Another long and enjoyable day!

We were up at 7:30am to prepare for our hike from Fira to Oia.  At 8am we grabbed breakfast at the hotel's "breakfast room" which just so happens to be located right beside our room. Breakfast surprised us as Jeff had read some crummy reviews; it had a ton of stuff!! Pre-made omelets, french toast, something deep fried that Jeff said tasted like stuffing, cereal, yogurt, toast, pastries, hot dog weiners, bacon...plus juice, coffee, cappuncino. There was no shortage of options to fill our bellies. We didn't have too much though as we were heading right out for our hike. 

We left the hotel about 8:30am and made our way to the path that would take us to Oia. The hike took 3 hours and we were sweaty messes, despite being in the shade for the first half. We traversed up, down and around towns, and HUGE hills (mountains?) following the ocean. For a good portion of the hike we could see the ocean on either side of us (either side of the island as it was really narrow). The path changed often, from gravol, to large rocs, to cobble stone, to charcoal brick looking pieces... It made the hike really tough at times as we had to watch each step we took! A few times I slid and it was a little scary - especially when out in the middle of the mountains and with bad knees and ankles!! Let me tell you, it sucked to climb up - I mean climbing up endlessly. It was gruelling at times leaving us out of breath. We took water and picture breaks to keep us going. I was feeling overheated and had a headache - not a good sign. The saving grace was the view - STUNNING!! If it weren't for it, I probably would have just sat down and refused to move, lol. It was especially hard seeing how far the town was and the two mountains in between! Climbing up hurt my lungs and calves and climbing down was rough on the knees and ankles. We made it though and aree glad we did it.

At about 11:30am we made it to Oia. It was hot there and very touristy. We became sick of the crowds almost immediately. We didn't want to shop so we stopped for gelato; Jeff had pistachio flavour (his favourite) and I had coconut and lemon (light, refreshing and delicious!). We were so dirty from our hike (all the dirt and dust) that my legs were nearly black! I felt gross - sweaty, dirty and hot. We looked around town a bit but soon took a bus back to Fira. Once there, we each grabbed a chicken gyro to go and went back to the hotel; It was about 2pm at that point. 

I showered off the dirt and then we headed to the hotel pool. Jeff went in a number of times but I stayed in the shade and read my book. It was nice to relax and stay out of the sun. We noticed a couple of skinny kitties wandering around the pool and they came to see us. One even jumped up next to me on my beach chair to cuddle! He nearly fell asleep! It made us think of our own furbaby, Clyde, who is getting spoiled at Jeff's parents.

We headed to town around 6:20pm and sat on a bench to wait to watch the sunset (7:30pm). We sat next to a fellow Canadian and chatted with her for some time. She immigrated to Canada from China as a teenager in the 90s with her parents. She had an interesting story to tell.

We watched the sunset and although it may be slightly better in Oia, we've opted to enjoy it from Fira only; we just can't fathom the chaos of tourists in the area and then filling packed buses afterwards. The view we've had the last two nights has been lovely.

After the sunset we went for dinner at "Momma's House" as recommended by our guidebook. The service was excellent and the food was delicious; we shared bread that came with a feta garlic spread, Jeff had moussaka again and I had an eggplant dish (eggplant "nest" stuffed with goat cheese, green peppers, sun dried tomatoes, beef).

After dinner we thought we'd try an experience that we came across the other day - a fish eating foot place, lol. This is a place where you put your feet and about half your bottom leg into an individual tank filled with mini fish that lick your dead skin off and leave an enzyme that betters it. It was wild!! lol. Jeff told me he always thought it would be neat to try (as seen on TV) so we decided to give it a go. There were two other couples in the shop who encouraged us as well. Jeff did it for 15 minutes and I did for 30. They start with cleaning your feet before putting them in the tank. When your feet go in, the fish swarm immediately. It's quite the sensation! Jeff said it was "tickly" where I thought it felt like a dozen or more small vibrations - not at all painful. It was quite the sight to watch! We had a good laugh and our feet came out softer.

We then checked out the bus station schedule because we plan to hit up a beach tomorrow.

Side note - I've been getting many compliments on my Greek! I think the locals appreciate the effort and some have said I'm doing really well - some even have asked if I was Greek!

It's now 10pm and we're pretty beat.

Tomorrow is our last day in Santorini; we hope to see a cool beach.

Until then, 

Adio.

