I’m sipping on a Greek coffee, one with a color matching the copper pot containing it. Across the way I observe the typical Greek elder. Dressed in all blue, he encourages each passing tourist to stop in on the neighboring textile shop, like a billboard that has truly come to life. He doesn’t seem to work there. The shop owner could just be a friend. Regardless, he takes a seat on a wooden chair to advertise Halki’s treasures as I take a sip of strong coffee. Halki is a perplexing place for its location. Its atmosphere would have you believe it is buried in the heart of Naxos, away from Continue Reading
Hora, Naxos Wishes You Were Here
I’m lost. I pass under one arched portico after another, down cobblestone streets into the old town of Hora. The port and capital of Naxos appears to be constantly dizzy, embroiled in its own explainable confusion. The streets have no rhyme or reason and a map is virtually useless. In Hora, you get lost. The people of Hora live in this maze sprinkled with restaurants, art galleries and shops. While a Venetian stronghold in the 13th century, today Hora is decidedly more casual than noble. It is an ordinary Wednesday and the restaurants are preparing for the night. The business casual of Continue Reading
Crossing Through Ancient Doors in Naxos
To travel, we must walk through doors. Some thresholds are wide, expansive and quite easy to cross. Others seem to be the opposite of gateways, at times closed off and hard to breech. On the Greek island of Naxos, the main port city of Hora bears the ultimate entryway. As my ferry chugged closer and closer to the port of Naxos, I could spot a doorway into another time. Disconnected from the main island by a causeway, the Temple of Apollo dramatically takes in the sunset each night. The masses crowd the hilltop temple to appreciate a natural constant to the world. True ruins become perches Continue Reading