Just another night on the waterfront

Many businesses close around 2 p.m. when locals go home for a siesta. In the evening after the heat of the day has subsided, Skopelos comes alive. There is a curved street around the harbor, lined with open-air cafes that have tables and big, cushioned wicker chairs.



They start to fill up around 8 pm., and by midnight, they're packed with people eating, drinking, smoking, laughing, socializing and people-watching. Patrons include locals as well as tourists from across the globe. As I walk along, I can hear numerous languages being spoken. Around sunset, near the old port jetty, there are vendors peddling henna tattoos, grilled corn, jewelry, pony rides and charcoal portraits.

Lively doesn't begin to describe the atmosphere. Add to this a throng of pedestrians, a row of brightly lit shops and romantic tavernas, a handful of scooters and small cars, and a few horse-drawn carriages, and you have a typical summer night on Skopelos.


Last night, I took the long way into town, up over the Kastro walls and down along the sea walls, passing some cozy hilltop tavernas on the way.


I also passed some REALLY old stone houses, a few of them collapsed and abandoned. Now I know what's underneath all the white-washed plaster. Pretty impressive architecture.



I stopped for dinner at a place called Aktaion and my accomodating waiter was Chris. For dinner I chose Mousakas. It's layers of meat, potatoes, eggplant with a little onion, green pepper and tomato (and cinnamon?) thrown in for flavor. There was cheese on top and the whole dish was baked in the oven. It was great. Alas, I'm finally IN one of my photos! My waiter gave me dessert on the house because he said I "have a beautiful face" ;-) It was yogurt, much thicker than the American kind, with a few spoons of dense apple preserves on top. Excellent.