The night before our host had offered to help us hire a car. There seemed to be a lot to do on the island so this sounded like a great idea to me - as I would be the passenger (I'm a woeful driver). I didn't realise that this had stressed Dan out so much, so we slept on the idea and in the morning Dan finally told me he just wanted a day to rest. That was absolutely fair enough and I wish he had said something sooner.
We slept in and had our breakfast in our little balcony. As we had a little outdoor washing line, we took the opportunity to hand wash some stinky clothes as they would dry quickly in the sunshine.
Our host had shown us on the map that there are two bays in Parikia, one the closest to the port, and the other about half an hour walk beyond but with much nicer beaches. We decided to make this our destination today - to relax by the waterfront.
We took it leisurely and found the little arched alleyway we were supposed to take the night before when we got lost. The alley was filled with kitties as someone had put some food down, and we patted one friendly cat which we mistook for the kitty of the night before. She too was pregnant but had slightly different colouring. We called her the fake kitty - we ended up seeing her a few times but never our other friendly cat. On the waterfront, the ferry arrived. We perched ourselves up on the brick wall to watch people embark and disembark. The boat created quite. If waves that splashed with force against the brick wall - except we were behind a few large stones and managed to miss the splashes by about half a metre.
We walked a little further and came across a supermarket. While in here, we checked the time, and Dan made the suggestion that we have lunch first even tho it was quite early because by the time we make it to the beach, we may end up being starving and not enjoy our rest. Good idea, so we about faces and returned to the town centre. We had been recommended a place called Chaniotis Restaurant by our hosts that makes cheap traditional foods. We found it easily enough, walked inside and had no idea what we needed to do. There was the town drunk in the corner with his finished beer eyeing us, while the lady behind the counter continued setting up. I think we were a little early so we walked out, figuring it what we would do. We did a small lap around the whitewashed streets and reappeared about 15 minutes later - things looking a bit more ready for service.
Apparently the man who owns this cooks up a selection of different dishes everyday, so we chose from the trays in front of us. Each tray had a price tag, and I ended up somewhat copying the people in front of us even though I thought it would end up quite expensive.
We chose an eggplant parmigiana type thing and a veggie casserole for the side. For the other dish we chose what was translated to meat and rice filled lettuce balls (but may have been wine leaves?) with a side of rice. We initially chose something else for the side but the cool advised us not to mix those two, and said rice would be the better option. He was right of course! Also Turns out we didn't pay for any of the sides even tho they had their own price tag! It ended up being a really inexpensive meal.
We grabbed our tray and took it outside to eat and people watch. The lettuce wraps in particular were creamy and delicious and the rice soaked up their extra sauce perfectly. Also with the eggplant and casserole we got some much needed veggies.
Sated we continued on our mission. We popped back into the supermarket and picked up a bottle of wine. We thought it was €1.50 but it was actually €4, damn those confusing "loyalty card" buy stickers! Oh well.
Onwards and upwards, quite literally. It didn't take us too long to walk around the first bay. This had a sandy spot and a few people were setting up to swim here. We thought about just stopping but he had told us the one around the corner was more beautiful so we carried on. And up. The path around the tip of the bay became a bit intrepid and the path quite rocky. At one point, I could hear a cricket chirping and just not getting any further anyway no matter how far we walked. It was like it was in Dan's pocket! I eventually looked up from where u was treading and there I saw the little bugger sitting on Dans backpack. No wonder he wasn't getting quieter! As Dan removed his bag the cricket jumped off, and I exclaimed "it's gotten even closer!" The critter was now on my backpack but soon jumped off. It was a funny little interlude on our trek.
Once up and around the tip, some of the path became fenced off due to a house. We continued behind the house until the path ran out, and headed down some slippery stone steps. Back on track. We saw people ahead of us go down towards the beach so we knew we in the right spot. The beach here was rather secluded and there were no fishing boats around. We descended to the beach and began to walk to find the perfect spot. It wasn't as shelteredbhere from the wind so we kept walking until the wind died and we found a little tree to set up under.
Others were sunbathing but Dan and I do not do that. Dan because he is literally incapable of sunbathing due to his ginger pale skin. And me because I just find it boring and too hot.
We got down to our bathers and sat on our towels in the shade of a little tree. A good sunscreening followed, and then Dan grabbed the red wine we had just bought from his bag and I took out our little sippy cups and he poured us a glass. Yamas! Cheers. The sippy cups actually come from Norway - while on the Norway on a Nutshell tour we cruised through the fjords. The onboard shop sold single servings of red and white wine in these little cups, slightly shaped like a wine glass but with a lid. We loved them so much - we thought they'd be great for picnics - that we took them home wth us (not before getting another round of course). These cups have come with us on this journey and have proved invaluable. Not just for wine, but if hostel rooms don't provide cups and we have some multivitamin dissolvable tablets, or so we can economise by getting a large bottle of juice and use our cups instead of buying smaller more expensive juice bottles. A bit luxury, a bit wanky, but we like it!
We drank down the wine, contemplating getting into the water. Hardly anyone was swimming, which made me wonder how cold it was. No matter - we were here to dip and dip we would!
