Kastro in Sifnos

Kastro is the old capital of the island. It's also the ancient 'city' referred to by Herodotus, which flourished in the 6th century BC, with a temple and a theatre dedicated to Dionysus, and grand marble public buildings. It has been continuously inhabited from prehistoric times (first settlements on the hill were in the 3rd millennium BC) to the present day. The village's name comes from the fortress-like 'castle' formed by its buildings. The settlement has an ellipsoidal form, following the terrain, and has a defensive aspect, preserving unchanged its medieval (Venetian) fortified formation. Two defensive rings of buildings can be observed, each built close to the next, with mansion houses for the richer inhabitants in the inner ring where they had greater protection, and the houses of the poor in the outer ring. 

The ruins of the ancient acropolis stand tall at the top of the hill, ancient columns are set in the walls of newer buildings.

Kastro opened the first known school on the island in the early 17th century.

 

We got off the bus at this square and started exploring

Panoramic views

a small taverna right by the square

and then we started ascending the steps

The usual Cycladic arthitecture

a cafe/bar

There are Roman sarcophagi to be seen in the alleys

an old church

Two ceramic plaques on this house. The first one says: 'Maria's little house', and the second one: 'both of these belong to Kostas'.

This one says: 'Kate's house'.

Shop interior.

Another sarcophagus

The inscription reads: Ioannis Panagiotou Sperantsas (IS). I am lying here dead. Bitter Death harvested me before I got old. You, who approach this monument of mine, grant me your forgiveness, this is all I ask of you. Born on... Died on ...'

One of the larger houses

and always, steps

one of the many loggias in the village

and lots of alleyways, some partly covered

We had reached the edge of the village, where the Venetian fortifications are still to be found

We decided to walk around the edge of the village

breathtaking views of the coast, including two windmills and a small church on the left

zooming in - two churches in the same enclosure

we kept climbing

a seating area

This is Seralia which used to be the harbour of Kastro. Apparently pirates used to come here and the inhabitants of Kastro used to shut themselves within the high walls of the village to escape.  

We could not see much from where we were, but apparently, there is a small beach here and two fish tavernas.

Perched on top of the hill is the church of The Seven Martyrs.

A bit further on we could discern the path that leads to the beach and eventually to the church.

Meanwhile, on the mainland, another church

We turned a corner and saw a small bay where the main beach of Kastro is situated as well as a taverna, which apparently is very good

And then, we saw people sitting on the edge of the cliff

It's a cafe/bar. We decided to sit here, but all the tables were booked: in the end, given that we told the manager that we only wanted to stay for an hour, he found us a place to sit and we had an ouzo each

and admired the view.

The cafe/bar behind us. I felt sorry for the waiter who had to use the steps to bring bottles and glasses up and down.

By the time we left it was dusk and we started looking for somewhere to eat. The place that had been recommended was fully booked

so we ended up at Dolci (as seen from below), an Italian restaurant

where we admired the views and the rising moon and had a delicious plate of pasta each.