Kanapitsa Mare

My parents visited me in Skiathos for 5 days and stayed at a hotel called Kanapitsa Mare. It had amazing views of the water and was just a two-minute walk away from bus stop 12. The owner’s name is Panos and he really looks to please every one of his customers—past, present and future. Before coming here my parents had looked up the hotel on tripadvisor.com and he had answered every single comment that customers wrote. Click the link and see it for yourself—Kanapitsa Mare! Both of my parents said that they had never seen that before on tripadvisor, so it really shows how much Panos cares about his guests. Panos actually received a "Certificate of Excellence 2012" from Tripadvisor for all of his hard work. In addition to the hotel, all are welcome to be at the pool, which also has a bar with drinks and sandwiches.  A big plus is that there is also wifi there! The staff is extremely friendly and accommodating as well. Definitely make sure you meet Xenia at the front reception desk and pay a visit to Meto at the bar! Last but not least, enjoy the view and the luxury of just relaxing! Visit the Kanapitsa Mare Website to look at pictures from the hotel and maybe book your next visit to Skiathos at Kanapitsa Mare!

The certificate itself!

Just enjoying the view from our table.

Not too bad, huh!?

Keep looking for updates!

Stephanie

A Brief Account of Newport-Skiathos Ties

Thanks to Dimitrios Ioannidis in Boston, we now have a hold of some official papers chronicling the creation of the sisterhood between Newport, Rhode Island and Skiathos. Among many documents and letters, we received the Newport Council’s resolution authorizing the sisterhood, and summation of the meeting in which the Municipal Council of Skiathos approved the sisterhood.

Here's a timeline of the Newport-Skiathos sisterhood formation:

January 3, 1996:

A letter from Newport resident Demitri Damaskos is addressed to Newport’s Mayor, David Gordon expressing the interest of Mayor Dimitrios Prevezanos to form an official sisterhood between the two cities. 

October 23, 1996:

The City of Newport, Rhode Island Resolution of the Council NO. 109-96 approves the Sister City relationship.

November 27, 1996:

The Municipality of Skiathos Meeting agrees to engage in the sisterhood.

Summer 1998:

First meeting held over Mayor Gordon’s first official visit to Skiathos.

Resolution of the Council of Newport

Letter from Mayor Prevezanos to Mayor Gordon

Though Newport and Skiathos became Sister Cities in 1996, the relationship between the two cities dates back to exactly 100 years before the sisterhood’s formation.

In 1896, four Greeks from Skiathos moved to Newport, in pursuit of the fishing industry. These four Skiathans became the founders of Newport’s Greek community. For the next half of the century would remain a constant immigration flow of Greeks from Skiathos to Newport.

Today there are many descendants of Skiathos immigrants living in Newport. If fact, Newport actually has an Island of Skiathos Organization. More information on that soon…

-Tori

Some More Beaches...

Hi again!

I just wanted to share a couple of photos from the beaches I’ve been to recently. All of the beaches on the island are easily accessible by bus, car, motorbike or boat. Some you have to walk a little bit further from the bus stop, but it's never longer than a 10 minute walk.  If you take the bus, depending on where you are going, it could cost up to 3 euros for one way. There are 24 stops along the way and from the first stop to the last stop it’s about 20 to 25 minutes. Not too bad! Once getting to the beach of your choice, you have a selection of using one of the umbrellas with two lounge chairs that’s already there, which is usually 8 euros for the day or you can find a place in the sand and bring your own umbrella and chairs.

Abelakia beach.

Abelakia beach.  Officially my new favorite beach!  It wasn't too crowded and looking out into the water you could see Koukounaries beach, Maratha beach, Troulos beach and a couple of others.  Talk about a view!

Me and my new friend Jenny at Abelakia beach!

Vromolimnos beach.  This beach had clear water as well as a guest appearance from a famous Greek singer, Sakis Rouvas!  The beach goers were going crazy for him!

The path to Elias beach.

Elias beach.  All I can say is WOW!  It took a while to get to this beach, but you definitely can't come to Skiathos and not visit this beach.  There were newly dug out dirt roads in the mountains to get to this beach, but the views of the water were amazing on the way.  

