Into the Aegean

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Here I am in the Aegean, the blue waters, blue skies, the heat and the wind. The ladies really do mob you as you depart the ferry. I took the first room offered, it was so much more than the hostel in Athens; anything would have been more inviting than that hostel in Athens. Ah, those drunken Aussies, and their path of destruction. I watched as one sat on a sink, it collapsed, he fell on top of the porcelein and cut himself badly. He went to the hospital and I never saw him again.

The ferry ride was nearly 7 hours leisurely cruising the Aegean with many locals and backpackers. The Port of Piraeas is every bit as confusing, congested and for it's charm, a touch of the Third World. I stepped off the modern and sleak Athens metro at the port into this maelstorm of people, garbage on the streets, kiosks, cars, taxis, traffic police, helmet-less motorcyclists and ferries. Where is my ferry? No signs. It's a big port. I asked a busy policeman who pointed the way. I found the ferry. I found a seat. But am I siting in the right seat? I doubt it, but no one kicks me out. Even the Greeks had difficulty finding their reserved seats downstairs as some were still looking 1/2 hour into the trip. I guess it's all Greek even to the Greeks.

Naxos is so much more quiet and laid back compared to Athens. Athens is every bit as hot, polluted, congested and noisy as you can image. Only one of those adjectives describes Naxos.

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