Karpathos Island

This rugged island of Karpathos,
celebrated for
its wild mountains and gasblue
coves, faintly resembles
a woman being buffeted by
the wind. Given its generous
size and low-density
population, as you wander
its beaches and explore its
mountain villages, it’s easy
to feel as if you have the
place to yourself. The south
of the island is popular with
adrenaline junkies and is in
the spotlight each summer
when it hosts an international
kitesurfing competition.
Meanwhile, the fierce
wind that lifts the spray
from the turquoise waves
blows its way to the mountainous
north, battering
pine trees and howling past
sugarcube houses. Fiercely
traditional, Karpathian
women at this end of the
island still wear traditional
garb, especially in the magical
village eyrie of Olymbos,
perched on the ridge of a
mountain. Very much an offthe-
beaten-track destination,
it’s only just beginning
to draw tourists in search
of the real Greece. Traditions
have been well kept in
Karpathos and especially in
Olympos village (600 meters
altitude) women still wear
their beautiful colourful traditional
costumes every day,
bake bread in their outdoor
ovens.