Visiting the beach and the magic of Naxos

Waking up a bit late after a double insomnia-filled night was not unexpected. What was unexpected was discovering that the main credit card I've been using on our trip was missing. I retraced our steps yesterday, trying to remember the last time I'd seen it. We'd had a chaotic day yesterday, what with the road trip and unexpected illness, so the possibilities seemed vast. We decided to head down to the port and ask the rental company if it had been turned in to them. On the main port promenade, a woman came running up to us. I recognized her as the pharmacy shop owner I'd purchased a razor and shaving cream from last night. She had my card and just happened to spot us walking by her shop. It was a surprise because I knew I'd paid cash for the razor, but apparently my card must have fallen out of my wallet. And what were the odds that she'd see us, recognize me as the person who dropped the card and return it to us as we were on the hunt for it. Misadventure avoided.

We moved on with our plan for the day, which was to visit the beach by the port. It was an easy 15 minute walk and when we arrived, we camped out at the beachside pizza place, which boasted on a large chalkboard sign, that it had "Probably the Best Pizza on the Island." Now that's a statement you can stand by. Probably. We tried it later in the day and we can definitely say that probably it is not the best pizza on the island. 

The people watching on the beach was excellent. Highlights were topless sunbathers, the unique versions of swimwear found on a Greek beach, naked children peeing in the sea and a weird argument between a man and a woman about a long stick that she threw into the. I was amazed by the dedication to suntans that many folks had, changing their skin to an almost purple color. Impressive.

I decided to take a swim, which actually took a bit of effort since the water was shallow for at least 100 meters before deepening enough to submerge more than thighs. The water was bathtub warm on the surface and a bit chilly near my toes. I lasted a good hour out there, watching couples and kids and a strangely high porpotion of older men in tiny bathing suits mill about in the water. Pruned and cold, I returned to Alex, who had been writing at probably the best pizza place in Naxos. Soon afterwards, we tired of the beach and went back to Panorama to change for afternoon adventures.

Refreshed we headed back down to the port to have a quick drink at a modern and way-too-hip-for-us bar (the fact that I used the word hip is a indicator of how out of place we were), but it was the middle of the day and we were the only customers. I had some fruity drink and Alex drank hard whiskey with a twist. Okay, he didn't but his iced tea looked like whiskey in the glass that it was served with, so we played it up for the camera. Our next stop was a little restaurant whose owner must have been cat-obsessed, given the huge number of cat paintings on the walls. Food was great, though, especially my Greek salad. Alex was confronted with shrimp eyeballs again and this time did not lick shrimp brains. 

We were leaving for Athens in the morning so Alex and I decided to head back to the hotel early to rest and pack. I started a new book while Alex headed to the terrace to write some more. Soon, he struck up a conversation with a woman staying in the room next door. They must have talked for two hours and I fell asleep reading. Alex woke me up by poking his head in the door to let me know he was going for wine with our neighbor. Another two hours passed and I awoke, suddenly really nervous that he was not home yet. I don't know why my brain takes me to the worst possible scenarios, but I was convinced that something bad was happening. Maybe Alex was drunk or in trouble or lost. It had been hours since we'd eaten so as I tried texting him, I also anxiety-ate the sesame candy we purchased the other day. Within 5 minutes, Alex texted back. He was fine, he said, but as an anxiety-prone mom, I felt compelled to speak with him. I had him call and then grilled him about the woman he was with, the amount of alcohol he consumed and when I wanted him home. Turns out our neighbor was a good 10 years older than Alex and had been discussing topics such as college and traveling in Europe. No excess drinking was happening. Anxiety was unwarranted. After he returned to the room, Alex and I had a talk about the need for me to let go more and trust him, the requirements I had to enable that to happen and the unfortunate fact that the sesame candy was all gone. It was a good lesson for me and a demonstration of Alex's emerging independence - a 19 year old exploring the world on his own terms.