Category: Blog

Celebrating Christmas and the New Year in the Cyclades, Greece, is always a fascinating experience!

If, in early December, it happens that you catch a ferry to the Cyclades, at almost every port you will be met by the beautiful sight of shining, lit up fishing boats, decorated with small colorful lamps and all sorts of flags. For Greeks living by the sea, Christmas trees are a rather foreign custom so they choose to celebrate the birth of Christ and the New Year with a taste of sea salt!

Among the many festivities, with the children singing beautiful carols and the smell of the exquisite holiday dishes filling the air, the most special celebration of all is the Epiphany; a moment of devotement, when the local priest throws the holy cross in the waters in order to bless them and then a bunch of—usually young—men jump in the cold as ice sea to catch it and be themselves blessed. According to the tradition, he who keeps it in his hands will have great luck throughout the year.

There are many more sayings like this across the Aegean: if for example, on New Year’s Day, the wind comes from the North, it will bring good luck, while, on the same day, a pigeon landing in the house yard will be a good omen. On the contrary, if you see a raven flying over your roof, there are chances of bad things happening. In some of the islands, on the first morning of the New Year, people touch their faces with a piece of iron so that they will be healthy and strong—as if made of iron.

If, during Christmas holidays, you disembark in Mykonos, don’t even think of missing the chance to try the traditional around Greece, famous “kourabiedes” (butter biscuits with almonds, dusted with icing sugar), “melomakarona” or “finikia” (baked biscuits dipped in honey syrup) and “diples”(fried dough dipped in honey syrup). Not only their taste but also their smell as well is irresistible.

Sailing around the Aegean, in Amorgos you will eat “koftos”, a dish that includes wheat, onions, grated cheese and olive oil. In Anafi Christmas Day is celebrated with “koufeto”, a spoon sweet made of peeled almonds and pieces of pumpkin together slowly boiled in honey and New Year’s Day with the famous “zaforisto”, bread that has the taste of saffron and the color of the sun. In Naxos the Christmas bread is made of raisins and walnuts with a whole shelled walnut in the center of the loaf. In Sifnos the traditional Christmas meal consists of roasted pork and bread made with aniseed. In Syros, on Christmas Eve, the catholic residents eat fish and cauliflower while in Tripotamos, a small village of Tinos Island, people enjoy their “Brotherhood Meal”; an old Christmas custom according to which the (always male) head of the family is assigned to keep the candle that stands in front of the icon of Christ’s Birth, lit during the whole year. Lunch is also an only-men celebration, where guests bring their own cutlery, bread and wine and eat large portions of veal soup, meat cooked with onions in tomato sauce and boiled meat that the master of the house must serve abundantly.

Though Greece is not the only country in the world with a rich mythology, the lives of gods, semi-gods and heroes in its pre-historical times still have the power of a multicolor, vivid fairy tale that can keep our fantasy alive and thriving. Children learn about it at school and many are named after the fascinating personalities that influenced and inspired the ‘commoners’. The island of Mykonos was often mentioned in mythology, mostly in relation to the nearby sacred Delos Island which is a very important ancient site, visited by millions of people every year.

According to the myth, Delos emerged unexpectedly from the depths of the Aegean Sea, with the sole purpose to offer a safe place where beautiful Leto, granddaughter of Uranus (Skies) and Gaia (Earth), could give birth to her twins; Artemis, later goddess of hunt and Apollo, god of music. The reason why Leto was flying over the Cyclades was because Hera, wife of Zeus, who was the ‘illegal’ father of the children, was so furious that had ordered all land to disappear under Leto’s feet!

Legend also says that the Cyclades took their name from the Greek word ‘kyklos’, that means circle, exactly because they form an imaginary, protective circle around Delos.

As for Mykonos, it is believed that it was named after Mykons, its first ruler and highly esteemed hero, who was thought to be the grandson of god Apollo. It was the island where the great battle between Zeus and the fearful Titans took place; or where, according to another myth, Hercules managed to destroy the Giants, who were supposed to be invincible as long as they stayed under the protection of the holy Mount Olympus. Apparently Hercules lured them to this island and killed them. It is said that the large rocks scattered around the island are nothing but their petrified corpses.

Mykonos was firstly inhabited by Phoenicians, Minoans and Egyptians and later, around 1000BC, by the Ionians who took over the island. The islanders worshiped many gods but their favorites were Dionysus, god of wine, Demeter, goddess of farming, Poseidon, god of the seas and Apollo, the “local” god of music. Even in their deities’ choices it was more than obvious that Mykonians were destined for a life full of fun!

It wasn’t until the early ‘30s though that this alluring piece of heaven in the heart of the Aegean Sea started hosting the ‘rich and the famous’, including many artists, who were seduced by its unique beauties and kept coming back, building the island’s reputation as a top worldwide destination.

Today, the island that has a population of around 11,000 people welcomes more than 2 million visitors every year; so make sure you will not be the exception of the rule! Just make the decision and the best villas in Mykonos will be here to give you a warm welcome!

As you stroll around Chora, the beautiful capital of Mykonos, so serene in its fall dress, surrounded by a calm sea, you pass by Manto Mavrogenous square. This central “piazza” of the Old Port is “home” to a legendary woman, whose marble bust stands in the middle of the square.

Her fascinating story goes back to the times of the Greek revolution, in 1821, where Mykonos played a key role. Magdalene ‘Manto’ Mavrogenous was born in Trieste, in 1796, and raised in a well-off aristocratic, educated and politically liberal family. Her father was a successful merchant in Greece and abroad and her mother, a well educated, polyglot woman born in Mykonos, also took care of the family business. Manto received a high education and was much influenced by the ideals of the Enlightenment. As a result she grew up to being a dynamic young and very open-minded lady at a time when women were considered as “children of a lesser god”. Historians say that despite of having an intelligent, beautiful mind, Manto Mavrogenous was known in her cosmopolitan environment as ‘La bella Greca’.

Manto’s role in the Revolution

Nevertheless, Manto had no time for playing the role of a great looking debutante since her heart was already devoted to the idea of liberating Greece, that for the past almost 400 years was occupied by the Turks. She started speaking with unlimited passion to her European friends about the need for the independence of her country, raising interest and funds for the Great Cause.

The Greek Revolution started in 1809. Manto Mavrogenous alone equipped and manned at her own expense a fleet and an infantry, sent hundreds of men to campaign in the Peloponnese, forwarded army and money to other islands threatened by the enemy and kept spending every penny of her fortune to support the Great Cause in any possible way. In the course of things, she met famous Demetrius Ypsilanti, brother of a prince, and was engaged to him. Unfortunately their engagement was opposed and broken by several powerful politicians who didn’t want the unification of two powerful families. Manto went to Nafplio, first capital of Greece, where she lived, deeply depressed and without any money left. Later she returned to Mykonos where she started writing her memoirs. In 1840 Mavrogenous moved to the island of Paros where she died 8 years later.

Her fascinating life story and worth remembering contribution to the Greek Revolution made Manto Mavrogenous one of the greatest Greek heroines. In her homeland, Mykonos, she is still honored for her courage, integrity and strength.