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Getting back to the urban jungle I realized what a great treasure is to be able to “escape”, to change the view in the morning and to feel the coziness and aroma of a different place. It always brings me back to Elif Shafak’s “Love” and a very, very favorite quote – “I hunt everywhere for a life worth living and a knowledge worth knowing. Having roots nowhere, I have everywhere to go.” I’ve been looking for balance all my life. Sometimes I want to dump everything, run away and surrender everything for my dream of discovering the unknown and sometimes I just want to create my own place where I would always come back to. Most importantly I discovered the person with whom to run, discover and return. Now I just dream as two…

But enough melancholy. I really miss Thasos, especially now that the streets in Sofia are wet and muddy and the island was so sunny and quiet. I spent an unforgettable week, maybe one of my favorite. In the morning the sunrise was waking me up from the window of the villa we were in and in the evening I was looking for the best view of the sunset behind the mountain. Thassos is so small but there is plenty to enjoy and charm! I will try to collect my thoughts and emotions in the next few lines that may be useful if you decide to visit the island.

Where to stay?

One of the things that impressed me the most was that the island was following the same architectural style for the hotels, villas and houses for accommodation. I have noticed this positive trend also in other places in Greece and this really gives a particular charm to the overall experience. We walked around the island twice and we didn’t see huge buildings and hotels like the “castles” on our Black Sea coast that foolishly harm the view, but that’s another topic.

We stayed at a sweet two-bedroom villa from the Thassian Villas complex in Limenas (or Thassos), the capital of the island, where ferries from mainland Greece leave. It can be reached by ferry from Keramoti (the price for one car is 16-20 euro and 3.50 euro per person in one direction). The villa is the best choice which you can make because you bring a bit of the comfort of your home to somewhere else, you have more space (as opposed to the hotels), own kitchen, pool (as in our case even personal) and it allows you to be with a larger company. We were lucky enough to find a very cool owners and a great Greek grandfather (who has learned English), who cared all the time everything to be perfect. He also helped with guiding us about cool places for pictures. Exactly this closeness and total immersion in the overall environment grabbed me from day one.

We chose Thassian Villas in Limenas because they were (1) quite close to the places we wanted to visit and especially to the beaches I had spotted. In my opinion this should be one of the top things when you choose a place to avoid going around the island every day. Also (2) I was impressed with the photos of the villas, rooms and in general what they offered in booking and on site they proved to be absolutely the same. Cozy, fresh and very clean. You know that the pictures are usually more dusty and totally change the image of the place. And last but not least – the view (3), our villa was number 6 and was on the hillside and offered a great view of the island’s citadel, as well as the harbor and the sea.

What to visit?

If you have 5-7 days available you can walk around the whole island and see everything you want. We didn’t stay much on the beach because the water was cold, but we had more time to walk around the island. I left with a very good impressions from the beaches (we saw almost all of them), but in my heart forever remains Karnagio – the most magical place where I dream of marrying someday! On one side is the beach which is full of white pebbles and on the other side is the restaurant/bar with sight to the rocks and looking up you will see a hill where a small church gives a unique charm of everything. I have never in my life found a place to impress me like this one. Here you eat with the sunset and the waves are your favorite song that never tires you to listen again and again…

Don’t miss to visit Panagia and to buy olive oil from the Sotirelis family (www.sotirelis.gr). The price is 25 euros for 5 liters (it’s the most profitable bargin) and I had read long before for its taste and the unique qualities, so it’s worth it. I got home about 20 liters of olive oil by order from friends and family. It’s just impossible to get back from Greece empty-handed. In addition it’s worth exploring Panagia which is the island’s old capital.

Aliki is the pearl of the crown of Thassos and it’s the most charming beach which is actually a peninsula and has something to see on both sides. It’s packed with many sweet tavernes where you can taste a delicious homemade moussaka (about 8 euros per portion), the water is turquoise and transparent, but I think it’s too small for a beach and in the summer it’s probably quite overcrowded. Now the beach is definitely worth it because it’s relatively lonely.

More interesting stories about the island and some secret places (known only to the locals) can be found on Nelly’s blog – www.poppygirl.life, which personally inspired me a lot to visit the island. She is there almost all the summer and has a lot of inspiration for sharing.

What to eat and drink?

The food is freshly prepared and very delicious and in all the places we visited the menu was also translated in English, which is very convenient, because in Italy we had a problem precisely because we didn’t understand anything and even the waiters didn’t speak English.

I don’t know if I imagine, but the food is a lot better and tasty when I’m out on vacation. Whether because of the change of climate, the nice view that comes as a bonus when you eat, but even the things we prepared in our villa were more delicious. There was a large and comfortable supermarket next to us where every morning we bought freshly baked bread (I hadn’t eaten bread all summer, it was forgiven to me) who went madly with the Greek cheese and olives. When you are in Panagia you must buy also the island’s typical olives from the Sotirelis family. They are black (because they are picked in December), naturally dried with salt, they look like raisins, their price is 2.50 euros for 500g. and are terribly delicious.

If you enjoy something sweet the Karnagio bar offers great American pancakes with chocolate, nuts and fruits, but with a special bonus – a killer view. Some interesting coffee drinks or simply a classic cappuccino can be found at A for art – a very interesting and different place on the island.

In many places along the way you will notice small merchants who offer honey and wine that are grown and prepared especially on the island, it is definitely worth stopping and trying.

What to take with you?

This time I can boast you that I was wearing all the clothes I had taken with me. I carefully prepared my luggage so that I don’t carry any extras, I had decided beforehand for each day what I would wear, how I would combine it and get exactly what I expected. I will admit that I have chosen the colors of my clothes in relation to the place and the pictures we thought we were going to do and that was how it worked very well.

I recommend you also to take a small bag with drugs (only the most important and necessary things) because frankly I haven’t seen a pharmacy on the island. I didn’t look in particular for it, I’m sure there is a pharmacy, but it’s better to have something quick on hand.

Take a pack of coffee with you, not only for frappe and cappuccino but mainly for overcoming the problem with the wasps. They are very insolent and whenever you decide to eat something outdoors they will bother you. Don’t think they are aggressive or something like that, it’s just a little uncomfortable and the locals have solved their problem by lighting a little coffee in a bowl and the smoke quickly repels them. Every restaurant brings you a “similar cure” when you order a meal.

There are many interesting things to see on the island. I’m sure everyone will find something favorite to carry with them at home. Even if you are not impressed so much with the beaches, there are infinitely rich green forests, narrow streets, small towns, white marble rocks and many other things. I recommend you to just start a trip with a car and take a walk along the island’s coast (it takes about an hour or two with the breaks for pictures), you can stop at different places on the road where the view is great and you can see the island from the most beautiful different angles. We managed to see it even from the sky…

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*Тhank you to Renault for the opportunity to enjoy this journey with Renault Megane. 

Watch – Mockberg

Dress with flowers – SheIn

Black boots – Ingiliz

T-shirt #MommyHilfiger – Thesuckerpopshop

Swimwear (black and white) – Sun Diva

Striped shirt – ZARA