Join us on our journeys
Some might say I’m snoozing, but I would contest that I am merely practising some yoga moves on the beach!
Twenty eight days in, and it has come to this: falling asleep whilst reading on the beach. Bliss – what more could you want from a holiday?!
I’ve been enjoying Syros – perhaps I don’t have too much to write as the days have fallen into a lovely lazy routine of wake with the sunshine, across the road for a swim, back to the apartment for breakfast on the balcony, watching the world go by, another amble across the road to our favourite spot under a tree on the beach 5 minutes from our apartment, swim, chill, chat, stare out to sea, back to the apartment late afternoon for a shower, coffee (and possibly a snooze) before having to decide do we turn left or right to go out for dinner.
Today, we chose right, and had a delicious meal in a busy taverna. We arrived at circa 8pm and already most tables were full or reserved, but we managed to get a table, …
…enjoyed each others company, wonderful food, and the hub-bub of a busy taverna as the light faded to darkness.
Whilst there are a few other English holiday makers here, and a few other northern Europeans (including a group of young lads from Republic of Ireland who have annoyed Becky with their competitive bickering whilst playing “ball” in the sea) most of our fellow tourists here on the island of Syros are Greek – probably escaping the heat of Athens (into which cauldron we soon travel). And I can think of no higher recommendation than to go on holiday where the locals choose to go.
I will confess, as time on our trip has passed, it is possible that one’s standards may have eroded a little. We left the UK with clean, laundered and ironed clothes, T- shirts changed daily, cleanliness being next to godliness and all that. Now, a few weeks in, new norms have been established: a T-shirt does at least two days, then I take it in the shower with me to give it a rinse through – dry it in the sunshine and wind, and its good to go again.
For lunch today, we picnicked on the beach – a hunk of bread, an apple and some pretzels. I am told – although I fervently disagree – that I have “grabby hands” when it comes to crisps and the like, and I am forbidden for delving into sharing bags as I come away with a handful, too much, apparently. So denied direct access to our bag of pretzels, and with no bowls or plates to hand, one of my slider shoes was pressed into action as a plate for my pretzels. OK – perhaps standards are on the slide(r!) after 26 days of travelling, but it worked.
Later in the day, after a shower and a proper sit down meal with full crockery we continued our amble along the Posidonia side of the bay and came across a hotly contested game of beach volleyball that we watched for ten minutes or so. This was on the “trendy”” beach and we definitely were not in the age profile of the rest of the beach users, but it was fun to watch this great sport being played.
We are now well in to our fourth week in Greece and we have very much succumbed to “Greek time”: long, lazy mornings, lunch at around 3 o’clock and evenings that spill effortlessly into night time. It’s perfect. And whilst days begin to merge into each other, each day does seem to, unexpectedly, offer something new and surprising. This morning (it may have actually been the afternoon – who knows, or cares!) as we headed off to the beach on a patch of scrub-land near our apartment we spotted some cacti flowering. I’ve never seen these cactus in flower before – beautiful, big yellow flowers, and we weren’t the only ones enjoying the show, a great big bumble bee was taking its fill of nectar.
(And this evening, we shared our taverna with someone famous. Becky spotted him (I wouldn’t know him from Adam), a male model, dining with his wife and two young children. I won’t say who he was because a) I don’t really know who he was and, more importantly, b) just like us, he was enjoying his holiday on this beautiful Greek island and he has the right to do that in anonymity just like anyone else. (For the record our food was delicious – especially the grilled mushrooms – but we ordered far too much!)
Kalispera.
Today we upped sticks again, leaving Ermoupoli behind and headed to the other side of the island to a beach resort in Finikas bay, in the resort of Possidonia, pretty much slap bang in the middle of the bay – about 5 or ten mins wailk into Possidonia and 15 minutes into Finikas itself. We have a lovely apartment, possibly the newest, and design led. Its best feature is a lovely big balcony looking out to sea, but with sails providing the perfect mix of sun and shade.
We got here by bus (of course!) – the busses from Ermoupoli run in a circular route around the island (although nothing goes north of Ermpoupoli – our first host on the island told us there is very little there) and Possidonia is mid-way on that circular loop so it didn’t matter which bus we took, we’d still get here in about 30 minutes from the port! As it happens, we took the circular route – a direct transfer would have been quicker but we wouldn’t have seen all the beaches that the bus route visited on its journey – sometimes (often) travelling by bus is the best way to travel.
Thunder approaches!
Today we moved on from Antiparos (via Paros) to our next (and final ) island destination of Syros. Our ship for the journey was Fast Ferries “Thunder” – a magnificent vessel that took us swiftly and smoothly to our new home in less than two hours, including a stop to download and upload more passengers on Mykonos.
As ever, boarding was controlled mayhem – Paros as a port is busy, busy, busy (having arrived in the port about two hours before we were due to sail, we sat in a waterfront taverna for brunch, and I thoroughly enjoyed myself watching a fleet of ferries arrive and depart. When it was our turn to board we now know what to expect, strap on our packs, join the queue and head up the ramp when directed to do so. It is a great way to travel.
As one Blue Star Ferries ship departed, another arrived!
Ever since we landed in Santorini, a fairly stiff breeze has blown – good for making the heat bearable, not so good for stirring up the sea. Today, though, for the first time in three weeks there has been no wind. That made our crossing super smooth, with the sea as calm as a mill-pond, but it did mean that when we docked in Syros it was hot, hot, hot. After checking in to our apartment, we eventually dragged ourselves away from the air conditioning and went to explore the town – for 2 nights we are staying in the port/capital Ermoupoli, before we cross the island for our final five days. Bigger, and not so tourist dependent than anywhere else we have been, it is a pretty town, but with an architecture more Venetian than the whitewashed Greek houses we have encountered so far.
