Yes, I'm still breathing!

Oy vey, where did the last 3 days go?  It's not like it takes a lot of energy to sit on a beach for 6 hours!  The days just seemed to get away from me and now it's Monday morning and I really do have to sit and catch up before my old brain starts shedding details like it does brain cells!

We took our little (very little) Olympic flight from Athens around 2pm on Friday afternoon.  We were pretty tired since we had been up about 24 hours by then.  It was just a short skip and a hop to Naxos and Stelios from Hotel Spiros was there waiting for us.  3 minutes later we were at this wonderful little hotel where we got hugs and a warm welcome back from Stelios' mom.

and away we go........

We unpack our bags and decide to go look for something to eat.  Our bodies and minds are confused from the 7 hour time change and the 10 hour overnight flight, but our tummies know that it's time for some kind of meal, lol

We stroll slowing along the twisty little streets of St Georges down to Naxos town.  It's a sunny afternoon and many locals and tourists are out for a Saturday afternoon walk.  We walk past the little fountain in the main town square and keep walking until we are in the harbour area, full of restaurants, cafes, bars, little gyro shops, clothing boutiques and tourist shops.  We take in the sights and the sounds of a busy weekend afternoon and we amble slowly down the main road along the harbour.  It's full of sailboats, catamarans, fishing boats and the huge ferries unloading the tourists and locals for their weekend sprees.

We are starting to lag and know that we need to sit down soon so we go back the way we came and find Maros, a little Greek taverna down one of the small side streets close to our hotel.  Den orders a Fix, the local beer he discovered last year and I get some chilled Greek white wine.  We split a wonderful Greek salad with crumbled feta and gorgeous, ripe fall tomatoes and life slowly starts to seep back into us.  Den has a chicken dish with rice and lemon sauce and I have zucchini stuffed with meat and rice.  22 euros and 2 full bellies later, we walk back to the hotel and sit on our little balcony overlooking the Aegean sea and the mountains of Paros and pinch ourselves that we are back in Naxos.

The lack of sleep in more than 1 day is rapidly catching up to us as we sit and take in the view and I know that if we don't get moving soon, we will fall fast asleep and will wake up sometime in the middle of the night.  So we make ourselves get up and walk the few minutes down to St Georges beach and catch our first sunset of the trip.  We hug ourselves at our good fortune and just stand in the warm sand for 20 minutes, watching the golden ball in the sky sink slowly into the sea.

Watching that magnificent sunset put a little wind back in our sails and we decided to go look for some loukamades, the yummy Greek dessert of fried dough balls soaked in honey or chocolate.  We knew exactly where to go, the Braziliana Cafe near the main town square.  We found 2 little chairs and a tiny table waiting for us, right in the street just inches away from where the pedestrians and cars went passed us.  We ordered 2 decaf cappucinos and an order of freshly made loukamades with chocolate sauce (Den's choice ~ next time, we get honey, which are the ones I prefer.  They remind me of my grandmother's honey soaked donut holes).  As we sat there munching on Greek made memories, we thought about the coming 2 weeks and all that we had to look forward to.  We felt grateful and blessed to be able to share another wonderful adventure.  We both have, busy stressful jobs and we really need this time away to recharge our batteries and muster up the courage to face the world once again.

We strolled back to the hotel hand in hand and this time, we fell into bed, exhausted but ectastic to be back in this beautiful, peaceful island.  Sleep came very quickly that night.

10 hours later, we opened our eyes and awakened in paradise.  Feeling well rested and a little peckish, we went down to breakfast and had the first of many bowls of thick Greek yougurt with honey, homemake cakes and cheese pies and cups of thick, dark Greek coffee to welcome the day.  Since it promised to be a warm day full of sunshine, we decided to take the bus to the beach near Paradiso and just laze around and let the warmth of the sun rejuvenate us back to life after our long travels.  We caught up with some people we met there last year and just eased slowly into a day of R&R.

It was sad to see  how much sand has been eroded from this part of the beach.  There was a big storm in April which blew much of the sand away and the beach is very rocky and hard in the area we had lain in last year.  One must also be very careful walking into the water because there are many slippery rocks where you could bang a toe or slip on.  No matter, we have a view that kings would envy and the sun on our bodies feels liberating.  We read and nap, take a dip and chat and just while away the morning.

Around 1:30, we muster up the ambition to go for lunch and 10 minutes later, we are sitting under that beautiful tree at Paradiso and having spanokopita, Greek salad and feta, bread, wine and beer.  The shade feels good and we linger a little, but I know Den wants to get back to the beach and work on his tan.  We walk barefoot back to the beach and repeat our morning activities until the sun is low in the sky and the water is sparkling like diamonds.  We gather up our stuff and the bus has us back in town by 6pm.

