I've had a great time exploring the much larger island of Naxos. The one problem I've had is I keep being completely worn out from all the hiking, biking and swimming I'm doing every day, but I keep not wanting to take a day and just sit around. I met an American woman here, Karen, who is camping at another campground that's just a half mile down the road from the one I'm staying at. Yesterday we went down to a a nice beach, where we braved the winds and flying sand. August is when the Meltemi hits Greece, which are daily winds that can get pretty intense. On Anafi they got so strong, particularly up in the main town perched on a ridge, that you could barely walk into it. A little ironic that this is always when most of the tourists are here trying to enjoy the beach. Apparently September is the ultimate time to be here, when things cool down, the winds die down and most of the tourists are gone.
So today Karen and I took a bus into the interior of the island to a really pleasant little village, Filoti. There weren't any particularly notable sights to see right in town, although you could hike from there up to the top of Mount Zeus, highest point on Naxos and in all of the Cyclades Islands. But that was a 3-4 hour round trip hike and neither of us were up for that. Instead we managed to spend a couple of hours just exploring the winding maze of narrow streets and alleys that make up most of the town, and eventually got up to a small church with an amazing view down to the town and across the whole valley. I've uploaded a few more photos, but am still having some trouble with the videos so will give that a try again later.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
on Naxos Island (click here for photos)
I took the ferry today from Anafi over to the much larger and more popular island of Naxos. It's quite a change of scene. Anafi was a relatively small island, definitely small in population, and for the most part off the tourist map. It was very rugged and steep yet barren, and had these crazy winds that would whip through the small town of Hora, that was perched on the top of a narrow ridge. Anafi was more introspective, whereas Naxos is much more of a tourist destination, with crowded beaches lined with all sorts of touristy shops and restaurants.
However, I'm enjoying the change. I realized when I got here today that, having just arrived in Greece still, I'm a little more interested in delving into the culture and mingling with the people than in finding solitude. Although Anafi was still a very interesting glimpse into the culture itself, there's a whole lot more going on in Naxos; plus the simple fact that I'm now staying in an actual campground, rather than sleeping on the beach, so that I've got the usual civilized facilities, such as my first hot shower with soap and fresh water (rather than a dip in the sea) in over a week.
Also, Naxos is much less hilly than Anafi, so it looks like it will be better for bicycle excursions. Speaking of which, I got the bike back up and running. My bicycle pump wasn't working simply because the stem on the tire was at an angle and so it wasn't connecting in the right way. But I got the stem straightened and managed to pump it up. However a couple of days later it was getting low again, so I've got a slow leak. For now I'll just keep pumping it up every few days, and at some point I'll need to either patch the leak, or else replace the tube. But at least it's working. I bicycled from the port to where I'm camping, Plaka Camping, which was a good 5-6 miles or so, and it was easy going because it was almost completely flat. On Anafi I could barely push my bike up some of the hills.
So it looks like Naxos will be good for exploring for at least a few days, if not more. There's certainly plenty to see, that is if my legs are up for it, I'm pretty sore already from the last several days of biking, walking and swimming. So tomorrow just might end up being a bit of a rest day to do my laundry, do some shopping, etc., just depends on how I feel in the morning.
As for future plans, I start working at the retreat center on August 28th, which is already next Friday. That's going to be a bit of a project unto itself just getting there, because I will have to get back to the mainland and then head north up to the Pelion Peninsula. That will either involve leaving with several days to spare and doing a lot of biking, or else catching a bus that will also take my bike. I'm leaning towards the latter. I'd rather leave most of the biking for the islands where things are a little more low-key.
Well that's all for now, I've got a bunch of great videos to upload but the computer here at the campground isn't able to upload them, so I'll have to wait and try another computer, maybe somewhere else in town....Well I'm headed for bed, or rather my sleeping bag.
However, I'm enjoying the change. I realized when I got here today that, having just arrived in Greece still, I'm a little more interested in delving into the culture and mingling with the people than in finding solitude. Although Anafi was still a very interesting glimpse into the culture itself, there's a whole lot more going on in Naxos; plus the simple fact that I'm now staying in an actual campground, rather than sleeping on the beach, so that I've got the usual civilized facilities, such as my first hot shower with soap and fresh water (rather than a dip in the sea) in over a week.
