Naxos Interlude

"This island possessed great sweetness and tranquility. Everywhere huge piles of melons, peaches and figs, surrounded by a calm sea. I looked at the inhabitants. Their faces were kindly; they had never been frightened by the Turks or earthquakes, and their eyes were not on fire. Liberty here had extinguished the yearning for liberty. Life extended like a sheet of contented, slumbering water which, though turbulent at times, never raised to a true tempest. As I walked about Naxos, security was the island's first gift that I became aware of." (Nikos Kazantzakis, report to Greco, trans. P.A. Bien)

One of the first things I noticed on reaching Naxos was the islet of Portara, also called the baths of Ariadne. It is located at the end of a long strip of paved walkway, and there sits a magnificent marble gate, the Portara. It was intended to be the portal of a huge temple begun around 530 B.C. but it was never completed.			The Portara exactly faces the sacred island of Delos and this is seen as a reference to Apollo, although some scholars associate it with Dionysios, on the grounds that Naxos was the birthplace of Bacchus and the island where Theseus left Ariadne inconsolable, until she obtained the protection of Dionysios.
		Also visible from the harbor are the mighty mountains of Naxos, including Mt. Za. We traveled up into the mountains and reached the village of Apeiranthos. It is called the "marble village". There are two mansions of Venetian origin - the Venetians "possessed" the Cyclades for a few hundred years, beginning in 1207 A.D. The Venetian presence in the Cyclades still remains in the form of the castles, turrets and fortresses.



		Chora is the largest town on Naxos, the harbor, and also the site of "Old Chora", also called the Kastro. The narrow covered streets, with unexpected dead ends, twists and turns, steps and balconies suggest that the only thought in the minds of the people who laid out this town was defense against an enemy attack or pirate raid. In fact, there is no plan behind the building of the town. I like it this way, since it has led to a complex which does not block the view of the sea or prevent it from being heard or smelled.



		The Cathedral at Chora is where I truly "lost it" as I lit candles for my mother and father. The village of Moni is not far from another interesting church, Panagia Drossiani, parts of which date back to the very earliest of Christian churches, around the 4th-5th centuries A.D. The little church is a rarity for Greece as a whole in that it preserves wall paintings from before the time of the iconoclastic controversy. It is the one interior in Greece where I was not allowed to take even non-flash photos.



		The highlight of the visit to Naxos was, for me, the visit we made to the home of a dear friend of Eleni's. She lives in an authentic Venetian period "castle", which she restored as an obvious labor of love. Her home is beautiful and her taste is exquisite. She was kind enough to allow me free reign taking photos while we sipped wine and nibbled on Greek cakes and cookies.




	So, as the sun sank into the western Aegean, we returned to the good ship Galileo for a special "Greek Night" celebration... Wine, food and dancing!!!