Scenes from a visit to Paros, Greece (April 2023): Ferry over and initial arrival

After our stay in Naxos it was time to move on to Paros, which is just a short ride by ferry. My photo instincts were starting to wake up a little bit and I captured a few shots leaving the port of Naxos.

That's the Portara off in the distance.

Ferry seats were pretty comfy. Also nice that this particular boat was not exactly packed.

Solid concession options. Not super necessary given it is a 30-45 minute ride. Don't think I even bothered with a coffee. But for those on for the longer ride continuing to subsequent islands, very nice to have it at your disposal.

When it's time to disembark you receive a cheery salute. Thanks for the ride, cap'n.

Car picked us up at the port in Parikia and brought us to our hotel for the next couple of nights. We stayed at the Kalypso. I did not grab any pictures of the entrance, but you can get an idea of it via the street view below.


I did grab some shots of the entry area / 'lobby' for lack of a better word. Rustic casual, but nice.

Room I got was pretty austere, but fine. Odd choice of lavender as the accent color. Like a deliberate departure of everywhere else in the islands that feature some combination of white, blue, and earth tones. Not sure the lavender really works. But the view was nice.

Kalypso was maybe 8-10 minutes walking from the center of Naoussa, so I went for a little walkabout to get my bearings. Snapped a few pics. Nice holiday apartments, curated alleyways oozing the boutique and taverna vibes. Positive first impression.

Quick Review: Hamburguesas HM (Del Valle Norte, CDMX)

(Photo source: Paul Aguilar)

Today's lunch adventure was supposed to be a new chicken place Judy saw on Avenida Insurgentes. Allegedly called 'Chik-it' (no such establishment according to google maps). Once we realized 'Chik-it' might have been a weird dream we needed a back up plan. Hamburguesa HM was the winner. We have passed this place a few dozen times over the last 3.5 years living in Del Valle Centro. Seen other locations around the city, too. Apparently there are 10 locations around la CDMX. Never really gave it a go. Just don't go out for burgers much.

From the Insurgentes side of this location you'd never guess how big it is. From the back side, which opens up onto maybe one of the shortest streets in Mexico City, Cerrada de Artemio de Valle Arizpe, it looks like nothing special. Turns out it's decent. Place was pretty busy. Had all the screens on a Womens Euro quarterfinal between France and Germany (Germany won). Can see how it could be lively for a higher profile event.

Didn't take any pictures of the menu, but it's a multi-page laminated deal with hero shots of burger after burger. And a compelling tower of Aros de Cebolla which was enough to convince Judy. Looked better on the menu than this, but she was happy. $110 MXN for at least 20 hearty onion rings.

Judy got a pulled pork 'burger' that she was really happy with. I had my mind on something chicken related (was excited to try 'Chik-it') and got a Burrote with cruji pollo. Was hoping for something akin to the old fried chicken wraps I used to get at KFC way back in the day. It was just okay. Loaded it up with the side of jalapeños they brought to the table, plus alternating shots of cheez whizz and bbq sauce. I blame myself for getting the chicken option at a place named 'Hamburguesas'.

We would try it again. I'll get a burger next time.

Scenes from a visit to Naxos, Greece (April 2023): Part II

While the first part of my visit to Naxos focused on driving around the island to check out some interior villages and whatever else caught our attention, the next day was for exploring the main town.

Day strated with breakfast in a lovely setting outside the Ippokampos hotel overlooking the calm waters of St. George beach. Early in the season and early in the morning meant the sun loungers were empty.

I kicked around town a bit and, once again, did a poor job of capturing things. Have a few assorted snaps that caught my eye though. Generally digging the outdoor seating everywhere and the on-brand whitewashed elements. Walls, chairs, stone paths.

Grabbed a daytime shot of the restaurant where we had a great little dinner experience the night before. It doesn't come up in English on my google maps, but look for Το κάτι Άλλο and stop in. You'll be happy with it.

Also snapped a shot of Capones ('meat dish restaurant' per google ... feels like a translation issue there ...). It caught my eye the night before as it was small but lively on a late April night. Looked like a fun spot.

For lunch and coffee I decided on Gemma Naxian Bistro. Was pretty quiet when I stopped in. Think they had some interesting but not overwhelming music on, which I appreciated. I see now that I stumbled upon a place with a 4.9 rating. I remember the service was good and my veggie burger was pretty decent.

Later in the afternoon we met with one of our partners and got a feel for the tour of the old town, castle, and Portara. Stopped in a couple of shops featuring a combination of local and gourmet products. Of course this is where I took some pictures because I knew Judy would be interested. First shop can be found in Google as Naxos Cheese Koufopolous.

Then it was down the street to K Tziblakis. I still regret not snagging at least one can of that donkey olive oil.

I think the next sequence was a spin through the castle area. No pics. Would probably be better as a video. Lot of stairways, passageways, etc. Very cool to stroll around and see that there are some residential units all around it. Absolutely worth exploring if you're there. We then did a pit stop at Honey & Cinnamon. I forget exactly what traditional drink we were offered. I think it was served warm. And I'm sure there was a snack of some sort that I failed to capture. Nice little respite after being on our feet for a while.

Next we were off toward the harbor. Our mission was to see the sunset from the Portara. On the way we passed a couple of places that looked well positioned for a drink at sunset. One was BACO.

And the other was Dal Profesore. We continued on as we had other plans for the sunset.

Snapped a few shots walking over ...

Snapped a few shots looking back at the town ...

And then of course snapped a number of shots awaiting the sunset ...

Glad we did it. I imagine there would be more people with the same idea if we were visiting June through September. But in late April we were three of maybe 20-ish people there. Nice and chill.