Amanda and Jeff xoxo

Santorini

After taking in as much of the stunning view from our balcony in Ios as we could, we packed our bags and prepared to leave the hotel. The day time reception lady (who we have enjoyed talking to) made a special point to come around the desk to give us a hug and double cheek kiss to say goodbye and wish us well. She was so lovely. We forgot to get a picture with her and are kicking ourselves. It was her spirit we'll remember though.

We were taken by van, with our Oshawa friends, to the port to wait an hour for the ferry. It was hot and sunny so we found some shade and chatted until we were called to the gate to wait. We took the boat called "High Speed 6". It was very big and quite empty so we sat where we wanted. The trip was quick - maybe 40 minutes. After we arrived we went to find our airtransat representative (i.e. someone holding an airtransat sign) and were told which bus to get on to take us to our hotel.

We arrived and it was a little chaotic as people were trying to check in all at once. I felt kind of crummy, hot and light headed which was a bummer. I'm not sure if it was the heat, dehydration, hunger, motion sickness or some combination of them. 

The hotel is nice but no palace like the last one. We're on the first floor and our room and window opens to an indoor courtyard - boring! Ah well, have to have the mediocre to appreciate the grand!

We stopped at the grocery store across the street to replenish our snack and water needs, then wandered to town and found food (gyros!! (pronounced "yeeros". We could eat them every day).

 

We then had our orientation meeting with our trip rep and she talked about some excursions, the island and answered our questions.  We then opted to stay by the pool for a bit before going for dinner. I'm quite tired today and was trying not to fall asleep at the pool.

We headed to the grocery store for a second time to pick up more water and some granola bars for our hike tomorrow from Fira (where we're staying) to Oia (pronounced "eeya") - about a 3-4 hour hike along the coast. We did something similar in Italy (Cinque Terre) and it was pretty amazing. Tripadvisor says this is the #1 thing to do in Santorini. We'll go right after breakfast to be done for lunch. Hopefully it's not too too hot; we'll be at the water so hopefully that will help.

Our guidebook suggested a restaurant called Naoussa for sunset view and moussaka. We thought we'd seek it out and we were lucky to be able to get a table on the roof to watch the sunset (most were reserved). It was goregous!! I'm talking stunning oranges and pinks over an island in the bay. We both ordered the homemade moussaka. Jeff said he would have eaten it up to his eyeballs it was so good. And it was! That leaves only one more item on our 'to-eat' list (and this is a late addition), baklava (dessert). 

We wandered through the shops area after dinner; most of them are tourist focused (clothing, jewelry, trinkets) but it was a beautiful sight to see it all lit up at night. I took a dozen photos at least!

We tried to find the start of our hike for tomorrow but didn't - we think we were pretty close though. I guess we'll see in the morning.

We headed back toward our hotel and again went to the grocery store (3rd time is the charm) because I forgot clothing soap. I know it's only been a week but when you sweat through everything, clean bras, underwear and shorts need to be replenished! I washed them in the shower and have hung them to dry. Hopefully they will dry pretty well overnight.

I'm pretty pooped today. We're a week in (halfway) and have had a great time so far. We're now preparing for this leg of the adventure without going too crazy (although a 4 hour hike sounds a littl nuts, lol).

I'm hitting the hay. I'll post tomorrow to let you know I survived the walk along the coast!

Amanda xoxo

Dinner with friends

Hello, Yiasus!

There was no post yesterday as we didn't get home until midnight, which is super late for me - I've always been an early to bed kind of gal. It's 8am when I write this as I wanted to be up and outside on our balcony taking in the view before having to pack up our belongings to move on to Santorini. The ferry is at 12:35pm and we'll be getting a ride to the port an hour before.

So, yesterday. 

We had a good breakfast at the hotel and then opted to head to the town 5 minutes away calld Chora. The weather was cooler with clouds rolling in steadily so it made sense to go when we wouldn't have to contend with the heat. We took the city bus which was no big deal at all - the stop was right outside our hotel. We wandered through the small town for a couple of hours. It's all white, concrete buildings that are connected and on a hill, so lots of stairs and ramps everywhere. Only 1600 people reside on the island year-round. We noticed a lot of small clothing, souvenir, jewelry and ice cream shops, many of which weren't open yet. There were also a ton of bars. The island of Ios is known to be a party island. We could just imagine the drunk chaos that would take place on these narrows streets, especially going up and down the various (uneven, sidways, twisted) stairs! We saw a dental clinic and Jeff figured it would get a lot of business from fallen party-goers, lol.

