To an island

The day draws to a close and we are confronted by a fresh, yet warm sea breeze washing through the elevated apartments open shutters. The background sounds of the crickets in the still evening are broken by the twilight barking of the local dogs and the occasional car or scooter drifting along the road leading to the town centre. Looking out of the porch we can see the imposing hills of Paros dominating the view, speckled by white house’s which now appear as twinkling lights in the darkness. This is now home for the next 3 days. Mission 1st thing in early morning is to locate that rooster to 1. Get a good night’s sleep 2. Chicken kebabs.
We started out the day early (5:15 am alarm) in order to get here on time. Breaking the early morning Athens calm with the sound of 8 suitcase wheels rattling over cobblestones, we filed our way down the deserted streets towards the train station. This time the wallet (now a decoy) stayed where it should as we caught the train to Pireaus. The bustling port was a stark contrast to the quiet city streets, we managed to negotiate our way onto the ferry and then off we sailed across the sapphire blue waters of the Mediterranean. Most likely following in the steps of many historical figures, minus the slaves with long oars (although as we were not privy to the engine room – you never know what they use for power these things...).
The jaunt across the sea was uneventful, eventually somewhat painful, due to the incessant smoking of the locals - sure is a different world here in that respect. We were collected at the port and duly deposited in our fabulous rooms and the girls finally got to jump into some water (yay!). Paros is a contradiction, it looks old on the outside (architecture wise), but every shop looks new inside. All the buildings are white, as are the pointers on the beach.
We spent a couple of hours walking along the shoreline and through the labyrinth of the old town – everywhere you look is a postcard photo opportunity. We had yet another fabulous dinner at a taverna around the corner, the weather is perfect, the rooms are amazing, and the mystic charm of the place will be duly explored tomorrow. ...