Naxos is our longest stop on this trip, we are staying for ten nights! We met with some of our cousins who were visiting Greece and watched a beautiful sunset with them from our dinner table. Naxos is our relaxing stop for we have our own private pool. Our favourite beach has comfy hammocks and massive waves which are fun to play in.

I enjoy reading books together out loud as a family and our most recent book was about an ancient Korean potter, so we thought it only fitting to visit a pottery shop and see actual pieces being made. It was amazing to see the clay transforming from a grey lump into a beautiful vase shape. There were hundreds of sculpted pieces, molded and painted beautifully. In the same small village we saw a traditional olive oil press that was in use till the 1900’s.

We visited an ancient marble quarry where they would carve out the general shape of the sculpture then drag them down the mountain. Sometimes parts of the statues broke in transport so they were left where they fell and new pieces had to be cut.

While exploring the island, we found part of the ancient Roman aqueducts that led from the natural spring to the main town. An eighty meter section of the aqueduct was partially restored along with other sections in the snaking route it took. The aqueduct was 11 kilometres long running through small villages along the way.

On our second to last day in Naxos we visited Chalki (pronounced Halki), the main town on Naxos. We saw beautiful orange trees with the fruit hanging from the branches and an abandoned house with a massive rose bush blooming from it. Naxos is another island we’ve returned to and I am very glad we did.

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