A different hotel for breakfast nowadays, the Agios Prokopios hotel. And it was my first taste. There was a self service counter. I had yogurt with apricot jam, bread with strawberry jam, a banana, two pains aux chocolate, two pancakes with honey, all with fresh orange juice, hot chocolate and water. I was looking at the clean and fresh swimming pool and the beautiful Greek garden opposite as I ate. The orange juice was particularly amazing. Zingy, fresh, sweet and striking.
I went down to the beach at Agios Prokopios for an early morning stroll along the coastline next, skittering around on the wet boulders, doing some climbing and indulging in my photography hobby.
The bus stop was next as the plan today was to do Naxos. There were a French family and an American couple I spoke to slightly. I called up my girlfriend while I waited. The bus took a while to get there. I was the only one that hadn’t pre-booked tickets so paid when I got off at the port. The bus ride was as scenic to Naxos as the taxi ride had been when I first came into the area. Lots of mountains to climb and the area would be super fun for hiking.
The first thing I did was to climb the hill for the Portara of Naxos (also known as the Temple of Apollo). This is a gigantic marble doorway that is a fragment of a colossal, unfinished ancient Greek temple. It was built around 530 BCE under the direction of the local tyrant Lygdamis. It was a dick measuring contest. He aspired to create the grandest and most magnificent temple in the Aegean to rival the grand sanctuaries of Athens and Samos. Unfortunately, in 524 BC, Lygdamis was overthrown by a Spartan-led intervention. As a result, the temple was left forever incomplete. Lizards were shooting about on the hill and there were really beautiful views of the sea, the town and the hills.
The next stop was a drink of water from the restaurant there, the Apollon Paradise. Then I climbed the line of large stones and boulders leading out into the water near the Portara which forms a breakwater (or mole) that’s designed to protect the Naxos Town harbor and the approach to the islet of Palatia which the Portara is upon from strong sea waves and northern winds. I was warned not to do it by the waiter in the restaurant in case I slipped. But, as I often say, my middle name is Tiger. Not only did I do it, but two young Australians that looked like a couple followed my lead. It was great fun hopping between the boulders knowing you could easily break a leg if you slipped up. It was a flow state endeavour. A real ego boost. I wanted an action packed holiday. I was getting it.
Back to the Apollon Paradise. Lunch of a cheese, ham and tomato toastie with a bottle of grapefruit juice (Three Cents, the company). This toastie is the cheapest thing on the menu everywhere for some reason. Beautiful traditional Greek music was playing on the stereo while I ate and the view of the sea and the port was incredible too. The ham was particularly tasty.
Shopping in the town in the souvenir shops. I bought a blue and gold captain’s hat and a zip up pouch with Greek eyes all over it in blue for myself. The hat seller slapped on a discount for me and brushed the hat even though I didn’t ask him to! I also bought three compact mirrors with beautiful designs, one for my mum, girlfriend and myself.
The most wonderful banana split of my life with Pantelou ice cream in strawberry, chocolate and vanilla. Drenched in whipped cream with chocolate sauce and nuts. It was like a dream of dessert.
Then, I went stone and fossil hunting and picked up some beauties at the beach behind the Portara after shopping. I found a beautiful stone with a rusty ring in it. According to AI, possibly:
Iron Oxide (Liesegang Rings) or Mineral Staining: This is the most common culprit for flat, flush colorful rings on beach stones. Soluble minerals (typically iron or manganese) seep into the porous structure of the stone. Over time, chemical reactions cause the minerals to precipitate outward in concentric, circular bands. Because the stone has been tumbled smooth by wave action, the stain remains entirely flush with the surface.
Limpet “Home Scar” Stain: Limpets (marine sea snails) use their incredibly hard mouthparts to scrape algae off stones, often grinding a perfectly circular spot into a rock where they securely anchor themselves. When a limpet clings to a spot for a long time, chemical secretions and micro-abrasion can leave a circular outline. After the organism is gone, wave erosion grinds the pebble smooth, leaving nothing but a flat, discoloring ring outline where the shell once sat. Over time, the micro-abrasions and acidic mucus left by the limpet allow iron and other minerals from the seawater to deeply penetrate and stain the stone’s pores in that exact circular shape.
Cross-Section of a Microfossil: The pebble appears to be a fine-grained sedimentary rock (like limestone, siltstone, or chert). The flat ring could be a flush cross-section of a fossilized prehistoric organism embedded inside the stone. Common candidates include Nummulites or other disc-shaped foraminifera, where millions of years of ocean tumbling have ground the pebble down to reveal a slice of the internal shell wall.
I went to the old town, historic Kastro (Venetian Castle) quarter of Naxos Chora, with a Mycenaean wall and learning about the burial of heroes in the old times here, as well as taking in all of the churches:
Catholic Cathedral of the Presentation of the Lord: Standing prominently right in the central square of the Kastro.
Orthodox Church of Panagia Theoskepasti: Located directly behind the Catholic Cathedral and right next to the Catholic Episcopal Palace. It is a double-aisled church widely considered to be one of the oldest surviving monuments inside the citadel walls.
Church of San Antonio di Padua: Situated just east of the Panagia Theoskepasti church near the Kastro’s historical Piso Paraporti gate.
It was around here that I tried and loved a Zeus homemade sour cherry juice.
Shopping in the old market next, looking at art galleries where there was a 3D printer model of the Portera in Zeus’s hand, as well as copious doves and designs painted on pebbles.
Dinner was Mama’s moussaka at Scirocco. It was wonderful, my best dinner in Greece so far (although the KFC zinger burger was the best and freshest I’ve had for a while too). I taught the waiter the word ‘lavatory’ which really pleased him and he gave me an amazing limoncello dessert for free as a present.
Watched the beautiful sunrise at Naxos. Sublime.
Bus ride home talking to Americans and Canadians. Very scenic again. Got off and had a night view of the beautiful beach at Agios Prokopios. Canadians got off at the wrong stop and were having a slight argument with a young man that they’d called (their son probably) as I walked to my hotel.
Phone call with girlfriend and relaxing in bed to close a busy day.
