Just ran across the video for the second time. and felt compelled to share.  Enjoy!

Until I became an expat or global nomad, whatever I am, I had no idea that a simple and ordinary matter such as getting your haircut would vary so much from culture to culture.

For instance in Prague where I am currently living there are no local barbershops; the Czechs either have it done at home or go to a beauty salon.  In recent times there are high end salons that cater to men only.  I find that the only way to get an economical and decent haircut is to find an older woman at a local salon, younger women just do not have enough experience with men . . . cutting their hair that is.

Sorry Greeks, but the best hair cut and barber experience I ever had was in Istanbul.  There it is common to recognize the barbershops by the towels hanging outside to dry.  In this case the shop near where we were staying looked clean and neat.  I got a perfect cut, a beard trim with hot towels and my ear hairs singed for something like $10.  The barber didn't speak English but a fellow customer did so we had a great time.

Among the worst haircuts was during the process of finding a barber on Paros.  In Naoussa there was an old Greek who looked like a German and insisted on cutting my hair the way he wanted not they way I wanted.  In Parikia the guy on Market street obviously did not want to serve me, saying the shop was full when no one else was there.  Finally a friend directed me to a little shop on a back alley with no sign and often as not a locked door.  To get a haircut you knocked at the barber's house door across the street and if his wife was there to hear you he came out and opened the shop.  You see, he was deaf and mute.  It only took two cuts for him to learn how I liked it.

Which brings us to the impetus to write this post.  On Facebook I discovered a bunch of old photos of Paros that included one of my barber.  The photo may be old but he and the shop look the same as when I was there.
                                                  

Golden Beach in September

Through my own experience and what I have read from other commentators September is the best combination of sunny weather without high winds, warm sea water, low crowds and open facilities. So don't wait any longer; come to Greece now!

If you are not the spontaneous type now is also a good time to plan for 2015.  Most accommodation providers had a good year in 2014 and are now taking bookings for next year.  So popular places and dates will go early.  See our private villa collection for one, two, three, or four bedroom villas

The big event in my personal Paros life is our painting workshop in June 2015.  Any and all painters are welcome for a first class experience with instructor Crystal Beshara

Finally, yoga workshops on Greek islands are becoming more and more popular.  Now is the time to talk to your yoga instructor about escorting a group to Greece.  We make all the arrangements; they do all the yoga.

This family run museum is a "must see" for Paros.  Perfect for a half-day break from the beach.  More at Folkloric Museum of the Cyclades   It is located in the delightful village of Aliki

Kolimbithres in April

Spring on Paros was early this year with plentiful flowers blooming by the field full.  Now Easter Week is well underway kicking off the tourist season.  Of course the weather is mostly warm and sunny (61F/17C) except for a few showers today and tomorrow.

Unless you are already on Paros or on the way there it is too late to enjoy the authentic Greek experiences of Easter for this year.  So I would like to whet your appetite for next year.  Easter in Greece is like no other country. It is the major holiday of the year. While based on the religious calendar it is centered around food and drink.  Read my 2014 article on Opinions Post.

If you want more, here is our account from 2006.  Or search this blog for several other posts on the holiday and the season.  If you would like a personalized package of accommodation, event guide and lamb barbecue with a local Greek family, contact me.

P.S.  I have often preached that it is a crime against humanity to visit Greece without seeing the Parthenon.  For those who have not yet made the trip here is unique interactive helicopter tour:  http://greece.greekreporter.com/2013/11/18/the-parthenon-like-you-ve-never-seen-it-before/

For those who would like to know more about all the major antiquity sites of ancient Greece tour my web site www.Visit-Ancient-Greece.com

Cheers

Another year, another January:  Now is the time to plan your summer vacation/holiday while the best choices are available.

But how do you chose the best accommodation for yourself, your partner, your family, your group? Here are a few tips and guidelines.

The main advantage of hiring a villa is that for families and groups you get more space and lower cost per person.  A large, well furnished house for six persons will nearly always cost less than a full service hotel per week.  Of course, it depends upon your travel style whether you want or need the maid service and front desk that a hotel provides.

For any other place in the world one of the better internet sites is VillaRenters.

PAROS: CALLING ALL VOLUNTEERS...
can you spare just a couple of hours once per month?

We need 31 volunteers - one for each day of the month - to help with the dog walking at the shelter. If you can spare a couple of hours a month (and of course you can offer to do more than this if you'd like to), please add your name to the schedule here.
http://www.facebook.com/groups/Paroslife/doc/501070253262290/  

Cape Fanos

I recently discovered that I have not written a blog post about Paros walking, hiking, trekking  including running or bicycling.  I am guessing this is because I know of only one marked or designated trail, the Byzantine between Lefkas and Podromos.  Yet there are countless places to move around the island without being propelled by a motor.

Last month I received this query: "Please could you give me some self-guided walks (easy) from Parikia, which are interesting, reasonably short – under 3 hours."
Here is my response:

                        2)  From Livadia beach take the back roads to Kolimbithres and climb up to the Mycenaean ruins.

Benefits of climbing a hill

                        4)  Take the bus to Lefkes and walk the Byzantine trail to Pondromous and catch another bus back from there.  Be sure and check the return bus schedules before hand, in June they stop early.  Hitching a ride is not as common as it was just a few years ago but is still done.

Use private gates on public paths

They Draw and Travel

Here is a fun, if inaccurate, map of Paros.  If you had to convey your vision of Paros in a creative way, how would you do it?

I will publish all submissions!

Cheers,

I am always intrigued by connections--some call them coincidences--that demonstrate the small world that we live in on this vast globe.  In this blog we have conveyed some of the many we have seen over the years.  Here is the latest.

