Cyprus - Elektora Walk

 Last time I was here, a neighbour, Jimmy, introduced me to a couple of walking groups. He was leading the walk today with the Wednesday Group and invited me to join in, even before I left Canada.

8 of us met and parked at the side of the road and set off along farm tracks

between fields of grass, bright with early Anemones,

grape vines,

some pruned and some not (we saw a number of fields with men pruning)

and Olive

trees.

At one point I followed the sound of a generator to see something that I have read about but never witnessed. Huge nets on the ground and the generator was powering something that shook the olive trees. Little green olives littered the nets.

Bags of olives, already collected.

The ones not yet harvested

weighing the trees down so they looked like Willows.

 

One of the other walkers explained that these little olives would be preserved in Oregano and Olive Oil and served up to accompany a beer or a meal at a restaurant. The black ones had been harvested earlier, before the rains started, as they would be pressed for olive oil

The Prickly Pear Cactus were also in fruit.

.

After the 8km walk we drove to the nearest village (Elektora), to a restaurant that Jimmy had arranged for lunch. Our long table was set out on the patio and we ordered drinks. We were joined by 5 other members who had been unable to walk for one reason or another but wanted the social component.

First came the salad with feta cheese, served family style and more than any of us could eat. Then sliced pita bread and 3 different dips (Humous, Tzatziki,and one other)

We had pre-ordered our main meals and, not realizing we would be served a salad, I had ordered Grilled Haloumi Cheese Salad. The salad part ended up in a Take Home box.

We finished off with some slices of Doukissa Cake. This is a Cypriot cake and when I looked up the recipe it is a no bake cake made with crushed biscuits, cocoa, melted chocolate and brandy and then put in the freezer. There was some left over (she bought out 2 huge plates of slices) so I bought some home for Chris and Jason. We all agreed it was delicious.

When I got home Cigi was just waking up from her nap and we drove to Larnaca to return the rental car as I have the use of a car with the house.