Patches of cobalt blue and turquoise water that quiver in the heat. Salty squid and octopus flung over taverna railings like soggy laundry. Clouds of incense wafting out of the cool, icon-studded innards of Byzantine churches.
Many travellers yearn for the sun-bleached, simplistic charm of the Greek islands — the raw, scrubby beauty that captivated the likes of Patrick Leigh Fermor, Henry Miller and Leonard Cohen. It’s the unique personality of each island that keeps travellers gripped to this Mediterranean scatter, returning year after year, in a sort of annual sun-drenched speed dating session.
