Saturday, April 14, 2012

Eastertime on Mykonos Passes Over into Spring


Tomorrow is Greek Orthodox Easter. If you remember what I wrote a year ago (don’t worry, there won’t be a quiz), the simple answer for the difference in the date used by Greeks and others of the Eastern Orthodox faith from that followed by Protestants and Catholics is that the former calculate their Easter based upon the Julian calendar while the latter use the modern Gregorian calendar.  If you want to know precisely how the date is determined, check out this link to my post last year around this time.  Things are confusing enough these days without my adding to them.

It’s still wintry here on Mykonos, which means rain at times and temperatures dipping into the 40’s at night. But we’re starting to have far more sunny days than not, with a few creeping into the 70’s.  A taste of what’s soon to come, no doubt.   When I arrived ten days ago, the old town was still in hibernation, with only a few open bars and restaurants catering to locals and early bird tourists. But by Thursday of Easter week restaurants, bars, and shops were popping open everywhere, pumped up and ready for business.

Nature, too, is in full bloom, giving the island a blanket of green covered in red, yellow and purple wildflowers.  But it will all be gone by the advent of tourist season.  It’s a picture of the island few tourists ever see.

Although the religious rituals and local traditions practiced during Easter Week on Mykonos are something special to behold, I also covered that in the same post last year, and so I thought I’d share with you this Springtime pictorial view of Mykonos and its neighboring island of Delos.  The photographs are from the files of the master collector of all things visual Mykonian, Dimitris Koutsoukas.  Enjoy.

The harbor and windmills.

The Countryside.


Delos.

Kalo paska.

Jeff—Saturday



19 comments:

  1. I'm on Patmos at the moment and the weather is changeable (alternative between sun and thunder!). But the wild flowers are beautiful and it is ideal weather for walking as it is not too hot. Kalo Pasxa

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  2. Ah, Patmos, it rivals my affection for Mykonos more than any other island, and I know it almost as well. The weather at the moment here is not as nice, it's literally storming. But tomorrow will be beautiful. Hopefully tonight for Midnight Easter services as well.

    Kalo Paska, Sarah!

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  3. What a wonderful display on the islands! The wild flowers are simply gorgeous. Easy to see why you love it so much!
    Michael.

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  4. Yes, Michael, it's truly a different place in Springtime. Episis, Liz!

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    Replies
    1. http://www.5minutesformom.com/53609/easter-link-up-2012/

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  5. Hi Jeff

    does "Kalos paska" mean happy Easter? Here we say "Gleðilega páska" so I guess now I know where the word "páskar" comes from. We do seem to have gotten the "Kalos" part wrong though.

    Enjoy the lovely spring on offer.

    reg
    Yrsa

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  6. Just beautiful. And then you throw in the ruins of a temple just to remind us of where we are. It brings chills to me. This is nourishment for the soul.

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  7. Thanks, Yrsa, and may your flowers soon be in bloom, too. "Kalos Paska"--also spelled Paskha or Pasxa--actually means "Good Easter." The word itself is generally attributed as derived from the Hebrew word Pesach for Passover.

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  8. Thank you, Jeff. How can any place be so beautiful?

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  9. Thank you, Jeff. How can any place be so beautiful?

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  10. Those ruins, Lil, are on Delos, one of the most spiritual places on earth...even during the height of tourist season.

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  11. Tim, if I could answer that question I'd change New Jersey. ONLY KIDDING, I love NJ just as it is.

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  12. There is an Irish song called "Forty Shades of Green" which one can see on the approach to landing at Shannon Airport. The fields are marked off with stone borders and the variety of colors is amazing. The picture posted just under "The Countryside" reminds me of that view of Ireland but without quite the variety of color.

    The people of Mykonos get more sun and less Green. The Irish get rain everyday and land that is bright and lush. There is a reason it is called "the emerald isle."

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  13. No question, Beth, that the greens of Mykonos cannot match those of Ireland. In no small part because while Ireland gets rain, Mykonos gets sun and wind--sort of like using a hairdryer on grass.

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  14. HEY FOLKS, I just realized that a guest blog I'd done for the wonderful folks at TYPE M FOR MURDER went up today. If you're not yet tired of me or information on Greek Easter, why not check out the post at http://typem4murder.blogspot.com/2012/04/type-mykonos-for-murder.html

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  15. I should have posted this yesterday. I went to TYPE M FOR MURDER, read Jeff's excellent post, and bookmarked the blog.

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  16. Wonderful post and amazing photos! They remind me of what I have read in your book and I can now visualise the scenes even better :) Spring must be a great time to visit and I think I'll pick this time of the year to go.

    Thanks, Jeff.

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  17. Hi Junying, Thanks. Yes, Spring is lovely but I would pick late May into early June as the better choice. The weather can still be quite iffy at this time of the year.

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