]}]}]},"summary({\"maxCharCount\":225})":{"type":"json","json":[{"name":"paragraph","children":[{"name":"text","attributes":{"value":"Zogheria beach is the stuff of holiday dreams: gently sloping sands in a pine-clad cove The Aegean sun sends vivid green-blue reflections shimmying across the crystal water Rachel Howard reviews two new staysThe harbour on AeginaALAMYRachel HowardSaturday January 08 2022 The TimesOld-fashioned electricity meters are a fixture outside almost every Greek island home Every summer Antonitsis puts together a slim volume of verses that passers-by have left in this literary letterbox Antonitsis has a knack for bringing thought-provoking art to unexpected places critics and curious tourists traipsed up the hundreds of steps from the horseshoe harbour to view the pieces The handsome town ascends from the shoreline in angular tiers of grey stone and incandescent limewash Dimitrios Antonitsis’s property on Hydra“Back in the 1990s art would only be shown in galleries and museums — there was no fluidity now an outpost of the billionaire collector Dakis Joannou’s Deste Foundation A few seasons ago Hydra School Projects relocated to the waterfront Merchant Marine Academy There are no cars or bikes on the islandGETTY IMAGESNext door “It’s like this never-ending story that starts in the 1930s and still goes on today,” Hickey says When the modernist painter Niko Ghika returned to Hydra in 1936 we played chess — it was like life in a novel,” Ghika recalled “Ghika created this artistic aura on the island but there was plenty of wife-swapping,” Hickey says There is still “a diverse and tantalising collection of human beings sprawled about these rocks and ledges on a hot cliff far from their native lands” Charmian Clift noted in Peel Me a Lotus diving off the rocks below the café-bar Hydronetta or dangling off the water taxis that service the pebbly beaches — although the crowd is more exclusive now and the tab considerably more expensive Go into the upper part of Hydra town and you’ll discover the more introspective side of the island One of these is Stephan Colloredo-Mansfeld which moonlights as a recording studio and artists’ residence Colloredo-Mansfeld encourages experimentation and collaboration Hydra attracts the contemporary art elite and is no longer affordable for most charismatic dropouts a prolific painter and set designer as well as a master host and bon viveur This house is a beautiful time capsule of a more innocent age.” one of the Saronic islandsGETTY IMAGESCamouflaged by olive and pistachio groves a continuing dialogue between the two artists and the island they loved It is soothing to wake up to the muffled honk of a passing ferry and a visit from the two resident cats The scent of ripe figs drifts in on the sea breeze En route to the archaeological site of Kolona Aegina’s port town was briefly the first capital of modern Greece where gourmands gather for crisp red mullet and battered zucchini dipped in whipped tarama Sunbeams spotlight the grey-blue sea beyond Many American artists made Hydra their homeCOSTAS PICADAS“For some reason people think of Aegina as second class but Aegina is the most beautiful girl next door.” Rachel Howard was a guest of Nikolaou Residence, which has room-only doubles from £68 a night. Seven nights’ self-catering for three at Dimitrios Antonitsis’s house from £1,310 (hipawayvillas.com) Follow Times Travel on Instagram and Twitter For more great features on this summer’s hottest destination TV historian Bettany Hughes on why Greece will always be her “spiritual home” Already a member? Log in Not a member? Sign up Explore our Food Tours → The cosmopolitan island of Aegina sits in the center of the Saronic Gulf a few miles away from Piraeus – close enough for a quick day trip from Athens Aegina may not have the gastronomic reputation of the Cyclades or Crete the first Greek agricultural product that earned the European Union’s Protected Designation of Origin status Pistachio trees arrived in Greece around 1850 and were first cultivated in Zante Peroglou decided to cultivate pistachio trees in Aegina using rootstock from Syria local farmers grafted the Syrian trees with those from Chios yielding a new variety that produces superb nuts the island’s agricultural cooperative handles harvesting packaging and distribution of Aegina pistachios all over Greece and the rest of the world as well as local honey with pistachios and a number of desserts made from them There’s more to Aegina than just a little nut and the small tavernas around it will cook anything you select from the vendors there is a small alley with lots of ouzeri as the small restaurants that mainly serve mezes to eat with your ouzo are called ideal both for fish or meat lovers because of the eponymous owner’s skillful grilling known for its huge variety of pistachio desserts including little round bites called fistikato The lovely roof garden offers the perfect vantage point for gazing at the harbor while leisurely sipping a coffee there’s a floating boat market with traditional kaikia selling fresh fruits and vegetables to locals the number of sellers has dwindled over the years to just two or three visitors can cycle or take a taxi to the nearby port of Perdika We recommend eating lunch either at Saronis which is known for its shrimp saganaki and appetizers where octopus braised in wine and whole fish grilled over charcoal are the menu highlights Just be sure to take some of those pistachios with you before you leave Aegina loading map - please wait...Map could not be loaded - please enable Javascript!→ more information Athens puts you right on the doorstep of many beautiful islands Piraeus is the largest; from there you can take a ferry after transferring via public transport from the airport located 30km (19mi) from the city centre and only 10km (6mi) from the airport At the southernmost tip of Attica peninsula Lavrio is about 60km (37mi) from Athen city centre and 25km (16mi) from the airport After a 40-minute ride on a hydrofoil ferry from Piraeus you can discover the many charms of the island The Monastery of Saint Nektarios shouldn’t be missed; nor should Paleohora where you can admire ruins and walls from the Neolithic period is it really a Greek holiday without a good beach Limnioniza and Agios Nikolaos are perfect for a relaxing beach day © heretakis / Getty Images View Tours Agistri It’s a small paradise where you can relax on pebbly beaches such as Aponisos or Dragonera The beautiful waters there are ideal for swimming diving and snorkelling alongside tranquil little villages Sign up to our newsletter to save up to $800 on our unique trips See privacy policy while pine-covered Kalavria is where you’ll find secluded beaches and hotels Attracting many from Athens for a weekend or day trip Poros is home to the ruins of the Temple of Poseidon Climb up to the clock tower to enjoy all-encompassing views over the bay It also boasts remarkable beaches: Agios Petros Korthi and Tis Grias To Pidima are all incredible A visit to the Byzantine monastery offers a panoramic view over the deep import PrebidBidService from "/v1/js/PrebidBidService.js"; import AmazonBidService from "/v1/js/AmazonBidService.js"; window.addEventListener('intersecting',async (e) => { const element = document.querySelector('[data-id="in_article_2"]'); const slot = element.getAttribute('id'); if(e.detail.slotName !