Exploring Naxos by car, better than a bus.

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Trip Start May 14, 2011 Previous
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  Naxos, Cyclades, Greece
Thursday, May 19, 2011

So after we collected our little car, we headed out of Chora, (on the wrong side of the road) heading for Dimitras temple.  This place is a must see for anyone who loves ancient architecture and ruins or even a nice country drive and a great view.  On some of the mountains you can see for miles and miles.  The temple ruins are amazing with the different colour marbles, the minerals laying on the ground seam to sparkle and the wild flowers flourish around the site.  The roads are in great condition, which makes you wish you were in something a little more sporty than the I10. From here we headed for Damalas, this is where you can see a beautiful collection of hand made ceramic pots, statues and other bits and pieces.  The artist did not give his name, but is very friendly and does what he can to communicate with you.  His works are very affordable, but fragile, so if like us you have a lot more travelling to do, best not to make a purchase to avoid breaking the items and causing disappointment. 

After this we drove through Chalki to Filoti, the old capital of Naxos.  We then drove on to Aperanthos and stopped here for lunch.  The streets here are incredible, all paved in marble, they wind their way through the little town which is perched on the side of a steep mountain.  The food here is as good as anywhere we have been so far, and we can recommend the stuffed peppers and pork steak.  It is a little higher in price but probably has something to do with the remote location.  When leaving Aperanthos, you will see a sign pointing towards the coast which directs you to the Prehistoric Acropolis.  Don't bother with this.  The road winds it’s way down the side of the mountain and seems to never end.  After about 30 minutes, we still had only dropped about half the height of the mountain and could not see where we were aiming for.  We performed what seemed like a 10 point turn on the narrow road and proceeded to slowly climb our way back up the mountain, and get back on track.  Next we drove through Stavros to Moni.  There is a church here somewhere that lies in ruin, apparently beautiful, but we could not find it, the signage in this area is poor at best, which leads to some interesting conversations around navigation.  Just skip it and stay on the main road.  Next you will come across Kouros, in here you can go in search of a fallen statue, which dates back prior to the Acropolis.  He is 3.5 mtrs tall, is impressive but not what he is hyped up to be.  Recently another of his kind has been discovered and you will have to explore your way through an old ladies garden to find it.  She has conveniently set up a little stall, where you can buy a few snacks and her homemade wine.  The wine is more like rocket fuel, so be careful, and only drink it once you have returned to your hotel.  Also in this area you can see a segment of preserved ancient aquaduct, impressive in its engineering, it would have carried water for miles around to water crops and supply villages.  From Kouros, it was a simple and restful drive back to Chora and our little room for a well deserved cup of tea and a rest before hitting the beach and going out for dinner.  In all we travelled about 140 klms, and did it fairly easily. 

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