ISLAND ART GUIDES:Tinos-The Great Journey of My Life…

I have been going to Tinos since I was 12 years old. It was and still is one of the islands that I have a special connection with, since I visit it almost every year and discover something new every time… Tinos of my teenage years—with my grandmother and grandfather who would wake us up before dawn and take us in first class on the legendary Naias ferry—has many similarities and major differences compared to the Tinos of today (!)

By Efi Michalarou
Photo: Dimitris Lempesis, Georg Georgakopoulow, Fotini Kapiris

But every time the ship enters the harbor, I can still see my grandmother holding me by the arm and my grandfather, weighed down with bags, saying, “Girls, walk a little faster, the people are waiting for us,” referring to the friendly couple who hosted us for two weeks every July and welcomed us with an abundance of delicious food for lunch…

I can still smell the stuffed vegetables from those days, the hot cheese pies my grandfather would bring us for breakfast, the ice creams we had in the evenings, and the walks along the beach of the town where we stayed. I fondly remember the afternoon swims with Mrs. Popi’s nieces, who would wait for me with such excitement, and the bus rides, part of my own teenage quest for exploration, with my grandmother’s permission. She always trusted me completely!!!

The sight of people coming to kneel in worship before the Holy Church of Panagia Evaggelistria of Tinos (Megalohari), seemed, to my eyes—and to those of my grandmother, who was deeply religious—excessive and somewhat picturesque. I remember, however, that we never commented on it…

 

 

Visits to the villages, with the obligatory stops at Panormos for fresh fish and at the Monastery of Agia Pelagia, were part of our annual routine, as were the shopping trips to the stores along the waterfront. Every year, my grandmother would buy me the most beautiful, the most striking, and the most expensive piece of jewelry—not only because she had a purse of her own, but also because she was the epitome of elegance. She had a profound love and appreciation for aesthetics and quality.

There were also difficult moments when I visited the island and remembered once again all those who went to the Megalochari with faith and strength, reshaping my teenage thoughts. That is why the first visit, just to ward off the hard times, is to the church, and subsequently to the two Museums where the visitor encounters great and unique treasures, such as the Museum of Tinian Artists with numerous sculptures, and the new Art Gallery featuring works from the Athanasios Papadopoulos Collection that was just inaugurated—both belonging to the Pan-Hellenic Holy Foundation of Evaggelistria of Tinos

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After a sea voyage, a good meal is a must, and the first stop is at Actae Aegean in Agios Sostis, with a hotel that respects the environment completely and a model restaurant: okras with large chunks of tomato, giant beans sprinkled with plenty of cheese, a large Greek salad, homemade cheese pie, a variety of grilled meats, and an over-the-top complimentary treat at the end—a plate of fresh figs, yogurt topped with homemade grape spoon sweet, and a third plate with freshly baked individual cakes. We will definitely return…

However, I picked up my own thread with the island again in Ysternia and the Zig-Zag Festival, organized by Cheap Art with the tireless Giorgos Georgakopoulos, Fotini Kapiri, and Elina Dalla. When God dropped the clouds onto the earth, the very first ones were surely deposited in Ysternia—the ‘village of artists’, as they call it. This place was a revelation to me. So in 2021 and 2022, for two consecutive years, I found myself participating as a curator with two different groups of artists at the Festival, which spread from the Old School throughout the entire village. Every stone, every house, every wall was a work of art… music & performances…

 

Magic and.. Mayou in the afternoon for refreshing cocktails and the island’s finest sunset, or a glass of white wine at night for conversation with a view of Syros. Ορίζοντας for the breakfast provided by the event organizers (featuring Vlachakis Eggs, as they were also a sponsor), a variety of wonderful grilled meats at Fotini—one of the three local spots—to satisfy our hunger in the evenings, along with the most delicious home-cooked beef in tomato sauce with yardlong beans and local cheese at the Rigos’ small tavern, near the lower entrance of the village.

 

The visual artist Konstantina Sylikou—who originates from both Ysternia and Venardados —also participated in the second event. She hosted me for three days in the most beautiful home immersed in nature, constantly telling me about her second village and the exhibition titled “Roots” that she was preparing, featuring black-and-white photographs carrying  Venardados’ entire history. So, in between the preparation of the exhibition and running errands—since the house was right in the middle—we were also handing out posters.