The town was really quiet as it was morning and it is end of season. We saw a number of posters indicating that last night was the last event of the season for numerous bars - including one last pub crawl to 6 of them (that started at 11:30pm!!). We met a lady named Tracy, who is from London, England and who runs a retro clothing store in town. She had nice things but they were expensive. She was super friendly so we chatted with her for awhile. She told us a bit about the town and how the Greek people differ between islands. She was funny and chatty. She introduced us to Dimitri (as he was walking by) as he would be our server at the restaurant (Lord Byron) tonight.

We headed back to the hotel to spend some time at the beach before heading back to town for dinner with our new friends, Danielle and Bobby (newlyweds from Chicago).

As we were asking (the very nice, very accomodating, friendly) reception lady some questions, she got yelled at (in Greek) by some impatient guest. No matter where you go, there is always a grump unhappy about something! We think he was irritated that we were taking too long and he wanted beach towels. She apologized profusely to us so she could deal with him. Despite the language barrier, the customer service "language" was quite clear. We teased her later saying we hope she told him off and she said although she wanted to, she couldn't; we said we totally get it, lol. We talked with her about meal times in Canada and she was apalled, lol. I explained 7am breakfast, 10am snack, noon lunch, 3pm snack, 6pm dinner, maybe 9pm snack. She said breakfast is usually around 11am, lunch around 5pm and dinner can be 10pm or later! We're obviously on very different schedules!!

We spent some time on the beach about mid afternoon but it got so windy that the sand whipped at us (ouch!) and we opted for the pool. We were able to use the huge sun bed (that can easily fit 5 or 6 people) and lounge for an hour or so. As it sits above the second pool and looks over the bay and ocean, it really felt as if we were on top of the world, spoiled and luxurious. In between soaking up the moment and really taking it in, I also took a dozen pictures. It was so beautiful.

We then showered and dressed to head back to town for dinner. We made it there and waited at our table outside for Danielle and Bobby who were going to meet us at 7:30pm. I got chilled with the wind and so we moved inside. 7:30pm came and went and we suspected they had gotten lost because we recalled them saying something about the restaurant being near the port (it wasn't, lol). Just after 8pm, Jeff and I ordered food as we didn't know if they were going to make it. I ordered gnocchi with a mushroom cream sauce and crispy procuito (Amazing!! I would order it again in a heartbeat!) and Jeff had a crab and spaghetti dish (with bib and crab cracking untensils and everything!! lol He said itvwas also very good). Danielle and Bobby arrived just after we ordered and we were on our second round of drinks (white, fruity sangria for me and beer for Jeff). We were glad they made it. They apologized and said they had gone to port - as we expected. They ordered food and we sat and chatted for quite some time.

We then headed to a bar next to the restaurant for drinks. It was known to have different kinds of beer. Danielle ordered ouzo for us all and neither she nor I liked it. The kind we had tasted like black licorice (ewwwww). Our husbands drank ours. We then opted for drink number 2 and mine was entertainment for the rest of them. A red liquid with half a lemon inside and a gob of really sticky sugar. The sugar didn't dissolve so it was relly tart. Oh well!

At 11:45pm, Jeff and I had planned to takethe last bus back to our hotel but for a euro or so more, we took a taxi as it was faster and available immediately. We said goodbye to our new friends and exchanged information. They are heading to Santorini tomorrow so we may try to meet up again.

We were in bed and asleep around 12:30am.

Now it's 9am and Jeff is still sleeping. I'll have to wake him for breakfast and to start packing. 

This morning has a cool breeze off the ocean. The clouds are rolling through but when the sun hits you it's lovely.

I'll update about today later tonight.

Until then,

Amanda xoxo

Awesome day!! Opa!!

What a fabulous day!

It started after a great night's sleep - the best since we arrived to Greece. The bed is king size, comfortable, and the a/c works great! Thank goodness!

We ate breakfast at the hotel; there was lots to choose from (pastries, bacon, sausage [aka hot dog weiners], eggs, fruit, cheese, bread, cereal). We easily made up our plates. The only issue we had was the amount of bees that tried to join us for our meal - hard to enjoy yourself with the threat of being stung!

