Island Style

With its fascinating history, deep clear water and picturesque harbour, the island of Kastellorizo makes a perfect sun-soaked destination.

- Jane Griffiths

It was a spur-of-the-moment decision. We had seen the inviting island on the horizon while driving into KaÅŸ on the Lycian coast of Turkey. “That’s Meis,” the pomegranate juice seller replied when I asked. “It’s in Greece, but it’s only a 30-minute boat ride away.”

Early the next morning we were at the KaÅŸ Marina, ferry tickets in hand. Ahead of us, a group of American plein air artists, carrying canvases and folding easels were talking about the light playing on the water of the sparkling Levantine Sea. It was mid-September and perfect island-hopping weather.

Meis – Kastellorizo as it’s called in Greek – is a tiny, rocky outpost as far east from Athens as you can get and still be in Greece. It was once called Megisiti, meaning ‘biggest’ – an odd name for an island that’s less than 10 square kilometres. But it’s the largest in the surrounding archipelago.

As we rounded a headland – one of two arms enclosing a deep U-shaped harbour – our ferry sounded the horn. Its deep evocative tone echoed off the stony crags towering above us. On top of the headland, a Crusader castle with a fluttering blue and white flag guarded the entrance. This island might be one nautical mile away from Turkey, but it’s pure Greece, with ouzo and sunshine, myths and history.