Heading North
Santorini was good, but after 3 days I had had enough. It is the sort of place that you should visit, but probably only once.
Given that the tourist season is drawing to a close, the number of ferries between the Islands is starting to be reduced. The ferry to Ios was leaving at 8.30 a.m. from the ‘new port’. This meant an early wake-up and a walk to the bus station. The bus in Fira is interesting: the entrance and exit for the buses is in the same place. This result is traffic jams when more than two buses move at once. It results in a type of Mexican stand-off with animated discussions over which bus should retreat. Needless to say, no amount argument is of interest to the passengers who actually want to get somewhere. After about 10 minutes the bus finally headed off to the port. The road down to the port is seriously steep and narrow. I was impressed by the skill of the driver to driver so quickly with any thought of mishap.
Ios
The ferry was one of those high speed catamarans, possibly built in Tasmania. In no time we were in Ios. I checked into a hotel not far from the ferry wharf. Given that the season was ending, the place was cheap – EUR 20 for a really good room with a balcony. This was the same price for bunk in 3 person dorm in Santorini.
I went for a walk up to the village above the port. It was interesting to see, what I assume to be a more authentic Greek Island village. It has narrow lanes etc, but has been spared too much white and blue paint – and very shop being a tourist trap.
I returned to the port for dinner. I seemed to be one of only a handful of diners.
Next day I planned to take a small ferry around the coast to a swimming beach. A sign promised sailings very day 11.00 a.m. There were not enough takers and we were shepherded onto the local bus. The bus ride was an experience – seriously steep road and dramatic drops. Again I was impressed by the driver’s skill.
The beach was quiet, but good. Very clear water that had the classis aqua blue colour from certain angles. I had a really good meal at one the restaurant, just off the beach.
The port was literally buzzing when I returned. Half a dozen sailing boats were in town. They were crewed by the classic English ‘grey sea nomads’. Some were at the table nearly in the restaurant where I ate. The conversation was ‘all boat stuff’.
Naxos
I continued on the route north to Naxos. The ferry was good old slow thing. It was mid-afternoon when I arrived. I decided to head for Agios Prokoplos beach, that I had read was one of the most ‘beautiful beaches’ and a good place for diving.
I caught the bus out to the beach and looked for a place to stay. I settled on a hotel opposite the beach. After checking in, I head across to the beach. Albeit, it was late, there were a lot of people on the beach. Virtually all the people were on deck chairs. There were umbrellas made plastic or dead leaves. The strange thing was that there were very few people in water. I had a quick swim. Again the water was very clear and warm.
I headed to ‘dive’ shop I had noticed in my way to the hotel. I thought that if was going to stay here for a day, this would be a good chance to do something active. Well, let’s just say the complications of registering, being trained, and then actually taking to the water was too much.
My assumption that the reason that few people were swimming the day before, i.e. it was late, was wrong. Again, there were lots of people on the beach on their deck chairs. At any point in time you could count on the fingers of one hand, the number of people in the water. Most of the people were lying on the deck chairs – way from the protection of the umbrellas. I guest most Northern Europe and Brits do not see too much sun. I am not sure getting burnt the way they are here is such a good idea.
Mykonos
Next stop north was Mykonos. This is another tourist island.
I stopped off at the accommodation centre for advice. The manager said that “given that the season was ending he could do a good deal on suite”. I suspect he owned it. Anyway, after an inspection, I took the place in the old town – just 200 metres away.
I walked up the bus station and jumped on the bus to Paradise Beach. I had read that is a ‘Party Beach’ favoured by the younger folk. Even before I got off the bus I could hear the ‘thump, thump’ of the so called dance music. I wandered towards the source of this sound. There was a reason number of people standing around, some dancing. All seemed fairly out of it. The time was about 6.00 p.m. Apparent these ‘parties’ go on till dawn. Hmmmm.
I headed back to the bus stop and into town.
After luxuriating in my suite – shower, beer and watching BBC World News, I headed out for dinner. There was a large crowd at the waterfront. I suspect a lot of them were from a large liner moored off-shore. It was owned by the same company that had parked a large ship on an Italian Island last year. The righting of that ship was the lead item in the BBC News.
I found a small ‘basic’ looking restaurant for a meal. I found myself in conservation with two New Zealand sisters – one had been living in London for 3 years after two years in Australia. She did something in ‘video production’. Her sister was out of NZ for the first time. In course of the conversation, I began to wonder if they were actually related.
Next day I headed off to Platys Yialos beach. This is completely covered with beach chairs, similar to the beach in Naxos. I wandered a bit further around the coast to another beach. This one actual had some space for people to sit on the sand. The water was clear and warm. In the course of swim, I got into a conversation with an English couple. They told me that they came to Greece this time of year rather than in July or August because the weather was just as good and the crowds had largely gone. The wife was particularly keen on sun baking. When we returned to the beach, she showed how keen she was – I was impressed.
That night I had a reasonable meal in a fairly flashy restaurant on the waterfront. After the meal I headed to the Skandinavian [sic] for a beer. There were not any Scandinavians that I could observe.
Athens
Next day I caught the ferry to Piraeus. Another slow boat, that arrived in port around 6.00 p.m. I caught the train up to Athens and found my way to the ‘Students’ and Travellers’ Hostel in the Plarka district. I found myself sharing a mixed dorm with a middle aged American from New York called Connie. She had been travelling the world for over year after a divorce. She was interesting.
I did the usual Athens stuff – Acropolis, Olympic site etc. For some, no apparent reason, the Museum of Antiquity was closed. A bloke looking at the closed sign, told me that: “according to its website, it should be open today. This is why I left this fu**king country”.
Given that it is over 36 years since I had been in Athens, I can’t say if it is possible to see any signs of the ‘great recession’. There were no riots while I was there, and there seemed to lots of activity in the cafes and restaurants in the district in which I was staying. There was a lot of graffiti on the walls is shopping area near to where I was staying. However, you see that in lots of places in the UK.
Chios
I took the overnight ferry to Chois. This is very large island close to Turkey. It is not a tourist island. The ferry arrived at 5.30 a.m. I found a café with WiFi. I had several cups of coffee to pass the time and waited for the town to wake-up. According to Trip Advisor, the options for accommodation were limited. They are right. I found a place offering ‘rooms’. It was block away from the café. I found the place a check in.
Around 11.00 a.m. I caught a local bus to swimming beach about 15 klms out of town
After a swim I had lunch in a café opposite the beach. The waitress was very chatty. She wanted to practice her English and I was her only option on this day. I asked when the bus would be returning to town. The bus stop was in front of the café. She told me “10 to the hour”. I went for another swim and return to cafe at around 4.40 p.m. and ordered a bottle of water. At 4.45 the bus drove past the café and bus stop without stopping. The waitress told me, “they often do that”. I thought thanks for telling me now. She offered to drive me into town as she “had finished work as was heading that way”. She seemed intent of continuing chatting. When the car stop and some traffic light near to my ‘room’, thanked her for the lift and hopped out of the car.
I had a surprising good meal in a restaurant on the waterfront.
Next day Turkey.
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