La Isla Bonita

Might want to get some popcorn for this one....


I’ve never really taken a vacation. You know packed a couple of swimsuits, suntan oil, and books and did nothing much but chill out on the beach with a pina colada. Not that I am complaining, I mean I have traveled a ton, usually for basketball, which means the price has been right. But traveling with purpose and a job to do is a far cry from this weekend where our only goals revolved around tan lines and booze.

This past weekend I realized why vacations are so wonderful. I’ve been waiting two years to really go to the Greek isles. I’ve been to the smaller ones, and they are beautiful, but it was always a rushed trip, done in a day or two and I felt like a tourist. This trip was three days and I had no intention of going to a museum or seeing anything resembling an archeological site. All I wanted was to relax on the beach and walk through the winding streets of the town. And that I did.

I went with my three best girlfriends over here; Tracy, Trish, and Meg. We four have been waiting for a chance to get away all together for a long time. We’ve been over here eight months and besides Christmas, its been all Athens all the time. Plus, after this week we will all go our separate ways. Easter weekend was our chance to have some much needed quality time.

We got a boat out of Athens at eight o’clock Friday night that arrived in Mykonos at 1:30 am. Not an ideal itinerary but it was that or stay in Athens so we weren’t complaining. We were excited to say the least as we boarded the huge ferry, plopped our backpacks on the floor and started eating all the food we had packed for the weekend. We spent the six hours people watching and commenting on the rampant fashion faux paus, having girl talk way too loud (its easy to forget people DO understand English), and walking around the ship. It was pretty boring, the highlight being when a young boy asked for my autograph because he is a huge Panionios fan. I was shocked, used to it in Ames, not quite so common in Athens.

We arrived in Mykonos tired and anxious to see our accommodations. Tracy had booked hostel on the internet for 10 euros a night so we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into. It was obviously dark and cool breeze caught us on the dock as we made our way to the van. A new found energy emerged when we saw “paradise beach camping” painted in blue on the side of our ride. A combination of excitement and nervousness built up as we made our way along the dark streets of Mykonos. Trish and I sat up front talking to our first of many friends made this weekend. Zep, a forty year old Polish taxi driver that spends his summers picking up hippie backpackers from the port and taking them to Paradise. He offered to share his Russian vodka with us which we happily agreed to take him up on the next day.

We finally turned into a large camping ground with huge white buildings built in a complex type area. A small hotel, a large house, communal bathrooms and rows of white shacks made up the living area while the entrances to the beach were the clubs that will be filled with half naked, drunk, crazy people in about a month. These days it was quiet as we checked in at the lobby, completely unsure as to what we were getting ourselves into, and loving the uncertainty.

We checked in and made our way through the camping grounds to a group of bungalow type shacks. They were all white and about the size of a home depot tool shed. Just enough room for two single beds and a table, a single light bulb for ambience. We were loving it. We had big plans to get to Mykonos and go to the clubs, since 2 am is about the time things get started anyway, but after the travel we just wanted to crash. So we curled up on our cots, pulled the single wool blanket up and went to sleep for a long night of freezing our asses off. The weather in general here is getting hot in the day but cold at night or in the shade.

We woke in the morning to a sunny day. Meg and I made our way down to the beach while the other girls slept so we could run in the sand. We walked through the paradise club, an open air beach side bar with white linen sheets blowing in the wind. The beach was beautiful, packed full of empty chairs and tiki huts and the water was gently lapping up on the shore in the quiet morning. Not many people had made their way out of bed yet so we had the beach to ourselves for a nice morning run before breakfast.

Breakfast was coffee, bread, juice, and a croissant compliments of paradise beach camping resort. We were stoked to say the least about free breakfast and we ate it happily at a table with sand under our feet. (Still a bit shocked that we spent 30 euros on accommodations for three nights and we had free breakfast. Deal of the century!) We sat there basking in the sun and talking until it was time to move down to the chairs, break out the bikinis and sun tan oil and catch some rays. And that we did, all morning and afternoon. We sat their reading my birthday present from my mom, “Why men love bitches,” which is a highly recommended literary marvel. The perfect book to read aloud on a beach with girlfriends, taking turns reading and providing anecdotes, and/or bitching about men, to every chapter. But mostly we just chilled out and, looking out over the blue green water in the morning sun, said, “I love life,” over and over again. And of course we drank pina coladas made by our new best friend, Lefteris, at the beach bar. Finally we shopped at the small store, trying on matching thong bikinis that we all would have bought but the sizes were a little too small. I bought one anyway… size is hardly the point.

After enough sun to kill a small animal we decided it was time to go to town. We hopped on the bus and made our way to civilization where we shopped and walked among the winding, narrow streets of Mykonos. White buildings with blue doors and flowered plants passed around us until we had no idea where we were. We made our way down to the water where people sat at tavernas and cafes, the water hitting off the rocks, the windmills above spinning in the wind where we petted a white pelican and chased it down the street with our cameras ready. It was a bit chilly after spending all day in the sun and we were starving so we stopped multiple times for food. First Greek souvlaki (gyros) then crepes with ham and cheese then chocolate and bananas. After the much needed nourishment it was time for more walking and shopping. We didn’t buy much, mostly just enjoyed the cute streets but we did stop for accessories for the big night ahead. We can do with out heat, running water, and subsist on pb & j but we are drawing the line at going without matching accessories. After our mission was accomplished and we all had chic jewelry for our pre planned night attire it was time to go home.

