A Greek odyssey, part 10

It's never nice being woken by thunder while on holiday, but into every trip a little rain must fall. Or in this case, a couple of pelting thunderstorms and a day of gusty winds. Thank goodness for the internet cafe and Greek daytime television from which I gathered that Kevin Costner is now a rock singer and ZZ Top are still alive, with upcoming dates in Athens.

The harbour town of Adamas is home to a mining museum which is worth a look. This is the island's main industry and the companies involved paid for the museum, but the museum doesn't shy away from the hard labour that was involved in the early days, when even women and children were employed in breaking rocks like a chain gang. A film clip showed interviews with retired workers, while their old tools were on display. A thorough series of maps and cases of rock samples showed what minerals were being mined and for which purpose (most of it obscure rare earth).
 
We also managed to while away some time in the local shops and bakeries, but that didn't take much time so we took the opportunity of driving over to Pollonia and checking ferry times for Kimolos as the weather was due to clear the next day.

In fact, the storms had moved on by late afternoon and we drove for a quick look at colourful Klima, a fishing village with boat houses carved into the steep cliffs below Plaka.
 
The road was a bit hair-raising and ended right on the slick concrete of the seafront. Time for another incredibly tight turn in order to escape after a couple of photos.

Up in Plaka, the island's capital, and the early evening light made for raking shadows and glowing stonework so lots of photos were to be had.


 
 

For a change to our usual taverna on the harbourfront, we stayed in Plaka and dined outdoors under the bougainvillea that graced the doorway of a small taverna called Arkountoula.

This was the best meal we've had in Greece to date. To start we had a selection of beets, hummus, goats cheese and grilled bread drizzled with oil and dusted with herbs. Lamb came served in a tomato sauce, while I had cubed pork and chunks of veg, brought out in the skillet it had all been fried in. Despite having no sauce it was tasty and tender. The whole meal was simple, but with local ingredients and extra touches in its presentation.

I have a suspicion 'the bill, please' actually means in Greece 'go stand in the kitchen and talk with the chef for fifteen minutes.' It's all part of the slower pace of life, I suppose, and the waitress made up for it by returning with a free plate of tart lemon yoghurt for dessert. This put paid to having an ice cream at the cafe around the corner. The bill, once it did arrive, came to only €32, quite the bargain for such delicious food in a wonderful setting.

Arkountoula: look for the sign!

Still plenty of time for wandering around Plaka by night with its maze of streets dotted with tavernas, cafes, even ritzy wine bars. A real change from the workaday port, that's for sure. In fact, it put me in mind of Venice, all stepped streets and lonely streetlamps punctuating the dark labyrinth of cobbled alleys. A lovely end to the day!