A vacation in Greece usually includes a visit to one or more of the popular islands such as Crete, Santorini, Mykonos, Paros, etc...Tourists come from all over the world to dine at Greek tavernas, get a taste of traditional Ouzo, swim in the warm Mediterranean Sea, visit the many churches, and of course experience the crazy nightlife. The islands are packed with people and you need to reserve a hotel months ahead of time or the chances of you finding an available room are slim. This, however, is during the months of May-October. As of right now, many of the islands can be described as a "ghost land". There are no tourists and even many of the families that have homes there are away for the winter, which leaves you with the few locals that stay behind. Many hotels, restaurants, and shops are closed up for the winter months...I know this because Jessica and I went to Paros this first week of March.
Many people asked us why we were going at this time of year and warned us that the weather wasn't going to be nice and there weren't going to be any people around. This didn't bother us at all... first, because we knew that at this time of year its too cold for swimming and second, because we were looking to get away from all the hustle and bustle of the city life in Athens. A calm and quiet weekend away was our mission and I can definitely say that is exactly what we got.
We found a nice hotel that wasn't expensive due to the winter rates and saw that the ferries were affordable as well so we booked the hotel and were out at sea within 2 weeks of planning. I had never been on a big ship before or a ferry of any kind so I was excited to see what it was like, unfortunately Jessica and I both got a little sea sick on the four hour journey. There was a restaurant, a few shops, and a cafe that kept us occupied for some of the time and the rest of the time we slept. We caught the 7:25 am ferry out of Piraeus (main port of Athens) which meant we were up by 5 am and very tired!
We arrived in Parikia, Paros around 11:30 am, the main port of the island and capital city, but we were staying in Naoussa which is about 15 minutes away by bus. Let me take a minute to describe the bus ride....first of all, it was a bus made sometime in the 70's by the look of the interior and ran only one time per day from Parikia to Naoussa and then back to Parikia. Driving through the country side was absolutely beautiful. There were vineyards, valleys of flowers, row upon row of olive trees and small white houses set out in the middle of these charming plantations. About half way between the two villages an old man asked the bus driver to stop. It wasn't your typical bus stop with a sign and if you're lucky a bench, it was literally in the middle of nowhere. He had to have been about 80 years old and one of the cutest little old men I've ever seen. He carried with him a bag and set out walking down a dirt path as the bus pulled away. Jessica and I were watching in amazement and a little confusion at this typical day in the life of the old man.
We arrived in Naoussa and checked into our hotel. It was white washed walls with blue accents that embodies traditional greek design and very cute!
The staff was very welcoming and let us know about places to go around the island. We took a walk to the center of the town (about 400 meters) in search for food and came across a small souvlaki restaurant where we enjoyed a delicious gyro! We walked around for a little while admiring the small, winding streets and little shops tucked in here and there. We were basically the only people out walking around which made for a relaxing stroll.
At this point we were full and tired so we headed back to the room for a nap. We woke up around 6:30 and weren't going to go out until 10:30 or 11 so here are a few videos for your viewing pleasure of how we kept ourselves entertained :)
We ended up at a costume party that night in a small bar in the center of Naoussa. It was really fun even though we were pretty much the only people not dressed up...we headed back early (around 3:30) because we were waking up early to go horseback riding!
When we awoke the next morning the hotel had set out a large breakfast buffet with everything you can imagine. We felt a little bad cause we were the only people staying in the hotel but it was mighty delicious!
We then headed to Kokou Horse Riding where we started our ride around 11:00. The day threatened rain and a few drops came down at the beginning of our ride but the weather improved quickly and made for a great day :) My horse's name was Thymy (pronounced TEE MEE, the H and Y in Greek make an E sound), she was a very gentle horse and quite old as well. The guide and owner of the horses told me that the average horse in the states lives to be in their mid-twenties but many of the greek horses live much longer. He has some that are in their mid-forties! Jessica's horse was named Fifi and a wonderful horse as well. Thymy used to be the horse that the guide rode but now that she is older he has her take the new riders because he knows he can trust her to be careful and not try any tricks. She was quite slow, not because she was lazy but because she was trained to walk slower when the guide is in front of her so I was stuck in back most of the time...I didn't mind much though because she made me feel very comfortable riding her. We rode along paths through the countryside and then along the sandy beaches. At one point we were riding along the coast and when you looked across the water you could see Naxos, an island to the east. I couldn't have had a better time that afternoon, riding a horse along the beach on a small island of Greece...what an experience! I highly recommend it :) !!!
After returning from our ride we found a pizzeria and had some lunch. Luckily we were the only people in there because I'm pretty sure we smelled of horses....then it was back to the hotel for some rest :) That night we went to a cafe bar in Parikia for a drink and then back to Naoussa for the rest of the night. There was another costume party at one of the bars so we picked up some masks along the way. It was fun but we were tired from the day so we headed back around 3.
When arriving we were greeted by 2 cats sitting outside our room! I was delighted! The cats running around Greece usually don't let you pet them (trust me I've tried on many occasions) but the ones on the islands always seem a bit friendlier. We sat and pet the cats for awhile and then against Jessica's wishes I let them into our room :) She wasn't too happy about it but just requested that they don't go on her bed, 3 seconds later Leyland (that is what I named him) jumped up on her bed and I continued to pet him. haha :) Finally we kicked both Leyland and Tula out of the room and went to sleep.
The next morning we enjoyed another large breakfast and then packed up our things. We had to catch the one and only bus yet again to take us back to Parikia where we would catch our ferry home. The bus was at 12:15 and our ferry wasn't scheduled to depart until 7:10 so we had quite a few hours to wander around the small town and enjoy the scenery. We laid on the rocks by the sea for awhile, walked through the streets window shopping, went for lunch and then went and sat at a cafe for the remainder of the time.
The last hour we were there we met a man that asked us to join him for a drink while we wait so we accepted his invitation. He was quite entertaining, and on his umpteenth glass of ouzo due to the celebrations for that day and evening. It was the last day of the Apokries which is a celebration in Greece that lasts for 3 weeks. It is connected with the worship of Dionysos, the god of wine and celebration and celebrates the beginning of the spring to ensure a good harvest and successful breeding of the animals. So we chatted with him for awhile and then got on our ferry and set out for Athens.
The trip back was fairly uneventful other than when one of the men on the ship woke me up asking if I had a mobile phone. I told him that I did and he asked if I was sure and told me to check. I was quiet confused at this point but I went through my bag, found my phone and showed it to him. I asked why he was asking me and he leaned closer and pointed to the woman two seats away. He told me she was a gypsy and that I needed to watch my things. At this point I wasn't sure if she had tried to take something of ours while we were sleeping and someone saw and reported it or if they really are just that cautious around gypsies at all times...either way, we and all of our things got back to Athens safe and sound.
Paros was an excellent weekend destination and I hope to go back this summer to see the town a little more lively. Nancy said we will most likely take the boat out there so I'm keeping my fingers crossed :)