The. Water. Was. Freezing. It literally hurt our feet and calves. It took our breath away. Unfortunately we are not the sort to just jump straight in - no we like to drag out the torture. So inch by inch we entered the clear crystal blue water, exclaiming each time the fresh water hit a new, sensitive, unwet part. The backs of the knees were the first hurdle. The next - well, you can guess. Once our limbs stopped hurting I'm pretty sure they just went numb, and it was quite fine then. At some point a largeish fish bit me on the calf and I exclaimed. Why do creatures like to bother me so?
Eventually after a lot (and I mean a lot) of dithering, I finally threw my upper body under the water. My breath was instantly gone it was so cold, and I splashed about for a bit. Ok. That was done! Time for Dan to go under.
I think it took him another 20 or so minutes t actually go under - he was dithering far more than I! But eventually he threw himself under, came up spluttering, and we had done it - gone for a splash on a Greek island!
Time for more wine. We waded out of the water flopped onto our towels and poured another. I lay back on my towel using a bag as a pillow and we just watched the world go by. A few more people came to the beach and we could hear the squeals as they each entered the cold cold water. We watched one man launch himself into the water and literally swim to the other side of the bay (to parikia) and at some point he swam back again. We watched a cruise ship come in, which caused our calm bay to create a few miniature waves.
We thought we would go for one more splash holding our wine glasses but a quick toe in the water brought an end to that idea! Instead we perched ourselves on the old pier or water break dangling our feet in the water and sipping our wine. Dan grabbed a towel and our shoes and we dried our feet, getting ready for the trek back to Parikia.
The walk back didn't seem as arduous as the walk there. The scrabbling of the rocks from this direction was quite easy even with the hot sun beating down on us now. More people had come to all the beaches as we headed back to our accommodation for a quick shower before dinner.
On the walk back we popped into the supermarket and got - you guessed it - nmore wine. Our plan for the evening was to have a bottle of wine on our rock from the night before and to get a couple of gyros. We got the wine and went back to our accommodation.
Time to head to dinner and watch the sunset. Almost everything went to plan, except we got to the seaside gyros place and I had forgotten the wine. Back to the accommodation and back to the gyros place.
Our rock was free so we sat down, poured some wine and tucked into dinner - the sun still quite high in the sky. This wasn't the best gyros we had had but it was tasty and did the job. It probably went a bit weird as we didn't eat it straight away.
The sunset was beautiful but not quite as amazing as the night before. I think this was because more boats came in and this made the water less glassy, and there was a slight haze on the horizon. A man with a professional looking camera was darting everywhere taking photos - I think we ended up in a few as subjects when I spotted him standing behind us!
Sunsetted, wined, fed, we wandered back to our accommodation (not getting so lost anymore) and called it a night.
Til next time
xx
We slept in and had our breakfast in our little balcony. As we had a little outdoor washing line, we took the opportunity to hand wash some stinky clothes as they would dry quickly in the sunshine.
Our host had shown us on the map that there are two bays in Parikia, one the closest to the port, and the other about half an hour walk beyond but with much nicer beaches. We decided to make this our destination today - to relax by the waterfront.
We took it leisurely and found the little arched alleyway we were supposed to take the night before when we got lost. The alley was filled with kitties as someone had put some food down, and we patted one friendly cat which we mistook for the kitty of the night before. She too was pregnant but had slightly different colouring. We called her the fake kitty - we ended up seeing her a few times but never our other friendly cat. On the waterfront, the ferry arrived. We perched ourselves up on the brick wall to watch people embark and disembark. The boat created quite. If waves that splashed with force against the brick wall - except we were behind a few large stones and managed to miss the splashes by about half a metre.
We walked a little further and came across a supermarket. While in here, we checked the time, and Dan made the suggestion that we have lunch first even tho it was quite early because by the time we make it to the beach, we may end up being starving and not enjoy our rest. Good idea, so we about faces and returned to the town centre. We had been recommended a place called Chaniotis Restaurant by our hosts that makes cheap traditional foods. We found it easily enough, walked inside and had no idea what we needed to do. There was the town drunk in the corner with his finished beer eyeing us, while the lady behind the counter continued setting up. I think we were a little early so we walked out, figuring it what we would do. We did a small lap around the whitewashed streets and reappeared about 15 minutes later - things looking a bit more ready for service.
Apparently the man who owns this cooks up a selection of different dishes everyday, so we chose from the trays in front of us. Each tray had a price tag, and I ended up somewhat copying the people in front of us even though I thought it would end up quite expensive.
We chose an eggplant parmigiana type thing and a veggie casserole for the side. For the other dish we chose what was translated to meat and rice filled lettuce balls (but may have been wine leaves?) with a side of rice. We initially chose something else for the side but the cool advised us not to mix those two, and said rice would be the better option. He was right of course! Also Turns out we didn't pay for any of the sides even tho they had their own price tag! It ended up being a really inexpensive meal.
We grabbed our tray and took it outside to eat and people watch. The lettuce wraps in particular were creamy and delicious and the rice soaked up their extra sauce perfectly. Also with the eggplant and casserole we got some much needed veggies.
