Day 19 (1/4/14) - Naxos Goat Farm

So many goats, so little time

So most of us have heard the story of Costa the goat farmer, yes, well guess what, today we met him and his whole family!. OK well not quite the butt of a joke, but we did get invited to a goat farm on the island which is the biggest producer of goat cheese on Naxos.

Our hotel owner Sofia is also a vet if you recall. She had to visit a goat farm to run some tests on the animals and asked us if we would like to come along. Of course we'd love to so off we went into the mountains. Not sure what kind of tests she was running but there were lots of vials and syringes in the car. We were welcomed by the farmers heartily and they invited us to look at their cheese making room, all hand-made cheeses, where hygiene was paramount. The old lady put the pose on for the camera.They prepared a cheese platter for us with fresh, rustic bread and the obligatory raki to complement the cheese. Not bad at 11am! The goat cheese was quite mild and even Gina who has aversion to it, found it palatable ("I don't do goat cheese" says Gina). I joined the old man in a couple of raki shots and all was great. The farm has 700 goats, and when I asked Sofia how many litres of milk they produce she replied 'I cannot ask this, I am already supposed to know this, I am the vet!' She didn't know and was embarrassed to ask.....again.

Georgi tending to his flock

We were made very welcome and we think the farmers a tad surprised that a couple of tourists from Australia were interested in their farm and the cheese. Once the pleasantries were over we headed to Agiassos Bay beach for a sticky beak while secret goat business happened in the shed.

Smell my cheese, you know you want to

Maturing goodness

Sofia and the farmer

Goodness awaiting devouring

And the man to devour it!

Goat cheese bringing couples closer

Goats gone, cheese eaten,belly full

Basic setup yet known through Greece

We had the beach all to ourselves except for a couple of the mandatory stray dogs that we find everywhere. The water was clear, the weather warm, just perfect for wandering while we waited for our ride back to town to finish the goat work.

To the tune "can't touch this" - "STOP...selfie time!"

Gina's turn to ask me......25 years and counting

So back in town now and feeling a bit peckish, the cheese, bread and raki were a few hours ago, so we thought it time to do lunch. We settled on simple fare, a pita gyros and a Greek salad accompanied by Fix, a choice Greek brew. All this and on the edge of the harbour, too much for words.

Advertising cheesy awesomeness

The sign (below) on our Greek farm-friends farm, not sure what it says, but look forward to Debbie, Arthur or Chrissy to translate on our return.

So wineries...tick, cheese...tick, olives next!