Right after a week of heavy snowfall in early February —not a common phenomenon in Greece— followed by a sunny yet cold St. Valentine’s Day, the weather “retrieved” its usual habits, by rewarding the residents of this beautiful country with lots of sunshine and temperatures rising to 20 degrees Celsius! As locals say, it smelled like spring: people started enjoying outdoor coffee breaks and the most daring ones went to the beach for a swim.
As usual, Clean Monday on the 27th of the month will be the first official pre-summer holiday long weekend. News reports advise weekenders to book early, as many destinations are already sold-out. Depending on the weather, many Greeks will choose to enjoy the last snow on the mountains in the few ski resorts of the country. Others will be traveling to their homelands —or islands— to celebrate this holy day by flying colorful kites and taste special menus that consist of black beans and green salads, fresh seafood like octopus and shrimp, olives, spinach pies and other delicacies that mark the beginning of the 40-day fasting period (“Sarakosti”). While the younger generations rarely follow this orthodox ritual that doesn’t allow meat and dairies until the Easter Day, there are still those who fast during the whole period and especially the last week, by eating only olives, bread and legumes, in order to stay “clean”.
The time of the year to book your first luxury escapes to Mykonos is getting closer! Most beach bars and fancy night clubs won’t be opening until April, so you’d better get your tickets now and get ready to treat yourself to a well-deserved luxury accommodation in a private villa, exquisite food, great music, endless dancing, and, of course, the unique opportunity to sunbathe or even swim in some of the still empty, most fascinating golden sand beaches in the world.
With the island still being quiet yet vivid and super guest-friendly as always, you will have Mykonos almost to yourself and receive a “royal” treatment that will be hard to forget for the rest of your life!