== slot) { return; } let promises = []; if(window.canRunPrebid) { const prebidService = new PrebidBidService(); promises.push(prebidService.requestPrebidBids(null [slot])); } if(window.canRunAmazon) { const amazonService = new AmazonBidService(); promises.push(amazonService.fetchBids(null [slot])); } if(promises?.length) { await Promise.all(promises).then(() => { googletag.pubads().refresh([window.addSlot[slot]]); }); } else { googletag.pubads().refresh([window.addSlot[slot]]); } }); Kythnos Natural Feature © Konstantinos_K / Getty Images A Cycladic island well under the tourist radar Kythnos is an unspoiled gem worth discovering Polyglot (with a Master Degree in Translation) professional shower singer and food enthusiast Ethel enjoys spending quality time with friends and family usually with a certain amount of eating and drinking involved uploading photos on her Instagram feed and daydreaming with a good book in her hands See & Do The Best European Cities to Visit in Autumn See & Do Lesser-Known Summer Destinations to Visit in Europe See & Do The Best European Cities to Visit in July Guides & Tips Beat the Crowds with these Alternative Summer Destinations See & Do The Best European Cities to Visit in September See & Do The Best European Cities to Visit in June Guides & Tips This Is Europe's Ultimate Road Trip Guides & Tips The Best Places to Travel in August See & Do The Best European Cities to Visit in Summer Guides & Tips The Best European Cities to Visit in November See & Do The Best European Cities to Visit in October Guides & Tips The Best European Cities to Visit in December US: +1 (678) 967 4965 | UK: +44 (0)1630 35000 tripssupport@theculturetrip.com © Copyright 2025 The Culture Trip Ltd the island’s mayor Giannis Zorbas said during municipal council meeting on Wednesday Zorbas said that coast guard divers were sent to inspect the damage and reported that they did not find any sign of sabotage Instead they reported that the reasons behind the pipeline’s destruction were either faulty material or misplaced installation With the pipeline rendered non-operational Aegina once again needs to be supplied by water tankers While ground wells are used for livestock and watering their water is nevertheless not fit for human consumption Attica Regional Governor Nikos Hardalias had stated that this instance of damage to the pipeline was a result of sabotage and that he would file a complaint with the prosecutor over the incident The Aegina water pipeline bursting on January 24 marked the fourth time on the island’s history with the previous three incidents being deemed intentional sabotage by authorities located just 56km south of Athens in the Saronic Gulf has a year-round population of 12,911 (2021) and has historically been a popular holiday destination for Athenians We rely on your support for our independence Unique Insights from 2,500+ Contributors in 90+ Countries We have sent a link to your registered email address to reset your password A group of 27 Final Neolithic figurines of the Attica-Kephala Group (4000–3800 BC) were discovered at Kolonna on Aegina in the Saronic Gulf Some of them have analogies in the Aegean and the Balkans and point to an exchange network which distributed objects of ritual meaning Details of their production and placement in the bowl indicate that they were part of a ritual act A pit context under the floor of a Final Neolithic house contained 18 intentionally deposited figurines six entire and six fragmented figurines from the upper part of the pit and six entire figurines which were deposited in miniature bowls in the lower part of the pit Two figurines were placed into the bowls separately and four in pairs The pairs consisted of figurines of the same type but of different size so that we can argue that they were connected by social ties Details of their production as well as their adhering in the bowls make us argue that they were part of a ritual act which included production and arrangement of the figurines and the bowls Austrian Archaeological Institute Dominikanerbastei 16 4th and 5th floor 1010 Vienna, Austria T + 43 1 51581-3483oeai(at)oeaw.ac.at Sign up and get regular information about OeAI events and news A team from the Piraeus and Islands Antiquities Inspection and the Swiss Archaeological School in Greece has been exploring the summit of Mount Hellanion Where the Church of the Ascension now stands overlooking the Saronic Gulf there once was a sanctuary dedicated to Zeus whose main buildings are located further down on the north slope of the mountain and were previously investigated by the German Archaeological Institute the presence of a defensive wall and dwellings at the summit indicates that this promontory was also used as a refuge in times of danger As demonstrated by previous excavations in the early 20th century there are remnants of human activity spanning almost four millennia at the summit The aim of the new research has been to record and date the remains both from prehistory and those related to the sanctuary of Zeus such as a Mycenaean ceramic figurine with wheels displayed at the Archaeological Museum of Aegina suggest a religious use of the mountain summit since the Bronze Age a Mycenaean building approximately 4.5 by 3 meters was excavated preserved because the space was covered by the large stones from the collapsed walls The vessels date back to the period of destruction of the Mycenaean palaces and the post-palatial period The insecurity prevailing at that time led some inhabitants of Aegina to settle in higher lands which was already known as a place of worship ceramics from the Geometric to Roman period were found demonstrating the continued use of the area over a long period The worship of Zeus on Mount Hellanion is known from ancient sources The church is built on ancient foundations The discovery of Corinthian ceramic tiles documents the existence of an ancient building at the summit Sacrificial remains were found north of the church in a dark layer with thousands of small fragments of burnt animal bones Ceramics from the geometric period to the Roman period attest to the prolonged use of the site the same Greek-Swiss team is conducting surface exploration around Mount Hellanion dating from prehistory to the mid-20th century The research will continue for two more years as the region holds significant new findings The sanctuary of Zeus Hellanios adds to the significant archaeological interest presented by the island of Aegina the Antiquities Inspection began an effort to highlight Starting with the temple of Apollo at the maritime entrance of the island the only remaining column of the temple was reinforced efforts are underway to improve the Archaeological Museum a prominent site in antiquity that completes the imaginary triangle of the Parthenon and Cape Sounion work will immediately begin to enhance the visitable archaeological site with artwork inside A similar effort will be made with Mount Hellanion was revered on a rugged promontory that must be made accessible to the public Greek Ministry of Culture The dates displayed for an article provide information on when various publication milestones were reached at the journal that has published the article activities on preceding journals at which the article was previously under consideration are not shown (for instance submission All content on this site: Copyright © 2025 Elsevier B.V. the government repeats it is pushing for “innovation some illegible “interests” are following a reverse course serious acts of infrastructure sabotage were made public that had affected two Greek islands targeted the project linking Crete and mainland Attica via undersea cables “with the goal of stopping all works on site.” unknown individuals damaged the island’s undersea water supply pipeline Aegina had to depend on water tankers that carried non-potable water Those who have a connection to the island know first-hand the nightmare of water supply interruptions in the summer and water shortages not to mention the costs from the necessary overconsumption of bottled water residents and visitors welcomed almost as a miracle the new water supply from the Athens water utility EYDAP’s network via an underwater pipeline that connected Aegina with another island there were two incidents of purposeful damage to the pipeline there are clear indications that an explosive device was used 800 meters from the shore and at a depth of 48 meters So this is not a simple case,” said Attica Regional Governor Nikos Hardalias The 12,000 permanent residents and the thousands of visitors have since January 24 been using water from old wells Other regions of the country also face problems with water quality they are not related to natural disasters or technical failure Some “interests” decide to act against not only the functioning and health of a society but also against the state And how does the organized state protect its infrastructure the country’s facilities and projects of vital importance that remain exposed to the destructive decisions of any mobster or deranged individual A peculiar domestic terrorism is under way in a clash between the state and the underworld If the