Also, Naxos is much less hilly than Anafi, so it looks like it will be better for bicycle excursions. Speaking of which, I got the bike back up and running. My bicycle pump wasn't working simply because the stem on the tire was at an angle and so it wasn't connecting in the right way. But I got the stem straightened and managed to pump it up. However a couple of days later it was getting low again, so I've got a slow leak. For now I'll just keep pumping it up every few days, and at some point I'll need to either patch the leak, or else replace the tube. But at least it's working. I bicycled from the port to where I'm camping, Plaka Camping, which was a good 5-6 miles or so, and it was easy going because it was almost completely flat. On Anafi I could barely push my bike up some of the hills.
So it looks like Naxos will be good for exploring for at least a few days, if not more. There's certainly plenty to see, that is if my legs are up for it, I'm pretty sore already from the last several days of biking, walking and swimming. So tomorrow just might end up being a bit of a rest day to do my laundry, do some shopping, etc., just depends on how I feel in the morning.
As for future plans, I start working at the retreat center on August 28th, which is already next Friday. That's going to be a bit of a project unto itself just getting there, because I will have to get back to the mainland and then head north up to the Pelion Peninsula. That will either involve leaving with several days to spare and doing a lot of biking, or else catching a bus that will also take my bike. I'm leaning towards the latter. I'd rather leave most of the biking for the islands where things are a little more low-key.
Well that's all for now, I've got a bunch of great videos to upload but the computer here at the campground isn't able to upload them, so I'll have to wait and try another computer, maybe somewhere else in town....Well I'm headed for bed, or rather my sleeping bag.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Anafi Island
I've been on the island of Anafi for about six days now. It's quite a beautiful and peaceful little island. There's only one village of a few hundred people here, although the island isn't extremely tiny, it still takes more than an hour to bike the length of it. But the one road only goes out to a monastery, which I biked to a couple of days ago. There are some videos of the monastery and other views of the island now on facebook.
So I've been camping on a small beach that's just a 10 minute walk from the port, and just a few minutes from a little restaurant called Margaritas, where they have free wireless access. I'm using the computer of someone else who is also camping on the beach.
Yesterday I went to take my bike out for a ride in the evening and discovered that the front tire was very low on air, not flat at least, but then I couldn't get the bicycle pump to work properly. So today (it's about noon right now) I'll have to get that worked out one way or another. Hopefully I'll get the pump working, otherwise there's a gas station not too far away where I can fill it up, and then see what happens over the next couple of days, whether it holds air or goes flat again. If it doesn't hold air then I'll have to make use of the one spare tube that I have. Other than this wrinkle, the bike has worked great though.
Other than biking around I've mostly been checking out the many great beaches on the island, none of which are too crowded during the day, but all of them seem to have at least a few people camping on them. I don't think that's the case everywhere on the Greek islands, however. On the more popular islands, for one you probably wouldn't feel as comfortable camping out because there would be too many random people around, and more chance of thieves, and also there might be police making sure people aren't camping. On the island of Naxos, where I plan to go next, I'll camp at a campground since it's a much more popular island. Each island is quite unique, just depends on the people and how crowded and/or friendly it is. And each one definitely has its own personality and different aspects to it.
The one village on Anafi, called Hora (which simply means capital city) is amazingly beautiful. All of the buildings are the classic white and blue, and it's perched on a ridge that looks out over the Mediterranean Sea. It's a very steep 20 minutes or so bike ride up there from the beach that I'm on. There's also a bus that covers the few miles of roads (it's about six miles from the village on one side to the monastery on the other, and I think there's another short road that I haven't explored yet). So I've made use of the bus a few times to go up to the village for dinner and shopping, etc. I've been hanging out with a small group of other folks who are also camped on the beach, an American woman who is about 40 from Minnesota, two Greek girls and an 18-year old from Germany.
Well I should probably publish this while I can because the internet here is pretty temperamental. I've managed to upload two videos to facebook so far, and am trying to upload a couple of others. I've also uploaded some new photos, which you can view by clicking on the subject line above. It's a link to facebook, but you should be able to view them even if you don't have a facebook account.
Take care all and I'll be in touch again pretty soon...
So I've been camping on a small beach that's just a 10 minute walk from the port, and just a few minutes from a little restaurant called Margaritas, where they have free wireless access. I'm using the computer of someone else who is also camping on the beach.
