Description

When Ernle Bradford's 'Companion Guide to the Greek Islands' first appeared it was immediately hailed as the very best guide to the diverse and endlessly fascinating islands of the Aegean and Ionian seas. Vivid accounts of island landfalls and the islanders' traditional ways of life lead deeper, into the discovery of a hidden monastery, a hill-top village and quiet beaches, now accessible to the enquiring traveller. The classical, Byzantine and medieval past, visible in ruined temples and harbour fortifications, is brought to life in accounts of the legendary exploits of gods and goddesses and all-too-real raids by marauding pirates, while archaeological discoveries colour in the vibrant island life of previous centuries. But even if modern communications have made travel easier than in the days when Ernle Bradford sailed from harbour to harbour, the fisherman squatting on the ruins of a medieval quay with a transistor radio for company still mends his nets and makes his delicate cane fishtraps in the same way as his remote ancestors as they watched the triremes of Athens pass on their way to sacred Delos. Photographs by George Domatas.This edition is a revision by FRANCIS PAGAN of his extended version of the original book prepared a decade ago, which added sixteen islands to the original list. While there has been change and development, there have also been new archaeological finds and new places have been brought within reach of the visitor.