Like a prisoner let out on compassionate leave for a week, I practically cried with joy when I stepped out of Eleftheriou Venizelou airport and saw the sun, blue sky and a felt a warm breeze on my cheek. (I live in London.) Athens in the spring has a unique smell of orange blossom, wisteria, … Read More
No excuse now not to join the cognoscenti and hipsters who have been enjoying their private Koufonisia for years, and basking in its inacccessibility. We are very glad to see that next summer, from 17th June to the 15th September, there will be a fast Superjet boat everyday, from Mykonos to Koufonisi (except Sunday), from … Read More
We now know that it is a myth that Eskimos have 25 words for snow, but it is true that Greeks have about 25 words for noisy fun/merrymaking/fuss/chaos/milling about and general liveliness. Fassaria is one of these words with connotations of annoyance. Vavoura is one that indicates lots of noisy people having a good time. … Read More
Whoever as a child read Mary Renault’s fabulous historical books “The King must die” and “The Bull from the Sea”, about Theseus, the gallant young Athenian bull-leapers, King Minos, poor mad Ariadne, and tragic Hippolytus, set in Minoan Crete, will love the fact that Red Bull are doing their leaping on Santorini this year, with the … Read More
One of our most successful holidays this summer has been a package of boat and villa. Whether you are an adventurous, adrenaline-seeking couple who can’t decide between a hidden retreat on a remote bay, and a sleek and adrenaline fueled racing toy like a Riva, you can take both, and alternate the atmosphere of an authentic, not … Read More
I can’t help it – I just love Flying Dolphins, those long tubular hydrofoils that skitter from island to island delivering packages, passengers and news and are a real life-line for the remoter islands. Patmos now has two, one from Samos and one from Kos, both islands with international airports, so Patmos is much easier … Read More
Time to leave England and the wettest drought on record, the patter of rain, the sliding on mud and squelching through puddles, the over-flowing gutters and leaking roofs, the turning on all the lights at midday, gas company correspondence and the Leveson enquiry. It is time to go Island Hopping. Time to dry off, lighten up, blink in … Read More
I was asked today by the highly intellectual and charming Serge Dive who runs the Pure Life Travel fair what tour or package or part of our activity was the one that offered our clients the purest essence of Greece. I thought for a minute and then said “We don’t offer any at all. Greece can’t … Read More
Kudos to Hollywood’s best travel insider, Gordon MacGeachy for getting an excellent article about us for his website Global Black Book, out of a bollocking I gave him for illicit use of photographs! Masterclass in honest journalism, which is what one would expect from a class act like Gordon. “Think you know Greece…? No you … Read More
Happy New Year everyone. Are you looking for a fresh start to 2012? Want a resolution that just feels right and ahead of the game? The top article in the New York Times yesterday is onto something that we Greek Islanders have known for ages, namely that a week with no telecommunications is one of … Read More
“You are probably like me and know something or nothing about Greece” is how Joanna Lumley’s new TV series kicks off – so true, yes, but which is it Joanna? Something or nothing? After that though, it got going and was tremendous fun. I never knew that there is a village in Evia where there are still 40 old villagers … Read More