 

Facing the village head-on, I initially thought it was only what meets the eye… And yet this small village, at first glance, carries a rich artistic history, which unfolded in this year’s exhibition held from July 21 to August 9, 2026, titled “Vernardados: The Past and present in Art”. Witn the participation of twenty-five artists: Giannoulis M. Koulouris, Manolis Voulgaris, Ioannis Voulgaris, Petros Perakis, Nikos K. Gaitis, Lazaros Valakas, Giorgos Kontonikolaou (senior), Filippos Skaris, Antonis Valakas, Giannis Palamaris, Manthos Gaitis, Michalis Kontonikolaou, Dimitris An. Skaris, Konstantina Sylikou, Evangelia Athanasiou, Penelope Gaiti, Michalis Alvertis, Kosmas Skaris, Antonis Pittas, Giorgos Palamaris, Giorgos Kontonikolaou (junior), Andriana Voulgari, and Stelios Kontonikolaou—with locality as their common axis. Organized by the Vernardados Cultural Association “Agios Ioannis Theologos”, curated by art historian Venia Pastaka

Tinos has fifty villages, which one cannot possibly explore in a single weekend; however, you can certainly visit those of artistic interest and incomparable beauty, such as Pyrgos, where we had breakfast on the first day by the distinct marble bus stop built voluntarily by the locals. After all, it is the village that houses the School of Fine Arts (Marble Sculpting) and the corresponding Museum of the Piraeus Bank Group. The alleyways are unique, and it is impressive how the character and tradition have been preserved in this small place. As for the flavors—such as the pies, the eggs with potatoes, and the coffees—they are exceptional, featuring by far the best galaktoboureko at Athmar.

 

Before leaving, do not forget to stop by the former Panormos Cultural Center “Giannoulis Halepas:, where Contemporary Tinian Marble Sculptors are exhibiting unique works. Lunch at Limanaki Fish Restaurant in Panormos for fresh fish and seafood, as well as fantastic home-cooked dishes: stuffed vegetables and moussaka; as for the oven-baked kid goat, it melts in your mouth, and the portions are generous. The complimentary dessert is a must: ice cream

 

“The Municipal Institution – Costas Tsoklis Museum” in Kambos, is an architectural masterpiece that harmonizes with the place and the landscape, with the artist Costas Tsoklis himself present through his permanent exhibition and works such as “Saint George and the Snake” at the entrance, as well as some of his early works, which I love very much, and his most recent work, recently shown at the Kapnergostasio, along with the publications available at the Museum Shop… The exhibition by Thanasis Lalas in the lower building, “Thanasis Lalas – Costas Tsoklis: Conversing through Images and Words,” introduces you to a different world of joy and bliss… while the perfect epilogue is written at the exit, with the great, warm embrace generously offered by the Tsoklis family, both Maya and Costas—a token of gratitude for a visit that remains etched in the mind and stays with you for hours afterwards.

 

Then on to the village of Xinara, which is closely associated with the Catholic Church, an important library, and an accommodation that is filled with young people doing residencies. We went at lunchtime, when everything was closed, but the courtyard was full of young French people taking part in various activities… So we left hungry and headed for the traditional me.rakitinos café in Marlas. Sweet yardlong beans, a wonderfully fresh Greek salad, split peas sweet like honey, village sausage, and French fries. The flavors were unbeatable, the olive oil exceptional, and each dish seemed to compete with the next, until the crowning glory arrived: fried artichokes cut into sticks. The artichokes of Tinos are famous, but these were the very epitome of flavor (!) The portions were small—we wished there had been a little more—but, as the saying goes, quality over quantity!

 

Dinner after the closing of the exhibition in Vernardados, following wonderful conversations and even more wonderful encounters, at bostanitinos in Pyrgos, where Kika welcomes us with bread baked in the wood-fired oven; mushrooms taste like magic; a green salad with artichoke chips; beetroot salad with the heads and leaves, Tinos cheese at the base and plenty of coarsely chopped walnuts; Tinos graviera to accompany the wine at the end; and, as a final treat, galaktoboureko that had been brought to her as a gift. The generosity of the people of Tinos is incredible—but it is something you encounter everywhere in the Island…

 

Before returning to the mainland, we stopped at the Cultural Foundation of Tinow for the double exhibition by Éduard Sacaillan and Anna-Maria Tsakali, “from chaos to cosmos,” curated by Giorgos Mylonas (July 10, – August 23, 2026)—an .oasis amid the heat and wind of the day. The tribute to Giannoulis Chalepas was also particularly interesting.

 

I want the aftertaste of the return to be sweet…

In Paris, I embellish it with hot chocolate in the winter, but in Tinos in August, it is tinged with salt, as the wind blows hard. Coffee and traditional sweets: almond pastries, nougat bites with large pieces of pistachio, and florentines, as well as a huge slice of cheesecake with salted pistachio caramel, shared with two spoons, at the traditional pastry shop Mesklies in Chora—and a few lychnarakia packed in a box for the road.