After a nap in the bungalow, with extra blankets from the receptionist, Meg and I went out to the beach for pb and J and coffee. It was late afternoon so the sun was lower and the beach was empty except for us and some Greeks sipping coffee. The beach bar, where our friend worked was open air with huge couches on the beach with a canvas cover for shade. Meg and I sat there and talked, Bob Marley blaring from the speakers as we looked out at the tiki huts and water in front of us. Still loving life.

Then it was time to shower and get ready. The bathrooms at the complex were really nice, much cleaner than my gym. We took hot showers that proved to us God loves us. Never has a shower felt so good. Then it was back to the bungalow where Tracy and Trish were waking up so we could all get ready. I must say we were all looking good despite the poor lighting and lack of space, we all managed to put on nice clothes (with accessories), and get some makeup on evenly. Nothing like a fresh tan to hit the clubs with. And then it was go time….

We made our way down to the beach bar where Lefteris and the bar owner, Stathis, proceeded to mix us drinks, pour us shots, light them on fire, and give us sparklers. They were endlessly funny. Lefteris looked like a Columbian drug dealer dressed in all white linen. After a bit it was time to hit the town.

We arrived in the center at about 11:30 and the bars were far from even being open. So we walked a bit, making our way through throngs of Greeks walking from church with lighted candles, and ate a crepe before we got too crazy to eat. Then we found a café where ace of bace was blaring. So we lined up at the bar, the four of us girls, and decided that tequila shots would be a fun way to start the party up. Then the Greek Canadians behind us and the bartender all got in on the fun. About 2 o’clock we made it to the club where we walked in without paying cover thanks to another new friend, the club owner, and proceeded to talk to every guy that looked American including two fireman who worked in Uzbekistan, one of which stripped his shirt off in the middle of the dance floor because someone, that would be me, thought the fireman calendar would be better seen in person. It was. And we talked about how cool it is to get paid to work out. The difference being that one hour earlier when a firecracker went off on the street next to me I shrieked like a five year old girl with my friends hysterically laughing. Anyway, these guys work on an American military base and get paid way more than they would in America. There are so many interesting jobs overseas. And then our Greek guy friends showed up and we were all over the club mingling with all nationalities. At about 3 am, as I am standing with my friend Nikos, I realize that I am alone and my friends are no where to be found. Them bitches left me to go get a gyro! “we were coming right back,” was their excuse. And sure enough five minutes later I see them walking down the street towards me, tzaziki all over their faces. It was time to call it a night.

The next day was much of the same, breakfast on the beach, tanning for hours in the hot sun. This time we had Lefteris put in a Madonna cd. so we could sing to “like a prayer”, "La Isla bonita" (appropriate) and “papa don’t preach” while tanning. I mean does it get much better than that? We had no plans to do anything, not even go to town, so we sipped coffee and ate sandwiches from the restaurant just so we wouldn’t have to leave to beach. We spent a lot of time talking to Andy, and Australian nomad who has been traveling the world for the past year and is now staying on Mykonos for the summer. He has no money really, just plays his guitar on the street when he needs some cash. I love meeting these people. I’m always like, “you mean you don’t have an atm?”

After an afternoon nap it was time for pb and j and coffee on the couches. It was a lazy afternoon that turned into a lazy evening. We had plans to go out but after relaxing in our bungalows with sweats on, we weren’t really up to another night on the town. So we went down to the restaurant to get something to eat from Romeo, our Swiss friend and talked about what to do. We were tired but the bungalows aren’t really for spending a night inside so we were torn. Then Zep shows up with his Russian vodka that was unbelievable. We sat with him for awhile and talked and then found our second wind and next thing you know we are off to get ready. We got all done up again in about 8 minutes flat and went down to the beach bar to hang with our boys. But our second wind died quickly. We weren’t really into drinking so we soon found our self with about thirty travelers from all over the world just sitting and talking. There were French, Canadian, Australian, Irish, English, American, and Moroccan all sitting together drinking beer, talking of adventures, and singing with the Aussie playing guitar.

Meg and I sat next to John, a funny Englishman backpacking with his Irish friend, Tony. Every time Tony spoke I kept thinking, “someone stole me lucky charms.” They had been all over Europe and John had lived all over the world, naming off cities like an international salesman. Only John was twenty years old. He just picks up and moves somewhere new. He’s been living in Paris, went because he felt like it, stood outside McDonalds and got someone to buy him food because he had no money, got a job at a bar, learned French and is probably moving to southern France when he gets back from traveling. Its amazing how little these guys live off of and most is spent on beer. They bought their rail pass, quit their jobs, put a backpack on, and took off. Some of the most happy people you’ll ever met, with not a penny to their name. Me and the boys will be hanging in Paris in a couple weeks to be sure.

All in all it was a wonderful trip. Fun bonding time with my girls, beautiful beaches, and new and interesting people. I have about a billion pictures but my internet is too dang slow to post them. Trust me it was gorgeous….