state does not act immediately and seriously it is not only Aegina and Crete that risk being cut off The UK newspaper explores 16 serene Greek islands offering tranquility and authentic experiences away from the crowds Greece’s iconic islands are renowned for their beauty and culture but popular spots like Santorini and Mykonos can be overwhelming there are lesser-known gems offering serene beauty and authentic experiences without the crowds According to a recent travel article by The Times these 16 relaxing Greek islands promise a peaceful and unforgettable summer: Just a 30-minute hydrofoil ride from Athens Aegina is often overlooked by overseas tourists Despite its proximity to the bustling capital Aegina retains a serene atmosphere with charming tavernas and the best pistachio ice cream a cozy set of studios near the town center is a hidden treasure boasting crystal-clear waters and a museum “chock-full of antiquities.” The Times notes “stepping off the ferry here is immensely rewarding.” Chrysalis Boutique Hotel We create and promote a new destination model where visitors enjoy turquoise waters and homely hospitality on modern sustainable terms.” Legend has it that Odysseus was enchanted by Calypso on the Dodecanese isle of Lipsi visitors are more likely to be captivated by its pristine beaches “from the sands of Platys Gialos and Kampos to pebbly Monodendri.” A two-hour ferry ride from Kos brings you to Aphroditi Hotel highlights the island’s commitment to sustainable tourism: “Lipsi is in 6th place among the top trends for holidays of Greeks Our effort to develop and promote a sustainable destination that keeps its natural environment intact is fully in line with the characteristics of our time.” offers lush greenery and scenic hiking trails The Krinos Suites provide a blend of modern style and traditional Greek hospitality Executive Municipal Councilor of Tourism of Andros “Andros has quality constants that make it an oasis of authenticity next to Athens without a high price The constant alternation of mountainous landscape with pristine beaches and paths give a different perspective of the Cyclades.” Folegandros is known for its breathtaking sunsets “The views from the clifftop Chora are unforgettable,” says The Times Blue Sand Hotel & Suites offers the best vantage point for enjoying the sunset Nisyros boasts a volcanic landscape with dark sands and hot springs the Dodecanese island becomes a peaceful haven Stay at Melanopetra in Emporios for stylish accommodations with local materials Syros now charms visitors with elegant architecture and cultural institutions in Ermoupoli “an art-and-marble-filled Cycladic townhouse that’s steps away from refreshing sea swims.” Overlooked in favor of Kefalonia and Lefkada The Azur Retreat provides a stunning base to explore this unspoilt Ionian island’s beaches and villages Alonissos is part of Greece’s first national marine park home to rare monk seals and diverse marine life “Nature enthusiasts will love the underwater museum,” mentions The Times highlighting the famous 5th century BC Peristera shipwreck “Alonissos is becoming a magnet for friends of activities and rejuvenation,” says Diogenis Theodorou “Quality services without unreasonable costs and excursions to the water park are our ‘passport’ to a place on the ‘map’ of international non-mass destinations This year’s distinctions we have achieved in popular foreign media prove the extroversion of Alonissos to new and established markets that show their preference for 2024.” Agistri offers pine-covered beaches and a relaxed vibe The Oasis Beach Hotel & Spa provides spectacular sea and mountain views from its private verandas features dramatic volcanic landscapes like Sarakiniko’s moon-like shores Skinopi Lodge offers luxurious villas blending into the rocky surroundings Less crowded due to limited ferry connections Patmos boasts stunning beaches like Psili Ammos Porto Scoutari Hotel is the perfect base for exploring this historic island Hidden Retreats provide eco-luxury accommodations with stunning sea views Kastellorizo is a hidden treasure with colorful houses and a rich history Casa Mediterraneo offers boutique accommodations with views of the harbor and sunset offers quiet beaches (Livadakia is a highlight) and charming towns Nostos is a sustainable stay option using green technologies Sifnos is renowned for its culinary heritage and hosts a food festival every September offers villas that nod to local traditions “The messages for the tourist season in Sifnos are positive and traditions are the ‘DNA’ of the destination and gastronomic initiatives that contribute to the extension of the tourist season such as the Nikolaos Tselementes Festival of Cycladic Gastronomy.” This article appeared in Greece Is (www.greece-is.com) The Attica Regional Authority has attributed the latest damage to the underwater pipeline for Aegina island in the Saronic Gulf to sabotage It was the fourth time that the pipeline has suffered damage and now there are indications that an explosive device was used announced that he is to file a complaint with the prosecutor on Friday over the incident This is the fourth time that Aegina’s underwater water supply pipeline has been damaged – the previous ones were in January 2020 and May and July 2022,” he said in comments to Kathimerini “This time there are clear indications that an explosive device was used suggesting that there may be interests behind these incidents Sunday 15–Saturday 21 September 2024 To sign up for the retreat, fill out this registration form GreeceChevron TAKIS TAKATOS/AFP/GettyImagesSave this storySaveSave this storySaveAs a child Petros Petritis would play hide-and-seek with friends in pistachio fields winding through the rows of short trees and napping under the shade of their dense leaves in a field where the crop was ripe and ready for harvesting he picked several nuts and sampled them fresh from the tree chased after his group of friends and threatened to hit them with his walking stick “You have to remember that pistachios are very important for the local economy,” says Petritis “Many people make their living or supplement their income by growing and selling them.” but pistachios are much more than important they’re at the very heart of the identity of Aegina the 34-square-mile island that Petritis calls home that the Greek cultivation of pistachios began when farmer Nikolao Peroglou planted various nut trees on a plot of land Nearly every other tree failed in the dry soil Peroglou devoted himself to the nut: He produced a book in 1916 *The Pistachio Tree,*and gave cuttings from his best trees to other residents on Aegina The crop eventually spread to the mainland and led to a rise in annual output that currently tops 11,000 metric tons making Greece Europe’s leading pistachio producer—and the sixth largest in the world But Aegina pistachios are not just any pistachios Declared a Protected Designation of Origin product by the European Union in 1996 the fistiki Aeginis are of the rarer koilarati (round) variety and have a pale blonde shell fuschia-tinged exterior and meat that is emerald when ripe With a sweeter taste than its American and Iranian counterparts the Aegina pistachio is traditionally used as a crust for chicken or feta; soaked in honey and spooned over fresh yogurt; baked into syrupy desserts; ground and stuffed into sausages; or tackled the most basic way: by cracking 1 / 14ChevronChevronStart off your road trip by driving out of Athens and skimming along the Gulf of Elefsina until you cross the Corinth Canal tucked into the southernmost part of mainland Greece Many locals will tell you that the south is the best of everything Greek from its cultural riches to its dramatic landscape Laconia is sparsely populated and unveils its charms more slowly than Athens—making it a requisite notch on the belt for anyone who wants to experience the “real” Greece.The nuts don’t need any special treatment or marketing gimmicks—their quality is standalone and there’s no question of their place in pistachio hierarchy “We just say that fistiki Aeginisare the best,” she said Compared with other regions around the world and soil conditions for growing pistachios and breezes from the Aegean Sea help pollinate the trees through wind dispersal: