There’s always been a debate among northern Greeks as to which peninsula is prettier, which has the best beaches, etc. Much like all of Greece, all of Halkidiki is pretty and there is something for everybody. What you will definitely see are some of Greece’s most beautiful beaches and that’s our first stop, Vourvourou beach.

This beach is rather shallow (lots of room for kids to safely swim) before the waters open up and deepen. The approach to this beach is surprising as it’s hidden in winding dirt roads, coniferous trees and lots of park cars. You finally descend a small slope and you arrive at this striking beach with many other beach goers but there’s plenty of space to lay with some privacy or set your belongings under the shade of a tree and simply descend down to the waters.

Vourvourou does not have any restaurants or tavernas but many snack shacks offering refreshments, beer, coffee, sandwiches. If fast isn’t your cup o’ tea you can always pack a cooler and go picnic mode. We did neither and after our swim we hopped back in our car and traveled further south for another swim just 20 minutes south in Sarti.

The beach of Sarti is more organized with many tavernas, restaurants along the beach with a promenade built for those wishing to take a walk seaside with a gorgeous view of Mount Athos across the body of water separating the two peninsulas. The water here deepens after about 10 metres, there’s more waves/tide pull so extra care should be exercised when traveling with children.

Sarti’s waters are gorgeous and worth a trip just to swim with beautiful Mount Athos as the backdrop. Keep in mind that Sithonia has lots of beaches that dot the coastline and if your grow restless, hop in the car and try out another beach nearby! We decided to stay as a whole day’s worth of swimming works-up an appetite.

One of the best eating experiences in Greece is to eat fish & seafood by the sea -  it’s one of my favourite experiences and one I never grow weary of. We settled in at a taverna called “Noah’s Ark”. If the kitschy name is not to your liking, Sarti boasts of several fish/seafood tavernas that hug along the bay.

Wonderful country-style bread arrived at our table and I ordered a 50ml bottle of the local tsipouro with anise.

We held off on ordering the Horiatiki and opted for the no Feta salad of tomato, cucumbers, sweet onions, olive oil and some pickled hot peppers in the mix.

After seeing the fried calamari arrive at the neighboring table we made an order for ourselves.

Grilled fresh sardines are de rigeur in Greece…high in omega 3′s, always fresh and absolutely delicious!

Grilled peel and eat shrimp..sweet and finished with extra-virgin olive oil and lemon juice.

How can I resist grilled octopus? This one was a little different with a balsamic dressing but it was delish!

House cut fried potatoes, fried in olive oil. Have you had olive oil fried French Fries?

Finally, a local specialty of Thessaloniki and Halkdiki..Mussels Saganaki. This one was a tomato-based sauce with crumbled Feta and some hot peppers spiked in for a touch of heat.

Other points of interest in Sithonia:

* Halkidki produces the most honey in Greece and it’s very good honey. You will see lots of honey stands along the roads, try some and buy a jar or two.

* The local wine is very good (both red and white), namely the nearby Porto Carras winery

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© 2012, Peter Minakis. All rights reserved. If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://kalofagas.ca then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at truenorth67 AT gmail DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author.

The post Sithonia, You Have to Visit Here appeared first on Kalofagas - Greek Food & Beyond.

Porto Katsiki

I have a glut of travel posts in queue, places in Greece I’ve visited but I’ve yet to post about my experiences staying in these places. Some are islands others are mainland. Regardless, they should be shared and I think these posts will be useful for those going to Greece or thinking of going to Greece. Greece more than ever needs tourists this year and I hope that you’ll go to Greece this year and see and feel and eat what I do each and every time I go.

facing mainland Greece

First stop is Lefkada, called an island in the Ionian chain but its really a peninsula joined to the coast of Akarnania by an isthmus with salty shallow marshes on both sides. Once on Lefkada you’ll reach the main town of Lefkas and the string of towns that face the Akarnania mainland are where most of the islands rooms are located. The beaches are okay on this side of the island but Lefkada’s reputation for gorgeous beaches is given due to the beauty of its beaches on the Ionian side, facing Italy.

