Day 10: Mykonos, Greece

This morning, Silver Moon is docked in Mykonos, Greece. This is our first time to visit the island. We were scheduled to make a stop here on a cruise back in 2017, but the ship was re-routed due to high seas. So, we are excited to finally get to see Mykonos.

My morning begins as usual, by working on my blog from yesterday’s activities. The staff running Arts Cafe already have my coffee made and waiting for me when I arrive. Hats off to the great folks running Arts Cafe.

My blogging desk with fresh coffee

This morning, Silver Moon medical staff are conducting Covid-19 Antigen tests from 7:30-9:00am and 4:30-6:00pm. We decided to get it over with early before going on our tour. The test only takes a few minutes and is required for us to fly back into the US.

We disembark Silver Moon this morning for a morning walking tour of Mykonos. As soon as we disembark Silver Moon, Katarina, one of the Silversea cruise staff directs us to where we will meet our local guide for the walking tour.

Rickee disembarks Silver Moon in Mykonos

Once everyone gathers for our tour, about 12 of us, we board a motorcoach which will deliver us near the town center. We begin walking along the waterfront, taking in the sights. All of the buildings are painted white, and we learned that buildings in the path of the strong winds are built with rounded corners and special windows.

The island is home to 10,000 residents in the off season, but during July and August, more than 200,000 occupy the island as this is one of the top tourist destinations in Greece.

Our guide stops to show us a map of the island and point out some of the local areas of interest. Our walking tour will take us through some of the narrow streets to the most popular sights on the island: the windmills.

We stop at a local museum for a look at some well-preserved artifacts which have been uncovered on the island. It is a welcome stop to get in out of the heat, which by 10:30am is already in the 90s!

After about two miles of walking, we arrive at the windmills. For some reason, we were not able to get closer to them. I am not sure why since we did see other tourists walking near them. Nevertheless, we had the opportunity to get a photo which Katarina was kind enough to take of us.

Thank you Katarina, for the photo!

As we walked back toward town from the windmills, we stopped at one of the many churches on the island. This one below is the most photographed church on the island.

Our leisurely stroll takes us back to the waterfront where we walk past busy oceanfront cafes and shops. One look at the prices at the shops and you know immediately that Mykonos is a favorite spot for the rich and famous. Our tour guide takes us to a local oceanfront cafe where we are all seated and offered a mezze plate along with a substantial serving of Ouzo (anise-flavored Greek spirit). Personally, I do not like Ouzo, so I did not partake, but the mezze were quite good. Rickee and I ordered Cokes and they were 4€ each and not covered in the cost of the tour. Actually, at only $49 per person, I was surprised that the tour offered the mezze and the Ouzo.

After our late morning snack, the guide offered to walk us back to the shuttle bus or we could wander off on our own. Silversea runs complimentary shuttles every 30 minutes until 9:30pm. We decided to do a little exploring in our own, so off we went with no idea where we were or where we were going.

We found ourselves lost in a maze of narrow streets and walkways, like the one below. Along our path, we found lots of local merchants selling clothing, jewelry, shoes, souvenirs, you name it. We found a souvenir shop where we bought our magnets and a few other items. Prices for souvenirs on Mykonos are about double what we have paid everywhere else in Greece.

After about an hour of walking around, I kept trying to find the way back to the waterfront. The streets here do not run in any sort of grid, they just meander all over the place. I tried Google Maps, but it still seemed as though we were walking in circles. Finally, after about 20 minutes of wandering around, we came upon the waterfront. We were just about ready to stop and ask a local for directions, but fortunately, we did not need to!

Walking through the streets of Mykonos

We are back on board Silver Moon in time for a quick and late lunch at Spaccanapoli. I had the Marinara pizza and Rickee had the Margherita. Both pizzas were MUCH better than the first ones we had here a few days earlier. In fact, they were both delicious!

Before dinner tonight, we decided to make one last visit to The S.A.L.T. Bar. The bartender here could see we were struggling with a decision on what to order, so he recommended The Gateway, one of their signature drinks. Rickee and I both had one and I think it was the best cocktail of the entire cruise! This is our new favorite Silversea cocktail.

The Gateway at The S.A.L.T. Bar on Silver Moon

For dinner this evening, we decided to try Atlantide. This was our first time to try dinner here. Atlantide is sort of the “go-to” restaurant on Silver Moon (and Spirit and Muse). We were seated at a lovely table for two right next to a window.

The menu remains the same here every day with the exception of a Chef’s Daily Recommended menu. I ordered the King Scallops with Strawberries, a weird combination that really seems to work well.

Scallops with Strawberries

Rickee ordered the caviar starter which is an entire tin (or jar) of Oscietra caviar with all of the trimmings. Once again, she feels the blinis are too sweet, but that did not keep her from finishing the entire order. You can now get this caviar 24 hours a day on Silversea.

Sustainable caviar available 24 hours a day

For my main course, I had the Thai Green Chicken Curry on the daily specials menu. I told the waiter that I wanted it extra spicy, and the chef complied. I was pretty close to sweating at the end of the meal. The curry was delicious. Rickee ordered the vegetarian Voul-au-vent and for dessert she had the Lemon Meringue Pie.

Lemon Meringue Pie at Atlantide

After dinner, it was time for the dreaded packing to go home duties. The worst part of any cruise is having to pack to go home. Luggage Forward will pick up our bags from the ship and deliver them to our home in about 7 to 10 days.

It was another excellent day aboard Silver Moon. We got to visit a new island destination, discover a new favorite cocktail, and enjoy more of this beautiful ship. Sadly, it is our last day aboard Silver Moon, at least for now! Watch for our upcoming video review and more Silver Moon content coming soon to CruiseReport.com.