All of these factors contribute to a year-round cultivation cycle with methods that have been in place since the early twentieth century “Pistachios are inextricably connected with Aegina,” says Petritis, who last year served as the vice-chairman of the festival’s organizing committee, “and growers make every effort to maintain the quality so as to safeguard a product that is a very important part of the island’s legacy.” Where to buy: Conveniently, the Aegina Pistachio Cooperative, a group of farmers and producers with more than 300 members, sells the nuts raw, baked and salted next to the ticketing booth at the port. Visit Eakion (Dimokratias 18-20) the island’s famous pastry shop, for fistikato, or small pistachio desserts. Behind the town square, To Mikro Megalo (Lada Leonardou 1) sells some of the best local products on island. How to get there: From Athens’s Piraeus port, take a ferry (Hellenic Seaways Ferries, Nova Ferries, Agios Nektarios Ferry) to Aegina Town, which will take between an hour to 90 minutes and cost approximately $10 for a one-way journey. For a quicker trip, take a Hydrofoil (Hellenic Seaways, Flying Dolphin), which takes approximately 40 minutes and costs about $15 each way. up-to-the-minute voice in all things travel Condé Nast Traveler is the global citizen’s bible and muse We understand that time is the greatest luxury which is why Condé Nast Traveler mines its network of experts and influencers so that you never waste a meal or a hotel stay wherever you are in the world Connecting decision makers to a dynamic network of information Bloomberg quickly and accurately delivers business and financial information Pipes from a tanker deliver water into the main cistern on the island of Aegina Photographer: Eirini Vourloumis/Bloomberg The Aegean islands are parched. Breaking the dependency on imported water will take more than the will of eco-conscious residents XLinkedInEmailLinkGiftFacebookXLinkedInEmailLinkGiftBy Alexander Clapp and Peter SchwartzsteinNovember 10 2021 at 10:45 AM ESTBookmarkSaveAlexandros Petropoulos pauses as he surveys the miles of pipeline arrayed in front of him and the Greek island of Aegina has exhausted its once-bountiful water Thousands of second homes have sprung up along its shores since the 1980s Hundreds of thousands more tourists from nearby Athens pour in every year to see its ancient temple Amid ever-growing demand and continuing loss of supply Aegina effectively ran dry by the end of the millennium steadily flushing in water from the mainland Because residents currently rely on bottled water for drinking an added benefit would be alleviating Aegina’s expensive addiction to plastic When construction finally began in 2018 after decades of bureaucratic stalling residents and municipal officials were buoyant deepest and most ambitious pipeline project ever undertaken in Greece,” says Petropoulos a civil engineer and the project manager in charge of laying the line across a 15-mile (24 kilometer) stretch of the Aegean “What you see here is as perfect a solution to Aegina’s problems as one could possibly devise.” With the blessings and encouragement of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and the canonical permission of Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens and All Greece,Metropolitan Cleopas of Sweden and All Scandinavia accepted the honorary invitation of the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Rizareios Seminary Mr Panagiotis Tsakiris and traveled to Athens on the occasion of the recent publication of his latest two-volume study entitled The Unpublished Letters of St Nectarios of Pentapolis by the Church of Greece’s publishing house Apostoliki Diakonia Metropolitan Cleopas visited the headquarters of the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s representative office in Athens and offered the aforementioned publication of the office’s Director  Metropolitan Theodoretos of Laodicea Metropolitan Cleopas visited the Imvros Association in Nea Smyrni Athens and met with the president of the organization Mr the Metropolitan fondly recalled his recent trip to Imvros during which he accompanied the Ecumenical Patriarch to his birthplace he celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the St located at the Rizareios Seminary in Halandri The Chairman of the Rizareios Seminary Board of Trustees Mr Panagiotis Tsakiris and the Rizareios Seminary Director Mr Nikolaos Giannis addressed the Metropolitan of Sweden Metropolitan Cleopas spoke to the seminarians discussing his recently published book and the multifaceted ministry of the former Director of the Rizareios Seminary St Metropolitan Cleopas visited the Holy Trinity Convent in Aegina he met with the Abbess of the Convent Nun Timothei along with members of the convent’s sisterhood to whom he offered a copy of his book and expressed his gratitude toward his patron saint for the successful completion of the writing and publication of this new study The sisters of the convent offered a luncheon to the Metropolitan and his entourage Alexander Loukatos and Damaskinos Mourtzis in addition to offering him copies of the volumes containing the complete works of St Nectarios which have been published until now Metropolitan Cleopas met briefly with Metropolitan Ephraim of Hydra Metropolitan Cleopas celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the St George Church located at the original campus of the Rizareios Seminary in Athens Alexandros Loukatos and the local parish priest Rev who participated in prayer from the Holy Altar Panagiotis Tsakiris addressed the Metropolitan Together with university professor and Rizareios Foundation board member Dr Tsakiris bestowed the award and medal of St The Metropolitan thanked them for this great honor and spoke about the miraculous support St Nectarios has provided to him throughout his 35 years of service as a priest and bishop which was published with the technical and editing assistance of the Director General of the Apostoliki Diakonia His Excellency Metropolitan Agathangelos of Fanarion and his able associates Metropolitan Cleopas returned to the see of his eparchy in Stockholm On the occasion of the feast of the Church of Saint George the Great Martyr in Knjaževac On the eve of the conclave that will begin on Wednesday to elect a new Pope The annual graduation ceremony of the Patriarchal Toronto Orthodox Theological Academy (PTOTA) was held at the Cultural Centre of.. Archbishop Makarios of Australia will be conferred the title of Honorary Doctor by both the Department of Theology and.. The Vatican announced on Monday that all telephone communication within its territory will be suspended during the upcoming conclave.. Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew delivered the keynote address at the International Scientific Conference “Restarting from Nicaea:.. (function() { window.mc4wp = window.mc4wp || { listeners: [] cb) { window.mc4wp.listeners.push( { event : evt callback: cb } ); } } }})(); © 2023 OrthodoxTimes.com - All rights reserved Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website These cookies do not store any personal information Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website the maverick Greek economist says we are witnessing an epochal shift he argues it’s no longer the global finance system that shapes us the charismatic leftwing firebrand who tried to stick it to the man The mental imagery I have before the visit is roughly two parts Zorba the Greek to one part an episode of BBC series Holiday from the Jill Dando era: blue skies maybe some plate breaking in a jolly taverna What I’m not expecting is a wall of flames rippling across a hillside next to the highway from the airport and a plume of black smoke billowing across the carriageway Lord Zuckerberg of Facelandia and Sir Musk of the rotten borough of X When I arrive by taxi at the bottom of the dirt track up to his house and describes his “pristine commute” at speed via land and sea that gets him to the Greek parliament in just over an hour It should also be mentioned that the motorbike and leather jacket didn’t hurt his image as a lefty bad boy taking on the grey men of global capitalism he was the Greek equivalent of John McDonnell (a close friend) if Jeremy Corbyn (another close friend) had actually been voted into power and if John McDonnell had With Aléxis Tsípras the former prime minister of Greece in February 2015 Photograph: Anadolu Agency/Getty ImagesBecause in 2015 Varoufakis was catapulted from academic obscurity to minister of finance He said – loudly and repeatedly – that the punitive terms the banks wanted to impose on Greece would lead to catastrophic austerity and for a short time his strategy of simply refusing to agree to the IMF and EU’s terms led to a tense standoff Right until the moment prime minister Aléxis Tsípras Either the only possible action to prevent the country going bankrupt it’s feudalismThe Financial Times labelled Varoufakis “the most irritating man in the room” during the negotiations so it’s not exactly a surprise to learn that Technofeudalism is a polemic And although in 2023 there’s nothing particularly novel or special about hating on tech – hating on Elon Musk is the only rational response to the situation in which we’ve found ourselves – nevertheless Technofeudalism feels like an important new book It’s a big-picture hypothesis rooted in a historical account of how capitalism came into being that describes what is happening in terms of an epochal it’s a relief to have a politician – any politician – talking about this stuff This is the world grappling with an entirely new economic system and therefore political power “Imagine the following scene straight out of the science fiction storybook,” he writes “You are beamed into a town full of people going about their business and sees different stores because everything is intermediated by his algorithm… an algorithm that dances to Jeff’s tune.” the owner of Amazon) doesn’t produce capital so lacking in class consciousness that we don’t even realise that the tweeting and posting that we’re doing is actually building value in these companies We’re in his airy open-plan living room where his wife intermittently appears offering water coffee and snacks and shooing away a large “He’s totally in love with Yanis,” she says Stratou and Varoufakis are a striking couple luminous space featuring poured concrete and big glass windows overlooking a perfect rectangle of blue pool “I have no issues with luxury,” he says at one point which is just as well because the entire scene would give the Daily Mail a conniption especially since Aegina seems to be Greece’s equivalent of Martha’s Vineyard home to a highly networked artistic and political elite the former prime minister and Varoufakis’s nemesis There’s a symbolically important ravine between us,” he says “She came from Greece she had a thirst for knowledge,” runs the first line; “She studied sculpture at St Martin’s College,” is the second at the same time as Jarvis Cocker was there though she gives me a “No comment!” when I inevitably bring it up “It’s the first thing you see when you Google my name,” she says and “who knows where artists find their inspiration?” though Varoufakis seems to be enjoying my line of questioning just a little too much Technofeudalism takes the form of a letter addressed to Varoufakis’s recently deceased father and was sentenced to five years’ “political re-education” for refusing to denounce his communism He rose to become chairman of Greece’s biggest steel company was his father’s ability to see the “dual nature” of things Technofeudalism is also partly a sequel to his previous book, Talking to My Daughter About the Economy addressed to his then 11-year-old daughter Xenia in which he tried to answer the question of why there’s so much inequality he felt end-of-an-era qualms about the future prospects of capitalism I was feeling uneasy,” he says in the first chapter of Technofeudalism “Between finishing the manuscript and holding the published book in my hands it felt as if it were the 1840s and I was about to publish a book on feudalism; or like waiting for a book on Soviet central planning to see the light of day in late 1989.” Was the entire concept of capitalism already out of date On the living room bookshelf, I spot a copy of Zucked by businessman Roger McNamee who was responsible for introducing Mark Zuckerberg to Sheryl Sandberg I tell him that McNamee broadly agrees with his new ideas I’d messaged a bunch of people to ask them what they would ask Varoufakis and precised the book to him – that two pivotal events have transformed the global economy: 1) the privatisation of the internet by America and China’s big tech companies; and 2) western governments’ and central banks’ responses to the 2008 great financial crisis I read him McNamee’s reply: “I buy the basic thesis The US kept interest rates at near zero from 2009 to 2022 This encouraged business models that promised world-changing outcomes even if they were completely unrealistic and/or hostile to the public interest (eg the gig economy This came at a time of no regulation of tech and an accepted culture in business that said executives should maximise shareholder value at expense of everything else (eg democracy public safety)… had rates been at 5% the past 14 years metaverse or AI would have gotten even 10% as much funding.” that a Marxist and a venture capitalist have reached the same economic conclusions But then there are more and more people – outside politics – trying to understand these new power structures Shoshana Zuboff tells me that she “explicitly rejects labels like technofeudalism because technology is not the independent variable nor are we feudal serfs” But she also says that the argument has some similarities to one of her latest papers: “In big tech we face a totalising power that in key respects disqualifies itself from being understood as capitalism but rather as a wholly new form of governance by the few over the many.” I ask him what his advice would be to Keir Starmer, he says: ‘He should try being honest. He should say: “You know what? Brexit was a disaster”’When I message Mariana Mazzucato another charismatic and influential economist has been embraced by governments and financial institutions her response suggests that some of Varoufakis’s ideas are not that new She herself published on an adjacent concept “algorithmic rents” (the idea that tech companies capture attention and resell it rather than creating long-term value) in 2018 But perhaps traditional distinctions between left and right don’t make sense any more “thinks of capitalism as like a natural system Whereas the left “think of themselves as people created by the universe in order to bring socialism over capitalism has given way to a privatised digital landscape in which gatekeepers “charge rent… The people we think of as capitalists are just a vassal class now You cannot become the ruler of the world any more.” I wonder aloud if Varoufakis’s big-picture approach stems from the fact that authoritarianism – and the radical politics it produced in his own family – is still near-history in Greece the secret police raided his house and arrested his father we didn’t know where he was.” And when Varoufakis started becoming interested in politics – this was when a military junta still ruled Greece – and he was picked up by the police as a teenager his parents were adamant: he was going to Britain There’s no plan for the NHS to reverse the privatisation from within this is the one thing I miss about Thatcher I say that the closest political analogues to Varoufakis in the UK might be Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage His views on the conflict in Ukraine are practically indistinguishable from Nigel Farage’s“The fact you have a point is a source of sorrow,” he says you have these people taking over the anti-establishment mantle in a way that is functional to the interests of the establishment they are the mutation of Golden Dawn [a banned Greek neo-Nazi party] Because these parties’ gains came at the expense of Varoufakis We were polling at 21% among young people.” The spring has gone out of his step which includes half an hour on Russia and Ukraine during which I politely disagree with everything he says His views on the conflict are practically indistinguishable from Nigel Farage’s rehearsing the same far right-meets-far left “horseshoe” rhetoric about doing a deal with Putin Varoufakis retells the story of the minotaur the minotaur