Agia Eleni beach.  This is a quieter beach that is a little ways from bus stop 24.  If driving by car or motorbike, you can go on a dirt road to get to the parking lot, otherwise there is a walking path that gets you to the beach just as easily.  It's 100% worth going to and it has a little taverna (very good!) that is right behind all of the umbrellas on the beach.

I hope one day you readers will be able to visit some of these beaches!

Stephanie

Another Skiathos-Newport Connection

Quick story...

Tori and I were at one of our favorite restaurants the other night, O’Batis, and a guy named Phil from Philadelphia had come over to our table. He heard us speaking English and was curious where we were from. Anyways we were talking about what Tori and I were doing here and his grandfather had actually moved from Skiathos to Newport and then back to Skiathos! He has family that owns multiple restaurants here in Skiathos and his uncle is actually a priest here at one of the churches! It’s funny how many people we’ve run into with families having lived in Newport in some point in their lives.

Hopefully at some point we will get more information on why the family had moved back and forth!

Stephanie

Improving the Town of Skiathos

Being here for almost a month now, I’ve noticed that the town of Skiathos has really been making an effort in trying to improve their environment. I have seen recycling bins next to many trashcans and I have also noticed signs for donations towards dog and cat shelters. Anyone who has visited this island can say that there are many stray dogs and cats. By having these organizations, the town shows that they care about their future.

The Green Fox Project was brought to Skiathos in December 2010 by the International Women’s Club of Skiathos and it actually started by the end of January 2011. The Green Fox project focuses on recycling plastic bottles. There are 100 locations where there are Green Fox bins! Pretty impressive. Visit their blog/website (translated in English) for more information at The Green Fox Project.

One of the Green Fox Project bins.

I caught a volunteer in action.  She was making rounds to all of the bins and emptying them.

The Skiathos Dog Shelter was originally established by some of the locals from Skiathos but it did not last for long because it was in an inconvenient place for locals. The Evangelistria monastery stepped in though and set aside a piece of land for the dog shelter and it was officially built in 1995. As the years went on they got in touch with many other animal organizations and others who were willing to help these stray dogs. The shelter even started a dog-walking program, which helped get the word out. This shelter believes that every dog should have a home and be loved. For anyone visiting Skiathos, the shelter is opened from 9am to 2pm every single day and the blue donation box is open 24/7. Their website is Skiathos Dog Shelter

The Skiathos Cat Welfare Society was founded by Peter and Sharon Hewing in January 2007. Their website Skiathos Cat Welfare Society explains that “one of the Society's aims is to stabilize the cat population through a sterilization program to prevent the suffering of unwanted kittens.” There are informative stands all around the island that volunteers run and where people can make donations.

One of the information stands.

That’s all for now!

Stephanie

Quick Warning....

Don't always count on the bus to bring you back home.
If you plan on going to Koukounaries or Banana Beach during high season either rent a car, call a cab, or leave early because you might end up waiting hours for the bus with this mob of angry beachgoers... 

(2 and a half hours and 5 buses later I finally made it on the bus)

-Tori

Hiking in Skiathos

Its a well known fact that Skiathos is home to some of the best beaches in Greece so I figured I'd take the time to focus on something else the island has to offer...

The green mountainous landscape of the island attracts hikers from all over the world. There are exactly 25 marked hiking trails (197 km) to fit every hiker's preference. The "Papadiamantis Hiker's Medal" is awarded along with a gift and certificate to any hiker who can prove he or she has hiked at least 12 trails. Those who are motivated enough to hike all 25 trails are given the "Papadiamantis Wanderer's Medal."

I'll be honest. I'm not much of a "nature" person but I love running and I have enjoyed some of the most scenic routes right here in Skiathos. Agios Fanourios is a hill on the outskirts of town that offers very good hiking. It's a difficult route but has some amazing views.

These photos from Ag. Fanourios are more convincing than my own words....

Here are some of the most popular spots for hiking on the island:
Koukounaries Forest, Kanapitsa Peninsula, Evangelistria Monastery, Town to Kastro

-Tori