On Wednesday, after a morning ferry ride, we arrived at Parikia, the capital of the island of Paros, where we caught a shuttle bus to our accommodation and checked in. We had the afternoon free to ourselves, so a few of us too a walk down to the beach, and spent the afternoon in the sun and in the sea.

That evening we met up with the rest of the tour group and had a walking sightseeing tour of Parikia and got to see the old town, the seafront, an amazing sunset as well as the 4th-century Panagia Ekatontapyliani church (Our Lady of a Hundred Doors), which is the oldest remaining Byzantine church in Greece. According to legend, 99 doors have been found in the church and the 100th will be discovered only after Constantinople is Greek again.

For dinner, we went to the recommended 'Aeoli' restaurant on the seafront, where I had moussaka - another Greek speciality. After dinner, we all made our way to Envy Cafe, also on the seafront, and with comfy couches and chilled atmosphere, made for the perfect atmosphere to try a good selection of local cocktails.

Yesterday was one of the highlights of Paros - an all day boozy boat cruise around the islands of Paros and it's neighbour Antiparos. We stopped off various intervals along the time, allowing everyone to jump in and swim in the most spectacular swimming spots you can imagine. For lunch, we stopped off on an island and had char grilled octopus washed down with Ouzo, as well some souvlaki, tzatziki and Greek salad. After lunch, back on the boat, some more swimming stops and finally back to Paros.

Last night's dinner was at a fantastic restaurant on the beach (literally on the sand on the beach) and under the palm trees, with fantastic views of the sun setting behind Parikia port. After dinner, we met the rest of the group on the other beach, had a few beers, and then headed over to the Dubliner for the rest of the night.

After a good two sun-filled days in Paros, the next stop from here is Santorini which is apparently meant to be the most picturesque (and favourite) of the people I've spoken to who have previously done this year. Looking forward to it already...