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In the Greek world of brochure-style islands, Fourni remains aloof and unvarnished. Hidden away in the eastern Aegean, this rocky outcrop offers no international cuisine, no beach clubs, no curated experiences. But it does offer authenticity — simplicity, tradition and calm.
I first arrived in Greece 50 years ago, exhausted from a three-day train ride. It changed the shape of my life several times. I’ve returned often and Fourni has become a touchstone — a place where time and change move slowly, and the Greece I once knew resurfaces.
The narrow main street of Fourni is a shaded corridor of dwarf mulberry trees, their trunks painted white. Granite slabs from neighbouring Ikaria pave the way past coffee houses, small shops and blue-and-white homes. Elders sit outside, greeting passersby with “Kalimera” (good morning) and “Kalispera” (good evening). Each morning, a man comes down the street calling out “Psaria fresca!” (fresh fish).
At the top of the street, the village square is shaded by a 300-year-old plane tree. The local kafenion (coffee house) spills into the open air, its tables scattered around the small square. Inside, faded family photos line the walls. Aspasia, the fifth-generation owner, serves coffee with a smile. Her grandmother, dressed in black, who served me my coffee long ago, now sits outside.
On one side of the square, a Roman sarcophagus – unearthed nearby – bears carved flowers and an inscription in Greek lettering, which translates to: “Epameinon, son of Telon and Philte, noble hero, farewell, aged 25.”
Nearby, a marble monument crowned by an eagle honours those who died for Greece. The square breathes history – the rooms above the kafenion once housed the Turkish police station and then, after independence, a primary school.
LOBSTER TALES
Fourni is a huge rock shaped like a lobster claw, its rocky terrain softened by the brilliant blue of the Aegean. Once traversed only by a single gravel path, the island now has paved roads with some small cars and scooters for rent. These winding routes lead to secluded beaches, translucent waters and views that stretch across the archipelago.
Terraced hillsides, once cultivated with hard work, lie abandoned. Thorny, aromatic shrubs reclaim the land. Fruit and vegetables arrive from Samos or sometimes further afield, but honey endures. Beehives dot the hills, producing nectar prized across the region.
Of the 13 islands in the Fourni complex, only three are inhabited. Altogether, fewer than 1,500 people live here.
Historically, Fourni was a pirate haven and a vital trade crossroads. Treacherous waters and hidden rocks led to shipwrecks — nearly 60 have been found around the island, dating from 500 BCE to the Middle Ages. Some cargo and ship parts have been recovered for a future maritime museum.
Small blue-and-white fishing boats still come and go at odd hours. I watch them glide through the water — functional, beautiful and familiar. I once worked on one in Paros; I know what hard work fishing is.
GOATS AND GRIEF
Goats outnumber people here — 2,000 to 3,000 roam freely. I only saw a shepherd once, crook in hand, striding across a hill like a biblical figure. Their meat and milk help sustain the island, and they seem content and well looked after clambering among the rocks.
Women in black are a common sight. They mourn lost husbands, fathers, brothers — sometimes for life. Most islanders live long lives; the cemetery overlooking the sea tells stories of those who reached 80, 90, even 100.
On my final night, dinner is grilled octopus, tomato and olive salad, and white wine from Samos. I sit with my feet in the water. Thanos, the cook in the small taverna, scolds me for using too much lemon — it ruins the flavour, he says.
At midnight, I sit on my balcony overlooking the port and watch the ferry from Piraeus arriving. I admire it as it does an about-turn, lights flashing. It seems to dance as it churns the water in the small bay. Tomorrow, I’ll be aboard.
During the month, I visited three small neighbouring islands by scooter with a local ferry. Tickets are bought the day before: roll on, roll off. I offered tips to the crew for looking after my scooter — they declined. Traditional Greece never did tipping.
Fourni has also kept the tradition of siesta time. Almost everything closes between 2pm and 5pm, so children play late around the port and adults go late into the night. I hear young adults arguing violently over a backgammon game which ends in laughter. It’s the Greek way.
Yanni, who owns the coffee shop and my studio, sweeps the terrace each morning at 6am. I usually shout my breakfast order from the balcony. He replies, “At once, Donal.” He shows me photos of clouds in which he sees epic battles between angels and devils. I tease him, telling him he needs his head examined. He laughs, telling me I need my eyes examined.
On my last morning, he offers me coffee, a cheese pie and wishes me “Kalo Taxidi (good travels)”. I feel the sadness of saying goodbye – stronger each time.
• In the eastern Aegean, nearly 300km from Athens, Fourni is closer to Turkey (50km) than mainland Greece.
• At the bay of Petrokopio, the ruins of a 6th century BCE marble quarry litter the shoreline. The marble was shipped across the sea to build, among other places, the great city of Miletus, in modern-day Turkiye.
• A hilltop above Fourni town holds the remains of a prehistoric “cyclopean” wall — massive limestone boulders stacked without mortar, named by the Greeks who believed only the mythical one-eyed Cyclopes could have lifted them. The site later became the island’s classical acropolis, where archaeologists have found traces of a temple and inscriptions referencing the gods.
• Through the Byzantine era and centuries of Ottoman rule, Fourni was largely abandoned but served as a base for pirates. It was only permanently resettled in 1770.
• The seabed is one of the richest shipwreck sites in the Mediterranean. Nearly 60 wrecks dating from 500 BCE to the Middle Ages have been found since 2015 – and archaeologists have surveyed less than half the coastline.
• The Greek Ministry of Culture is pushing to turn the Fourni archipelago into an eco-and-history tourism destination. Last year, it launched a project to repair and improve tourism amenities around the acropolis. This March, it announced plans to open an underwater museum, with controlled diving routes for tourists to see its famous “shipwreck graveyard”.
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