We needed a week’s holiday, somewhere that wouldn’t cost the earth and preferably with some good weather. Mentioning this to our neighbour he told us about apartments on the island of Kos run by friends which has reasonably priced rooms, a lovely swimming pool and a good restauarant. It wasn’t long before we had booked a room at Andreas & Rita’s Studios,near the town of Kefalos. https://www.self-catering-apartments-kos.co.uk/
As you can see from the pictures, the coastline is beautiful and was just down the road from the apartment. Andreas & Rita were so welcoming and after leaving the cases in our very spacious apartment we enjoyed an excellent meal in their restaurant washed down with a few pints of lager. This was defintely the right place for us and we couldn’t wait to explore the area the next day.
It was tempting to have a swim in the pool first but we decided to walk down to the shops of which there were just a few including a very good supermarket which had all the things we needed – fresh fruit, warm croissant, jam and yogurt. After a very slow breakfast we did hit the pool and lazed there for much of the rest of the day. That evening we had a meal at one of the many local restaurants along the seafront. ‘Tanipota’ is a relatively new tapas-style restaurant in Kamari Bay a five minute walk from our apartment and is very popular.
The next day a car came to collect us to take us to the car hire place. We’d booked a car for five days so we could look around the island. Kos is only a small island but having said that, there’s lots to see and do. Sandy beaches (although not all), stunning views, hilly outcrops to explore, a varied countryside with picturesque villages of typical Greek whitewashed houses, full of flowers and taverns offering tasty local food, and the quaint capital of Kos Town. Here’s a selection of pictures taken during our trips round:-
This 205 year old windmill is well worth a visit and the only windmill still in use on the island. There’s no charge to go inside where a guide tells you about the workings but you are expected to pay for your refreshments by buying some of the delicious biscuits made from the flour. A good gift shop too.
Driving around we stopped at one of the tourist spots to look at all the peacocks. There were lots of cats too and a chap selling food to give to the tame peacocks. There’s probably a story as to why they’re at this particular spot in the forest but we didn’t find out what it was.
There are Greek churches dotted everywhere around and often like this one, nowhere near a town or village. I like photographing churches and was very pleased this one was open. It was just down the road from the peacock place. The painted murals inside were beautiful and I also liked the simplicity of the interior. Not always the case as you’ll see towards the end of this Blog.
That evening we drove up to Kefalos town to a restauarant which had had a very good write-up. We could see why. We had an excellent meal at Maistrali and would recommend it. This is a hillside town with great views but to get a full panorama you need to walk slightly out of the town to the ruined castle. There’s hardly anything left but it’s worth the climb up for the views. I found it quite tricky getting back down to the road but I wasn’t wearing the right shoes! Can you spot the two cats lounging on the edge of the cliff enjoying the evening sun?
Like most people visiting the island for the first time we spent a day in Kos Town. What a great place. I expect at the height of the summer it would be packed with tourists but out of season it wasn’t. We were impressed with the harbour and all the well-maintained gardens and flower beds. We had a snack at one of the cafes on the harbour front and weren’t charged a ridiculous amount. We both thought that the architecture had a moorish feel about it. I thoroughly enjoyed browsing the little shops in the narrow streets away from the front and bought a couple of things. That called for lunch and we were spoilt for choice. In the end we ate at ‘Zorbas Eat Greek’ in the Old Town and very much enjoyed it.
Walking back out of town on the way to the large, free car park we spotted a sign for the Odeon Roman ampitheatre. It’s quite something and well preserved with restored marble seating & galleries. The catacombs underneath are interesting too.
After our trip to Kos Town we decided to spend a lazy morning the next day by the pool and then to check out a couple of beaches. Camel Beach is very popular and has two restaurants, which are only a few meters apart: Jenny Camel, we were told offers more of a personal service and that was borne out by the very warm welcome. The home made bread was delicious but we turned down the kind offer of taking another loaf away with us as a gift. They were cetainly lovely, generous people.
We then spent a couple of hours on another beach chilling out before driving over to ‘Agios Theologos Beach’ known appropriately as ‘Sunset Beach’. Tourists flock to the west coast of the island to watch the flame-coloured sunsets from this beach and see the chiselled cliffs and coves.
When we were there it was really quiet, just a few people and it wasn’t the best of sunsets but the coastline is impressive. A decent pair of shoes is useful when you’re scrabbling around as the sand is very gritty.
It was our penultimate day so we wanted to do some more exploring. First stop was the ruins of an ancient healing temple & medical school where Hippocrates once practiced. Asklipieio is about 4km from Kos town and is the site of a historic hospital. The ruins date from the first half of the 3rd century BC and are extensive. Great for photography particularly on a beautiful, sunny day. The entrance charge is €8.00 which is well worth it. You also get great views from the site down to Kos and across to the Turkish coast.
After wandering around the Greek ruins we were in need of something to eat …and drink. We had planned to stop at the village of Lagoudi Zia which is a small mountain village. Zia is a popular place to visit and is known for ‘its charming cobbled lanes lined with tavernas, shops for handmade crafts, and traditional blue-and-white houses. Domed Orthodox churches dot the village, and there sweeping views extend to the coast’. Having said all this which I’ve ‘lifted’ from a guide book I have to confess that we drove through it and didn’t stop. Even out of season the streets were teeming with tourists and all we could see was shop after shop of Greek ‘tat’. Not for us so we carried on to the next village and had lunch in a small family-run cafe with just a few locals and a couple of other visitors. Much more enjoyable and peaceful too.
The drive round after lunch was quite something with narrow winding roads and stunning views, we seemed to be climbing up forever. I can’t remember whether we had already decided to walk up to this ruined castle or whether we saw it and thought we’d give it a try. The ruins and settlement of Palaio Castle tower above the village of Pylie and is reached by going up a forest path about three kilometres or so. Along the way you come across ruined churches and other signs of the settlement which dates back to the 11th century. The view of the castle remains was tantalising and although the path up there was very uneven, mostly cobbles, we didn’t think about giving up until we got near the top. It was tough and even though we don’t like to be beaten we looked at the final stage and knew we had to turn back. It was disppointing but I did get some shots of the ruins and the terrain and the resident goats.
This had been quite an active day to say the least so that evening we decided to go back to the fish restaurant, Cavos Taverna which was just around the corner from our apartment. Not only is the fish cooked beautifully but Mama’s home made honey cake is delicious. Everyone is given this to round off the meal. I was tempted to go round the plates on other tables where people had left some and hoover it up. I should have asked for the recipe.
The other restaurant we visited twice was Maistrali in Kefalos which we would also recommend. Just before we went for our meal we wandered around the town and looked inside the main church. This church is nothing like the one we’d been to earlier in the week; the inside of this one is decorated …everywhere. There’s not a square inch left uncovered as you can see.
I hope this Blog has given you a flavour of the island of Kos. We thoroughly enjoyed our week and wouldn’t hesitate to say that if you decide to visit do get in touch with Andreas & Rita’s Studios, https://www.self-catering-apartments-kos.co.uk/ Lovely people, spacious apartment, good food and a great location.
Travels with the Booths.blog 