Naxos

Even after all of the Cycladic islands I have been to by now, I always end up coming back to Paros thinking it’s the best…until now. Even though I only spent one night there, Naxos has taken over as my favorite. It immediately felt less touristy, even at the port. Then as we made our way through the winding streets its unique character began to show even more.

Our first night we were free to wonder. Walking along the coast we saw the most amazing sunset, better than Ia. After that, our first night we were not very Greek. We went out for Mexican food at Picasso. The food was amazing, maybe in part because I haven’t had Mexican in over a month, but it definitely hit the spot. After eating at least a couple meals worth of food and taking our complementary tequila shots we made our way to a Mexican bar. Pablo, a Brazilian server, tried to teach us how to salsa…tried. When we got back to our hotel, even though it was 3am, me and Kate sat out by the pool for about an hour getting life advice from Moses, a little grey kitten.

Sunday we got to see more of

Naxos’s vast landscape. First our bus winded its way to the temple of Demeter, the goddess of grain. Demeter and Dionysus, the God of wine and fun, are the most glorified deities on the island due to its dependence on agriculture.

Then we visited Apiranthos, a little village nestled inland among the rolling hills. The village was slow paced and peaceful, not at all a tourist destination. A few friends and I broke off from the group to wonder. On one path we met an old woman carrying some apples. She got really excited when Patricia wanted to take her picture. She grabbed Kate by the arm and lead her up the path so they could sit by some potted flowers for the picture. She was grinning from ear to ear. Then she asked for a pen and disappeared into her house. She wrote down what I think is her name and address. After disappearing into her house again she returned with pictured that other travelers must have sent her, I now have a mission to uncover what she wrote and mail her a picture. Up another path we decided to try some of the grapes that were growing over the path, delicious. Back to the bus, our last stop was to see a giant kouros.

Naxos is definitely a place to return to.