We had planned to go to Maganari beach today, on the south end of the island (about a 40 minute bus ride) but we changed our minds last minute after hanging out on some goddess-like sunbeds (billowing sheets with pillows and everything!) overlooking the beautiful beach below us. We opted to stay close as the beach here is lovely and  being close go our hotel had its advantages. So, we paid our 5€ for our beach chairs and settled in for the day. And the day was HOT!! The sun was strong and it took no time before we needed to cool off in the water. The water itself was gorgeous - you could walk right in it, it was so warm and you floated easily! All we had to do was keep ourselves verticle and we'd float - even Jeff, who is what we call a 'sinker', lol.  We didn't have to work at all to float around in the water, which made hanging out in the ocean all that much more enjoyable. We were in many times throughout th day.

As this beach is often very busy during the high season (June-August) there are lots of activities on the beach to do, including wake-boarding, peddle boating, tubing, kyaking, paddle boarding, boat tours, banana boat, scuba diving and this giant couch looking thing that you sit on and it gets pulled behind a power boat (similar to tubing but bigger, sitting up and unlikely to fall off). Jeff and I did the couch ride and it was AMAZING!!! We had so much fun!! We were laughing, screaming and grinning from ear to ear for about 10 minutes as we bounced and flew over the water a speeds comporable to the boat pulling us (at one point we were side by side with it!). With every wicked jump or bounce we laughed harder. I kept giving the driver the thumbs up when he gave it to me - we weren't sure if that meant go faster or if we were good. It didn't matter. His excitement and enthusiasm for our joy was intoxicting. I'm smiling as I write about the memory already. He blew a whistle, hollered at us, clapped, waved, cheered. It was a hoot and a half and a highlight of our trip so far. All I could say afterward was, "That was so much fun!!"

After that we spent the rest of the afternoon at the beach. We met a young couple (Danielle and Bobby) who were sitting behind us (from Michigan but living in Chicago) who are on their honeymoon. We chatted with them for quite some time. They are staying in town ("Chora") and had come to the beach for the day. Seeing as we are planning on going to town tomorrow, we arranged to meet them for dinner. We have a double date! lol

Jeff and I got back to the hotel after 6pm and got cleaned up to go to the Mexican restaurant next door to the hotel (we read good reviews online). We had drinks (I had a strawberry mojito) and food - we shared a HUGE plate of chicken nachos (delicious!) and "Mexican rice balls" (rice, jalepeno and cheese deep fried and served with a yummy sauce). All was very good! I ordered a brownie and they brought two (I think they thought Jeff would want one - I took the 2nd one to go). They also brought us a bite size brownie in a caramel sauce that had cayenne pepper in it - it was good too! Jeff is stuffed to his eyeballs.

The restaurant was mostly young people - a first for us as we've typically been the youngest everywhere we go. We met the owner and she said her place is often full of Canadians in June. She was very nice. She sounded as though she was from Australia but we didn't ask. Jeff bought a shirt from the restaurant as a souvenir.

On our way back to the hotel, our Oshawa friends called my name from a dark patio they were sitting on - Jeff bumped right into me when I stopped at the sound of my name. It was pretty funny. It's been nice to talk with them when we see them.

We made it back to our room about 10pm and I'm now finishing my blog (about 4pm home time) and preparing to go to bed. Jeff has been trying to find the blue jays game online to listen to but hasn't had much luck.

It was a full day of fun, friends and food. We've got another full day in Ios tomorrow before heading to Santorini.

Right now there are fireworks going off across the water! Who knows why and who cares! We've got a great view from our balcony as we're about the same height they are going off. 

This really has been an enjoyable and relaxing vacation thus far!

Have a good weekend everyone!

Amanda and Jeff xoxo

Arrival: Ios

It's hard to believe that earlier this morning we were already saying goodbye to our first Greek island - Naxos, and have since spent the day on Ios.

We got up and had breakfast before Nikos picked us up and took us to the port. It's quite notable that he will be part of our Greek memories for years and years to come, and yet we were 'quick turnaround tourists' (I totally made that phrase up, lol) for him. As always, we need to be aware of our presence as you never know what kind of mark you can make on someone's experience!

We waited for the "Flying Cat" ferry and boarded rather chaotically - we had no idea where to put our luggage and when we figured it out, there was little room for our bags. We just sat them down and hoped for the best - it worked out fine. The ferry moved really fast so we were in Ios in no time (about 50 minutes). We ended up heading to the hotel (in a van) with the same folks that sat behind us on the plane - neat! They are our parents' age and are from Oshawa. After days with only broken English it was nice to converse easily. They commended us on taking this adventure while we can, noting that it gets harder the older you get.

