If only.

The Dodecanese group of islands lies in the Aegean Sea. One of the group Kos is a popular place for holidaymakers and having spent two weeks in Kadamena I can see why. I spent my days lazing in the sun or drinking at the poolside bar and my nights in the beach bar watching the sun set. Yes I spent a lot of time in bars Purely for research purposes you understand.

The last week of my trip there I decided to take the boat over to Nisyros which lies between Kos and Tilos and is one of the few still active blue volcanoes in the world. Nisyros was known in antiquity as Porphyris. According to Greek mythology, Nisyiros was formed during the battle between the Giants and the Gods. Neptune persecuted Polivotis the Giant who, terrified, crossed the Aegean Sea, seeking salvation. Neptune captured Polivotis near the islands of Kos. The god impaled part of the island, Krikelos, with his trident and hit the Giant with it. Thus the island of Nisyros was formed, and Polivotis has been sending his sighs, via the volcano to earth ever since.

We set of early in the morning in what seemed to me to be a decidedly rickety vessel that popped and banged as we picked up speed. There seemed to be far more of it above the waterline than below and I hoped we weren’t about to make any sharp turns. It was a pleasant enough trip that lasted just over an hour and I spent it on the top deck with the wind in what’s left of my hair and the smell of diesel in my nostrils. As the islands harbour Mandraki came in to view I was struck by the contrasting colours of the white painted houses and the dark volcanic sand.

My first call was the little café that doubles as a bar and souvenir shop. I spent a pleasant hour or so chatting to Yanis the owner who spoke several languages, then it was of up the volcano trail in a three hundred year old bus that ground its gears and struggled with the steep climb, but eventually made it to the top. The view was fantastic, the decent into the volcano was a little scary as the driver took advantage of the incline and coasted most of the way and at some speed. The hillsides were peppered with olive bushes and here and there black sheep grazed happily.

The inside of the volcano was like a scene out of starwars everywhere you looked there was yellow, orange and red rock. The bus kicked up lots of dust as it sped toward the little resting-place just above the bubbling and spitting centre. It’s a truly wonderful sight, but later as I sat in one of the old taverns that is populated by the locals, I watched the sun go down and what once was a brilliant blue sea, changed slowly to a silver like mercury lake. The combination of moon glow and the phosphor in the sea created this effect. There and then I decided that this was where I wanted to live, the beauty of the island and the friendliness of the people is unique. One day I will go back, but this time to stay.