Posted on Jun 23, 2013 in Mykonos | 0 comments

Psarou Beach, Mykonos, Greece

My friends asked me to sketch them a handsome man that they spotted. So I did. I need a bit more guts and practice to draw people on the fly anyway, and why would I object to practicing my male model drawing? He may well be one of those Greek gods I wanted to look for, although L., who is Italian, insisted that he was a Roman god. Plenty of Italians are here, and making a bella figura. On a colour note, I had to use my Aegean blue and turquoise felt pens to colour the sea, because I am basically out of blue in my watercolour kit, and there isn’t a proper art supply store here on Mykonos, I already asked around.

I am not usually a beach person, but willing to learn from my friend L. who is. I can easily handle beach time for several days in a row but I wear sun block, stay mostly in the shade or wear a long sleeve shirt. And the doing nothing aspect of beach time is something I need to practice more.

We tried out a different beach today in an attempt to get away from the wind: Psarou Beach. The wind blowing sand at us was still a bit much, but there was a simple snack bar at the back of the beach where I could sit with a glass of Retsina and had a perfect drawing surface and view.

Next to the simple beach we were on, are the high end beach restaurant Nammos and Psarou Beach Hotel which has cushy lounge beds you can rent for €30 a day, all the way into the water. Dignified-looking waiters were delivering champagne buckets, towels, trays of €15 frou-frou drinks and there was a sushi bar at the beach. They played music, fortunately relaxing light jazz, which drifted over to us. That turned into a more up-tempo but still pleasant lounge music in the early afternoon. At least the place was tasteful. We found out it’s a long weekend in Greece and a lot of people fly over to Mykonos from Athens. Giant yachts pulled up in this bay, unloading more revellers. These were mostly rich Greeks partying near us, with Italians being the next most represented group.

I have not noticed any signs of the tanking Greek economy here in this rich little enclave that is Mykonos.

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