Greek Islands 2009 Day 6 - Naxos : Arrival, Naxos Old Town, Portara

We had a very early start, checking out before sunrise. The Galaxy Iraklio was kind enough to give us a picnic breakfast box, one more notch on their service belt from me. We took a taxi to the airport, and of course, there was a problem with the Olympic flight, how could there not be.

We were scheduled to fly from Crete into Athens, wait a couple of hours and then board a midday flight to Naxos. It was this second flight that was cancelled, but there was a flight out of Athens that would leave just 15 minutes after we arrived, and we were put onto that flight.

So of course, it was a tense flight, followed by a mad dash through Athens airport to make our flight, which finally, left about 20 minutes late, naturally.

We landed on Naxos, and managed to take this clandestine picture of the aircraft.

And this one of the baggage claim at Naxos. A conveyer belt that comes out and dumps the bags onto the ground.

The hotel had arranged a pick up for us so in no time we were pulling up into the lane outside the Nissaki Beach Hotel, our home for the next two days.

We checked in and were pleasantly surprised that at Murat's behest, we had been upgraded to the best room they have. And it truly is a wonderful space, one of my favourites on this trip. The hotel invited us to partake of breakfast while we waited for the room to finish being serviced which was wonderful as we could fuel up and dispel some of the early morning tiredness. We dumped our stuff, grabbed the day pack and set off to explore.

As was headed out of the street, we hit the harbour, and we could see the famous Portara in the distance. Made of marble and dated to 522 BC, it was to be the gateway to the unfinished temple of Apollo.

We were so taken with these "best seats in the house" that we returned in the evening to this bar, but they were already occupied, naturally.

The harbour front is lined with bars, cafes, tavernas and shops, and entrances to the odd church, in this case the Orthodox cathedral in the Bourg area, with a fine 18th century iconostasis.

It was time to head into the Chora or old town, and we were pretty excited to come face to face at last with the Greece we had dreamt about.

One of the most famous products of Naxos is Kitron, a lemon based liquor, which is very popular. Its a bit like the Italian limoncello.

This map at one of the entrances to the Chora is the wonderful reminder of the easy going attitude here. No frills, no fuss, just simple information.

The next couple of hours were a wonderful haze of white washed walls, blue doors and windows, paving stones under our feet, tiny shops and tavernas and riotous bouganvillea.

We decided to stop at a traditional taverna for lunch, and it was pretty good. How could you go wrong with something called "A Good Heart" !

After lunch, we decided to head back to the hotel for some rest, primarily because the sun was getting pretty strong. On the way back we saw our first typical Greek church.

We spent the afternoon sleeping off the early morning, and I nursed my head back from the brink of one of my legendary migraines. We roused ourselves onto the balcony and spent some time taking in the wonderful sea breeze while we decided the plan of action.

We decided to head to the Portara for the fabled sunset shots, passing the griffins of town hall revelling in the evening light.

The walk took about 30 minutes what with frequent stops for pics and all.

We walked up to the Portara just as the sun set and the magical colour play began. There are some sites which are atmospheric for inexplicable reasons, and this place, for me, is one of them.

The moon was just rising and the beautiful white washed facade of the Chora was awash with moonlight as we made our way back.

We walked back to town and spent the early evening browsing the little lanes and shops.

We decided for a change of scene and ended up for a lovely Mexican dinner at Picasso. After that wonderful meal, we ambled back to the hotel, walking on the beach, and sat down on the recliners at the water's edge.

It was a beautiful balmy evening, and we returned to our room well satisfied with our first day in the islands.

Greek Islands 2009 Day 7 - Naxos : Apeiranthos village

Another lovely morning dawned and we went for a stroll on the beach before breakfast.

After a hearty meal, we grabbed the day pack and set off to explore the island. We walked along the harbour front and reached the bus station from where we took the bus to the village of Apeiranthos.

We passed through the town of Chalki, which is famous for its Kitron distillery, before reaching the village of Filoti, which is the starting point for many hikes through the lush Tragaia valley. These police officers at a cafe seemed content with some hot coffee in the verdant shade.

From Filoti, the bus climbed upwards, allowing for some great views.

The village of Apeiranthos lies about an hour away from Naxos town. Its paved entirely with marble.

We felt drawn deep into rural country living, Greek style. This is as slow paced as it gets. We walked around the village, with no specific agenda, just happy to feel time slowing down, and stress melting away.

We stopped at this cafe overlooking the valley and just chilled for about an hour, doing absolutely nothing.

Apeiranthos' unique telephone kiosk !

We walked back to the bus stop, which is also where finds this touching memorial to soldiers in WWII.

As we leave Apeiranthos, we see the wind turbines on the crest of the hill.

The bus goes onwards and ends up in the coastal village of Apollon, known for its unfinished "kouros" or marble statue, about 10 feet long.

We returned to Naxos and decided to have lunch on the beach at the hotel itself, and it was a really good meal. Afternoon siesta beckoned and we didn't argue.

The evening was looking promising from a sunset point of view, even more spectacular than the previous day, so we decided to head back to the Portara. Something about that spot just resonated with me.

We walked back to town and had a pizza dinner at Susanna's which was a bit overhyped, I think. It was too early to go back, and we were well rested, so we walked around town, stopping for dessert at the Waffle House.

Something about the sea breeze that induces sleep I think, as our bodies signalled that more rest would be a good thing, and accordingly, we headed back to the hotel.

We packed up our stuff for the departure the next morning, read our books and slipped away into deep sleep.