Tag: Aegean Sea

Greeks of the Sea television show debuts Down Under

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Click on the arrow to view a 2-minute promotional trailer for the Greeks of the Sea television series premiering July 19 in Australia

 

Aegean odyssey: Television viewers Down Under will be seeing and learning a lot about Greece’s centuries-long seafaring heritage in a multi-part program premiering next weekend — Greeks of the Sea, an engaging and visually striking documentary series about fishermen, boat builders, ferry captains, sponge divers and other Greeks who earn a living and spend their lives at sea.

Greeks of the Sea intertwines fascinating and moving stories of the sea within a rich tapestry of Greek culture, hospitality, religion, history and mythology.  Taking in breathtakingly beautiful islands and stepping aboard spectacular ships, viewers are in for a visual treat – the series is presented in stunning full 1080p High Definition,” the program website states.

 July 19 TV premiere in Australia

The series premieres at 7.30 p.m. Saturday July 19 on Australia’s SBS TV. The program was produced by Greek Seadogs/Tadpole Studios in association with SBS Television. Two versions of Greeks of the Sea were created — a 3-episode version for the Australian domestic television market, and a 6-part series for international distribution. (No information is available at this time on when the program might be broadcast in other countries.)

Greeks of the Sea is hosted by an Australian-born Greek, Nikos Andronicos, who visits Athens and more than two dozen different Greek islands “to meet the world’s most acclaimed mariners, and to discover the key to their success.”

Full details about the production — including episode summaries, photos, and information about its cast and crew — are available on the Greeks of the Sea website.  Be sure to watch the series trailer (above), which will give you a sneak peak of Nikos’s adventures on the Aegean.

Fingers crossed that the show is a big hit with viewers so the producers will be encouraged to create a second season.

Amazing Amorgos and the bedazzling Big Blue

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vivid blue Aegean Sea

“The Big Blue” is a nickname that befits the breathtaking colours of the Aegean Sea off the east coast of Amorgos, below the Chozoviotissa Monastery …

 

Kalotyri Bay Amorgos

… but there are striking, vivid tones of turquoise and blue all around Amorgos, including Kalotyri Bay on the north coast off Nikouria Island (top) …

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Nikouria Island across Egali Bay on Amorgos

… and Egali Bay, seen here looking southwest toward Nikouria Island

 

Breathtaking blues: I’m always surprised when I read online travel forums and see how many people seem to believe that Santorini is the only island in the Cyclades with spectacular scenery. Santorini is incredibly beautiful, there’s no doubt about that. And while it may be incomparable, it doesn’t hold a monopoly on drop-dead gorgeous landscapes and seascapes. I’ve been impressed by the scenery on Milos and Folegandros, too, and I’ve been absolutely awestruck by Amorgos. Or, as I sometimes like to call it, Ahhhh!morgos.

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Things I love about Greece: Waking up to gorgeous views at hotels in the Greek Islands (Part 1)

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Platis Gialos bay beach and resort area on Mykonos

On our very first morning in the Greek Islands back in 2004, we were awestruck by this view from our balcony at the Myconian Ambassador Hotel on Mykonos

 

Va-va-va-view: On our first-ever trip to Greece, we arrived at Mykonos after nightfall and didn’t have a clue what kind of view we would get from our balcony at the Myconian Ambassador Hotel. The hotel employee who showed us to our room opened the balcony doors and assured us we would have beautiful sightlines of the sea and Platis Gialos beach, but most of the area was pitch black  and we couldn’t see much more than lights from nearby hotels and houses. It also was surprisingly quiet, though whenever the light breeze blew in our direction, we could faintly hear Greek music being played in the tavernas lining the beach a few hundred meters below us.

When we woke up the next morning and pulled open the balcony doors, our jaws dropped as we got our first glimpse of Platis Gialos in daylight. The view was absolutely gorgeous! Spread out below were dozens of the island’s signature white cube buildings, the golden-brown sandy beach, and the vivid deep blues and tempting turquoise waters of the legendary Aegean Sea.

On all of our Greek Island holidays since then, we’ve always tried to get a hotel room with a good sea view. If the room itself doesn’t offer one, we’re content if there is at least a decent sea view from a public area somewhere else on the hotel property — be it a breakfast room, swimming pool terrace, or other place where we can sit, relax and gaze at the scenery. At home, all we see from our windows and balcony are highrise glass, steel and concrete towers. When we travel on holidays, we cherish views of the sea. It’s even better if we can see some islands and mountains, too. Bonus points if we can watch a spectacular sunset. But a Greek holiday just wouldn’t feel the same if we couldn’t see the Aegean.