We ended up at a hotel called Ios Palace, although we were supposed to go to Dionysos. We're not exactly sure what happened and we were looking forward to Dionysos as it had fabulous reviews on tripadvisor. Ios Palace however is  an "option 3" hotel (i.e. more expensive, especially since we purchased the "option 1" package!). Needless to say, we aren't complaining! The hotel appears to be the largest in the area we are and is lovely (much busier than in our Naxos hotel that had approximately 10 guests... Or less, lol). Our room is on the top floor which has provided another spectactular view - mountains, beach, restaurants and the two pools of the hotel. It's pretty amazing.  This view comes at a cost though, including not one but two elevators plus a hill and some stairs, lol. Jeff and I are grateful that we're mobile and able-bodied! We were sweaty messes when we first arrived and immediately turned on the air conditioning. This Greek sun is HOT! And it sure is tough (more like gross) to try and put sunscreen on your sweaty body.

We went for a quick walk after getting into our swimsuits and then opted for the pool as it was mid afternoon and we didn't think it was worth it to cough up the 5€ for the beach chairs seeing as we'd go tomorrow. The pool was glorious - 100% refreshing. We were in and out of it a number of times whe we felt our skin was starting to fry, lol. We wear lots of sunscreen and take shade breaks whenever we can. Neither of us wants to contend with a sunburn on vacation!!

We stopped at a mini market that sold grocery store items - we picked up the essentials, beer, water, chocolate and chips. Jeff bought oregano flavoured Lays and they were good! We'd eat them at home if they were available.

We opted to try a restaurant for dinner that was recommended in our Greece guide book called Drakos. It is known for seafood; and as Jeff would say, "When in Rome!" It was on the exact opposite end of the beach, which was only a 10 minute walk. We sat at a table next to the water.

Jeff ordered the catch of the day, which was an experience! He had to select the type of fish (red snapper, scorpion fish and some other grey unknown) and then select the specific fish to get weighed (for price) and dinner! He said the only fish he had heard of was the red snapper and the scorpion fish sounded "dangerous", lol!! When it arrived, it was literally just the cooked fish on a plate. Our server offered to open it up and remove the bones, which was greatly appreciated as it would have been a challenge and a half for Jeff. He had the fish (with a lemon and oil dressing) with bread and oil that came with the meal. I ordered a squid (calamari - did you know that the word "calamari is Greek!? I didn't!) stuffed with feta cheese, tomato and onion. It was risky for me as I've only ever had calamari fried - you know, so it's practically unrecognizable! I had kidded with Jeff that I didn't know what I'd do if the whole squid came... And of course it did, tentacles and head and all. It was mind over matter at that point. Thankfully the stuffing inside of it was delicious! I ate all of it but the tentacles - I just couldn't do it, lol.

During dinner we watched a young boy throw bread into the water to feed some fish - they really gobbled it down! We also people watched around us, including a family with two toddler boys. Jeff and I had read in our Greek guide book that children are adored and they are expected to assimilate/participate in adult life (i.e. adult food, long dinners, conversation) - we've noticed a number of parents appear quite lax with their children (not compromising safety) - no helicopter parenting here!! 

We bumped in to our new Canadian friends on our way back to the hotel. As silly as it sounds, it's comforting/enjoyable to see 'familiar' faces - a little patriotic unity and similar culture unites!

We got in around 10pm and are getting ready for bed now (10:30pm).

Tomorrow will probably be a beach day - especially if this hot weather continues!

Until next time,

Amanda and Jeff xoxo

Beach day in Naxos

Again I was wide awake last night at midnight, but this time I think I can attribute it to the heat. I spent a ridiculous amount of time (and annoying beeps from my frivilous button pushing) trying to figure out the air conditioner, with no real success. Well, I was able to get it working but then it got too cold with the fan, so then had to turn it off. Urgh! Thankfully I was able to get back to sleep some time after 1am.

We were up at 8am and then slowly made our way to breakfast. There were only a few other guests around. I had yogurt with nutella, juice (that tasted like apple spice tea??), some canned peaches, a hardboiled egg and some fried things we couldn't identify, lol. It all hit the spot. We're pretty easy to please.

