Paros
Alright...I'm on a roll! And I've figured out what happened with the formatting on the first Santorini post, so that won't happen again.
Once at the port, we would quickly learn that ferry schedules were not a firm commitment. There are plenty of ferries that come on time, but there are also many which break down or go on strike. So we found a nice spot at a cafe near the terminal and hung out for about 3 hours...just waiting...and drinking Fanta! Frustrating when you just wanna get somewhere, but what can you do? Finally got on the ferry around 2:30 and took off for Paros. Below are some pictures of Santorini from the water....cool perspective. We took the high speed ferry, so we were to Paros in no time!
(a tan, relaxed version of my usual self)
Upon disembarking, we ran to the taxi terminal to get in line. Apparently we didn't get a pick up this time...poor planning on my part. But 30 minutes and a few "who's next in line" arguments later, we were off in our air conditioned cab. Drove through the interior of the island (very pretty...lots of farm land) and arrived at the Steila Mare 15 minutes and 15 euro later- not bad. We were greeted by "Eddie 2"... we had a bad habit of making up names for our hosts (well, the hard to pronounce names anyway). He greeted us warmly and eagerly carried our luggage up the stairs to our room. What a room!....we totally scored (which made me nervous that I may have booked the wrong room...but I didn't!) We were front and center with double doors opening right to the pool! And they'd decorated our room!
Eddie 2 took off after dropping our bags, but was back a few seconds later with a bottle of champagne (which he opened and poured for us immediately)!
And if that wasn't enough, we get a knock on our door just a few minutes later, and here's Eddie 2 again with a bouquet of flowers and bottle of local wine from my Nuna Soula...she had a friend on the island deliver this for us earlier in the day! What a whirlwind welcome this was!
Oh and how could I forget the complimentary local liquor...I didn't try it, but here's what Kevin thought...
Once we were done being spoiled, we took a quick dip in the pool, then headed into Naoussa! I was here when I was 15 years old (my Godmother has close friends who live on the island), but it all seemed new to me...such a beautiful town. A quaint, white washed fishing village, cobblestoned to perfection.
Below is a picture of “Kastelli”. The ruins of a small Venetian castle built in the 14th century. During the Venetian domination of the island, this castle protected the town of Naoussa and overlooked the bay in front of it.
Lots of waterfront (or rather, marina front) bars and resturants along the "main drag", so we pulled up a chair, ordered a beer and sat back to soak in our new island. The waterfront area reminds me a bit of Cape Town, SA.
Once the sun set, we collected our bill and headed out to continue exploring. Wandering through the cobblestoned streets we came upon a swanky little beachside lounge- yes please!
This would end up being our nightly tradition in Paros...our pre dinner happy hour. Many dreams, ambitions, brainstorming sessions and deep converations were shared here...it was our place to relax and connect. If you ever get to Naoussa you must check it out (Fotis Cafe)...lounge seating right on the beach!
Left around 9pm for dinner and found a place near the fishing docks running a 2 person seafood special for 30 euro...a welcomed change after a week in Santorini!
I made two "friends" that night as well...
The next day we headed to the beach. Since we're staying in Naoussa there was only one small beach in the area, so we decided to catch a boat to the bigger beaches
Us being artsy with the camera...
A nice 15 minute boat ride brought us accross to Kolimbithres; a nice beach with a beautiftul view of Naoussa. We stayed here most of the day reading under our umbrella and playing in the waves.
After the heat of the day passed we headed back, checked out the day's fresh catch, then back to Steila Mare to rest up for the evening ahead.
After resting up it was off to Cafe Fotis!
Tonight was to be a memorable one. After settling in with our order and small bowl of complimentary chips, we got a vistor. We would call her "Greek Lucy". She came up to our table in total silence, looked up to us with an innocent head tilt, and started in on our chips!
Her Mom was mortified, but we let her stick around and eat our chips....hey, we've got bathsuits to look good in.
She was like the human version of an island cat. And like any good island cat, she eventually came with a swarm...
They were quickly reprimanded and sent back to their table...but not before a quick picture of me and Greek Lucy ;)
After HH we headed out for dinner and found an amazing Gyro shop right on the main drag. At 2.50 euro for two gyros, we would be coming back!
Our time in Paros was all about repetition and relaxation.
The next day we rented an ATV. We woke up early and headed out...just me, mah man, and the open road!
First stop- Lefkes.
A lovely village situated in the middle of the island with approximatley 500 inhabitatants. It's a quiet village filled with olive trees, pine trees, amazing views of the valleys below and Naxos in the distance.
Roaming through the narrow streets, we came upon Agia Triada (Saint Trinity) Cathedral on the outskirt of town.
As always, I stopped in for a visit.
And what a charming cafe out front! No...Kevin did not want to sit and "enjoy" a soda (I wanted to do this a lot), so off we went, snapping pictures as we leasurely roamed back to the ol' ATV.
And this ATV of ours was old...half the time I had to get off just to make it up a small hill.
Next stop- Golden Beach. This was a beach I'd been to with my family back in '95 and I actually recognized a thing or two... it was delightful!
Finally out of the mid-day heat with our feet tucked firmly in the sand, we found two chairs in a shaded area and spent the rest of the day at Golden Beach playing in the ocean and napping in the shade.
(the picture above is the cafe my family and I ate at 15 years ago)
We were beat from the heat and journey of the day and headed home around 5 to relax, swim in the pool, and take it easy
We didn't do a very good job taking pictures at Steila Mare, but the above is taken from the doorway of our room.
(Like I said ...we got hooked up!)
The next morning it was off to Mykonos... an afternoon spent waiting for the infamous ferry...
