The Golden Age of Sifnos-1984
David Econopouly
(David puts people on flights to Greece and on yacht charters that sometimes end up on Sifnos)

The Kimolos glided effortlessly down the mid-harbor channel as she approached the tiny port of Kamares. She had left Pireaus six hours earlier with her precious cargo which the townspople of Sifnos was now eagerly awaiting.

When her stern was about on hundred yards from the end of the dock, the two anchors were dropped with a might splash and the engines were slowly eased into reverse. Slowly the gap between the dock and the ship narrowed 80 yards.....70 yards.....60 yards..... 45 yards.... 20 yards... When the Kimolos was ten yards from the dock two men(one on the portside of the stern and the other on the starboard) heaved their lines from the upper aft deck.

These lines consisted of twenty yards of three-quarter inch orange rope with a monkey fist(a gall of rope about the size of a baseball which allows the ropesmen to throw the ropes accurately and far) at the end. The other ends of the orange lines were attached to a much heavier rope. These were about three inches in diameter and would be use to hold the great ship in place and secured to the dock as she unloaded her cargo.

The stern of the Kimolos which was also a door had been lowered and a couple of men were scampering around with large woven mats that would be used to fill in the space between the dock and the door once it was lowered completely, allow the wheels of the disembarking vehicles to ease onto the pier.

The crowd on the dock continued to grow as it had been doing- ever since the two young boys spotted the bow of the Kimolos as it appeared at the harbor entrance and shouted "Vouvouri! To Vouvouri!"(Boat! The Boat!).

As more and more people gathered on the dock, the jockeying for position became more frantic. The people of Sifnos had waited patiently for this- and the great moment was slowly unfolding right before their very eyes.

With an explosive clang, the door was lower onto the concrete dock and the rope mats were slipped into place. At the instant the door made contact with the dock there was a roar of engines that erupted from the great bowels of the Kimolos as every vehicle simultaneously engaged it's ignition.

The movement on the dock became more frantic. Necks were stretched in order to see over the heads of those who were lucky enough to be in the front of the crowd. Children crawled on their hands and knees through the maze of legs and took up their positions in the front row. Minds wandered. Young girls dreamed of walking down the aisle and exchanging wedding vows with the driver of this incredible machine. Older residents recognized that Sifnos was about to enter a new era in her glorious history.

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