In September I acquired an excellent web site:  www.Visit-Ancient-Greece.com   This has not been publicized or promoted because I am having some programming problems with it.  Then today I discovered my home city of Portland, Oregon, USA is hosting a major exhibition called "The Body Beautiful in Ancient Greece".

This year everyone I know that is connected with Paros are re-doubling their efforts to attract visitors. Friends are posting more photos to Facebook, those who came earlier in the season are writing about the complete lack of difficulty during their visit and everyone is holding the line on price increases. 

One villa owner has started a campaign for fellow owners to offer their villas at cost to acquaintances in the off season. See  Paros, Still a Greek Paradise

Others who I don't know are helping Greece on the grander scale. Former President Bill Clinton recently visited Athens to speak to a group of prominent Greek-Americans who are establishing a fund to promote foreign investments in Greece.

Truly, Paros has something for everyone.

Be the first to own the MP3 download or the recorded CD!  Newly available by the Amazon links below is the music that Cappella Romana recorded in the church at Aspro Chorio and the Church of 100 Doors(Ekatontapyliani).  The accompanying book includes photos of the group on Paros and Patmos.  Read more about their appearances on Paros Magical Music & Oregon to Paros Link Revisited
U.K. Amazon:    CD                                 MP3
                          

U.S.A. Amazon:
                     CD                                   MP3
                          

I have written many times about the benefits of eating locally produced food and the generosity of our Greek neighbors in sharing their excess.  Now in the spirit of the difficult times in Greece and Paros many farmers are increasing their plantings and herds and making their home grown products more widely available.

This is from Paros Web:  (There are more photos there.)

“Matheo & Maria are local Parian farmers cultivating on their own grounds at the seaside area of Piso Aliki. They produce various vegetables & fruits, some of which are available for sale according to the season. Matheo & Maria run their own farm for their family's needs, and they don't use any kind of chemicals on any of their products.

At Matheo & Maria's farm you can buy pure Greek Olive Oil pesticide-free all year round – now offered at reduced price. Also available for sale – Fresh Potatoes (available most of the year, according to the season.)”

The first photo is some of their tomatoes and peppers photographed by Karin on our veranda.  The second photo, also by Karin, could be taken every spring as we watch the lambs play and grow until most of them disappear just before Easter.

If you would like to rent a bucolic villa in Aliki that includes olive oil and other products from the surrounding fields, please email me with your preferred month and number of people in your party.

More at Olive Oil & Mushrooms -- Eat local

deTraci Regula just published a report on a trial program on Crete in which travelers will spend three days with a Knossos curator learning about the ongoing activities there.  It includes access to many areas not seen by the ordinary visitor including Villa Ariadne where Sir Arthur Evans lived while excavating Knossos.  See the detailed schedule and low cost in her post.
Of course this gives me the idea of doing something similar on Paros.  Along with the ongoing work at Despotiko which produces new discoveries every year there are several other active excavations on Paros that would produce more finds if they had more funding.  So, if you might be interested in spending one or more days up close and personal with an archeological dig on Paros, let me know.  If there is enough interest I will contact the various authorities to make it happen.
Painting of Blue Ladies at Knossos is by Victoria Papale who is conducting a workshop on Paros this year.
Feb 2012 Update:  More Archelogical Digging

Most of us, I am sure,do not think of choral singers as being professional.  They may be very talented but how would they earn a living in that musical genre’?

Well, Oregon Music News has provided us with an insight to the life of one such person, Stephanie Kramer.  She is a member of a great many groups including Cappella Romana which performed to great acclaim here on Paros this last September.  Stephanie is second from right in the photo.

Here is one quote from the article:

“And of course it’s always frustrating when you have to stop in the middle of a great take because of a motorcycle going by or a rooster crowing.

A rooster crowing?

Kramer: That happened on the Greece tour. We were recording in a lovely little country church on the island of Paros, and a rooster crowed during one of our takes. We all burst out laughing.”

Read the complete interview at Stephanie Kramer tells about life as a professional choral singer

By the way she states she has recorded in over 60 CD’s!

From deTraci Regula of About Greece Travel:

“While financial support for Christmas cheer is nearly absent at the national level, the municipalities are stepping up to fill in the gaps. Athens has a rich slate of Christmas activities, many of them staffed by volunteers. Many decorations will be provided by schoolchildren and art students; empty shop windows near Syntagma Square will be filled with Christmas displays. It should be a bright holiday season in Greece. If you've been deriding the "commercialism" of Christmas elsewhere, maybe a visit to Athens this year will be just the antidote.”

And even more so on Paros!  Yes, I am confident the Greek people and especially the islanders will overcome the difficulties and economic depression to still celebrate Christmas in style as they do all other holidays.

Read about our past Christmases on Paros and in Athens.

Great minds think alike.  In June 2010 we hosted a Study Abroad program from Lake Erie College in Ohio, USA.  For 2012 the University of Arizona has announced a program on Paros that appears to have many of the same elements.
After all Paros is perfect for combining study, reflection and fun.  The Arizona description includes “exploring the connectivity between periods, cultures and disciplines” when specifically listing the university departments of anthropology, architecture, art, classics, communication, economics, engineering, geology and history.
The Arizona in the Aegean program is led by Dr. Eleni Hasaki, Associate Professor of Anthropology and Associate Professor of Classical Archaeology.
Here is a video of the Lake Erie Students on Paros
Paros Hospitality continues to offer hosting and logistics to colleges and universities for whatever academic program they design.  More at Paros Learning, Reflection and Fun