“Greece is not just a destination, it’s an experience that will stay with you forever.” — Unknown

“It takes a lifetime to discover Greece, but it only takes an instant to fall in love with her.” —Henry Miller

We have been traveling now for almost a month and we are ready for a “vacation from our vacation” So to end our trip we sail to Serifos, an island in the Cyclades Island chain about a two hour fast ferry ride from Piraeus. And what a ferry ride. About 30 minutes after departure, the winds picked up…stronger and stronger, gusts up to and over 50 mph. Soon the waves were monstrous and it was impossible to walk about. We heard loud bangs from the decks below, like cars were being tossed about. Plates and glasses were flying off the tables and behind the bar. It was white knuckle time!!!! The captain finally decided it best to slow down and before long we docked in Livadi, the port city on Serifos. Disembarking we had to hang onto our hats and everything else in fear of being whipped away by the wind. What a ride!!!!

We chose Serifos because it is a quiet Aegean Island…no airport, no cruise ships, only way to access it is by ferry. It would be our home for the next 10 days and afford us time to just relax.

We grabbed our little car rental and made our way up the mountain to our first stay, Boutique Hotel Rizes. We grabbed a Senior Suite complete with our own private pool and a killer view down to Livadi and over the the Chora. We had hoped to spend our entire time here, but the hotel closes down the first of October so we only had three nights in this location.

It rained hard the first couple days, but when the weather cleared we decided it was time we climbed to the top of the Chora. The Chora is the stunning, whitewashed hilltop capital, a picturesque maze of narrow alleys, traditional Cycladic houses, and Venetian castle ruins cascading down a steep slope with breathtaking Aegean views. We found a spot at the bottom of the hill to park the car and just started walking up.

It was time to switch spots…moving from Boutique Hotel Rizes to a little beach house. Before we arrived at our new digs, we were beginning to feel it was time to go home, but we needed to give this spot a try, and so happy that we did. It was the cutest little house right on this sandy crescent of a beach. We had an amazing deck where we spent hours reading, watching the ferries come and go, eating homemade sandwiches and potato chips and drinking a few glasses of wine, well, perhaps more than a few!!!! The beach was practically ours everyday. Occasionally others would show up for a bit, bask in the sun or swim naked in the sea, but mostly it was ours.

Just up the hill from us was a trail that led down to a neighbouring beach complete with little tavernas. And then over the next hill was Livadi Port and all the stores, shops and restaurants. Our beach house was perfectly situated. And we just relaxed and enjoyed our time together.

We chose not to explore too much, we just wanted to relax and take in the beauty of this idyllic island. But as they say, all good things must come to a close…and we were ready. It has been 5 and a half weeks since we have been home. Tomorrow we will start the journey…turn in the rental, ferry to Piraeus, car to Athens, flight to Frankfurt, flight to New York, flight to Seattle and then finally a late night flight to Wenatchee. We celebrated Heidi’s retirement in style and at the same time celebrated our 20th anniversary. And as this trip comes to a close, you can be sure a new one is already percolating.