Syvota Bay

The center of the island is mountainous with most of the good roads circling/hugging the shores. I stayed in Nikiana, about 11 km south of Lefkas and just kilometres north of Nidri…famous for being patronized by Ari Onassis and family who’s island Scorpios can be seen from shore. The first decent beach is located at the south end of the island in an inlet called Mikros Gialos. Pretty by most people’s standards and perhaps a nice little beach to prepare for the beauty that lies ahead.

The protected bay of Syvota is just southwest and although not really for swimming, this fishing and sailing village is very picturesque, ideal for people/boat watching and there are some great tavernas serving traditional Greek fare. Further west along the island’s southside is the small port village of Vassiliki. Here you will see lots more boats, yachts, sailboats and small touring boats that take many a tourist to the popular beaches of Egremni and Porto Katsiki.

Porto Katsiki

The most well-known beach of Lefkada is also on the Ionian side, south of Egremni and accessible by boat or automobile. If you have access to a speed boat, you have access to all of Leflkada’s beaches including some secluded ones where you may enjoy such beauty all on your own. Porto Katsiki is also served by tour boats but beware….none them will land on shore and you may be lucky to jump of the boat for a dive or two into these crystal waters much like Egremni’s. The good is news is that Porto Katsiki is also accessible by road but the parking lot fills up very quickly and you be disappointed that you’re traveled all this way just to find yourself looking for a parking spot. I went to Porto Katsiki at 9:30am and found parking.

Porto Katsiki

The other down side is that you have to walk down some 100 steps to the beach from the parking lot and you better take snacks/water with you. One of the cafes above hands out flyers/menus for those on the beach that would like delivery. There are cell numbers given on the flyers for those wishing to make an order but don’t bother. Just wave down the delivery guy and you’ll eventually be served. Porto Katsiki is breathtaking, again sandy beached and steep cliffs with warm crystal water but…it’s very crowded. A victim of it’s own beauty, the beach is overcrowded and I found difficulty in walking into the water as people were laying everywhere! I was disappointed with the overcrowding of this beach but it is breathtaking and worth the visit and the fabulous photos you’ll take at another one of Greece’s most beautiful beaches.

Egremni

Egremni can be reached only by boat with the trip taking just over an hour. Long sandy shore backed up by steep white cliffs, this crystal clear beach is one of Greece’s prettiest. Your time on this beach is linited as the captain of the boat stays there with a fixed return and in fact, you may have to leave early if he feels rough waters may be in store for later in the day. Egremni is a must-see if you’re visiting Lefkada.

Further north but easier to get to from Lefkas are the beaches of Agios Nikitas, Kathisma and Kalamitsi. Agios Nikitas is a good, clean beach with tavernas nearby. The next beach further south is Kathisma – a long stretch of beach more geared for the younger crowd with the beach cafes pumping loud music and turning into bars/clubs at night. I enjoyed this beach alot as it was a windy day and we had huge waves that were popular with kids and adults alike. Yet further down is a quiet beach called Kalamitsi – beautiful looking from the roadside and popular with naturalists (nudists) and campers. I ended up staying at this beach for an hour and left as everywhere I stepped there were big rocks.

Kalamitsi

Lefkada is about 4 hours drive from Athens and about the same drive from Thessaloniki. It’s a very popular “island’ as one may simply drive to it (avoiding ferry boat).There are a lot of Italians on the island and Greeks from the mainland and the island is very popular with those owning their own sailboats, watercraft. While driving through this beautiful island, you’ll see olive trees along most of the roads and it boasts of some fabulous local wine. Stay tuned as I explore the food scene of Lefkada.

While visiting Lefkada, I stayed at the Sunrise Hotel in Nikiana. This Greek run hotel is clean, all rooms have A/C and there’ a wonderful view of the mainland with a brilliant sunrise and sunset.

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© 2012, Peter Minakis. All rights reserved. If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://kalofagas.ca then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at truenorth67 AT gmail DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author.

The post Let’s Go to Lefkada! appeared first on Kalofagas - Greek Food & Beyond.