I posted additional photos of the views from the Myconian Ambassador Hotel in my June 3 2011 post. Below are photos showing the various different views we have had from some of the other hotels we stayed at during Greek Island holidays since. Some of the views are terrific, and others considerably less so, but with only one or two exceptions, we always got to see the sea without having to leave our hotels.

 

Rodos Palladium sea view

The view from our balcony at the Rodos Palladium at Kallithea beach on Rhodes

 

Rodos Palladium sea and pool views

Evening view from our balcony at the Rodos Palladium in 2004

 

full moon above Kallithea beach Rhodes in 2004

Our Rodos Palladium balcony view of a full moon above Kallithea Bay in 2004

 

Candia Maris Resort & Spa Crete hotel room view

The balcony to our room at the Candia Maris Resort & Spa in Amoudara, Crete gave us this view of sea and mountains in 2004…

 

Candia Maris Resort & Spa Crete

… as well as this view of the resort’s indoor swimming pool…

 

a row of balconies at the Candia Maris Resort & Spa Crete

… plus this view of other balconies on our side of this particular hotel building

 

Santorini Palace Fira Santorini

That’s me on our sea-view terrace at the Santorini Palace Hotel on Santorini in 2004. This isn’t the breathtaking caldera view for which Santorini is renowned (this is the less scenic east side of the island), but it looked great to us. And if we did want to see the spectacular caldera view, all we had to do was exit the hotel’s main entrance and walk 100 meters up a short slope — and there it was.

 

Imerovigli village on Santorini at sunset

We couldn’t see a famous Santorini sunset from our terrace at the Santorini Palace Hotel, but we could see the sunset glowing on clouds above Imerovigli village

 

Myconian Imperial Hotel view of Elia Bay

A view of Elia Bay on Mykonos from the Myconian Imperial Resort & Villas in 2005

 

Myconian Imperial Resort & Villas hotel room view of Elia Bay

Part of the sea view from our balcony at the Myconian Imperial Resort & Villas

 

Myconian Imperial Resort balcony view

More of the sea view from our balcony at the Myconian Imperial Resort & Villas

 

Myconian Imperial Resort & Villas balcony view

Houses and rental accommodation on the steep hillside rising to the left of our balcony at the Myconian Imperial Resort & Villas

 

Myconian Imperial Resort & Villas Mykonos

Our bathroom window gave us a view of more hotel rooms higher up the hillside

 

Naxos Beach Hotel II view of Naxos Town

In 2005, we enjoyed views of Naxos Town and Agios Georgios Bay from the Naxos Beach II hotel in the Stelida district of Naxos

 

Naxos Beach II hotel views of Naxos

Another view toward Naxos Town from the Naxos Beach II hotel

 

Naxos Beach II hotel room view

Our bedroom at Naxos Beach II had doors that opened onto a stone-paved terrace offering this view toward Naxos Town

 

Naxos Beach II view of Naxos Town

Another view from the terrace outside our bedroom at the Naxos Beach II

 

Yria Hotel room terrace

At the Yria Hotel on Paros in 2005, our room had a large ground-level terrace


Yria Hotel Paros hotel room view

This was the view if we looked to the left while sitting on the terrace…

 

Yria Hotel Paros hotel room view

…while, unfortunately, this was the view to the right — overlooking an unattractive overflow parking area

 

Yria Hotel Paros views

We could catch a slight glimpse of the sea from the Yria’s swimming pool terrace…

 

Yria Hotel sea view

…and also see a small section of Paraspora beach, which was just a five-minute walk down the road…

 

Yria Hotel Paros swimming pool

… but the Yria Hotel’s main attraction was its enormous swimming pool. It looked fantastic, but the chilly water was murky from suntan oil

 

Phenix apartments and cliff houses on Santorini

In 2005, we loved this marvellous caldera view from our private terrace at the Phenix Hotel in the cliffside village of Imerovigli on Santorini

 

Phenix Hotel Santorini

We didn’t even have to leave our hotel room to enjoy the amazing view…

 

Phenix Hotel on Santorini

…but we preferred to savour the stunning scenery from our sun-bathed terrace

 

Phenix Hotel view of nearby hotels in Imerovigli

Looking to the left, we had this view of other hotels perched perilously on the steep cliffside high above the sea in Imerovigli

 

Phenix Hotel Santorini views

Looking down, we could see the caldera and cruise ships below the town of Fira

 

Phenix Hotel Santorini views

And from an upper level of the hotel, we enjoyed this view of the volcano island (Nea Kameni) and the gorgeous swimming pool at the Honeymoon Petra Villas, a beautiful multi-level hotel clinging to the cliffside next door to the Phenix