I stopped the car on the edge of the road and stepped out with my camera in hand. Limeni is a tiny settlement but boy, is it beautiful! It is one of the rare occasions where natural beauty and men's creations blend together in such a harmonious result. The stone built houses, the turquoise sea-water and the tranquility of the scenery were "screaming" that this is a place for total relaxation and rest.
Unfortunately I was there as part of my work. No swimming or laziness on the sunshine for me but on the other hand no-one was stopping me from appreciating the view and the brilliant day either :)
It was already after 12 o'clock and many people were swimming, laying under the sun or exploring the rocky coastline. And I was watching them all from above, taking pictures of the pleasures I wasn't going to have, at least not that day. A few more shots and I should keep going. The time is passing quickly when you have a million things to do before the end of the day and in my line of work the excuse "I didn't have enough time", does not apply :)
A couple of days later it was time to visit this lovely place from up close. The afternoon light was even better than the morning one and I was sensing that it was going to be a very productive evening, in terms of photography!
The restaurants were all set up, waiting for their hungry customers to come, after a long day of swimming and sunbathing and I was just in time to take a few pictures before they get too busy.
The imposing building in the pictures below was built in 1762 as the house of a badass Greek who had a very active role in the Greek revolution against the Ottomans but now is a hotel for all nationalities that can afford it :)
As the sun was setting and its light was getting warmer and warmer, it was time to turn my camera to the west for a few idyllic sunset pictures! Don't get fooled though, it was the end of the day but not the end of my working day. I just don't think that you'll be interested in my night duties so I might as well call it a day for now!
I thought that Limeni is one of a kind but only for a day or two! Because soon I have found another place about 30 km (18,6 miles) away, that looked so much alike that I had a hard time separating the pictures in the folder that I saved them! Even their names resemble. It is "Limeni" from the Greek word for "port" and "Gerolimenas" which means "old port". And if you don't believe me that they look alike, see for yourself!
OK maybe not exactly the same but for sure it made me feel that neither of them is as unique as I originally though. I am not complaining though, Gerolimenas is equally charming and has the same relaxing vibes as Limeni. And since they are so close, you can visit them both in one trip and choose your favourite :)
Meanwhile I'll follow the sign of a coffee shop that looks interesting and go grab a coffee :)
I took those pictures on 17-19/07/2011, when I was working as a photographer for a travel magazine. A job that allowed me to travel all over Greece and see all the places I ever wanted to see and some more that I never imagined I would be interested in (but I enjoyed them anyway).
If you are interested to read more of that specific trip you can check my posts about Areopoli, Sparta and the area around it.
All the pictures and the words are mine.
Thank you for reading and if you want to know more about me you can check out my introduction post.
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