Yesterday I went to take my bike out for a ride in the evening and discovered that the front tire was very low on air, not flat at least, but then I couldn't get the bicycle pump to work properly. So today (it's about noon right now) I'll have to get that worked out one way or another. Hopefully I'll get the pump working, otherwise there's a gas station not too far away where I can fill it up, and then see what happens over the next couple of days, whether it holds air or goes flat again. If it doesn't hold air then I'll have to make use of the one spare tube that I have. Other than this wrinkle, the bike has worked great though.
Other than biking around I've mostly been checking out the many great beaches on the island, none of which are too crowded during the day, but all of them seem to have at least a few people camping on them. I don't think that's the case everywhere on the Greek islands, however. On the more popular islands, for one you probably wouldn't feel as comfortable camping out because there would be too many random people around, and more chance of thieves, and also there might be police making sure people aren't camping. On the island of Naxos, where I plan to go next, I'll camp at a campground since it's a much more popular island. Each island is quite unique, just depends on the people and how crowded and/or friendly it is. And each one definitely has its own personality and different aspects to it.
The one village on Anafi, called Hora (which simply means capital city) is amazingly beautiful. All of the buildings are the classic white and blue, and it's perched on a ridge that looks out over the Mediterranean Sea. It's a very steep 20 minutes or so bike ride up there from the beach that I'm on. There's also a bus that covers the few miles of roads (it's about six miles from the village on one side to the monastery on the other, and I think there's another short road that I haven't explored yet). So I've made use of the bus a few times to go up to the village for dinner and shopping, etc. I've been hanging out with a small group of other folks who are also camped on the beach, an American woman who is about 40 from Minnesota, two Greek girls and an 18-year old from Germany.
Well I should probably publish this while I can because the internet here is pretty temperamental. I've managed to upload two videos to facebook so far, and am trying to upload a couple of others. I've also uploaded some new photos, which you can view by clicking on the subject line above. It's a link to facebook, but you should be able to view them even if you don't have a facebook account.
Take care all and I'll be in touch again pretty soon...
Saturday, August 08, 2009
going to Anafi island (click here for more info)
I managed to get my bicycle put back together today. It was a fairly greasy experience but not too bad, except that once it was basically back to normal I discovered that one of the bolts for the front brake had been stripped, making it useless. And the gears were shifting pretty rough, leaving it clicking a lot. So I asked at the hostel about a bike shop, they gave me some very general directions and I biked off to find it. Almost all of the shops on that street were closed because it was Saturday afternoon; but (very) fortunately the bike shop was open and there was a mechanic on hand. Otherwise I would have been stuck waiting around until Monday. The part probably needed to be replaced (not just the bolt but the whole mechanism), which they most likely didn't have. But he managed to jerry-rig it in a way that works fine and seems pretty reliable. And then there are always the back brakes. Also he fiddled with the gears and got them working properly.
So with that out of the way, I then headed for a travel office to inquire about ferries, since I'd heard that most of them were booked getting out to the islands. There was one seat left on a boat to the island of Anafi, leaving late Sunday night and arriving Monday morning, so I got that one. Anafi sounds pretty sweet, one of those places that's just as nice as other much more popular places, but somehow gets overlooked. I'm not exactly sure what sort of services there will be there, apparently there isn't a bank but there are small villages with hotels, restaurants, etc. And I guess you can camp near some of the beaches without any hassle and without worrying about your stuff, since there are so few people. The bike might not be especially handy there, since apparently it's mostly walking paths to get around, but that's fine. It sounds like there's some good exploring with secluded beaches, a monastery and ruins. I can't wait to take a swim in the Mediterranean. (Click on the subject line above for a link to more info about Anafi.)
So with that out of the way, I then headed for a travel office to inquire about ferries, since I'd heard that most of them were booked getting out to the islands. There was one seat left on a boat to the island of Anafi, leaving late Sunday night and arriving Monday morning, so I got that one. Anafi sounds pretty sweet, one of those places that's just as nice as other much more popular places, but somehow gets overlooked. I'm not exactly sure what sort of services there will be there, apparently there isn't a bank but there are small villages with hotels, restaurants, etc. And I guess you can camp near some of the beaches without any hassle and without worrying about your stuff, since there are so few people. The bike might not be especially handy there, since apparently it's mostly walking paths to get around, but that's fine. It sounds like there's some good exploring with secluded beaches, a monastery and ruins. I can't wait to take a swim in the Mediterranean. (Click on the subject line above for a link to more info about Anafi.)
