Undiscovered Cyclades: Koufonissi and Naxos
28 AUGUST - 4 SEPTEMBER 2016
DAY 1-4
Athens - Koufonissi
On the occasion of a wedding of friends in Athens, we take advantage of a second trip to the Cyclades Islands, to discover some new pearls of the Aegean. At 5 a.m., after the wedding reception, we leave from the port of Athens. Stripped of our elegant clothes and slipped on our Hellenic-blue sweatshirts, tired dead we head directly to the port, where we embark on a ferry, which after 7 long hours, lands in Koufonissi, the first destination of our trip.
We are welcomed in our apartment, a small white studio with blue windows overlooking the bay, from which, on foot, you can easily reach all 4 beaches of the island, with a walk of half an hour at most.
HOTEL: Apollon Studios
A short trip to the beach is enough to make us appreciate the breathtaking beauty of the bays of the island, a little disturbed by the strong wind, but with Carribean waters.
There is not much to tell about the following days, since for the first time (also because of the small size of the island) we simply enjoy the sea, the pleasant beaches, and a few walks to 'end of the small island. We mostly cook in our apartment, with the exception of an amazing pita gyros bought in the only place on the island that distributes gyros from the window of a house, directly on the road. In the beach of Pori, at the end of a day at the sea, we have dined to the Pori Café, with a grilled octopus and a grilled squid of considerable dimensions. The only other restaurant we explored on the island was the Capetan Nikolas tavern, where we enjoyed a very good catch-of-the-day fish, and an unusual plate of octopus in fig sauce on a bed of mashed fava, the typical legumes of Cyclades.
DINNER: Souvlaki Sti Strofi | Pori Cafè | Capetan Nikolas
DAY 5
Koufonissi - Naxos
After a long day at sea, we take the ferry to Naxos, not before taking one last take-away pita from Sti Strofi. Once in Naxos we stay in the Sofia Studios of Agia Anna, which looks more like a basement in the lady's house. Fortunately we had spent a very paltry amount of money on this accommodation. We took an evening walk in the center of the island where we discovered an exceptional ice-cream parlour, a far from inviting Waffle House that serves crazy ice-creams. If you're around, don't miss it.
HOTEL: Sofia Naxos Studios
DAY 6
Naxos
The beaches of Naxos are quite disappointing. The wind is too strong, the beach is not comfortable, with the sand that lashes non-stop and the sea is rough. We spend a few hours in a bay laid out on the rocks, and then finally devote ourselves to a bit of tourism. We visit a village in the center of the island, Halki, where a few minutes is enough to make a complete tour. The village is however nice, with some particular shops of works of art inspired by the Greek local marble, really suggestive. From here we enter the fields, through a confined path, up to a Byzantine church.
We then head to Naxos, entering a dirt mountain road with unlikely slopes (we strongly recommend the use of a 4x4), until we stop in a place where lie two kouroi, two giant statues in marble of Naxos, abandoned during transport from the quarry. The evening is spent walking through the narrow streets of the old town, through the old market located just outside the walls of the castro, really impressive.
Following our faithful guide, we sit down for dinner at the restaurant Mezè 2, located in an area of the port where it would typically be called a tourist trap. It turned out to be an exceptional place for dinner. At a modest price we ate excellent tzatziki, a squid stuffed with feta and tomatoes, the size of a cod, and a mouth watering fisherman's saganaki, with mussels, prawns and squid in a tomato and feta gouache. The dinner ended with a yoghurt with orange compote on the house, accompanied by Raki with honey and cinnamon.
DINNER: Mezè 2
DAY 7
Naxos
We still make a stop at the beach in the morning, without finding a place that satisfies us, and in the afternoon a walk in the old town. We lose ourselves in the desert Castro, we walk along the windy seafront, we browse through the craft shops of the center before going to dinner, in the same restaurant. Tonight we eat a Cretan salad, followed by scampi with rice and ouzo sauce, and a grilled octopus with a side of fava beans.
DAY 8
Naxos - Zurich
Last day of travel. We spend it on the beach, finally managing to shelter ourselves from the wind. In the early afternoon we return to Naxos, where after a last obligatory ice cream, and after buying a bottle of honey and cinnamon liqueur that Nic fell in love with, in the same restaurant as the dinner, we return the car and embark for Athens.
The journey is less long, but still tiring. We spend it chilled by the wind lying on a bench. Once in Athens, we look for a place for the last pita of the season. Not far from Piraeus, we find Kali Pita, where we eat very well, late at night, and happy we leave for the airport.
DINNER: Kali Pita
We sleep abandoned on the floor of the airport, until a nice agent wakes us up abruptly prohibiting the bivouac. After some last food-souvenirs from the airport shops, we come to the end of this trip.
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