Wednesday, 29 October 2025
Patmos Island, Dodoacanese, Greece

Yesterday was our last of six days in Turkey, visiting Istanbul, Canakkale, and Izmir. Besides the wondrous things we saw, we were most impressed by the kindness of the Turkish people, the dedication to service in the tourist industry, and the high quality of the museums. 

I promised a little more information about our Istanbul guide, Aytaç. He is a university-educated 32-year old bachelor, originally from Izmir, where his parents still reside. He speaks excellent English and also studied Russian at university. He is an independent guide who works for many different companies in Istanbul. In order to afford his own apartment, he drives a two-hour commute twice a day. He provides excellent commentary about the history and culture of the places we visit--and, even more importantly--gives us a glimpse into the personal lives of young, westernized Turks. He is hoping to marry and raise a family soon. We recommend him to any future visitors who might be reading this, but also to any young women who are seeking a kind, sensitive, and good-looking husband.

And Now on to Patmos 

Patmos is one of the smaller Greek islands, only a short distance from the Turkish coast. It is most popular with visitors seeking to understand the significance of St John the Evangelist, who lived on the island after the sacrifice of Christ, rather than to enjoy the hedonistic life associated with some of the other islands.

We join a 2.5 hour tour that begins with a local tender taking us to the port town, Skala. There is no place for even a ship as small as ours to dock here, so the Encore remains anchored off shore--and notice the incredible deep blue color of the Aegean Sea. 

A 10-minute bus ride takes us up a winding road to the hilltop town of Chora to visit the Monastery of St John, at one time the richest in the Dodecanese.

The monastery's dark facade, with its huge buttressed walls, provides an impressive contrast to the light, frescoed interior. There are five chapels, each decorated with colorful frescoes and gilded religious objects. The old Treasury is now a museum housing rare icons, jewelry, chalices, crowns, vestments, and silver objects inlaid with gemstones. There are 13,000 old manuscripts and volumes dating from 1073, which record the monastery's 900-year history. 

From the monastery there are spectacular views over the harbor and town, as well as the three remaining windmills built for the monastery.

Further down toward the port stands the Grotto of St John. This small cave, now converted into a beautiful chapel, is where John the Evangelist lived, saw amazing visions, and wrote the Book of Revelation. 

Our Guide and Tour Group Inside St John's Cave

Our guide takes us back to the port where we catch the next tender to the Encore.

At 5:45pm there is a reception for members of the Seabourn Club--passengers who have previously sailed on their ships. This is my third voyage and Will's second. 

We head to the more formal Restaurant for dinner, where Will has roasted plum tomato soup, grilled giant prawns, and chocolate gelato. I enjoy tomatoes with buffalo mozzarella in an olive oil reduction (aka tomato caprese), an excellent rack of lamb with roasted vegetables, and chocolate gelato. Of course, we have several glasses of Champagne to accompany our dinners.