For me, wellbeing can be as simple as taking the time to enjoy a bowl of thick, creamy Greek yoghurt that has been meticulously prepared. On a late September morning, I sit on my private terrace at Boheme Hotel in Mykonos, where breakfast is served overlooking the Aegean Sea. Coconut flakes doze next to garnet-like berries, each adorned with amber strands of local honey. To live well is not a concept found in spectacle, but in the seemingly mundane rituals of the morning. Living in presence, rather than performance.
On the flight here from London, as tray tables bounced and sandwiches were unwrapped, I overheard passengers reciting ambitious Greek itineraries of monuments, beaches and bars. But after a year sprinkled with endings, grief and uncertainty, I want something else. I long to witness the islands of Mykonos and Naxos as they truly are — not through the best restaurants or the most famous sights, but through the ordinary and the sensory, taking in the humanness of it all.
The evening drive from the airport reveals views of rocky landscapes and serene villages from the windows, before giving way to glimpses of Boheme, a mere 300 metres from Mykonos Town. Drawing up at the entrance is less an arrival, more a continuation, the property almost knitted into the land itself.
Not long after, sitting beneath the historic manor’s crisp white pillars, a glass of herbaceous lemonade in hand, I feel my breath sync with the sea sprawled before me. Boheme’s essence lies in its natural integration, which can be traced from the jaw-unclenching fragrances of oregano, mint and thyme that drift from the garden into dipping oils served with fresh bread at Bilo, the on-site restaurant that weaves Cycladic authenticity into every dish. In the heated plunge pool, I watch the sun’s last gasp turn the sky to ombre pink. Everything around me asks to be noticed. Even the service has a tenderness, each interaction akin to a nurturing act of care.
Later, I wander into town, the streets alive with an orchestra of accents melting into one another. Whitewashed buildings colliding with near-missed traffic. Crowds feverish for alleyway discoveries. Butterscotch ice-cream from Snow Gelato dripping down my arms as the reflection from the sea wallpapers the shop interior. It is the best possible expression of hectic. Life in motion. A living meditation on the pleasures of being present, because wellness doesn’t only exist in silence.
On a different note, NOMAD offers stripped-back luxury rooted in history and texture. It is Boheme’s sister property, located near Kalo Livadi Beach. A 300-year-old olive tree greets me for check-in. I ponder what the tree must have witnessed over its lifespan, the stories it knows. The lovers and explorers that have danced beneath its branches. Behind it hang silver tamata votive offerings, flickering in the sun. I write an intention on one — a small but ever-so meaningful thank-you to the land — and leave it to shine among those of other guests. During my stay, what lingers most is the sense of simplicity. My gaze fixates on marble from Tinos, antique cinema chairs and poolside bowls of mushroom ragout, everything interwoven with warm conversations with staff and locals about life on the island.
Then comes Naxos. The ferry port is predictable in its mayhem, but days of slowing down have prepared me for it. I surrender, trusting the sea to carry me onwards as islands dance in and out of view on the horizon. The Portara (Temple of Apollo) welcomes me to shore. The town hums with the promise of fertile ground ahead, cats snugly ensconced in its corners. Everything I observe on the land asks me to hold it close for a few moments, before something else takes my attention.
I make my way to the sustainability-centred Laguna Coast Resort, a member of SLH’s Considerate Collection. Located within a 480-acre wetlands regeneration project, stays here are nourished by the site’s pristine natural surroundings. I am exactly where I need to be — a place where wellness is focused on ecology instead of consumption and overtly clinical spas. Where flocks of endangered birds find sanctuary, while the ancient hills of nearby Stelida hold mysterious imprints of Palaeolithic people.
As luck would have it, the minute I relax — sitting on a cream bouclé sofa with a cushion embroidered by the owner’s grandmother — I notice the symptoms of a cold coming on. Without my usual supplements and tinctures to hand, I surrender again — this time to long naps overlooking those rolling hills, where our ancestors lived 200,000 years ago. To the medicine of the sun and skies. To truffle-doused fries, eaten whilst shins sink into a private pool. To dinner under freckles of stars, followed by the steam of a rainfall shower. The scents of The Naxos Apothecary’s olfactory creations filling the lobby are better than any cold and flu remedy.
My time exploring the Cyclades reminds me that wellness meets us everywhere. In life and subtle chaos. In rush and stillness. It is not always about adding more practices, tools and tonics, but rather subtracting some of the noise that makes us forget what it means to be human. When it is time to leave, it is the sheer beauty of the landscapes and culture of Mykonos and Naxos that I carry home with me. The sea. Oh, the sea… How delicious it is to simply notice. To feel alive.
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