I’m pretty sure that the “L” on the bottle stands for “Lysol”

2001 Minor Cyclade Islands, Greece.

Naxos

“I arrived at the port in Naxos at 4:30am and was concerned that I wouldn’t find a cafe to relax in while waiting for the daylight so that I could find a room. Much to my surprise, the tiny port was hopping. I sat facing the sea and watched (with much amusement) older men try desperately to pick up the very drunk backpackers in the cafe one over. In the light the port is lined with bars and cafes, restaurants and aging pickups loaded with sea sponges or giant terra cotta pots. I can smell the sea. There is a large thin strip of land that reaches out into the water and on it sits what looks to be an enormous stone picture frame, taller than anything else within site. It’s the remnants of Apollo’s temple and with no building around it- it appeared as a window to the sea when I arrived in the darkness. Naxos is the island from which the marble for the Venus De Milo came.

I have tried citron, a bizarrely powerful lemon shoe polish-ish like drink that is specific to this island. I’m sure that if I could read the Greek on the label it would tell me in no uncertain terms that citron can cause blindness. The ouzo however, is a beverage that must be revisited many times. Apparently most islands make their own and though similar, each is distinct with it’s own subtle flavors. It’s mind blowingly good and has left me with more than one ragging morning hangover.

I have been spending long days on Plaka beach swimming in clear blue water and longer evenings in various seaside restaurants with other miscellaneous travelers laughing and drinking ouzo late into the night. I think I have actually lost my bikini top which is fine as topless is the norm and I am deep brown since practically living in my sarong and nothing else. I am relaxed and at ease, the craziness of the last several months wandering through Europe are a blur and I can think of nothing more taxing than what time is too early for the first cold beer on the beach. I am off to Paros tomorrow, I have rented a small seaside room for 10 days where I intend to continue this leisurely pace.

Paros

“Paros is the Greece that I have seen in postcards–the shocking blue and whiter than white. The small whitewashed homes dotted along the island with doors and window sill of bright yellow, red, green, or blue. The colours seem so intense and are continued in the woven headdresses that I see on the donkeys carrying various items through the village. Narrow winding staircases painted white that lead to shops, homes, an unexpected market, or just further up the hillside. Giant pots of hibiscus are everywhere and it’s absolutely stunning. My days here are filled with the alternating between the beach and exploring the island. I took a bus out to Naussou and watched the fisherman clean their catch of octopus and repair their nets. The villages are so bright and vibrant that when you leave one en route to another and move away from the sea the jagged land looks so dry and dusty. The bus rolls by small scatterings of olive groves and I am enjoying it all. An outdoor movie theater with no roof, a bar and tiny tables between the seats where I took in a Greek film while sipping a beer, having a smoke and being surrounded by fragrant flowers just a few short steps from the sea. The tiny boat that takes me out to Kirios beach where the water is clear blue and filled with tiny black and white fish that will come up and nibble you if you stay still long enough. On my 8th day in Paros I took a ferry out to Anti-Paros Island–a tiny adjoining chunk of land with little on it save for the port. You can see small sharks from the beach and the fishermen were gutting them on their boats. I had dinner before heading back to Paros; grilled calamari steak that was almost as thick as my arm and local wine. Tomorrow I am leaving for Korfunissi.  Yesterday was spent on rented vespas taking in the rest of Paros. I visited butterfly valley and the strange rock formations at Kolimbithres beach which was more than worth the long and rather sketchy vespa ride. The swimming is excellent and the erosion on the rocks is both baffling and beautiful. I had thought that not eating red meat might be difficult on the islands but I am more than full on the fresh fish, olives, soft cheese and ripe tomatoes. After another long dinner accompanied by much local wine and giant bottles of Mythos beer tonight and then off to Korfunissi in the morning.”

Korfunissi

“It’s the last day on this amazing Island and I don’t want to leave. It’s tiny–very few tourists and all looking for the same thing–beach. The sea was rough getting here and bags temporarily went missing from the back of the tiny red pickup that transports goods down the dirt road from the port to one of the islands two restaurants which is roofless and windowless and sits a mere 10 feet from the ocean. They were eventually found and my companion through out Greece PJ and I are sharing a room in the basement of the restaurant owners house. We have met two great couples here and every morning the 6 of us pack a lunch of bread and olives and tomatoes and make the 20 minute walk along the rocky path to “the far beach.” It’s a little unprotected curve of beach with the most amazing water on one side and the most terrifying cliff dive on the other. It took me 3 days to gather the courage to make the 80 foot leap and it was a bit of drama getting us back on the rocks due to the rough water. It had been smooth the day before and the waves looked so small from 80 ft up, but cut and bruised and bleeding from being smashed against the rocks, we all made it in eventually. Our largest decision is when to reapply sunscreen. We pick out fish from the mornings catch and then spend the day on the beach frolicking in the sun, building sandcastles and exploring. We walked around the island and found Cleopatra’s bath, a milky white pool fed from the ocean through a small tunnel in the rocks. The stones in the pool are rubbed perfectly round and smooth from years of the incoming tides and are the most amazing shades of pink and orange and tan. I have taken many and they are spectacular. The village is very quaint and very few stores, most items are brought in by ferries for locals. There is however a jewelry shop–everything hand made by a local man. I bought a silver ring with a bright blue stone nestled in a hand bent square setting. The stone is the exact colour of the water here.

Ha! we had an extra day in paradise as the ferry to Naxos has been cancelled due to rough seas, however, today it is coming and we are all  extremely sad to be leaving this place. We all splurged last night, fresh lobster and pasta in octopus sauce, countless bottles of ouzo and bottles of Mythos. We are all more than a little green as we wait on the dock for the little boat to roll in and take us somewhere new. We will travel to Naxos, have one more night all together and then go on our separate ways. I will make the long journey back to Athens and then to Italy where I will resume wandering through Europe for a few more months before I get to rest in Germany and hang up the backpack there for 6 months while I go to school. As tempting as a real bed and laundry facilities are–I don’t want to leave this little island.