An atmospheric journey in Amorgos
An almost mythical island. Today we begin an atmospheric journey.
It is the island of Amorgos with its infinite blue, Amorgos with its energy fields, its resplendent light and its poetic beauty.
The island of Amorgos, cradle of poetry and the poet Nikos Gatsos.
Located at the southern tip of the Cyclades but in the heart of the Aegean Archipelagos. A day tour in one of the special islands of Greece.
7: oo am.
As the first day’s ship departs Aegiali, it heads west towards the Cyclades and Piraeus. We guess on the faces of the passengers the possible end of their vacation, and that sweet tiredness that leaves you with a nice trip when it comes to an end. However, our day trip in Amorgos has just started.
8:40 am, Southeastern Cyclades
Amorgos, it is said that it took its name from the plant “Amorgis” as a kind of linen with which the tunics of Amorgos were made. It is located in the extreme north of the Cyclades, after Naxos and the Little Cyclades. With two natural harbors, Katapola and Aegiali, and an incredibly beautiful “hour”, one of the most beautiful in the Cyclades, Amorgos seems to intersect with the Aegean Sea and its vastness.
9:35 am, the Amorgian cake
We start the day with a sweet treat, the traditional Amorgian pastry and, of course, a Greek coffee.
Amorgos is famous for some traditional and favorite products such as pasteli, rose sugar, raki, raki …
Rose Sugar is a unique product made from wild rose petals that bloom in May and are kneaded with sugar and lemon. The cake is made with honey and sesame seeds. It is the sweet that is offered on lemon balm, in case of baptisms and celebrations, always accompanied by raki.
10:42 am, the “Captain Morgan” of the Cyclades
The French love Amorgos and Amorgos the French. In this long-lasting relationship of love and mutual respect, Bertrand’s story stands out. Bertrand de Amorgos made a long journey to most of the world to return with his ship to Amorgos. Today he organizes cruises with a traditional boat in the Aegean, which he considers the best place for such trips.
12:15 pm, a little closer to God.
Visit the monastery of Ag. Georgios de Valsamitis.
A point where antiquity, orthodoxy, a famous water mill, the god Apollo, Saint George, the water that predicts what will happen in the future, and the constant search for truth, fully exist. In the 8th century, an icon was found at that point and a monastery was built. Today it is a place of spiritual elevation, tranquility, serenity and inner search.
13:30 h. A long journey in the “chora“
The island’s capital, Amorgos “chora” features classic Cycladic beauty with narrow cobbled streets, whitewashed two-story houses, arches and countless churches. The picture is completed by pristine white, an almost crystal blue sky, and the warm, strong colors of bougainvillea.
All of these are known and loved in our Cycladic color palette.
Another feature is the typical hill with windmills, which look out over the Aegean Sea.
A huge contradiction if you consider the years of pirate raids. These narrow and winding streets, this labyrinth of the “chora” then served to escape the inhabitants, who ran and got lost here to escape the pirates.
2:45 p.m., Encounter with history
Visit to the folk museum, where the historical archives of the island are located. This file has been compiled over many decades and has been digitized in recent years. The archive has documents from 300 years ago.
The documents reflect the lifestyle of the island’s inhabitants and the changes that occurred over the centuries. Also on these archive pages are important historical facts and figures about the oldest image of Amorgos. You can even find registered natural phenomena and disasters that affect the landscape but also the economy – society of the island.
3:45 p.m., Santa Ana and the Virgin Mary of Hozoviotissa
Saint Anne, mother of the Virgin Mary and the Virgin Mary stands symbolically here on the east side of the island.
We are talking about the famous little chapel of Santa Ana and the famous beach, with the fantastic aquamarine colors of the water that formed the natural backdrop of the film of Luc Mpesson “Big Blue”. The Ag. Anna seems to be here in an ongoing conversation with the monastery of the Virgin Mary of Hozoviotissa, which stands for nine centuries perched there on the steep slope.
Amorgos is famous for its hiking trails. The most famous route is the climb to the Hozoviotissa monastery, 300 steps and many scales to enjoy this breathtaking breathtaking view. Stand here and admire the vastness of the world on one of the largest and most beautiful balconies.
16:20 pm, facing the Aegean Sea, seeking God
Built in defiance of the landscape, and at the same time extolling the greatness of the world, hooked on rugged rocks, the Hozoviotissa monastery seems ready as a miracle.
It seems to swing on a thin rope that separates the material world from the spiritual Hymn to human will and faith. Almost against natural laws, a meteor in the Aegean. Meteor like the thousands of unanswered questions of humanity. The monastery was built in 1088 and the occasion of its inauguration was to find the icon of the Virgin Mary that arrived here from Hozhova in Palestine, a place near the Holy Land and Jericho.
An island, an immense blue embrace and a miraculous place that affects the soul of the people
18:30 Vespers and the Castle
We return to the “chora” and it is time for Vespers.
Then visit the many churches of the “chora” and we go towards the Castle that dominates on the rock in the middle of the town.
It has been there since the 13th century. It is a Venetian building. At the top of the cliff you will be taken by a steep staircase built on the north side, while to exit the Castle you first pass through the Ag. George Chapel. From the castle now the view is panoramic and reaches Naxos, the small Cyclades and IOS. From this point, the inhabitants were able to control the Sea of Naxos and Astypalaia.
21:45 pm, “Amorgiano gentle perasma ‘
Stop at the cafeteria with traditional music performed by young musicians. Amorgos is famous for the parties organized at every opportunity …
Amorgos by N. Gatsos
To a green star
The bad witnesses of men are eyes and ears if they have barbarian souls. HERACLITUS
With his country tied to the sails, his oars suspended in the wind
the castaways slept tame as dead beasts on sponge sheets
but the eyes of the algae turn to the sea
Ballast the south wind, drive them back with freshly dyed sails
and a lost elephant is always worth a little more than the two breasts of a
shaky girl.
only that the roofs of the chapels in the ruined mountains light up with the desire to
Evening star
let the birds come in waves to the masts of the lemon trees
with the loud white gasps of new steps
and then the winds will come the bodies of swans that are soft without dirtying
yet
In the shop bulldozers in the cyclones of the cabbage fields
when women’s eyes darkened and chestnut hearts
sellers broke
when the harvest stopped and the hopes of the crickets began.