Andros - The Magical Island

We arrived at the sleepy port town of Gavrio after a long ferry ride with multiple stops from Naxos. We had a wait of about forty-five minutes for one of our hosts to arrive so we had coffee, checked out the waterfront and did a little provisioning at the local supermarket. 

Our host picked us up in his pickup truck at the port entrance and drove us up into the hills about twenty minutes away to our home for the next five nights, the magical "Kalliberry" 

This magical spot is somewhat isolated and we thought it was absolutely beautiful. It is a restored old house built on a hillside property with a view down the valley out to the sea and beyond. 

Our hosts, a trio of lovely people live in the main unit below which was our unit and above which was another rental cottage occupied by a German family while we were there. 

Our unit was a two bedroom cottage built into the hillside with a small private pool and a patio with a view only excelled by the view from our hosts' patio above us!

The property is also home to the wonderful dog "Bobbi" as well as around a half dozen cats who are happy to be fed (and then hang out) but otherwise keep their distance. 

Down below in the valley are goats and sheep that hide in the shade or bushes or abandoned buildings during the heat of the day and then come out in the early evening later calling to each other as the sun sets and they prepare to bed down for the night. 

While our sunsets in Santorini had been subpar it was all made up for in Andros and we relished each evening's sunset with the views over the sea to the nearby island of Euboea. 

Even in remote Greece the future has arrived and Euboea is covered in modern electricity generating windmills that pulse a red light at night. In the darkness of night we could gaze up at thousands of stars and then look to Euboea to see it light up in little red blips every few seconds. 

During the day we could watch the cargo ships go by as the straight between Andros and Euboea is a busy one leading to the mainland port of Rafina. 

Really quite a magical place and our favourite of all the places we stayed in Greece. The bed may have been better in Naxos and Athens but the evenings spent relaxing watching the sunset with a cold beverage in hand were simply perfect.

While we had a long stay in Andros of five nights, this portion of the trip was about not having to do much after the previous relatively active days. We rented a car from one of the hosts (an old but sporty convertible) so we could get to Gavrio for provisioning but our touring was much more limited. 

The first night we drove into Gavrio and back and had a decent, if unremarkable, fish dinner at one of the port restaurants. 

The next morning we opted for a mini-adventure which entailed a visit to the neighbouring village of Chartes as there was a boutique honey maker there. 

While the village was only 1.5km from us as the crow flies it was a twenty minute drive along a mostly dirt road to get there as Chartes was in the next valley over so one has to drive out of our valley and into the neighbouring one.

So we bumped our way down the dirt road into the valley passing the occasional farmhouse (some abandoned) and wondering with each passing meter if we were on a wild goose chase! Finally we arrived at a modern gate with a button to open and a paved road beyond that went less than 50m before stopping at the Three Bees honey factory.

When I say factory, that is a bit of a stretch. The place was started by the pappou some years ago and now the kids run it. 

When we were there one of the brothers, his wife and their two sons were at the house having only arrived a few days earlier from the mainland. 

How fortunate our timing was! After locating the key, we were let into the "factory" which was a large basement room with several high grade industrial steel drums and other gear. 

It was clear EU money had been spent (including what appeared to be a wheel chair lift to the upper floors) but that the owners were very proud of their product and so they should be given that it was excellent. 

We purchased a few small jars (gifts and snacks which we put in the car) and had cold water and sweets with the owners before embarking on a local hike. Sadly while we found the trail marker we soon got off the trail and found ourself at an abandoned house with a goat or two on it. 

We passed by and noticed that the basement was packed full of silent sheep. When decided to turn back at this point and as we passed the house again the sheep suddenly decided to make a run for it! 

They came out of holes in the walls one at a time, leaping in front of us and scampering off! It was awesome!

We made it back to the honey factory after about half an hour (of a proposed hour and change loop) and decided to head back to our little slice of heaven for the rest of the day.

After relaxing by the pool, hanging out with Bobbi for a bit, watching a little TV and then watching the sun set, we hopped in the car to head out to the closest restaurant to our spot, a farm restaurant called "O Kosses" that was only open on the weekends. 

It was about a fifteen minute drive from our spot (Gavrio being almost a half hour) and was booming when we arrived in the darkness. 

I'm pretty sure we were the only tourists there. The menu as simple BBQ food with salad nowhere to be seen. We had wonderful BBQ lamb and chicken plus the usual Greek sides. 

Very reasonably priced and home cooked goodness. A few beverages were purchased to go as we were running low back at the spot. Then with full bellies it was back to Kalliberry for a nightcap and stargazing before bed.

We opted for a more aggressive tour the next day with a trip to the Monastery of Zoodochou Pigi and then planned further wanderings. We arrived at the Monastery around 11AM and were greeted by one of the few nuns left. 

She gave us a tour and explained that while it was the oldest monastery it was now a nunnery and that from around forty nuns years ago (she was not specific) it now had only a handful (I believe she said three). 

