Kato Hora

Winding our way through the white-washed streets of Kato Hora we bump into the most unlikely Byzantine Castle complex. It just sits there entirely forgotten in the middle of town. The streets are dead, it is hot, and I can't help myself as I climb all over every accessible part of this once grand place. Every turn brings yet another tiny church. I am overjoyed as I jump from stone wall to slate roof in this funny little complex. Always keep your ears open for mountain goats.

Beach time

There is no shortage of unique little beaches in Kythera. However, the daunting task of getting to some of them, combined with all the necessary eating and drinking, seriously limits the number you might visit in three days.

Eat and Drink Kythera

So, what do you do on the little visited Island of Kythera, besides cycle her mountainous roads? Eat and drink! And, given that Kythera does not rely on mass tourism to survive, she produces no shortage of local tasty treats. Her thyme honey is reputedly the best in Greece. There are several rare varieties of grape that are grown here. One of them produces the award winning Petrolaros wine, the vine of which Aphrodite herself brought to the island. In Kalokerines we crossed paths with a lovingly restored 200 year old wind powered stone flour mill. Maria of Maria's Sweets grinds her own locally grown wheat which she then uses in some of the most phenomenal renditions of greek cookies that I have tasted yet. The sunday market is also a good outlet for local produce and jams and other goodies.

Aphrodite's Egg

It must be the endorphins that pump through your body after a day of cycling, but I always find the sighting of monumental places so much more exhilarating when I have brought myself to them under my own power. I have dreamt about this place since my childhood. I have dreamt about this place since I picked out my first book of Greek mythology in the 3rd grade. I have dreamt about this place since I stood in the Uffizi gallery in Florence gazing for much too long at Boticelli's "Birth of Venus". At last when I turned an unexpected corner on a descent from Livadi into Hora, there it was - the birthplace of Aphrodite. Thanks to those rosy rays of the afternoon sun it was every bit as mystical as I hoped it would be. I could absolutely imagine the goddess of love and beauty rising from the seafoam in such a place. If you can't, perhaps you should try cycling there...

On the Road in Kythera

What will we do in tiny Kythera for 3 whole days!? Surely we'll be bored. Surely we will cycle all her roads in one day. Ha! double Ha! Kythera has presented us with the most impressive grades yet. On one particularly steep climb Basil managed to glimpse 15%. This makes me wonder how steep the climb was when he couldn't manage a glimpse. These grades renewed our thankfulness for front panniers as they may well be what prevents us from tipping over backwards. Thankfully there also seemed to be no end to mountainous windy roads to explore. Some of them even beckoned us on well into the night.