We clean up and relax and about an hour later, we walk back towards the harbour.  We have a couple of frappes, the iced Nescafe drink that Greeks love and watch another wonderful sunset.

fishing from the pier

the Portera in the background

making our way through the tiny streets of Old Town

The Portera from the Venetian Castle

Opa

We then made our way to the Venetian Castle high above the town to attend a jazz and blues concert in the open air stage of the Castle.  The 2 musicians are from Athens and they were in town for 1 night only to perform as part of the yearly Domus Festival.  They played a selection of jazz and blues standards that had our feet tapping, our fingers snapping and our heads bopping.  Sitting in the fresh evening air, drinking Greek liqueur and enjoying great music was the perfect way to spend our first full evening in Naxos.

The concert lasted almost 2 hours, ending at around 10pm.  We decided to go to Apostolis for dinner, a nice restaurant we had enjoyed last year.  We strolled through the twisted little cobblestone streets until we got there.  We enjoyed a bottle of Naoussa Boutari, a very nice red wine with little notes of spice.  Den had some pork in a lemon sauce to start and I had a very fresh tomato soup.  We both had traditional Greek dishes baked in clay pots ~ lamb with potatoes and vegetables with a phyllo pastry for me and beef with orzo, tomatoes and cheese for Den.  We split a millefeuille for dessert, finished our wine and enjoyed the walk back to Spiros to digest our late dinner.

Yesterday was again spent enjoying the beach and not dirtying any bathing suits. :)  We had lunch at Paradiso again and split another freshly delicious Greek salad and a plate of Greek appetizers.

frappes after a long day at the beach

The afternoon was spend lounging on the beach, going into the sea for refreshing dips and having massages right on the beach (life is tough, but someone has to do it, right?).  We enjoyed a frappe at Paradiso before heading back to the hotel to clean up and rest up.  I wasn't feeling very well, so we just ended up at the harbour having a couple of gyro pitas for dinner and taking a little walk in an area we hadn't explored before going back home to bed.  Den stayed up under the covers watching the Detroit Lions football game online while I slept oblivious next to him.  We've just finished another great Spiros breakfast and I've finally caught up on my blog.  We are skipping the beach today since it looks like it might rain.  We'll explore more of the old town and may hit up the small beach behind the hotel this afternoon if the weather holds.

spice market in town

Den wanted to buy everything!

Have a wonderful day, everyone!

Back to Greece in 4 days!

Ah, my poor neglected little blog.  You only get attention whenever we go away.  Lucky for you, I am travel obsessed and you get looked after at least a few times a year, lol.

We visited Greece for the first time last September and fell in love with both the country and the people.    Greeks are so welcoming, so warm and helpful, they can't do enough to make your trip a memorable one. We made the decision to come back just a few weeks after we came back.  We were already thinking of where we wanted to celebrate our 30 years of marriage (yikes!) and Den didn't hesitate, Greece was his first and only choice (I made a valiant effort for Paris, but since we were there in May with Seb, I was overruled, lol). We booked our flights with Air Canada in January during a seat sale ~ gotta move fast to get those deals! We decided to spend 10 days in Naxos so that we can explore the island more than we did last year (and yes, to spend time on those beautiful beaches once again).  We hope to hire a local to drive us around the inland villages so we can get more of a feel for the people and villages of Naxos. We also hope to take an excursion to Delos and Mykonos as long as the weather and the sea co-operate.  We will be staying at Hotel Spiros once again, right on beautiful St George beach and walking distance to the old town and all it has to offer.  We will be having lunch under the big tree at Paradisio and we will be relaxing on the pristine Plaka beach, enjoying the sun and the sea in our god-given bathing suits.

our little balcony from our room at Hotel Spiros

sunset from the harbour in old town

Paradisio Taverna right on the beach

Den on beautiful Plaka beach

the little streets of old town

pathway to heaven (with apologies to Led Zepplin, lol)

After 10 days of rest and relaxation, we will take the ferry to Santorini and will spend 4 blissful nights at Anastasis ~ the little boutique hotel with spectacular views of the caldera and unparalleled service. Days of exploring the beauty of this unique island and nights of sunsets, wine and amazing food await us.  Last year, I was moved to tears watching the sunset over the caldera from the deck of our hotel and realizing how lucky we are to be able to enjoy these amazing experiences.  I take nothing for granted and am thankful for every wonderful trip we take.

the view as the ferry approaches Santorini

the view from our room at Anastasis

sunset

on the way to Fira

Beautiful Oia

I plan to take these 2 weeks to do a lot of thinking of what I want from life going forward. I need to figure out what is truly important to me and what will make me happy. Life is so short and we should be able to treasure every moment. I've been asking these questions since entering my 50's two years ago and I've yet to come to any decisions. Fear of change continues to hold me back. What am I prepared to give up to have peace of mind? These are hard questions to face and even harder to answer. Luckily, I have family who love me and support me unconditionally. They are the one constant in my life who do truly made me happy and make my life what it is. Here are the people who mean the world to me and keep me going:

So here we are ready to go on another adventure.  Two weeks of R&R, sun and sand and sea, good food and wine, meeting new people and reconnecting with some we met last year and spending time with the man who truly gets me (and still puts up with me after 30 years!).  See you on the other side....

