Travel
Nearby is the Myknonian Folklore
Museum, displaying period furniture
(most from the 19th century) that
gives a sense of how middle class
residents lived. Also here: tools,
weapons, lighting devices,
tapestries, ceramics, photographs
and related artifacts.
Facing the old harbor is the
Archaeological Museum, which houses
collections from various excavations.
These include funerary statues and
grave stelae, pottery, clay figurines,
jewelry and small objects – all dating
from the 2nd and 1st centuries B.C.
Of special interest is a large relief
from the 7th century B.C., decorated
with scenes from the capture of
Troy: the descent of Greeks from the
wooden horse and warriors attacking
women and children.
Our favorite stroll was through
photogenic Little Venice, so named
for the medieval houses with
balconies that overhang the water.
Pirates frequented Mykonos during
the 16th and 17th century, and it’s
believed that they loaded and
unloaded their booty in this area. We
saw boutiques, restaurants and cafés
– and Petros Pelican, the Mykonos
mascot. The first Petros was rescued
after a storm in 1954 and lived on the
island for more than 30 years. When
he died, the loss was felt so deeply
that a replacement was soon found
– and a tradition was established.
In the center of town, in the area
known as Tria Pigadia, was the
Aegean Maritime Museum, where
exhibits include models of ships
from the pre-Minoan period to the
early 20th century, navigational
equipment, maps, a collection of
ancient rare coins with nautical
subjects and thousands of rare
books. In the garden are
reproductions of ancient
gravestones from Delos and
Mykonos related to shipwrecks
and sailors lost at sea.
neighboring Music Café.
Near the museum, our guide pointed
out the famous Tria Pigadia, the
three wells for which the area
is named. According to legend, if
a virgin were to drink from all three
wells, she would find a husband;
a more recent story says that if
a visitor drinks from the vV