In my daily life, I curse, but when I write, I attempt to refrain myself. I sometimes wonder if I swear too much; I certainly curse more than any professional I know, but I don’t care enough about it to make a change. I tell you all of this because this day started as a clusterfuck. There is no better word to describe it than that.
We had reservations to go sailing today. The night before, we walked along the water to figure out which slip we were to meet the boat at, and all we had to do was be there a few minutes before 8 AM. A few minutes after 8, Joe walked into our room and asked when we were leaving for the boat! I overslept. I don’t use an alarm unless I need to be up early. I jumped to my feet, yelled at Samer and Joe to finish getting ready, and urgently searched my email for a number to call and see if they would hold the boat. The excursion was already paid for, so we would have been out a lot of money.
We jogged (can I even sprint anymore?) from the apartment to the water and got to the boat at about 8:15. As soon as we got on, the gangplank was lifted, and we were off. The boat was full of a dozen good-looking Europeans in their twenties, who had already staked out the best seats and were spreading out to sunbathe. Likely, many of them were nursing hangovers.
We hired an outfit called Naxos Sailing, and I did not love it. I’ve done this excursion before, and it usually has a much more fun vibe. There can be music, drinks, and a relaxed feel to it. Most recently, we did something like this in Bermuda, and it was great.
This company didn’t have any of that vibe. We made small talk with people, but I forgot my headphones and book because of the rush of getting out of the apartment, so I was left with my thoughts and the open sea. Our first stop was the Rina Cave. It’s a famous Naxos stop that, as far as I can, you can only find with a boat.
We anchored in the bay outside the cave and swam in to explore. The water is crystal-clear, but there is very little light, so you are given a flashlight to carry with you. This is in the southern part of Naxos. The equipment the company gave us was mediocre. I am a little spoiled since I have a mask I use while diving that I like a lot. Samer’s mask leaked, and I could barely get the band to secure tightly on mine.
I found swimming in the bay much more enjoyable than in the cave. The water is clear and blue. There were few waves and plenty to look at underwater, but we didn’t stay long. Within a few minutes, the captain signaled us to return to the boat, and we continued sailing.
We heavily relied on a friend who loves Greece while planning the trip. He visits every chance he gets, has learned the language, and wants to own a home there at some point. He was shocked when we told him we were only going for a week and told us to rewrite our itinerary. Please don’t get me wrong, he was extremely helpful, but a running joke was that he would speak about locations in Greece as if every person understood detailed Greek geography. From our first conversation with him, he told us to visit the island of Koufonisia.
One of the potential lunchtime stops of our sailboat was Koufonisia, and we had our fingers crossed. The capitain announced we would stop at the Schinoussa island. When we got off the boat, it felt like a furnace outside. The sun was scorching, and there was no shade to protect yourself from the heat. The staff on the boat gave us little direction, and those of us making our way into the town were all walking along the road. About halfway up the hill, we saw one of the boat staff walking up the slightly more pleasant footpath with some sparse shade. We then realized he vaguely pointed to where it started, but it wasn’t obvious, and he wasn’t pushy with the facts.
We reconnected with him on the town’s main street, and he motioned us to follow him to a restaurant. No one else in our group did, so we walked with him to Deli Restaurant and Cafe Bar to escape the heat. We wanted something casual, but it had a lovely shaded second-floor dining room with a view. They had a prix fixe menu, and we used the restaurant as an oasis to escape the mid-day heat. Clearly, the guide on the boat knows the restaurant owners. Also, they are not a deli. The food was more Greek-Italian.
Schinoussa is a sleepy island with little going on, though it has a few abandoned windmills. They are the types with the blades with sails, so now all that is left are the skeletons of past technology. After lunch, we walked into a few stores but returned to the port, where the heat was unbearable. We waited on the cement without an inch of shade, so I was happy to get back on the boat. The next hour or so was sailing and napping on the boat. They served us some local wine, but the wind caught the sail, making the boat dip very far to its port side. This made our lounging area nearly vertical for almost 45 minutes.
Before we returned to the island, we stopped to swim off the coast of Naxos. I wish the trip would have had more of this sort of time. Swimming in the ocean off a sailboat is fun, and I always needed more time.
On our last night on Naxos, we shopped and had a casual dinner at The Souvlaki of Makis. I loved this meal. We sat on a sidewalk, eating grilled meat and fries. This was my favorite meal on the island of Naxos. Part of an island vacation is eating simply. An island culinary scene can handle grilled meat and fresh fish; overthinking it will always be disappointing.
The funniest part about this restaurant is that the cook’s kids work there to help him. They take orders on the tablet and likely speak more English than he does. Both of them were under ten years old but were totally in charge. We tipped them well.