We called our friendly cab driver, Nikos, to take us to the beach. Nikos has driven us nearly a half dozen times at this point so he's become a familiar face. We told him we wanted to go to Propokios beach but he said no, Plaka is better as there are fewer people. Seeing as he is a resident of Naxos we figured we'd trust his reccomendation. He was bang on. We drove by Propokios and he was right, it was a crowded beach in size and full of people.

It took about 10 minutes or so to get to Plaka and we were glad we followed Nikos' advice. Naxos has some of the most beautiful beaches in Greece and this didn't disappoint. It is 4km long, wide and soft sand. The water was clear and warm too - as warm as the ocean gets anyway! Nikos dropped us off at Cedar Cafe, which he said was his friend, and left us to our own devices. The main road was dirt, which added to the beachside charm. Jeff and I walked a little bit down the road before opting to return to the Cedar Cafe because we liked the look of the thatch umbrellas on the beach (and Nikos said they would call him for us when we wanted to return to our hotel). We rented a couple of chairs and umbrella (already in place on the beach) for 5€ and settled in for the day. A server from the cafe took our order, bringing Jeff a large beer for the beach. Jeff's easy to please.

We spent the afternoon in the sunshine and heat, reading, swimming and lounging. At one point, Jeff and I were in the water and a fish got eerily close to us - seeing as a fish attacked us and our friends in Cuba in February, I was quick to get out of the water! Jeff said it wasn't big deal (ha!). It didn't stop me from going in again when I got too hot.

We watched the waves vary from calm stillness to roaring, at one point crashing over the sandy incline of the beach and past our chairs! It made nearly everyone jump to grab their belongings should they have been on the sand! I don't think anyone was expecting the water to go as far as it did - it only happened once but it was enough to have everyone move their stuff, lol. Thankfully I had my backpack off the ground.

We opted for lunch at the Cedar Cafe and it was delicious! I had a Greek salad (tomato, onion, feta, olives, capers, olive oil), and it was so good! The feta cheese was so creamy and the olive oil wasn't the cheapy kind we get on sale at Zehrs (lol). I tried a black olive - still don't like them, lol. Jeff had saginaki (fried cheese) and it was okay, nothing really special. We split bread and tzatziki (drizzled with olive oil) which was also super delicious. We are quickly making our way through our must-try Greek food list! Only thing that is left is moussaka!! And the drinks ouzo and kitron (although we bought some and will try soon!)

At 5pm we had the Cedar Cafe call Nikos, who picked us up and dropped us to our hotel. We'll be seeing him in the morning when he drives us back to the port for our ferry at 11:35am. The people here have been very friendly and accomodating. We're lucky as our Greek only includes the word 'hello' (yassus) at this point, lol. 

Jeff and I have showered and are now thinking about dinner. I'm writing on the ipad as I look out over the bay and at the town of Naxos and surrounding mountains (beauty). While we've enjoyed our stay and would return, we would probably stay elsewhere to avoid the need for a taxi - we could rent a car or atv but we weren't prepared to navigate that with only a day and a half here.

Update - we tried the kitron. It's made from citrus leaves and comes in three different varieties. Clear is strongest, then orange, then green (increasing in sweetness). Jeff bought a sample of orange. He said it tasted good, after it burned down your throat. I say, it burns down your throat and into your belly. I had to chase it with beer, lol. I guess that's what 40% alcohol will do to you. Blegh! lol

Side note - it's kind of gross to have to put your used toilet paper in the garbage after using it. Nothing like poop paper in the trash can for a day. Be thankful for the sewer system back home!

We've now had dinner. I had cheese and spinach pastries and a plate of eggplant and Jeff had fried cod with beets - all was very good. My mai tai however was SUPER strong, which was was unpleasant.

It's 9pm and we're ready to head inside after taking in the lights from town. The wind isn't too strong so it feels warmer tonight. I hope it doesn't stay too warm or it'll be me against the air conditioner again!

Tomorrow we're off to the island of Ios (pronounced ee-ohs) and the reviews of our hotel on tripadvisor are awsome!! We're excited.

Until tomorrow,

Amanda and Jeff xo

Day 3: Island of Naxos

We started today early, way too early - I'm talking before 5am and I had already been awake tossing and turning since 12am. I think my late afternoon siestas, albeit brief, plus jet lag are still interefering with a good night's rest.

