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Chóra, Hora or Náxos Town?

The island of Naxos is the largest among the Cycladic islands and lies within the heart of the archipelago. With over 60 villages scattered around the island, there are much for visitors to see and to do. However, when you are short in time – in our case, we had mere 2 days – then it’s better to play it smart and stay put in Chóra. Or Hora. Or Náxos town. (Hint: they refer to the same place.)

The ferry from Athens-Piraeus to Naxos takes about 6 hours through the vast Aegean Sea and the first sight that greeted us near the port was the Gate of Apollo, also known as Portara. This large marble gate dated back to approximately 500 BC is the remaining structure of a temple dedicated to Apollo, standing tall but alone on the islet of Palatia. The temple was never completed, but the remnant of what was the intended dimension can be seen. Naxos town from here is also a very pretty sight.

Naxos

Portara

Naxos

Naxos

Naxos

Since Frédéric and I had decided right from the get go that we didn’t want to run around like a pair of headless chickens, we settled for exploring the old walled city i.e. the Castro, and spending some time at the beaches. Hey, the water was fabulously clear and blue, and we have been a little deprived of the ocean while living in Paris. In any case, we needed a slower and calmer pace as part of our R&R. ;)

We stayed in a small studio in the Grotta quarter with a balcony which overlooks the historic Castro, and a mere 10 minutes walk away from the port as well as the streets leading into Castro. On our way into town, we marvelled at the white-washed buildings, quaint shop fronts, and flower-filled balconies/doorsteps. It felt wonderful.

Naxos

Naxos

Naxos

Naxos

Naxos

While the walking distance was very manageable, we needed to be very mindful about the traffic. With narrow roads where two-way traffics run along stretches of street parking (which essentially renders the roads a 1-way street most of the time), the footpaths are also proportionally slim, or non-existant in some part. As a “bonus”, the roads were often busy with visitors on ATVs which they had never drove before nor had they the licence to ride. Walk at your own peril!

The Castro is the historic centre of Naxos, built on a hill with elevated ground, thus giving us plenty of vantage view points of the harbour. One can fabulously get lost in the labyrinth of photogenic alleys framed by bright bougainvilleas, exploring the calmer side of Naxos, while perusing small shops selling a variety of artworks, jewelleries, clothes, collectibles an souvenirs.

Naxos

Naxos

Naxos

Naxos

Naxos

Atop of the hill of Castro lies a castle, which gives rise to the name of the neighbourhood, founded by Venetian Marco Sanudo after he captured Naxos. He went on to hold power in several Cycladic islands and created the Duchy of the Archipelago, making it a maritime powerhouse, and the Duchy stayed in power for about three centuries. Part of the success for this stronghold was the decision of Sanudo to permit freedom to religious belief on the islands.

A strong Catholic community thrived here in the Castro and their then-residences can still today be identified through the presence of coat of arms over the doorways. The Roman Catholic church in Castro may lack the typical colourful stained-glass windows that can be found in Italy, but the marble works, icons and Venetian heraldic symbols together make it a lovely church to visit. Sorry, no photography allowed inside, so I have nothing to show you…

Naxos

Naxos

Naxos

Naxos

Naxos

A tower house situated to the northern gate – the Trani Porta – of this citadel is today the Venetian Museum of Naxos. This three-storey stone tower is a veritable fortress, built with walls as thick as 6m on the base floor (which left the level cool and ideally used as storage, like a refridgerator) and over 1.5m on the upper floor. It had formerly housed a Venetian consulate until it was bought and renovated by Sforza-Castri in late 17th century, before changing hand in the 18th century to the Della Rocca-Barozzi family.

Until 1997, it remained as residence of the direct descendents of the Della Rocca-Barozzi. Nikos Karavias (full name: Nikolaos Michel Laurent Karavias Della Rocca-Barozzi) then decided to turn it into a museum, and in the evenings, one gets a glimpse into the tradition, customs and music of the Naxians right on an open court of the tower house. The view of the port from here is also unrivalled!

Naxos

Naxos

Naxos

Naxos

Naxos

Coming back to the port area, the length that runs along the front of the harbour is mostly filled with restaurants and souvenir shops. It seems tourism had finally arrived to the island after long years of reliance mostly on agriculture, given the fertility of the Naxian soil. Agriculture is still significant, just a part that we didn’t see as we didn’t venture into other parts of the island due to time constraint.

A number of beaches lie reasonable near to the main Naxos town, but to avoid some of the crowd, we went a little further out to Agia Anna. Regular buses run between the port and the beaches (of Agios Prokopios, Agia Anna, and Plaka) and it was nice to take a dip in the turquoise sea after a day of walk-about and sightseeing. For those wanting to stay closer to town, Agios Georgios is within walking distance. We also found Grotta beach pretty handy, given we were staying in the neighbourhood and there’s also a delicious souvlakeria right next to it!

Naxos

Naxos

Naxos

Naxos

Naxos

We hoped to be back at the islet of Palatia at dusk but having mistimed it, we were still in Agia Anna when sunset took place. Alas, we settled for a series of night shots. I was a little frustrated during this short photowalk because a few people decided they’d like to climb the Portara and make it their make-out-cum-picnic spot. Such a disrespect for the monument, in my opinion.

It was such a shame that we had such limited time at Naxos before moving on to Santorini. We would have love to rent a car (and never the quad bike) and drive to other parts of the island, to see other ruins and remains, the hike the highest point of the island that is the Mount Zeus, and to get a better feel of the more remote Naxian villages. Who knows what other little gems we could find?

 

All posts in this series:
Greece: Postcards: Sunset in Oia
Greece: Chóra, Hora or Náxos Town? | Flickr Photoset
Greece: The Venetian Museum of Náxos | Flickr Photoset
Greece: An afternoon walk from Firá to Oia | Flickr Photoset
Greece: Caldera, volcano and hot spring | Flickr Photoset
Greece: Island time(table), Santorini edition
Greece: Postcards: Blue in Oia
Greece: Postcards: The idyllic village of Oia | Flickr Photoset
Greece: Just keep swimmin’, just keep swimmin’
Greece: Touring southern Santorini | Flickr Photoset
Greece: Postcards: Athens and the Acropolis | Flickr Photoset



Category: Europe, Greece, Travel

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4 scribbles & notes

  1. Caitriona says:

    Your photos are beautiful, Lil! I am adding Naxos to my travel wish list!

    • Lil says:

      Thanks Caitriona, and if you are going to Naxos, allocate more days to explore the other parts of the island!

  2. m3dca says:

    Woooowwwwwww….great place indeed…and nice shots of the drying sotongs hehehe

    so u only spent 2 days? i think if i ever go on a DIY europe tour…i would pay you to plan out my itinerary kekekek

    • Lil says:

      Greece is beautiful in general on the islands, you could stay forever!

      Hehehe, I could try but no guarantee that nothing won’t go wrong, ok? ;)

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