We toured the old chapel, lit a candle, chatted a bit, had some water and sweets and purchased some goodies for later. On the way out we passed a ruined building that the goats had taken over. Andros has its rural charms.

Then it was off to the sleepy port village of Batsi where an aggressive saleslady tried to sell Lisa jewelry (it was funny to watch as Lisa won't spend a dime on such). 

We relaxed for a bit, checked the place out, grabbed a sandwich and hopped back in the car to head back to Kalliberry, having decided we really just wanted to chill. 

On the walk about, Christos had noticed a fish store selling fresh fish which gave him an idea for later. 

We made it back to our place and relaxed for a bit before heading out to Gavrio to check out another portside restaurant for dinner. Christos noted that the German guests were using the on-site charcoal grill. 

As with prior evening drives it was a lovely affair with the view from the hills over the sea and the magnificent sunset the mediterranean can give. We passed the occasional goat and sheep (as we usually did on Andros drives) before arriving at Gavrio to do a little shopping at the supermarket and grab dinner. 

Dinner was good but a little odd in that we had barbounias again and it seemed they were from two different catches as two of the four were quite yummy and two were not. Ah well, the tourist gets the old fish I guess. 

The next day it was off for a drive to Zorkos beach and a hike to the nearby (supposed pirate) caves. Zorkos is past Kalliberry when driving from Gouvia and is really quite an isolated locale. 

A good portion of the drive is on a rough dirt road and you start to wonder if you are really going to a beach when after a turn you see a paved road with access to a resort and to the beach below. 

The resort was pretty much empty when we were there and intriguing as it was quite isolated even for Andros.

The only other establishment within half an hour drive was the restaurant/bar on the beach below the resort (although I think the resort also had its own restaurant as the beach one was pretty meagre). 

The road descends down to the beach from the hills but one stops by the side of the road at the resort entrance to get immediate access to the trail that leads to what we call the "(Pirate) Cave of Zorkos". 

We stopped the car by the trailhead and started the hike noting that there were two ladies ahead of us on the hike and they did not seem well prepared (bandana as a last minute hat etc). 

The hike took about 1/2 an hour through wonderful terrain and with great view out over the sea. 

Eventually we caught up with the two ladies who seemed a bit perplexed about where to go. 

Christos had researched the cave on the web and after a quick scout around proclaimed that we were indeed at the cave and what looked like an intimidating cave entrance was in fact the entrance we were seeking!

The two ladies, who happened to be from Ottawa of all places, bailed on descending into the cave as a ladder that should have been there was missing and left after a couple of minutes. 

Christos decided to lower himself down and scout about. The cave was not very large with a passage of less than 25m leading to a cavern with three galleries looking out over the sea (which was a good way down from cave itself. A wonderful view and peaceful magical place.

After exploring the cave for a couple of minutes he returned to find Lisa waiting at the edge for help down; there was no way she was missing the cave if Christos got to see it. 

Some spots in the rock made footholds possible and so Lisa descended and wee both got to experience the joy that was this cool spot.

After hanging out taking cool photos for a bit it we climbed back out of the cave, hiked back to the car and drove down to the beach itself which had a few patrons but by no means was busy. 

We grabbed a horiatiki salad and cold beverages under the shade of the restuarant patio while looking out at the blue sea and sky. How perfect! 

The only issue was the wine which was of the poorest quality to date on our trip; Lisa could only have a sip before passing on it! Of course the cold beer was just fine.

After snacking up it was time for a dip in the mediterranean; our only one of the entire trip! We spent a good fifteen minutes in the lovely salt water, bobbing about and swimming to and fro. It was a welcome break from the heat! 

After drying off in the sun for a bit and changing back into dry clothes, we hopped in the car for the drive back to Kalliberry and an afternoon of relaxation. 

Christos conferred with our hosts about the best source of fresh fish and he was told it was fishermen of course (duh!) and that one could find them at Gavrio around 10AM and that using the charcoal grill was no problem. 

Plans were laid for fresh fish.

That night we returned to O Kosses but as it was Sunday, things were much slower and several menu items such as the lamb and goat were done. So we opted for the sausage which was lovely. 

The next day we hopped in the car for the trip to Gavrio and purchased two lovely fish for less than the price of lunch at any restaurant. 

We chatted for some time with a friendly fisherman as he prepped the fish for us and his comrades remained on the boat cleaning the nets. 

We packed the fish in ice and headed back to Kalliberry, being back well before noon, for an afternoon of relaxation.

That night, our hosts used one side of the grill to cook and they cooked up a storm of lamb, sausage and chicken (which we got to sample) while we used the other to cook fish and zuchhini from our hosts' garden. 

It was a wonderful farewell to the islands dinner. We cherished our final sunset on Andros and both agreed that we could have stayed for another island or two but that we were ready to think about heading home. 

The next morning our hosts gave us a lift to Gavrio where we bought some last minute souvenirs and then hopped on the ferry for the hour and a bit voyage to the mainland port of Rafina, about a forty-five minute drive from the heart of Athens.