Sated we continued on our mission. We popped back into the supermarket and picked up a bottle of wine. We thought it was €1.50 but it was actually €4, damn those confusing "loyalty card" buy stickers! Oh well.
Onwards and upwards, quite literally. It didn't take us too long to walk around the first bay. This had a sandy spot and a few people were setting up to swim here. We thought about just stopping but he had told us the one around the corner was more beautiful so we carried on. And up. The path around the tip of the bay became a bit intrepid and the path quite rocky. At one point, I could hear a cricket chirping and just not getting any further anyway no matter how far we walked. It was like it was in Dan's pocket! I eventually looked up from where u was treading and there I saw the little bugger sitting on Dans backpack. No wonder he wasn't getting quieter! As Dan removed his bag the cricket jumped off, and I exclaimed "it's gotten even closer!" The critter was now on my backpack but soon jumped off. It was a funny little interlude on our trek.
Once up and around the tip, some of the path became fenced off due to a house. We continued behind the house until the path ran out, and headed down some slippery stone steps. Back on track. We saw people ahead of us go down towards the beach so we knew we in the right spot. The beach here was rather secluded and there were no fishing boats around. We descended to the beach and began to walk to find the perfect spot. It wasn't as shelteredbhere from the wind so we kept walking until the wind died and we found a little tree to set up under.
Others were sunbathing but Dan and I do not do that. Dan because he is literally incapable of sunbathing due to his ginger pale skin. And me because I just find it boring and too hot.
We got down to our bathers and sat on our towels in the shade of a little tree. A good sunscreening followed, and then Dan grabbed the red wine we had just bought from his bag and I took out our little sippy cups and he poured us a glass. Yamas! Cheers. The sippy cups actually come from Norway - while on the Norway on a Nutshell tour we cruised through the fjords. The onboard shop sold single servings of red and white wine in these little cups, slightly shaped like a wine glass but with a lid. We loved them so much - we thought they'd be great for picnics - that we took them home wth us (not before getting another round of course). These cups have come with us on this journey and have proved invaluable. Not just for wine, but if hostel rooms don't provide cups and we have some multivitamin dissolvable tablets, or so we can economise by getting a large bottle of juice and use our cups instead of buying smaller more expensive juice bottles. A bit luxury, a bit wanky, but we like it!
We drank down the wine, contemplating getting into the water. Hardly anyone was swimming, which made me wonder how cold it was. No matter - we were here to dip and dip we would!
The. Water. Was. Freezing. It literally hurt our feet and calves. It took our breath away. Unfortunately we are not the sort to just jump straight in - no we like to drag out the torture. So inch by inch we entered the clear crystal blue water, exclaiming each time the fresh water hit a new, sensitive, unwet part. The backs of the knees were the first hurdle. The next - well, you can guess. Once our limbs stopped hurting I'm pretty sure they just went numb, and it was quite fine then. At some point a largeish fish bit me on the calf and I exclaimed. Why do creatures like to bother me so?
Eventually after a lot (and I mean a lot) of dithering, I finally threw my upper body under the water. My breath was instantly gone it was so cold, and I splashed about for a bit. Ok. That was done! Time for Dan to go under.
I think it took him another 20 or so minutes t actually go under - he was dithering far more than I! But eventually he threw himself under, came up spluttering, and we had done it - gone for a splash on a Greek island!
Time for more wine. We waded out of the water flopped onto our towels and poured another. I lay back on my towel using a bag as a pillow and we just watched the world go by. A few more people came to the beach and we could hear the squeals as they each entered the cold cold water. We watched one man launch himself into the water and literally swim to the other side of the bay (to parikia) and at some point he swam back again. We watched a cruise ship come in, which caused our calm bay to create a few miniature waves.
We thought we would go for one more splash holding our wine glasses but a quick toe in the water brought an end to that idea! Instead we perched ourselves on the old pier or water break dangling our feet in the water and sipping our wine. Dan grabbed a towel and our shoes and we dried our feet, getting ready for the trek back to Parikia.
The walk back didn't seem as arduous as the walk there. The scrabbling of the rocks from this direction was quite easy even with the hot sun beating down on us now. More people had come to all the beaches as we headed back to our accommodation for a quick shower before dinner.
On the walk back we popped into the supermarket and got - you guessed it - nmore wine. Our plan for the evening was to have a bottle of wine on our rock from the night before and to get a couple of gyros. We got the wine and went back to our accommodation.
Time to head to dinner and watch the sunset. Almost everything went to plan, except we got to the seaside gyros place and I had forgotten the wine. Back to the accommodation and back to the gyros place.
Our rock was free so we sat down, poured some wine and tucked into dinner - the sun still quite high in the sky. This wasn't the best gyros we had had but it was tasty and did the job. It probably went a bit weird as we didn't eat it straight away.
The sunset was beautiful but not quite as amazing as the night before. I think this was because more boats came in and this made the water less glassy, and there was a slight haze on the horizon. A man with a professional looking camera was darting everywhere taking photos - I think we ended up in a few as subjects when I spotted him standing behind us!
Sunsetted, wined, fed, we wandered back to our accommodation (not getting so lost anymore) and called it a night.
Til next time
xx
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