We are back. Tour buses await the ship. the parking area is full of cars belonging to wait staff and salespeople.
We had no need to visit the famous windmills again and we were not interested in jewelry shopping, so we tried to avoid the crowds and stayed off the beaten path. We were seeking a neighborhood to visit. At one junction the few people going our way turned left. We turned right into a deserted lane. Just a few doors on we entered a tiny shop.
Inside was a very nice woman working at a small table. All around her were plastic containers of small stone pieces. She was a mosaic artist. On the walls were framed pieces of her work in various sizes. They were also of various qualities. some were simple souvenirs. Others were very artistic. She talked us through the process and showed us how she breaks the larger stone pieces into the sizes and shapes she needs. Then she showed us how she places them on a fabric that covers the image of the artwork she is making. The good side of the stone is down. When she is finished placing every stone she covers the work with epoxy. Then she turns it over to strip off the fabric and reveal the finished side. The piece she was working on would take a month to complete. It was a large piece commissioned by a man from Florida of a design found on Delos.
She had taken a lot of time with us. The whole while no one else came to the shop. We were very fortunate to have ventured off the beaten track.
We moved on and could not find any other secluded lanes so we ultimately joined the flow. We did stop to look at some olive oil soap. Alice had gotten some on Corfu many years ago. She really liked it and it did last a long time. An elderly woman came out to explain the soap and guide us inside where she had bars of many different fragrances. She fascinated us as she went from telling us about soap to telling us about her life. I won’t retell her tale here, but we remember her and are grateful for the time she spent with us. Again we were the only ones in the shop. The total of our purchase was just 5 euros but the experience was priceless.
As we wandered through the lanes in this less traveled area we found some interesting houses, churches, and a beautiful market.
The shopowner spent some time chatting with us. She explained what some of the unfamiliar to us products were. She gushed when we praised her displays. She explained how important appearance was to encouraging the purchaser.
We were back in the crowd now as we returned to the tender pier.
Our late departure allowed us to view the sunset over Mykonos.
This was another fine day.
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