With World Tourism Day, just gone by, let me take you to a small Greek Island, Mykonos, which truly syncs with the spirit of holidaying. Eat, drink, rest, enjoy and be happy. Mykonos was the last Greek island in our itinerary of Greek vacation in 2018. Our trip to Greece was about to end. Although we were tired but hubby and elder son still wanted to have fun whereas I wanted to relax and so my younger one.
So, we took good rest and enjoyed the pool in the Villa we had booked on the day we reached. In the evening, we purchased some juicy, tangy and crunchy Mediterranean fruits and ready-to-cook meals from the supermarket right opposite the villa and enjoyed the dinner amidst hues of pink, orange, and grey sunset.
Sunset
You got it right, the sun sets late there and even at 9 pm you feel like doing your evening walks.
Mykonos is quite costly island and so we opted for a villa which was in the city rather than on a beach. But believe me, every nook and corner of the island is spic and span. Also, the Greek Villas have a charm of their own. Painted in white and blue, most of them have pools, jacuzzies, colourful flowers hang over their gardens, balconies, arched entrances, and gates and offer beauty and luxury in their own way. These pictures are the pictures of the villa we stayed in.
Our room was about 8000 INR a day, which was a family room with two queen-sized beds, a pantry with an induction, cooking ware and crockery so that guests could cook and serve on their own, and a washroom. The walls of the room and in fact many walls of the villa were painted beautifully with floral Greek paintings.
There are not many tourist spots in Mykonos. The island is known more for summer parties, beaches, and 16th-century windmills on a hill near Little Venice. Little Venice, I would say is a “must-see”.
Hanging over the sea, these are colourful buildings, which belonged to wealthy merchants and sailors once, who wanted direct access to the sea. The distinctive Venetian-style architecture is one of the reasons how this area got its name perhaps.
Today, this area is full of Cafés and Restaurants. Do sit here for some time, order something and enjoy the waves. People often complain about the price here, but I would say go for it, who knows when will you visit such a scenic place again and have a wonderful time with yourself, if you are alone and your loved ones in case you are with them.
The View from the Cafe in “Little Venice”
By the time we reached a Café, Veranda and found some space, kids were already hungry and I wanted to order lunch but it was noon. So, I asked if lunch was ready or they were still serving breakfast. The well-dressed pretty waitress laughed and replied, “At Mykonos, we don’t serve breakfast. We are party lovers. We party till dawn and get up late.”
True she was! Every single person, I met was enjoying his/her life there. No work is considered menial there. Probably like a utopia or protopia.
Take a walk around, not only the sea and colourful structures even the alleys are picturesque. The two storeyed buildings exhibit beautiful symmetry. Tiny balconies have mainly blue archaic wooden railings. One can see bougainvillea or other flowers around. In fact, this is what makes Greece look different from other countries.
We also enjoyed ourselves at the beaches and since we are not party people, we preferred to stroll on the beaches and the market and yes, unlike others, we slept nicely at night.
The Windmills
And what I brought back, along with bottles of wines and olive oil, was a celebrating spirit. I fell in love with the locals who are always so happy and in a celebrating mood; just like their tourists. It doesn’t matter what he or she does. They are just happy and this trip confirmed my belief that you don’t need to be rich to be happy.
