Looking south toward the Agios Ioannis area of Ios, from a hillside path between Chora and Kolitsani beach. The Hermes Hotel can be seen at the center of the photo, while Santorini island is faintly visible toward the top right. Click on the image to view it in a larger format.
A promising patch of blue sky appears above Rinia island on the morning of Friday May 18 2012, while thick grey and jet-black stormclouds gather ominously above Mykonos in this view from the Hotel Tagoo swimming pool deck.
After two hours of torrential morning downpours completely soaked the island, the rain stopped, letting tourists and passengers from the Celebrity Equinox (left) enjoy their sightseeing at the Little Venice area of Mykonos Town (above)
A brief — but very light — afternoon rainshower gave way to a glorious evening rainbow that arced high in the sky above the island’s Tagoo district …
… and soon after was followed by a colourful and dramatic sunset
Friday, May 18
Rain, rain, go away: Even a morning of heavy downpours didn’t dampen my spirits on Day 5 of my Mykonos holiday.
When I left my hotel room to go for breakfast, I was shocked by the drastic change in weather from the day before. Strong gusts of very chilly winds were blowing jet-black stormclouds above the Agean, and though there were sunny spots in the sky above Syros, Rinia and other nearby islands, the steadily thickening cloudcover suggested Mother Nature was getting ready to unleash her fury on Mykonos.
In the breakfast room, one of the other guests asked a question I’ve never had to answer before: “What do you recommend doing on a rainy day in Mykonos?” “Read, sleep, go shopping, visit the archaeological museum or just go sit in a coffee shop or taverna and wait for the rain to stop,” I said. I actually wasn’t quite sure what I would do myself.
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The open-air terrace at Kamara Café in Upper Potamos is a great spot to view the amazing scenery while enjoying some of the café’s delicious Greek cuisine
The café also has lounge areas on its terrace, for those who just want to sit back and relax with a glass of wine while watching a spectacular sunset
This was one of the sunsets we watched from the Kamara Café. Here, the sun looks like an enormous white orb as it slowly descends behind Naxos island.
You’re guaranteed to work up a hearty appetite and thirst on your way to the restaurant — It’s a half-hour walk from Egali, up hundreds of steps like these.
Steps, stews and sunsets: When I was planning our trip to Amorgos in 2009, I asked an acquaintance in Athens for restaurant recommendations. We absolutely had to go to Kamara Café in Ano Potamos village, she said, and order the patatato — a goat and potato stew that is one of the island’s signature local dishes. Her other tip: allow plenty of time to walk up the mountain to the taverna, so we wouldn’t miss seeing the sunset if we got lost or delayed en route. “You won’t believe the view! The sunset — fabulous! And make sure you try the goat!” she gushed.
I put Kamara Café on my “must try” list, thinking that would nicely take care of dinner plans for one of the four nights we would spend on Amorgos. That list was in my luggage, in our room at the Yperia Hotel in Egali, while we were out exploring during our first day on the island. We spent the entire afternoon in and around Egali, wandering around the town, the beach, and some of the hiking trails in the area, as well as scoping out places where we might like to have dinner that night. Several spots near the beach and in the center of the town caught our eye, but since I didn’t have my restaurant list with me, I couldn’t remember if any were among the specific places that friends had highly recommended. Nevertheless, since we would probably be “walked out” by the end of the day, we were happy to see we would be spoiled for choice within a short stroll of our hotel.
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