Naxos ~ Paradise, thy name is Plaka

After a last hearty breakfast at Stelia Mare on Friday morning, we took a cab to the harbour to get our ferry to Naxos.  The waves were a little choppy that morning, but the huge Blue Star ferry took the rolls quite well.  Since it was only a 40 minute ride, we just bought economy tickets and stayed on deck admiring the sea views and wondering how some sail boats didn't capsize in the huge waves.

We landed at Naxos right on time at 1pm and took a taxi to our little family owned hotel, Spiros, which is actually in the adjacent village of St Georges. We were given a lovely room with a tiny kitchen, 2 balconies overlooking the sea, a spotless bathroom with a standup shower in the corner that is actually part of the bathroom.  It sounds strange to take a shower on the floor of your bathroom, but it actually works quite well as the floor dries quickly.

After freshening up, we took our first walk to St Georges beach, which is about 3 minutes from us. Because it is the end of the season, the beach was fairly empty, but there were still people enjoying the last days of sunshine and warmth.  We walked along the boardwalk to a taverna near the end of the beach called Paradise and enjoyed a simple lunch of kebabs, fries, salad, tzaziki and sangria while watching the kitesurfers battle the waves.

We spent the afternoon lazing on the beach, having a mohito and just enjoying the spectacular scenery, the warm sun and the cool water.

After making our way back to the hotel and taking a shower to wash away all the salt water, we headed to the port to get some sunset pictures and find a place for dinner.  The sunset was mind blowing, a bright orange ball slowing sinking behind the mountains of Naxos, creating a light show in the sky and on the water that no artist can ever recreate.

We then explored the tiny streets of Naxos town.  We found an exquisite cheese shop which makes the soft Naxos cheese and we asked the wonderful lady behind the counter where we might find a good place to eat that had mostly Greeks as patrons.  She suggested Maros on a little street down from the main square and we made our way there.

We enjoyed good hearty Greek food but enjoyed our conversation with the man seated next to us ever more.  He is a high school teacher, with degrees in history and philosophy, as well as his Masters from a London University, who had to leave Athens this year to come and teach in Naxos due to the economy.  We spoke for almost an hour about how the austerity measures being imposed on Greece by the EU in return for the bailout have affected the citizens of Greece.  George has little faith that Greece will find a way out of this economic hole anywhere in the near future and he fears that Greece will be the next Albania or Bulgaria.  He can't make any plans for the future and says he can't even think about getting married or having children because he does not know if he will have a job after his 2 year contract in Naxos is up.  He lives in a studio apartment, doesn't own a car and has had his salary cut by 20% with more cuts coming.  He told us that the Greek people are very discouraged, especially the youth who have no dreams to work towards.  It was a very eye opening conversation which showed us the other side of the issue.  In my work as a Financial Advisor, I have read many research reports explaining how Greece has to cut back if they are to make their loan payments to avoid default.  George showed us the other side ~ how these cut backs directly affect real people.  He feels there is truly no way out and that the government has no clue how to fix the problems they created by borrowing and spending so recklessly.  In spite of all this, we also spoke about family and children and parents and health, all the things which are so important to everyone, everywhere, no matter their background, culture, religion or language.

These meetings are such a large part of why we enjoy travel ~ the more you travel and the more people you meet, the more you realize how different we may be in some ways, but how alike we are in the ways that truly count.

We slowly walked back to our hotel and had a wonderful nights sleep.

Morning came and the sun was shining.  After a hearty breakfast at our hotel, we walked to the bus station to catch the bus for Plaka beach.  We have decided not to rent a car on Naxos after our harrowing adventure in Paros.  After waiting about 30 minutes, we decided to share a cab with another couple and we were at the beach in about 10 minutes.

To say Plaka is paradise is an understatement.  Beautiful sandy beach as far as the eye can see in either direction, with interesting rock formations and the most picturesque spot for lunch I can ever imagine.  Plus, there's a large section where the "au naturel" people congregate so of course we made a beeline right there.  We enjoyed an afternoon of sun, sand, water, R&R, and I even got a fantastic back massage right on the beach.

We had lunch at Paradiso, under a huge tree right on the beach.  Greek appetizers, kebabs, wine and beer.......it doesn't get much better than this.  We lazed away the rest of the afternoon back on the beach, in the way nature and God intended us to!

We made it back to our hotel around 5pm where we took a little nap by the pool (hey, it's hard work doing nothing all day!) and then took our showers and headed out for another beautiful sunset by the harbour.  We sat at the Citron bar enjoying this lemon liqueur native to Naxos and watched the sky change colours over and over again in the space of an hour.  We wandered around and found To Kastro, a Greek restaurant high above the harbour where we had a very nice dinner under the stars and overlooking the sailboats in the harbour below.  We ambled back to our hotel a few hours later, finally stopping for some loukamades, the tiny balls of fried dough covered with honey and cinnamon at a little cafe off the beaten path.  We were in bed by midnight and dreamt of beautiful Plaka beach, where we are returning today.

Kalimera!