Paros and Naxos
Today we had a rare opportunity to see two islands on one day. First, in the morning, we dropped anchor in a beautiful cove at the northwest end of Naoussa Bay, on the north end of Paros Island. This was a very relaxed morning – everyone still was a little bit tired after the busy day in Santorini. So only few of us were ready at 9am to take a Zodiac shuttle to the beach and go on a hike to a small lighthouse nearby with a lovely view of the bay. The rest of the group was having a late breakfast and a lazy morning either on the ship or on the beach. We enjoyed being alone and having the whole beach to ourselves. It was so calm and quiet. And again like two days ago we had a possibility to snorkel, kayak, swim or look for small creatures living in this crystal clear water.
After lunch we sailed to Naxos, the largest and highest and also the most fertile island of the Cyclades. Its landscape is rich with citrus orchards and olive groves. For the afternoon we had planed two different excursions: one for “grown-ups” and another one for our younger guests. The adults were taken to a small charming village called Damalas to visit the workshop of local potter Manolis who showed us few “miracles” demonstrating his craft. The next visit to the old olive press was also very interesting. Going back on the bus to Naxos town, we admired the dramatic mountains with their patchwork of rich gardens and vineyards. Later in the town – Hora, we were taken by our guide Sophia on a walk to the medieval Venetian castle called Kastro. In the meantime our kids being still in Manolis pottery workshop had a possibility to try their hand at molding some clay. That was a big fun for everyone.
Back on the ship we started a Greek party with traditional “mezedes” followed by a buffet dinner with Greek specialties. But it was still not the end of a day. A local dance group performed for us after dinner and we had a great time trying to dance some Greek traditional dances together with the dancers. And because the night was beautiful and calm, many of us decided to finish the day with a stroll on the promenade along the waterline.
