Kalymnos (Pop 16,179) is 311km or 11hrs by ferry from Athens and 1.5hrs from my last island of Patmos. The island is 21km long by 13km wide with highest point at 700m.
Kalymnos is famous for sponge diving, rock climbing and for the original “Temple of Apollo” which know sits in the British Museum not far from the Elgin Marbles of the Acropolis !
The island also has one of the most recent Greek Orthodox Saints - St Saava whose relics lie in a monastery high above the main port town with nerve-racking views !!! Further down is a castle that dates back from Ottoman times (early 1800s).
Kalymnos is a very hot, dry, rocky island full of mountains and only a stones throw from Turkey. It has an airport but does not get many tourists. The main port town of Pothia was my least favourite since it is very compressed, full of car-wide, one way streets that Google does not recognise – I got lost several times and it took me ages to get out of and back to my apartment which is in the thick of town. Kalymnians are very proud of being Greek, so much so, they paint the Greek Flag into the sides of their mountains – I reckon so that the Turks can see them and stay away ! You can see Turkey from the east side of the island !
Kalymnos beaches are not big but the coastlines coming in and out of them are long and excellent for swimming since you see rocks, weeds and fish underneath. I swam at Palionisos, the most isolated on the island but with two seafood tavernas on the water !!!
The best place to stay and swim if you have families is definitely the west coast beaches around Melitsahas, Myrties and Masouri, all opposite the island of Telendos, which creates a natural breakwater for nice calm waters.
A big surprise is the Vathis Valley full of wine and olives and all manner of vegetables ending in Rina Beach and channel which leads to ocean through two narrow cliffs - a sight to behold.
Many Kalymnians settled in Darwin post WWII and the most famous of these is the Paspali Family, which is a classic story of rags to riches with Grandpa Nick going from sponge diver on Kalymnos to pearler in Broome and Darwin and establishing what is now a $AUD1.8b business worldwide !!!
I cooked plenty of fresh fish, zucchini frites and veggies in my kitchen washed down by local rose and retsina - the climate is so hot and dry that Kalymnos has a wine trail on the east side. Another great fact is that the island makes fuel oil from marine animals and burn it to create electricity for the island.
Enjoy the island of Kalymnos – my tenth and last island before the start of our main feature – BALAKANOPOULOS !!!
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