Thursday morning we awoke anchored in the Patmos harbour. It was the only port on this cruise where we had to go to shore via a tender boat. Silversea organized this very efficiently and we were soon on our way to join our Silversea tour. Patmos is the “St. John” island – famous as the place where St. John the Divine was exiled in 95-97 AD (CE), and where he reportedly wrote the Revelation, also called the Apocalypse, in a cave after receiving these revelations directly from God. We visited the cave and also a monastery built starting in about 1100, in tribute to St. John. It is still a working monastery and has some very interesting exhibits in the museum, including ancient parchment scrolls dating back to the 5th century AD (CE). Our guide was very knowledgeable and informative- we could not have asked for better.
Monastery of St. John, Patmos
After the tour, we had an excellent Greek lunch of fresh seafood in a restaurant along the ocean and wandered around the winding streets with their small shops. We really loved Patmos for its beauty and history. It is a major site for the Christian world and is widely visited for this reason and it is also a major tourist attraction because of its beautiful beaches and slow pace of life.
Patmos
When we returned to our cabin in the afternoon, our suitcases were already out with a little note saying they had been cleaned for us – just another one of the many special touches that makes Silversea stand out.
Dinner Thursday night was again at our favourite place, poolside with the hot rocks, where we were again joined by our friends from North Carolina.