Friday, August 07, 2009
Videos (click here to view)
I've just uploaded some new videos to facebook. The computer I'm on doesn't have the software needed to view them myself, so I can't confirm that they're uploaded properly, but hopefully so. You can check them out on my facebook page. Just click on the subject line to this entry above.
the Acropolis in Athens, Greece
I hiked up to the Acropolis today. I didn't actually pay and go in to see it yet, however. I'm going to make a concerted effort to get up earlyish in the morning to see it in the morning light tomorrow. But from the spot where this photo was taken there was another amazing view in the opposite direction, looking out over the city of Athens.
Thursday, August 06, 2009
arrived in Athens
I'm going to keep this short, but I made it to where I'm staying in Athens, the Hostel Aphrodite. Things all went pretty smooth getting here until it came to navigating the metro system. It turned out some of the trains had different routes because of construction going on. So that delayed me about an hour, but I managed to get things straightened out with some help from a few locals who knew English, though the little Greek that I learned has already come in handy. And then I had to haul myself, two backpacks (one largeish and one small) and the box with the bike about ten blocks from the metro station, but it wasn't too bad. The streets were fairly empty but the few people out seemed very friendly, men sitting in chairs on streetcorners talking, etc. Although it was a bit of a pain going that way at least I saved about 50 bucks that a taxi would have cost from the airport. And the ridiculous load that I have right now will look a lot better once the bike is out of the box, and most of the stuff is on the bike.
So I got to the hostel about 12:30 or so. It's pretty decent, marble steps, slightly scruffy, but basically clean and the room is nice and cool, must be air conditioned because it's still pretty warm outside, and free internet access. It's about 1:30 in the morning here, I'm hanging in there thanks to having an open seat next to me on the second flight, so I managed to get a little bit of sleep. But I'm basically headed straight for the shower and then bed, definitely plan to sleep in and then see how things are looking in the morning. The project for tomorrow will be to put the bike back together. Thanks to the free internet I'll be able to check email fairly regularly, at least while I'm here for the next few days. Hopefully I can manage to upload a video or at least some photos from these computers...Alright I'm headed for the sack. Or rather, a nice cold shower, then the sack.
So I got to the hostel about 12:30 or so. It's pretty decent, marble steps, slightly scruffy, but basically clean and the room is nice and cool, must be air conditioned because it's still pretty warm outside, and free internet access. It's about 1:30 in the morning here, I'm hanging in there thanks to having an open seat next to me on the second flight, so I managed to get a little bit of sleep. But I'm basically headed straight for the shower and then bed, definitely plan to sleep in and then see how things are looking in the morning. The project for tomorrow will be to put the bike back together. Thanks to the free internet I'll be able to check email fairly regularly, at least while I'm here for the next few days. Hopefully I can manage to upload a video or at least some photos from these computers...Alright I'm headed for the sack. Or rather, a nice cold shower, then the sack.
Monday, August 03, 2009
Video contest
This is a video that I made over the past couple of weeks for a travel contest which, if you win, they'll fly you to Australia for free, give you a van to drive around for 6 weeks, and in the process you make a documentary film about one of the 7 states of Australia. For more info click on the subject line above for a link to the website about the contest. There are seven different stages to the trip, each one of which is six weeks long. I'm submitting to the last four stages, so that if I were to win one of them, I wouldn't be going until after I'm done with my trip to Greece and Turkey, etc. As you'll see, the video is basically a 2-minute tour of Oregon:
Sunday, August 02, 2009
Sleeping at a truck stop in southern Oregon
I got a late start Thursday leaving Portland, heading for California to catch my flight out of San Francisco (visiting mom in Ukiah on the way down). I gave my buddy Erik a call to see where he was, since I knew he'd just started his job as a trucker a few days earlier and so could be anywhere in the 11 Western states driving his truck. Turned out he was on I-5 heading north, and was planning to spend the night near Roseburg. So he invited me to crash for the night on one of the bunks in the cab of his truck.
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