is the global financial system the beast is eventually slain by an Athenian prince This prince of Athens didn’t manage to bring down capitalism But as he and Stratou walk me down to the taxi under an unnatural orange sunset it strikes me that the beast may yet turn out to have mortally wounded itself Technofeudalism: What Killed Capitalism by Yanis Varoufakis is published by Bodley Head (£22). To support the Guardian and Observer order your copy at guardianbookshop.com Yanis Varoufakis discusses Technofeudalism at the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall, London SE1, 28 September This is the archive of The Observer up until 21/04/2025 The Observer is now owned and operated by Tortoise Media At an idyllic island in the Mediterranean Sea ocean covers up the site of a vast volcanic explosion from 3200 years ago three other islands still have their volcanic histories from a few million years ago mostly intact So why the differences between the Santorini caldera and the Aegina Researchers used volcanic "fingerprints' and plate tectonics research to find out why the Santorini volcano underneath the ocean still constitutes the biggest volcanic hazard for Europe together with the Vesuvius volcano in Italy How is it possible that volcanoes so close in geological time and space can behave to differently The researchers used several techniques to find out Some of the answers have to do with what goes into the lava "mixes" for the volcanoes A lot of this sediment is 'scraped off' when the plate subducts and forms an accretionary (or build-up) wedge some of it is also going down into the mantle and getting mixed with the melting mantle wedge "This process of 'crustal contamination' is yet another 'Earth recycling machine' which may also influence the potential for ore deposits - like in the Andes and where this 'intracrustal recycling' is thought to play an important role" "With a magma chamber at a shallower depth the roof will cave in when the chamber starts emptying itself during an eruption This makes the eruption even worse and creates a caldera "With the magma chambers at greater depths for the western Aegina- Methana-Poros volcanoes There the magma chambers underneath the lava domes did not cave in the crystallization of the amphibole mineral group that includes hornblende So it is more difficult for the magma to come to the surface in the first place "We compared Santorini with Aegina-Poros-Methana lavas in terms of their geochemistry on 87Sr/86Sr Then by combining the radiogenic isotope signature of the lavas with trace element ratios we managed to pinpoint the down-going sediment as the biggest influence creating thick blocky lavas "Modern subduction zones are not all alike more than one eruptive style points to differences in subduction processes," concludes Elburg INTERVIEWS: For email interviews or questions 10.1016/j.lithos.2020.105416 are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system Copyright © 2025 by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) This is an excerpt from Aegina Angeliades' memoir, My Skin Don't Fit Her funny and heart-rending story details one woman's quest to resolve her physical and spiritual conflicts I concluded that my mistake was looking to the Europeans for an effective weight-loss program the most advanced with weight-loss strategies and spa treatments; so some ten years later about a four-hour drive from New York City My mom wasn't interested in going but agreed that the spa retreat could serve as our Christmas gift It is built on expansive grounds with manicured gardens and lawns and after checking in we were handed our tan canvas Canyon Ranch welcome bags filled with water bottles Canyon Ranch set up consults for us with the staff nurses so we could go over our intentions for our time there The two-bedroom suite that my sisters and I were to share had a washer and dryer and the best brands of toiletries and affirmations written on little notes strategically placed on the tables and desks it cost about a grand a day per person to stay at the Ranch A fancy dining room and a casual express cafe A massive gym with state-of-the-art equipment A locker room with those showers that have twenty heads blasting water at you Pitchers of water with thinly sliced cucumbers They considered anything a guest could possibly need or want As accommodating as they were at the Ranch they maintained a solid set of values and beliefs There was no alcohol there and you couldn't find an Equal Irena called the front desk and requested a "DC" (Diet Coke) even though I was pointing to the paragraph in the welcome packet that stated "We recommend eliminating artificial sweeteners from your diet in favor of natural sweeteners like stevia..." When they told her they did not have Diet Coke she told them there was a deli about a mile down the road She handed me back the welcome packet with a sentence she had circled at the bottom of the page: "If there is anything we can do to make your stay more pleasurable They ended up bringing Irena a six-pack of Diet Coke cans and a box of Tylenol PM I was reading about the various classes and events there were at least ten different activities to choose from: Yoga I was busy circling the classes I wanted to take most Wishing that there were more hours in a day Just a carton of Marlboro Light 100s and a bunch of Lost DVDs Me and BFF (Best Friend Forever) are gonna catch up on Lost and fumage our brains out I had to room with Irena and Ilana because Phaedra hated company Even though Irena was only a year younger than me I was often a buzz kill for Irena and Ilana I tried to set up shop with Phaedra in her bedroom on the first night I got in one of the two queen-sized beds and began flipping through the television channels Phaedra was pregnant with her first daughter at the time She was only one year older than me but she always got her way Phaedra was briefly satisfied when the TV was muted and even then she rolled her eyes and said You can't even hear it; why don't you just turn it off?" what time are you getting up?" Phaedra asked are you gonna make noise when you get up?" I'm going to go and sleep with Irena and Ilana!" I screamed I stuffed my belongings into my Canyon Ranch bag I walked through the common dark area of the suite and opened the door of the second bedroom It's T-A-C!" Irena yelled without looking over at me or taking her eyes off Lost Ilana and Irena were sharing the same bed by choice Ilana was lying on her stomach with her size eleven feet by Irena's head and the pillows Ilana is the youngest and tallest of us all by a good five inches Irena was holding the remote with one hand and a lit cigarette with the other I got up early in a surprisingly good mood considering I kept waking up to the smell of smoke and the sound of Lost most of the night I got coffee and sat in a remote corner of the Ranch by a window overlooking the stunning landscape tending to the Ranch's grounds and preparing for the day ahead After an hour or so of reflecting and planning I went back to the room where the BFFs were now awake and had resumed their Lost marathon you guys." I had the Canyon Ranch bag on my shoulder and the daily schedule in my hand How about we do ONE thing every day together then you can watch Lost all you want for the rest of the time?" I think that would be a fun thing for all of us to do together!" All she planned to do at Canyon Ranch was outdoor sports but she was concerned that the conservative staff would limit her activities because she was eight months pregnant attempting to conceal the growth in her belly and met us at the canoe/hike gathering spot I was so proud of her effort—even though she was wearing her pajama bottoms and a leather jacket The lady stopped me at the door and made me 'borrow' them gang!" One of the activity leaders greeted us The four of us were put with a single older lady and called "Group 1: Canoe." The remaining five people were in "Group 2: Hike." Two instructors would take our group in a van to a lake and we would paddle canoes to the other side The other group and their two instructors rode a different van to a trail where they would hike up and over some mountain to the lake They would take the canoes back to our van and we would hike up and over the