The beach at Batsi on Andros.. called The Exemplary Beach.. now thats original!
Andros again.. view out past an old 10 Century fort to sea
And a view of me from the town of Hora looking out past one of those Ventian mansions down to the beach
And another of me in the town square looking out to the beach.. you cant see but there is a rather large luxury yacht down there on that moooring..
A view up from the Beach at Batsi, Andros up across the hills with the town in the background.
Coraleen in Mykonos on the beach by the port
Adros.. a view looking down from the Town Square to one of the beautiful beaches in this quaint little town.
Andros.. and onother one of those Churches..loooking out tosee from the town Square
Mmm.. another one of those funny signs.. this is in the town of Batsi in Andros.. and no we didnt park our Donkey there ..
The small fishing village of Batsi on Andros.. and these are just typical of their fishing boats which contribute to their livelihood.
Vicki at monument in main town, Mykonos.
Narrow street in the middle of Mykonos town
The beach down at the port. not really a beach but its right in town and many people use it for swimming.
Mykonos are famous for its windmills.. we couldnt resist taking another picture.. Arriving in Mykonos with a million others (well almost) and finding no accommodation under NZ$180 a night we were slightly disillusioned.. and after paying the said $180 only to realise we wouldnt have paid $20 for it at home even though it had a 'swimming pool' plonked in the piece of >dirt out the front on the main road we were even more disillusioned. The windows and doors didnt close properly, the room was sparse and the air-con did a great imitation of a rattle snake. We had both been excited about Mykonos but unfortunately I have to report things didnt get better. We only stayed one night, changed our ferry tickets and hightailed it out of there within 24 hours. Some people just love Mykonos.. several we spoke to had moved from Athens to make it their home but for us the squillions of people, overpriced food and accommodation, roads chocker block with tourists on scooters and quadbikes made it an unenviable place to be.
Yes, the beaches were beautiful..but no more beautiful than the other Islands (Santorini aside) and the after effects of the nightlife left a lot to be desired.
While waiting for the ferry to leave we were amazed at the number of comatozed young people who had presumably slept the night out even though the busses ran every half hour until 4am! and the dazed zombies who, no doubt were still under the influence of some drug or other from the night before.
Upon arriving in Andros we werent disappointed with our decision to leave Mykonos. It's the most northerly of the Cyclades, one of the quietest and most serene with few tourists, magnificent beaches and lush greenery (a rarity in Greece!). Following the advice of the Lonely Planet we caught the bus from the Port to Batsi, a small fishing village and based ourselves there enjoying the tranquility of a quiet beach and slightly upmarket accomodation at half the price!
The bus over to Andros town took about 40 minutes firstly along the coast and then across the lush covered mountains to a quaint little town which sat between two long golden sandy beaches. The pallatial yachts >in>the harbour overlooked by Venetian Mansions were the only indication of the infamous hedonistic lifestyle enjoyed by their inhabitants.