We grabbed a very quick breakfast at the hotel - most of the items from yesterday werent available (due to the ugly earliness of our need, lol). I was surprised to see so many people taking the same bus as us to the port for our ferry. 

We had a brief few minutes of anxiety when we still hadn't received our ferry tickets for one of our trips, but thankfully at the very last minute (actually a few minutes late) our air transat guide showed up, confirmed the bus and gave us our needed tickets. We stopped at a few other hotels to pick up other guests heading to th port. When we got there, it was quite busy, but we had no issue getting on or loading our luggage. We found our seats (after realizing there was assigned seating) and settled in for the journey. The ferry itself was really quite big, holding loads and loads of people. It was going to three different islands (Mykanos, Naxos, Santorini). We sat in a foursome with a small table between, more comfortable than those sitting in airplane fashion. The seats were comfortable and there was lots of room. There were two decks; the upper for the "club class", which I assume was first class. We sat with a woman who spoke Greek and a girl about my age named Shannon. She is from Oklahoma This was her 3rd time to Greece. We chatted a bit before retreating to our headphones. Jeff and I each took a gravol for motion sickness, just in case, and we felt fine. I had a nap. Jeff said he watched people fall all over the place trying to walk when the boat was quite rocky. He said it looked like Oktoberfest!! lol. 

We stopped at Mykanos first. The transition from passengers off to new ones on was really efficient. An hour (about 11am or so) later we arrived to Naxos. When we got off the boat we had thought we were looking for an air transat person, however quickly realized that wasn't the case when we saw a man holding a typed piece of paper with "Litt" on it! That was funny and something Jeff nor I had experienced before. He took us to our hotel, Naxos Magic Village. It is about 10 minutes away from the port. It looks a little old but it sure has charm and the view from our room is spectacular - overlooking the ocean, beach, and town. It really is something to see. I'm guessing we have a premium room as not all have this view. It pays to come during the mid-season versus during the summer! We've barely seen anyone here.

We unpacked, got changed and called for a taxi to take us to town. We could have rented a car, 4 wheeler or mo-ped but after seeing how close the taxi drivers drive to one another, we decided against it. The parking itself would have been tough too without anyone really following any rules, lol.

We wandered through the town, eventually finding a castle area that housed a Catholic Church that is still used regularly, and a dilapetated tower. It wasnt really all that much to see. We then walked along the street near the water that had many restaurants and souvenir shops geared to tourists. We stopped for ice cream, which was delicious! Jeff had caramel and I had nutella. 

We walked until we could see the temple of Apollo - which was started and never completed, and then cabbed it back to our hotel. The downside to being so far from town is the taxi fare as there aren't any restaurants, etc. near us. The hotel has a restaurant which is where we will have dinner.

We spent the afternoon at the pool; only one other person was there with us. It has been very quiet here. The sound of the ocean is our background noise, which is lovely. The sun was hot but the breeze cool so it was perfect for some R&R. We then headed back for a snack and to chill out berfore dinner. Our view is beautiful but chilly since the sun has moved. I had to put a sweater on!

We had dinner at the hotel restaurant as it would cost us 10€ each way to go to town. We each got a kebab, which was a huge ground meat patty (like a homemade hamburger patty but longer) on top of a pita and on the side was fries, tomato, onion and tzatziki. It was all very good, although we weren't sure how to eat it; did we pick it up like a wrap? Use knife and fork? It was messy but we ate it with our hands. It was a lot of food and we were full when done. Then the waitress brought us ice cream; I tried to say I'm so full and she replied with, "it's just ice cream", lol. We ate a few bites and then paid. It was much cheaper than going to town and we are satisfied, if not slightly uncomfortably full!

So far we've really enjoyed the pitas, gyros, tzatziki, yogurt, spanokopita and ice cream. I have yet to have mousakka and look forward to trying it when I can!

We're now in bed at 8:36pm - that's what happens when you're up ridiculously early. We were able to get wi-fi, which we didn't think they would have, so that was a really nice surprise - I get to write to you!

Jeff's found a fishing show (in Greek of course) to watch. Yes, despite our quaint room, we still have a flatscreen TV, lol. So far, we've been able to watch Mike and Molly as well as Two and a Half Men in English before bed. Huzzah!

Tomorrow we are heading to the beach for most of the day and looking forward to some ocean swimming.

Hope all is well on the other side of the pond!

With love,

Amanda and Jeff xo