12.21.19
Who doesn’t want to live on an island?
I mean, really, we’ve seen the movies and read the books, and aside from being on an island due to a SHIPWRECK, it all seems very idyllic, even romantic.
We have been on the (Greek) island of Naxos for just a few days and I am happy to report that it is idyllic and even romantic! This is one of the Cyclades Islands about four hours off the coast of mainland Greece and one I never heard of until just a few months ago. When you think about Greek islands, usually the ones that come to mind are Santorini, of the blue and white homes built into the cliffs, and Mykonos, known for wild nightlife and trendy atmosphere?? (They refused us admission…) This is the second island that we lived on during our Travel Younger journey, but not the only one I have considered moving to.
My first island experience was Hawaii, probably one of the first for many of you, where I visited in January 1979. Oahu is an island, but Honolulu was like any big city, only with beaches and palm trees nearby. It wasn’t until I went to the north shore that I sensed the allure of islands.
Over the next 30 years I went to Hawaii often and fell in love with Maui, which was a combination of civilization joined with island waters and beaches, peppered with extinct and dormant volcanos which only added to the mystique. I gave serious thought to moving there and even started a business there; I still own a timeshare north of Lahaina. I visited other Hawaiian Islands, but none compared to Maui.
Jamaica was cool, mon, and was my first taste of an island country, with its own language, currency, road rules plus it’s unique due to the reggae and cannabis heritage.
When Kathleen and I were “testing the water” about leaving the US, we went to one of the Balearic Islands called Menorca, off the coast of Spain, and loved the ten days we were there. I call it “the island that time forgot” since it seemed mired in the 1970s with no large hotels, timeshares or chain eateries. It is about 130 miles from the coast of Spain, just a one-hour flight, and is not as well-known as neighboring Majorca and Ibiza. These are the party islands, which is why we passed on them. One of the things that stuck in my mind was how crisp the air was out there! With few cars, little pollution and daily winds, the air was in constant and invigorating movement.
This was where we concluded that YES we could make the exit move and Kathleen still has a spiritual connection to Menorca. We will return.
When we planned our Greece trip we knew we had to hit one of the islands, and that is how we got to Naxos. By design. I spoke with the locals and asked what it’s like living there and NOW, in winter, it’s pretty quiet, with many restaurants closed for the season, along with other tourist attractions. Our room is very cheap due to being offseason, so that is the offsetting factor. Even so there are still great restaurants here along with this beautiful coffee shop where I sit right now.
Neither one of us is looking for a “second home” but still looking at places we’d like to visit for longer. Our plan was “six weeks at a time” and if we find a place we really like, we can make that three months at a time. It’s a balancing act between getting “rock fever” since we are 132 miles or so from Athens and having the privacy of a small community. I have no doubt that this place is nuts in summer, along with ANY OTHER island destination, but so was Newport Beach and Laguna Beach where I lived for decades.
Before we left California we met with a Spanish friend who used to live on Menorca and I expressed concern about being “too isolated” living on an island, thinking about the limitations of Hawaii, which is 3000 miles from anything. Not so in Menorca, Naxos or virtually ANY island in this part of the world since civilization is just a short distance away. From many of these islands you can fly or ferry to the mainland in 12 hours or less and from there the world is at your doorstep. With that said, an “Island Life” is a very real possibility.
What about you? Have you lived on a small island? Do you want to?
