Greece's ancient paradise
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BRENDA WEBB finds an island that comes close to perfection.
Ancient Greek mythology says that Odysseus was held on the island of Lipsi for seven years under the spell of the sea nymph Calypso.
We've been here only a few days and no-one has cast a spell, but we are well and truly hooked by Lipsi's loveliness.
There is so much here to wax lyrical about: lush terraces of grapes, figs and citrus, whitewashed villas perched on hillsides with beautiful views and a picture-postcard-perfect port town with the ubiquitous collection of brightly coloured fishing boats.
It all seems too good to be true.
Lipsi lies well off the beaten tourist track and that's part of its magic.
There is no airport and no direct ferry link from Athens, so the island takes some getting to, which makes it so special.
There are no hordes of tourists to spoil the idyllic scene, just the 700-odd locals going casually about their business, the handful of holidaymakers who rent villas on the island and a few boatloads of day trippers from nearby Patmos.
Then, of course, there are a few lost yachties like us, who stumble upon this paradise and find themselves reluctant to leave.
Few cars spoil the serenity. There are a few scooters and the small, three-wheeled trucks that that are so typical of tiny Mediterranean islands, along with dozens of bicycles.
Lipsi really is one of those Greek Islands you didn't think existed any more totally unspoilt with beautiful sand and pebble beaches lined with shady tamarisk trees and turquoise water with unbelievable clarity.
Unlike most Greek islands, Lipsi is lusciously green. Its soils have been preserved and the residents cultivate and fertilise it well.
Tiny valleys are full of crops and wildflowers blooming while we were there, as well as oats to feed the many goats, sheep and cows.
The islanders produce some of the best sheep and goat cheeses we have tried and very quaffable wines to wash them down with.
The gorgeous whitewashed houses have vivid blue shutters and doors that seem to match the blue domes of the prolific churches and chapels that dot the island. They say there is one church for every family on the island and, indeed, from one hilltop, we could count 19.
Many of the holiday villas are set snugly into hillsides, with sweeping views across to the Turkish mainland in the west or Patmos in the east.
Lipsi is only 16 square kilometres, so it is easy to walk or bike around, and you will get fit in the process, because there are hills to make your heart pump. Many of the best beaches are within walking distance from the port.
Daily life on Lipsi is definitely low key. The friendly fishermen seem to spend all their days drying, cleaning and mending their nets and selling their catch to tavernas, locals and curious yachties like us. The womenfolk clean their spotless houses, tend to the gardens and stand on street corners talking.
There are only a handful of essential shops, including several tavernas, a supermarket, a post office, an electrical shop and a clothes shop, and none of the tacky souvenir shops that spoil other islands.
Lipsi was thrust unhappily into the limelight a few years ago when the leader of the Greek November 17 terrorist group, Alekos Giotopoulos, was found to be living a double life there as retired academic Mihalis Oikonomou. The group had for 28 years terrorised, looted and murdered its way through Greek society. Giotopoulos, a Marxist activist in the 1970s, ran the group from his home on Lipsi, at the same time mingling with unsuspecting islanders and holding secret meetings with international terrorist Carlos "The Jackal". In 2002, special forces descended on Lipsi and arrested Giotopoulos in his rose-pink mansion overlooking the harbour.
Today, islanders prefer to forget the incident and shut down quickly any conversations pertaining to it, preferring to talk about the island and what it has to offer.
And it has plenty, but when it becomes too languid, you can jump on the daily ferry to nearby Patmos and rub shoulders with cruise-ship passengers who descend upon the town en masse.
Patmos is where St John apparently wrote the Book of Revelations, after being banished from Ephesus in Turkey.
Religious visitors flock to visit the amazing hilltop monastery, which was built in 1088 in his memory.
It was built in the days of pirate raids, so is well fortified, and consists of a great number of interconnecting courtyards, chapels, stairways, hallways and a museum containing ancient art, treasures and religious icons.
Around the port sits Skala, a pretty town that has expanded to meet the needs of the tourist trade, with trendy boutiques, souvenir shops, dozens of rent-a-car shops and tavernas.
After Lipsi, it is a bit busy for us, but it is a nice contrast and reaffirms for us how lovely and quiet Lipsi really is.
We can't wait to go back.
- The Marlborough Express