Until next time Paros!
Once at the port, we would quickly learn that ferry schedules were not a firm commitment. There are plenty of ferries that come on time, but there are also many which break down or go on strike. So we found a nice spot at a cafe near the terminal and hung out for about 3 hours...just waiting...and drinking Fanta! Frustrating when you just wanna get somewhere, but what can you do? Finally got on the ferry around 2:30 and took off for Paros. Below are some pictures of Santorini from the water....cool perspective. We took the high speed ferry, so we were to Paros in no time!
(a tan, relaxed version of my usual self)Upon disembarking, we ran to the taxi terminal to get in line. Apparently we didn't get a pick up this time...poor planning on my part. But 30 minutes and a few "who's next in line" arguments later, we were off in our air conditioned cab. Drove through the interior of the island (very pretty...lots of farm land) and arrived at the Steila Mare 15 minutes and 15 euro later- not bad. We were greeted by "Eddie 2"... we had a bad habit of making up names for our hosts (well, the hard to pronounce names anyway). He greeted us warmly and eagerly carried our luggage up the stairs to our room. What a room!....we totally scored (which made me nervous that I may have booked the wrong room...but I didn't!) We were front and center with double doors opening right to the pool! And they'd decorated our room!
Eddie 2 took off after dropping our bags, but was back a few seconds later with a bottle of champagne (which he opened and poured for us immediately)!
And if that wasn't enough, we get a knock on our door just a few minutes later, and here's Eddie 2 again with a bouquet of flowers and bottle of local wine from my Nuna Soula...she had a friend on the island deliver this for us earlier in the day! What a whirlwind welcome this was!
Oh and how could I forget the complimentary local liquor...I didn't try it, but here's what Kevin thought...
Once we were done being spoiled, we took a quick dip in the pool, then headed into Naoussa! I was here when I was 15 years old (my Godmother has close friends who live on the island), but it all seemed new to me...such a beautiful town. A quaint, white washed fishing village, cobblestoned to perfection.
Below is a picture of “Kastelli”. The ruins of a small Venetian castle built in the 14th century. During the Venetian domination of the island, this castle protected the town of Naoussa and overlooked the bay in front of it.
Lots of waterfront (or rather, marina front) bars and resturants along the "main drag", so we pulled up a chair, ordered a beer and sat back to soak in our new island. The waterfront area reminds me a bit of Cape Town, SA.
Once the sun set, we collected our bill and headed out to continue exploring. Wandering through the cobblestoned streets we came upon a swanky little beachside lounge- yes please!
This would end up being our nightly tradition in Paros...our pre dinner happy hour. Many dreams, ambitions, brainstorming sessions and deep converations were shared here...it was our place to relax and connect. If you ever get to Naoussa you must check it out (Fotis Cafe)...lounge seating right on the beach!
Left around 9pm for dinner and found a place near the fishing docks running a 2 person seafood special for 30 euro...a welcomed change after a week in Santorini!
I made two "friends" that night as well...The next day we headed to the beach. Since we're staying in Naoussa there was only one small beach in the area, so we decided to catch a boat to the bigger beaches
Us being artsy with the camera...
A nice 15 minute boat ride brought us accross to Kolimbithres; a nice beach with a beautiftul view of Naoussa. We stayed here most of the day reading under our umbrella and playing in the waves.
After the heat of the day passed we headed back, checked out the day's fresh catch, then back to Steila Mare to rest up for the evening ahead.
After resting up it was off to Cafe Fotis!
Tonight was to be a memorable one. After settling in with our order and small bowl of complimentary chips, we got a vistor. We would call her "Greek Lucy". She came up to our table in total silence, looked up to us with an innocent head tilt, and started in on our chips!
Her Mom was mortified, but we let her stick around and eat our chips....hey, we've got bathsuits to look good in.
She was like the human version of an island cat. And like any good island cat, she eventually came with a swarm...
They were quickly reprimanded and sent back to their table...but not before a quick picture of me and Greek Lucy ;)
After HH we headed out for dinner and found an amazing Gyro shop right on the main drag. At 2.50 euro for two gyros, we would be coming back!
Our time in Paros was all about repetition and relaxation.
The next day we rented an ATV. We woke up early and headed out...just me, mah man, and the open road!
First stop- Lefkes.
A lovely village situated in the middle of the island with approximatley 500 inhabitatants. It's a quiet village filled with olive trees, pine trees, amazing views of the valleys below and Naxos in the distance.
Roaming through the narrow streets, we came upon Agia Triada (Saint Trinity) Cathedral on the outskirt of town.
As always, I stopped in for a visit.
And what a charming cafe out front! No...Kevin did not want to sit and "enjoy" a soda (I wanted to do this a lot), so off we went, snapping pictures as we leasurely roamed back to the ol' ATV.
And this ATV of ours was old...half the time I had to get off just to make it up a small hill.
Next stop- Golden Beach. This was a beach I'd been to with my family back in '95 and I actually recognized a thing or two... it was delightful!
Finally out of the mid-day heat with our feet tucked firmly in the sand, we found two chairs in a shaded area and spent the rest of the day at Golden Beach playing in the ocean and napping in the shade.
(the picture above is the cafe my family and I ate at 15 years ago)We were beat from the heat and journey of the day and headed home around 5 to relax, swim in the pool, and take it easy
We didn't do a very good job taking pictures at Steila Mare, but the above is taken from the doorway of our room.
(Like I said ...we got hooked up!)
The next morning it was off to Mykonos... an afternoon spent waiting for the infamous ferry...
Until next time Paros!
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