Paros!

June 5th- We took a ferry to Paros, thankfully getting a free upgrade to airplane seats once onboard since the deck seats we paid for were indoors and next to the heaviest smokers I have ever met in my life. My lungs would have failed if I had to sit next to them for longer than 5 minutes. That is one strange thing about Greece is that the smoke is so heavy and there are no bans at all on smoking anywhere. It feels very Eastern European in that sense. Our ferry ride was only a few hours before we arrived at the port of Parikia in Paros.


A windmill in Parikia

Waiting for the bus to Naoussa with our oversized backpacks.

On the drive to Naoussa

We were staying on the north end of the island of Paros in a town called Naoussa.

Parikia seemed to be more tourist-oriented so once we got the bus to Naoussa we felt so lucky to be staying in this tiny little village with cute restaurants and fancy bars for going out at night and a beautiful white sand beach. We were staying at a guesthouse run by a lovely woman named Athina who came to pick us up from the center of town once the bus dropped us off. When we saw our room, we were really happy because we had a sea-view penthouse with a kitchen and two big beds for only 35 euros total.


The Greek islands are so cheap in June because most tourists don’t arrive until July and August so you pay almost next to nothing. It was amazing and cheaper than any of the hostels. We were also right on the beach just about 100 steps climb.


The view from our little porch.

We quickly changed into our bathing suits, wandered a little around town and ate an equally amazing lunch as the day before in the centre of town before going to the beach. Naoussa was so nice with it’s traditional blue and white Cycladic domed architecture.

The centre of town was a little maze of shops and restaurants all set on narrow lanes where you follow your nose to the next amazing Greek smell. We ate a really nice lunch.

The beach was beautiful and really quiet. It was funny because spray-painted on a rock next to the beach someone wrote “ Screw Barbie” which made me feel a little better about my huge lunch and my bikini.



After laying out for awhile and swimming in the very clear and warm water, Ellie went to the store to stock up the kitchen and the fridge with goodies for dinner and beer and sodas for after the beach.

Some octopus(plural) hanging from a line in a walkway behind a restaurant

That night, We cooked dinner and watched the sunset from our balcony which was the highest balcony in Naoussa it seemed.



Naoussa at night from our balcony
Then we went out for a dessert crepe which was chocolate and one of the most amazing crepes ever with bitter and sweet chocolate and whipped cream. It was quiet and right next to the water. On the way back up the steep hill to the hotel, we heard a cowbell and realized that above our hotel was some sort of field with cows or goats or some other farm animal in the dark. It was surprising and we ran inside not sure of what would be wearing a bell on a cliff.

The next day, we woke up early and enjoyed breakfast on our balcony before we headed to the beach for the second day.





Another sunset before dinner


Before dinner

That night we had an amazing meal of stuffed peppers, greek salad and more eggplant salad as well as some Greek beer. It was right on the water with all of the little boats and other people dining around the ocean. Everything was lit up and it was so perfect. Naoussa is quickly becoming an island known for it’s good nightlife scene and in the summer the trendy bars lining the ocean must get jam packed but after dinner we wandered around a bit looking at them and for the time being they were quiet with locals enjoying a quiet night out. The next morning, we awoke sad to say good-bye to our little apartment overlooking the ocean as we headed for Santorini.