Paros/Naxos
It’s Sunday morning and the sunrise found us anchored in the bay of St. John at Paros Island. Very quiet, very peaceful and only seagulls seemed to be awake, calling us to join them on a morning swim. We put our kayaks out in the water, we hiked on a trail toward the old lighthouse and the rest just enjoyed swimming in the refreshing waters of the Aegean Sea.
Time flies, though, when you have a relaxed morning, so a little bit after noon we returned back aboard Panorama for more Greek delicacies and during our midday siesta we set sail for Naxos Island. Mount Zas impressed us as it dominates the centre of the biggest Cycladic Island. We didn’t really expect to see such a big mountain in the middle of the Aegean.
Our afternoon itinerary included a short bus ride inland on Naxos to Damalas village – maybe the smallest village in population! But to our surprise an old olive press somehow gave life again to the village and since now it’s back to the locals use. The smell of olive was everywhere, though we were there a bit early for an olive press demonstration since harvest season is in the early winter. Instead Mr. Manolis gave a pottery demonstration at his fourth generation workshop! Each piece of clay had a story to tell…
Definitely a visit in Naxos isn’t complete without the “Castro.” The old part of Naxos is actually the Venetian castle and the aristocrats used to live here. Today there are still many descendants but only their names and the coat of arms above their doors reminds us of the past. Because Naxos has many others things to show you except for the history we got a taste of the island, sampling local cheese called “arsenic”…
A very romantic and colorful sunset simply made the Portara view from our boat look surreal, followed by a deep yellow moon. It was time to close the day with a night out in town… how can you sleep anyway with all this beauty around you?
