Mandraki Harbour Oinoussa Island Aegean 3rd September 2010 We left Lesvos at 0730 to sail the 40nm to the Oinoussa group of islands that lay to the NE of Khios. It turned out to be an off on day regarding the engine and a sloppy sea but we dropped anchor at 1615 in the little harbour, then we dropped it again and again then moved round to the next bay where we had the whole peaceful bay to ourselves, good holding in sand and not too far round the point back to the harbour by dinghy. We had a couple of nights here, caught up with Jane-G and met the mayor of Oinoussa who invited the four of us to lunch on board his motor yacht in the harbour. The lunch was typical Greek and delicious, squid, octopus and Ouzo, bar b que fish and salad, wonderful desserts, mastika and coffee. Certainly a day to remember wonderful hospitality. There is a small museum in the village giving the history of the shipping magnate families that live on the island, there is also a Marine Captain college. Ferries run daily to Khios.
6th September 11nm (a big trip!) We left for Chios Island and the harbour of Chios, there is a marina which has not been completed so we were able to tie to the concrete quay with no charge, there is no water or power and quite a lot of fishing boats very large ones that look abandoned and small ones. It is only a short walk to the europa Supermarket but about 30mins to town. There is a local bus but we were never in the right place at the right time. The town was busy good cheese shops, vegetables hardware shops.
From here we took a bus to Pyrgi and Mesta and had a lovely day out with Clive and Jane, the bus took about 40mins at a cost of 2.50eu each one way, we had a wander round the wonderful uniquely (sgraffito)decorated buildings called Xysta, morning coffee lots of picture taking and took the bus on to Mesta a medieval village about 20mins away. Unfortunately there was a power cut and most of the shops and tavernas were not operating but we did manage to find lunch and a not too bad retsina. This village was fascinting really medieval, narrow passages, arches, nooks and crannies everywhere and as usual lots of pictures were taken.
The village of Mesta is the most distant of the medieval villages but it is also the most well-preserved. the form and architecture here is totally unique. The houses are build side-by-side to each-other, so tightly that there are only two entrances to the village. The streets are very narrow, and most of them are covered with arches and vaults. The whole village has been intendently planned and built as a maze, in order to prevent the pirate raiding parties from reaching easily the most important buildings located in the center of the village. The oldest monument of Mesta is the church of Palaios (=Old) Taxiarchis on the north-west part. It was originally a vaulted one-nave basilica, dating from the Byzantine period. In 1794 it was extended to become two-aisled. Some traces of old wallpaintings can be seen, although most of them have been covered with plaster. To find out more about Mesta, you can visit the Mesta Complete Guide.
The Island of Chios is renowned for its mastic which is the product of the mastic tree, prospering only in the south of the island. There is evidence that cultivation and exploitation of mastic originates in ancient years, during the Hellenistic period. Despite competition from other species of mastic at that time, Chios mastic's superior quality established it as a unique product with significant commercial value and exclusivity of supply. Little has changed in the mastic production process from the ancient times until today. The exploitation of the trees for the extraction mastic (their resin), starts when the tree is about five years old. The period of their cultivation is from July until the beginning of October. The first step in the process is the leveling and cleaning of the perimeter around the trunk of the tree, where the mastic falls. The next step is the spread of white soil (calcium carbonate powder) on this area in order to facilitate gathering without altering its chemical composition. Then the "kentos" starts, incisions are made systematically: 5-10 on each tree, every 4-5 days. The resin flows progressively from the incisions, falling on the ground where it solidifies gradually, providing either large chunks ("pites") or smaller ones ("psilo"). These chunks, once collected, are cleaned by the mastic producers and their families through a tedious process that typically lasts throughout the winter.
A variety of products is made from the mastic resin, including chewing gum, alcoholic drinks, sweets, spices, perfumes, and various chemicals; while the most important use is by the medical industry all over the world, 90% is exported mainly to Arabic countries.
