Greek Vacation 2017 : Part 2

Day 2

The next day we went to the Panathenaic stadium, the Parthenon and the Acropolis museum. The tour guide, Anastasia was very good and gave us the story and history behind the pieces in the museum as well as these ancient structures. We then proceeded to Cape Sounion to the temple of Poseidon.

 Throughout, the heat was balanced by the cool winds and the emerald views of the Aegean,  on either side  on the drive to Cape Sounion was fantastic and ethereal.

I also loved the view of the yachts, boats and the weekend swimmers jumping off the rocks directly in to the water all from the top of the hill where the temple of Poseidon was located.

Day 3

We took the Hellenic seaways ferry to Mykonos from the Piraeus port. We had been booked deck tickets which were ridiculous, so we upgraded and sat in the very comfortable lounge chairs for a mere 12 euros! It took around 6 hours to reach but we did not feel it as we had our ipads and tablets pre-loaded with good movies, good food was available, the restroom (atleast the ladies’) as with anywhere in Athens and Mykonos – were extremely clean, no matter how many tourists came and went and we could walk around and breathe in the fantastic sea air whenever we liked. We also went up to the front of the deck to savour the fantastic views and enjoy the cool winds.

At Mykonos, we were to stay at the Hotel Paradision. Now, if I were to dream of a hotel that would be my ideal place of relaxation, this would have been it. A small establishment of may be 15 rooms if not less, it was beautifully and tastefully decorated in blue and white. We had the Sea view room and what a view it was from the cute balcony! Breakfast was home made and the best I have ever had with atleast 20 items laid out every day. The breakfast area was by the pool which in itself overlooked the Tourlos bay. To come down to the fresh aromas and to watch the sea and ships and have breakfast was the highlight of my day. (Though this did not stop one particular American to ask if they had any ‘diet coke’ as he came down for breakfast! There were 20 home made items, an assortment of tea, coffee, chocolate milk and juices but no, he would like a diet coke please!)

The fantastic Stefanos beach was a mere 10 minute walk away and it was breath taking to say the very least. We went straight down and had a whale of a time. One caveat is that all the restaurants in Mykonos were very very expensive as much as anything in Athens was cheap by UK  standards. The cheeky monkey enjoyed the swim and looking for fishes in the crystal clear water and frolicking in the golden sands. There were many other famous beaches like Super Paradise, Elia beach etc but Stefanos was small, uncrowded, beautiful and just perfect for us. Even the walk to and from the beach, due to it being uphill, awarded heavenly views and a real feast for the senses. All the while, the sun was beating down but we did not feel the heat as the nicely cool wind kept things just right!

The walk to the hotel is a very steep uphill, which was a bit of a challenge but then given the hilly terrain of both Mykonos and Santorini, if you need views, an uphill walk, comes with the package.

Day 4

The next day, we had booked a cycling trip to Fokos Beach with Yummy pedals. We rode though the reservoir of Ano Mera (stopping first at the Paleokastro Monastery) with around 11 other bikers  mostly American and some Italian.  Dimi, the tour guide was friendly and informative. She stopped near a church by the road and explained to us the greek concept of ‘Dhama’ where a family prays for something and has a very small, single room church built as an offering. Sometimes these are built within the premises of a family home. Every day, the lady of the house ensures that incense and lamps are lit and outsiders are allowed to walk in and pray as well. We stopped at one such church overlooking a hill and small though it was, it was beautiful and very well decorated.  Dimi or Dimitra said that in most cases, even weddings are held at these small family churches, which means barely the bride, groom and the priest can make it inside the church while the rest of the wedding party stays outside!

The trip was fantastic but because of the large group mostly made up of fit adults, the difficulty level of the terrain was quite high. We were the only family, so we had to adjust. K and I took turns on the electric bike pulling the trailer carrying the cheeky one and this was easy. Whenever we took our turn on the normal bike, it really did prove quite difficult. The beach itself was unsurprisingly beautiful, but after Aigos Stefanos, we were too spoilt and just took a small dip in the water. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the onward trip, but the return uphill was killing, to say the least!

We then went back to the Vioma Organic farm that was run by Dimi’s parents. The young one had a great time feeding the donkey and the goat in the farm and chasing Oscar, their dog, under the tables and chairs.

Dimi dropped us  back near one of the Kato Mili ( the famous Mykonos wind mills) and from there we  took a walk around the streets of Mykonos and passed the Mattiyianni street and reach the old port. The streets were marvellously white and blue with the cobble stones winding a playful path throwing surprises when least expected. The famous meletemi winds were in full force and there were a few seconds when I was worried my slightly built cheeky monkey may get blown away!

But while K was enjoying his freshly caught fish by the old port, we had  mum and daughter bonding time, exploring the shops and brazenly walking into gold and diamond outlets to check out the Hellenic designs! As always, with her chocolate brown, big eyes that melt anybody and everybody (except her mum who knows the cheekiness that lies behind those puppy eyes!) opened doors everywhere for us! Every body was keen to chat with her and were only too willing to answer all her inquisitive questions!

By this time, we were long overdue for a fight, so K and I duly had an argument and I stormed off along the coast making my way by walk to the hotel all the way from old port to the new port! I had assumed dad and daughter would catch a taxi and I could upbraid them for making me walk while they sashayed in by taxi. Alas, the poor souls had hoped to catch me half way so they followed me all the way by foot and by the time all three of us reached the hotel, we were too exhausted to continue the fight and pressed each other’s feet and massaged the calf muscles in sympathy!

Dad and daughter still had the energy to go to the fantastic pool and have a wonderful time. Dinner once again was a disappointment as the veg options were spinach pie, rice in stuffed peppers and fried manoumi cheese – all of which were wonderful but not continuously day after day and especially at the outrageous Mykonos prices. We discovered that the best way to cover lunch and dinner at Mykonos is to go to one of those charming bakeries and grab a pie and an icrecream for less than half the price at a restaurant! Something to remember for next time J