mountain to their van the instructors went over some basic canoe protocol has everyone been in a canoe before?" the instructor asked He was in Indiana Jones gear with sunglasses hanging from a leather string around his neck and several water bottles strapped to his belt like ammunition The random lady thrown into our group raised her hand first so the instructor said he would canoe with her would canoe with Phaedra since they were both "four months" pregnant He concluded that I could row with Irena and Ilana Indiana Jones said that the hardest position in the canoe was the back because that person really controlled the direction of the canoe Irena leaned on Ilana's shoulder with one hand and my shoulder with her other and wobbled into the canoe her large white Prada bag dangling from her wrist Ilana then held onto me for dear life as she stepped into the canoe and fell/sat in the middle They were both facing me and lifted up the paddles that were resting in the canoe I was up to my ankles in water as I pushed the canoe deeper into the lake and confidently stepped in Phaedra and prego-instructor were already way ahead and the Indiana Jones/random-woman team were holding their canoe back and waiting for us to get it together Irena and Ilana were clumsily maneuvering their paddles Canoeing was much harder than I anticipated and despite the effort all three of us were exerting I had no idea how to guide them so I just started making random suggestions Irena rocked on her butt to reposition herself and the canoe rocked with her Ilana dropped her oar in the water and reached out to try and grab it I came up from being submerged in the water We were all fully clothed and the cool water was quite sobering But we all knew how to swim and it was just a still lake after all I saw Indiana Jones frantically rowing toward us Prego-instructor rowed a very irritated Phaedra toward the shore off to the right of us She hopped out of the canoe as she approached land and began running toward the houses on the lake screaming and I were bobbing in the water and Ilana started to laugh It was making me mad because the situation was not entirely in control "I can't help it—you know I laugh when I'm nervous Indiana Jones told us to hold on to the back of his canoe his canoe did not move despite his rowing efforts He told us he didn't know what we should do I told Ilana to follow me and said to Irena It's right there." I pointed in the direction of the land Save yourselves," Irena offered dramatically rolling her eyes up into her head as if she were on the verge of passing out I grabbed the back of Irena's shirt and towed her the ten feet to land Prego-instructor had successfully gotten an old lady in one of the lake houses to open her door She stormed into the woman's house and rummaged through her belongings She came running down toward us as we dragged our cold "You should be ashamed of yourselves," Betty White yelled from the back of her lake house I was undressed and warm in a matter of seconds and looked over at Ilana who had stripped down to her Frederick's of Hollywood fire-engine red bra and underwear "I can't feel my hands." She held up her hands Her fingers were pressed together and cupped I pulled at Irena's clothes as she stood like a frozen statue OVER!" Indiana Jones screamed into his walkie-talkie We had to wait for the Canyon Ranch emergency van to come and pick us up since the van we came in was now across the lake where we began our canoe adventure The hike group had to retrace their steps to their parked van You didn't have to freakin’ flip over and ruin the trip for everyone The Canyon Ranch emergency van driver took us straight to the nurses' station where we were forced to go through an evaluation I walked out of the medical office with a clean bill of health and curled up near the fireplace in the library and fell asleep When I woke up it was time for dinner so I headed to the dining room I saw Phaedra on the salad bar line and sat down next to Ilana who was dumping a stashed Equal into her iced tea and eating from a mound of fresh vegetables Phaedra sat down with her heaping plate of salad and stated As Ilana filled her in on the latest episode of Lost picked up a fork with her left hand and placed it in her cupped right hand "You mean this?" Irena glanced at her cupped hand that had a fork wedged in it That's what I mean." "You mean my claw?" "Your what?" Irena proceeded to tell us that her right hand had frozen into a claw She then demonstrated how it (her claw) worked She picked up various utensils from the table (with her good hand) and strategically placed them within her claw Not bad at all." She turned her claw palm side down and then up Later the nurse called our suite to check up on Irena and her claw still a claw!" Irena exhaled smoke and chuckled Irena and Ilana were putting on their shoes and heading to breakfast I cracked my eyes open and saw the red numbers on the alarm clock "This whole hand-turned-claw thing has me starving I got up shortly after and gathered my meditation books and journal I walked by the café where my sisters sat chatting and holding coffee mugs with their hands or claws depending on which sister you were looking at When I got back to the room to change into my workout clothes the phone was ringing and my sisters were laying in the bed seemingly oblivious to the sound while they remained focused on the TV screen Both Irena and Ilana woke up from their Lost coma and started shaking their heads and slicing their fingers across their throats I would just like them to please bring back the salt and pepper shakers that they stole Irena left her cigarette dangling between her lips My mouth dropped open and I assured the café lady that as soon as I found my sisters I would personally see to it that they were returned "I guess they wanted to use them in the room," Mrs You really freakin’ stole something from Canyon Ranch I confiscated the salt and pepper shakers—and the sugar cube holder I happened to spot in her bag as well—and placed them on the desk in our room with a note to housekeeping "We borrowed these from the café this morning Things quieted down at the Ranch for the next day or two I occasionally escorted Irena to the smoking pavilion which she agreed to use after complaints about the stench from our room caused threats of a room-cleaning fee We got to the pavilion one day and Irena took a cigarette out of the pack with her good hand "So I was thinking...this guy...lost his toe in a biking accident He was on one of those organized tours or something I'm thinking my hand has to be worth a cool mill if you keep playing this crunch-up- my-hand game I don't understand why you hate my claw so much." Irena walked back into the building It was so beginner they listed it as a meditation event—the bikes were just used to get to and from the meditation spot They insisted we all wear helmets and take a water bottle I had not ridden a bike in a while and I was having so much fun I felt like a kid as the wind blew sweet blessings in my face I looked over my shoulder and saw Ilana trying to dismount her bike She looked disoriented and she clumsily fell onto the dirt She started to fan her face with her hand and pull at the round collar of her sweatshirt "Nuh-thing," she said in two syllables separated by gasps of air One of the Ranch guests directed the staff rider to Ilana We're going to give the emergency pick-up van a call The two instructors deliberated about how to get everyone back The people on the meditation/bike activity waved and rode off One of the staff riders kept looking back at us—the two riders sitting on the rocks You could tell he was nervous about leaving Spots and her sister behind The white Canyon Ranch emergency van screeched to a halt on the dirt path She got out of the van and slammed the door She grabbed my bike with one hand and hung it onto the rack mounted behind the van She stomped over to Ilana's twisted bike and hung it on top of my bike As we drove in silence I went over the morning ride in my head "You girls were part of that pack of sisters that flipped in the canoe pulled off her dark Ray-Bans and stared right into my eyes with a scary focus "I am doing a Canyon Ranch jog tomorrow at eight a.m I do not want to see you two or either