Summer is not summer if you don't go to Cyclades islands in Greece.
I was lucky enough. First i went to Anafi island.
Perfect sandy beaches, not crowded at all, turquoise color and transparent sea water everywhere around. Some beaches got nudists but not throughout the beach. There was a place for nudists and the rest for the swimming suits guys and girls. So there was a place for everybody. From a fashion-victim to goths and from 70s hippies to hip hoppers.
Anafi is famous for its walking paths. You can walk all over the island using the well signed paths.
As you walk around the island you can feel two kind of wave. The tiny white sea waves at the horizon and smell the full of thyme airwaves coming straight from the hills. Yes, the hills is full of thyme in full bloom and it's awesome!
What else you can see there?
Well, the
highest cliff in the Mediterranean sea (470m) outstripping even Gibraltar (which is 426m).
It's impossible not to see this.
At the top there is a monastery (many people spent the night there after climbing and walking) and at the foothill there are some remains of a sanctuary to Apollo. Nice huh?
What is missing now? Please prepare your taste buds !!!
Perfect goat cheese, tomatoes that smell like tomatoes, tiny fried squibs, fresh fishes, nice raki (drink).
Oh yes. It is a gourmet paradise at affordable prices.
Rooms also were cheep. We (2 persons) payed 30 Euros/day for a very descent room with a breathtaking view like this :
Well, after Anafi ....we headed to Santorini.
No need to tell so much about this island.
It's an active volcano. People living on top of the volcano and at the caldera. Are they crazy? I can say they are lucky.
Lucky 'cause they have a view like this:
and this:
With luxury hotels all over
and crazy beaches. You can choose colors. Black beach or Red beach. Rocky or sandy. Artistic or not.
Here is a beach Gaudi would love for sure. Maybe, who knows, Gaudi passed by this place sometime and made this rocks looks like this:
...or inspired by those rocks to build all this amazing work of art in Barcelona.
I said crazy before....and i mean it. Listen to this. We rent a car, drove all over the island, left the car at the airport and we never saw the owner of the car company.
Weird huh?
Here is the chat " Well, i'd like to rent a car - No problem. - I'd like someone waiting for me at the port is it possible? - No problem. I'll leave the car at the port. The keys will be under the drivers' seat. The license plate is ....... Take it and don't worry at all. - Wow... thank you. Bye"
And the car was there. The keys were there also. And everything was perfect. When we were ready to pay for it we call again. "Do we have to pass by the car company to pay you? - No no no... just leave the car at the airport put the keys under the drivers' seat and hide the money under the co-drivers' seat. Ok? - Yeah for sure.Thank you"
So....you can rent a car, take it from wherever you want....leave it wherever you want ...and never see the cars' owner ....ever. He trusted us. That's all. This is Santorini. Crazy.
Then was time for Peloponnisos. (Peloponnese) Twice in a month.
Southwest. Watching the sun diving straight into the Mediterranean sea. No mountains , no hills, no islands , nothing on its way to the dark blue sea.
I've been there many times (actually i'm visiting Peloponnese almost every year, to meet and really enjoy my aunt my cousins my nephews and my nieces). I really like the water and the sea....but this time i went a bit higher. So i made a trip to the nearby mountains and i did well because i saw something perfect. Continuous waterfalls and lakes. Foul green and blue, amazing white stones and very-very extremely cold water.
It's called "Multi-lake" because there is one lake after another and between them ...waterfalls.
I like this part of Peloponnese because people still using stones as the main building material. Houses made of stone and wood like we used to do years ago.
Nice beaches....descent food , bad roads and drivers.
The trip to Peloponnese ended at Pylos. A small town full of well maintained old houses and buildings made of stone, near the sea.
The deep sea. Actually , 45 miles SW of Pylos is the deepest point in Mediterranean sea. The Calypso Deep at the Ionian Basin ....5,267 metres (or 17,280 feet) under the sea-level. Wow!!!
See? Again i touch the edges....from the highest point (Anafi) to the deepest point in Mediterranean sea. This is me....
After all these....i'm sinking in my Calypso deep thoughts.....
.....goodbye and see you later .....
Since then...let me enjoy the sea.
kostas
