Panagia Tourliani Monastery

Leaving the splashing waters of the Aegean Sea behind we boarded  our motor-coach for the ride between Kalafati Beach and the charming village of Ano Mera at the center of the island, home to the lovely ...

Panagia Tourliani Monastery

Originally built in 1542 and dedicated to the Virgin Mary, this monastery was our next stop. It has impressive architecture, whitewashed exterior and colored dome which have long charmed visitors from around the world. As we walked from our motor-coach, we could only see the bell tower rising to the sky.   Even when we got closer, the bell tower and arches above the entrance still dominated the scene.

Inside the Monastery

Making our way inside the monastery church, we light a small candle, getting the flame from one that was already burning.   This gesture is a way of presenting your petitions to God.

The church is only large enough for one or two small groups to enter at a time.   The cruise line  made special arrangements for us to be able to visit.   It is obvious that some restoration is in progress as evidenced  by areas that were covered in plastic sheets and blocked by wooden barriers.   Consequently it was more difficult to navigate through the small church, necessitating a horseshoe shaped traffic flow in one direction.  Perhaps that was actually a blessing as it controlled our movements, making sure that the exquisite artwork was not overlooked.

In the interior of the church, we can see an impressive wooden iconostasis (altar screen) made in 1775 by Florentine artists.  The screen is decorated with green, red and golden flowers.

There are icons of apostles and saints on the iconostasis as well as scenes from the New Testament.  The hanging incense holders are decorated with silver dragons having red eggs in their mouth, which show the Eastern influence.

Once again, words cannot adequately describe the beauty before us in this tiny little church within the monastery.   We have shared several of our images on our Facebook Fan Page in the Panagia Tourliani Monastery Album.

Following our visit to the church, we continued our tour of the exterior grounds of the monastery, ending up in the town square where shops and busy cafes were found.  

We walked through the farmer's market en route to the motor-coach.   The small parking area was completely filled this Sunday morning with cars and motor-coaches.   In fact, several motor-coaches were lined up in a row.  Traffic was coming from all directions and the drivers of the cars didn't want to wait for us to get out of their way and tried to figure out how to get around us.   Our driver certainly earned his wages navigating through this very crowded parking area.  We all cheered for the driver when he was out of the snarled traffic.

We will continue our virtual Mykonos journey in another post.   Until then, visit our Facebook page to look at some of the pictures of our Mediterranean adventure thus far.

Additional photos can be found on our Facebook Albums.




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Images of Mykonos

A Day in Mykonos

Thanks to its proximity to the mainland, Mykonos was one of the first Greek islands to become an international travel destination. During the late '60s and early '70s, it was famed as a haunt for the rich. The island's nightlife is a glittering whirl of colored lights, music, and parties.  But what is Mykonos like when the sun is out?

Come explore with us as we visit this beautiful island in the Greek Isles.

Driving Through the Countryside       (Mykonos Countryside)

Our motorcoach departs the Port of Mykonos where our ship, Star Princess, is anchored.  We begin a scenic drive through the rocky countryside en route to a photo stop along the coast in the town of Agios Ioannis.   Here we explore a quaint little countryside church before continuing our journey to Kalafatis Beach, one of the most beautiful sandy beaches in Greece.

Arriving at Kalafati Beach    (Kalafati Beach)


One of the earliest established beaches, this beautiful bay and long sweeping Kalafati beach has become famous to wind surfers who enjoy a good offshore breeze.  Rows of thatched umbrellas stand guard between us and the turquoise Aegean Sea, but we cannot be denied our romp in the sea.   Kalafati Beach is home to soft sand, crystalline blue waters, and an amazing view of Cape Tarsanas where traces of a prehistoric citadel are preserved.

Panagia Tourliani Monastery    (Panagia Tourliani Monastery)

Panagia Tourliani Monastery, originally built in 1542 and dedicated to the Virgin Mary, was our next stop. It has impressive architecture, whitewashed exterior and a colored dome which has long charmed visitors from around the world. In the interior of the church, we see an impressive wooden iconostasis (altar screen) made in 1775 by Florentine artists.

Mykonos Town    (Mykonos Walking Tour)

Mykonos town features hip boutiques, restaurants, jewelry stores, souvenirs, taverns and cafés. The island's famed windmills are found just south of the waterfront.  Mykonos is a picturesque town with a labyrinth-like maze of tiny streets, white houses and red-roofed churches.  Our guide led us on a walking tour through the narrow, winding streets introducing us to some of the area's most treasured landmarks before giving us time to explore on our own before returning to the ship.

Making Memories in Mykonos    (Returning to Port of Mykonos)


Words cannot do justice to this picturesque town and surrounding area.  So  we have captured our memories on digital media cards and copied some of those images to our Facebook Fan page.   We invite you to visit our page and "like" us so that you will be notified as we post more photos and continue our story of this 12-Night Greek Isles & Mediterranean Cruise adventure.  The links above will take you to our photo albums.

Come back to visit our blog as we continue our cruise stories ... we will look at each of the above in detail.

Additional photos can be found on our Facebook Albums.




Click on the image to the left for more Blog posts about this trip.

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Where have you explored? 

Gather your travel and food pics and join us every Wednesday night for the latest installment of #FoodTravelChat