of your other sisters on my jog I don't know if you are spies here to test the Ranch's safety procedures or what I was more than happy to leave Canyon Ranch when our stay was over Most guests remain on the grounds for that last day to stretch out their retreat as long as possible but we called the bellhop right after breakfast okay?" Irena pointed her claw to an over-stuffed Canyon Ranch bag leaning on the wall in the corner of the room The bellhop came and stacked our things onto his caddy And a stack of printouts from the computer room of articles on "frozen limbs" and of lawsuits filed by people who lost the use of their hands in freak accidents Irena had begun preparing for her day in court That day never came because the key witness for her case abandoned her soon after and all she was left with was her worthless Find Aegina Angeliades on Facebook Thanks to our readers and especially our supporters who help to keep PenBayPilot.com an open and accessible community hub Your support is even more critical during rapidly changing times While we work hard to keep you informed about the Midcoast community We are grateful to those who already participate Join for as little as $2.99 per month and support local journalism on a community hub that serves everyone X There are plenty of smaller islands whose charms also run deeper than dazzling coastlines — from unsung archaeological sites to arts festivals food markets and extraordinary architecture off-peak prices can be half what they are in high summer although winds can be fierce — so fierce that ferries are occasionally suspended and you might get stranded on islands without an airport the prospect of an extended stay is just another good reason to explore these enchanting isles off season Main photo: a horse-drawn carriage on the Old Harbour at Chania on Crete (Getty Images) Our travel journalism is written and edited by independent experts to inform inspire and advise our readers about the best choices for your holidays We also feature properties and itineraries from a specially selected list of trusted operators These buttons and adverts are clearly signposted and provide direct links through to external sites The harbourside of Aegina town (Getty Images)1. AeginaOnly about an hour’s ferry ride from Athens Aegina is sometimes dubbed “the commuter island” by locals The harbour is a pretty picture of bobbing boats and fine-boned mansions in varying degrees of disrepair uncover unexpected treasure hidden among the weekender clichés: time-warp kafenia (cafés) clustered around the fish market a plateau of ancient olive trees protected by a ridge of stony hills Byzantine chapels camouflaged in acres of blush-pink pistachios The striking archaeological sites of Aphaia and Kolona are bizarrely underrated; outside July and August you can often enjoy the ruins in meditative solitude Aegina’s beaches aren’t brilliant — which is exactly why it’s an excellent off-peak destination — but there are rocky inlets where you can plunge into the luminous sea without freezing half to death the former home of Greek painter Nikos Nikolaou is now a three-suite guesthouse full of art and class on a peaceful stretch of seafront • Greece travel guide Venetian crusaders ruled Syros and established a Catholic settlement that still crowns the unorthodox capital of the Cyclades enterprising refugees from Asia Minor had transformed this modest trading post into a flourishing industrial and shipping centre This legacy is very much evident in the neoclassical port capital The administrative centre and university town is urbane and cultured without a trace of touristy artifice arts festivals and religious celebrations (on Twelfth Night Locals get together over mezze and live music in cosy bistros and bars such as the atmospheric Cantina Analogue and Laoutari or venture into the vast nature reserve in the northern hills to forage for herbs Non-profit outfit Hermoupolis Heritage brings behind-the-scenes glimpses of the island’s illustrious past — a night tour of an abandoned textile factory or a gentle cruise on a beautifully restored wooden caique a historic mansion that combines lavish style the handsome shipping quarter of Hermoupolis Book several months ahead for off-season stays • The best quiet Greek islands The old town of Chania on Crete (Getty Images)3 CreteSo far south it separates the Aegean from the Libyan Sea Crete has a temperate climate that makes year-round swimming a tempting Vai and Preveli are even more appealing without the summer crowds while snow-capped peaks and deep canyons provide challenging terrain for hikers Basic but brilliant taverns in hillside villages serve fortifying lunches of roast goat the grape distillate that is knocked back at every opportunity there’s a whole Minoan civilisation to explore: Knossos Phaestos and Malia are a different world without the coach and cruise parties Byzantine monasteries and Ottoman monuments As the 19th-century British satirist Saki wryly noted: “The people of Crete unfortunately make more history than they can consume locally.” Where to stay A cosy stone cottage at Kapsaliana Village Hotel an 18th-century village set in the island’s largest olive grove • Best things to do in Crete CorfuEvergreen Corfu is coming into its own as a year-round destination Mass tourism has blighted much of the coastline but swathes of the interior have hardly changed since the Durrells fell for its magic which “settled over us as gently and clingingly as pollen” The 136-mile Corfu Trail runs the length of this lush island gorges and vast expanses of olive trees (four million and counting) planted by the conquering Venetians centuries ago Their Italianate influence is present everywhere: in comforting dishes such as pastitsada (macaroni with rooster) in stone villages such as Perithia and especially in Corfu’s Venetian Old Town Tourist traps close in winter and locals return to the marble-paved alleys for sophisticated tapas at Salto and snazzy cocktails at Mikro Café Perhaps the most unspoiled corner of Corfu is the Erimitis peninsula an area of incredible beauty and biodiversity stylish cottages in a hundred-year-old olive grove on Dr Kavvadia’s organic farm Guests can join the olive harvest (October and November) or sign up for relaxed food and wine workshops • Best things to do in Corfu The waterfalls of Pythara on Andros (Alamy)5 AndrosUnlike most of its Cycladic neighbours most visitors are Greek and the mist-swirled peaks and dirt tracks that peter out at untouched beaches never feels crowded and municipal buildings a legacy of the local shipping fortunes amassed in the 19th century Hippies have settled in the tiny hilltop hamlets; bohemians host dinner parties in lavish country piles inherited from their ship-owning ancestors; and in the hinterland life goes on pretty much has it has for decades Farmers still please passing ramblers with freshly churned goat’s cheese and jars of preserved fruits; the wetlands rustle with migrating birds and impenetrable forests chime with freshwater springs Andros Routes is an excellent resource for self-guided walks along the island’s many waymarked trails a tactfully modernised 150-year-old country house in the lush plain of Livadia which comes with five bicycles and a pool for warmer days • Best Greek islands The medieval Old Town of Rhodes (Getty Images)6 RhodesAs one of the most southerly Greek islands Rhodes benefits from a relatively long summer season But even in the winter months temperatures tend to be mild and there are a growing number of hotels staying open all year round to help those in the know take advantage of this The medieval Old Town is the most obvious place to start this fortified city was established in 1309 when the knights of St John made their base on the island perfect for strolling past those grand townhouses at leisure The port of Mandraki is another essential stop for history Here you’ll find the spot where the 108ft high Colossus of Rhodes once guarded the island before it toppled into the sea after an earthquake a petite village dotted with whitewashed buildings built into the hills and its own acropolis surveying the picturesque scene housed in one of those aforementioned mansions • Best hotels in Rhodes Sign up for the Times Travel Newsletter here