In the evening, at 7.30pm, we caught the free “mini bus” (mini because the journey is small, not the size of the bus) up to Ano Syros – a town on the hill overlooking the capital. I think everyone else had the same idea as the bus was packed (good job it wasn’t a minibus as we think of them) but after 10 minutes of standing we de-bussed in Ano Syros. But this wasn’t the end of the trip – we then had stairs, lots and lots of stone stairs to climb to the top and visit the classic cathedral atop the hill. If I’m honest, Ano Syros, and its cathedral are probably better seen from afar – when you are in the cramped, cobbled streets you can’t really see to appreciate its beauty. But as we descended from the top, we did see a magnificent view across the domed roof of another church, looking out to the calm sea, and surrounding islands, in the late evening haze. It was beautiful.
Rather than play sardines in the bus to come down the hill, we decided to walk back to our apartment – circa 15 minutes, all downhill, but some of the stairs were punishing on ageing knees! As the sun had set, the temperature had dropped to a manageable level and before long we were back in our apartment, wondering where the day (and night) had gone.
Today we went back to our secret cove but, for the first time since we left Santorini all those days ago, the wind wasn’t blowing, and the sea was calm. We set up “camp” in the same spot as yesterday and then soon took to the waters, which were still, and so clear.
Yesterday it had felt safe swimming in our little cove as it provided shelter from the breakers, today I was happy to swim out further and deeper and explore what lay to the left and right of our little slice of heaven. Rounding the the “headland” at the top of our cove, I didn’t find another lovely beach, but instead a sea cave going under the cliff face. With the sea calm, I felt emboldened to go in an explore – the cave was, perhaps, 5 metres from the front to the back, and the water about waist high. The light in a sea cave has to be seen to be believed, and it is very different looking into the cave, as from the cave looking out.
But it wasn’t just exploring the cave that was fun, the swimming – in deep (by deep I mean at least out of my depth) clear water, some ten or fifteen metres from the shore was delicious. The best swimming of our trip so far.
And talking of delicious, this evening we returned to the garden taverna we dinned in a few nights ago, enjoying the food, and probably the prettiest setting we have eaten in all trip.
Perhaps the only disappointment (and that is probably to strong a word) has been the beaches and swimming that we have encountered on our trip across the Cyclades – we haven’t encountered any of the brilliant beaches that we have previously found in Corfu, Kefalonia and across the Ionian islands. We like a small cove, pebbles/rock are our preferred surface, and I like crystal clear seas that gets deep quickly. Many of the beaches we have encountered on this trip have been thin strips of sand – and not to far from really being dirt – and very shallow shelving seas. Add in the near persistent wind ruffling the surface of the water – thereby masking its clarity – and the beaches haven’t been the best.
Today, though, we found a secret cove and enjoyed a wonderful, private, day on the beach. We had scouted it out on our first day on Antiparos, and this morning, laden with lunch, water, umbrella and other supplies, we walked over the “other side” of the island (the west side) and continued on past the main beach (with a surf rolling in that would tempt a Cornish surfer) along a track past the “Sunset” taverna before scuttling down a path to our cove.
We cleared some dried seaweed away and set up camp in space more than comfortable for two, but would be cramped if anyone else had wanted to join us. We had a very small bay which took the worst out of the waves, instead they rolled gently in, providing a rhythmic and hypnotic sound track to our stay. And the swimming was good. Sand turned to stone, and a few metres out the water deepened and bobbing in the swell was blissful.
All day it was just the two of us on a deserted Greek beach. Heaven.
Today we headed to the south of the island, to Agios Georgious. You could see across the water to the island of Despotiko, a (now) uninhabited island that in 500 BC hosted a temple to Athena. We make out the ruins of the temple from our side of the water, and we declined the option of going on a boat trip to the visit the ruins (and some sea caves) opting instead to find a small isolated cove/patch of beach to colonise for the day. We sat, swam, read – and roasted: it did get very hot. A chilled day.
Today we hopped on our local ferry for a day trip to Paros, big brother to our small island of Antiparos. After a swift seven minute sea crossing, we got a bus to Parikia – the main port on the island of Paros, where we landed from Sifnos and from where will depart to Syros in a few days time – and from there another bus to the Naoussa a resort on the north west of the islamnd (and yes, each bus journey was 2 two euros!) It was a pretty harbour-side resort, probably best characterised and known for a couple of squares by the sea full of taverna tables that fill up for dinning on the evening.
In the heat of the day time sun, it was not surprising that the tables lay empty during our visit, but clearly dinning is a big part of the Greek holiday experience in Naoussa. We wandered white washed streets, enjoyed a drink by the sea, and a lunch by the habour, and enjoyed the sights and colours of the town.
We then returned to Parikia, spending eventually finding a pretty street to amble along, but in reality it was not as pretty as, and more expensive than, Naoussa. Unless you fly into the island (possible from Athens) you will pass through Parikia, but I’d leave it at that – pass through it on to better places. As we awaited our bus down to the smaller port of Pounda (where we catch the local ferry across to Antiparos) we witnessed another couple of huge ferries arrive in the port, disgorging one set of tourists, and taking another boat load away. I know I’ve written a lot about ferries on this trip – I am in awe of them, some of them are just so, so big.
And on our return to more sleepy Antiparos, and after a gyros to keep us going, we walked over to the other side of the island (a ten minute walk) to watch the sunset across the Aegean sea. Magical.
