Two weeks on the Cycladic Islands in the Aegean Sea is such a magnificent treat that my preferences for exploring new destinations were largely set aside for our summer vacation this year. We have already been in 2018, and we especially loved the island of Naxos so much that we decided to go back.
Nearby islands of Paros and Antiparos – which were new locales in the otherwise familiar territory – played prominent parts on the itinerary, and we also spent a day and a half in the capital of Athens, filling in a couple of gaps left from the first visit. We drove all over the three islands to explore pretty villages and various points of interest (although the distances on the small islands being what they are, we only racked up 600 kilometers in total), went to a different beach every day, navigated the terrain on Segway, on bikes, and in a buggy, sailed around the islands on a catamaran and on a small sailing boat, learned traditional recipes as part of a cooking lesson that eventually turned into a dancing and singing party, ate a lot of fantastic local food, and had a wonderful time all around.
Beach-heavy vacations rarely produce significant photographic volume, but the shots did add up over the two weeks. Retrospectives will appear in due time. As a teaser, here is one of my favorite perspectives in the entire world: a sunset on Naxos beyond its ancient Portara.
