Summer Cucumber Meze

This recipe is so simple that I kind of feel a bit embarrassed about calling it a recipe. Not to detract though as it is absolutely delicious. A great big hit of summer in a bowl, the cucumber and mint are so fresh and reviving. I could eat plate after plate on a really hot summers day. 

I first tried this meze on a short day trip to the small island of Ithaca. In a lovely little seaside Taverna, we were greeted by a broad Australian accent. A Sydney boy who had come back home to his family Island in the pursuit of love. 

Ithaca is unspoiled by tourism and is blessed, like its sister Ionian Islands, with beautiful clear waters. Almost jewel like in colour, the waters appear at one moment like a shinning aquamarine stone, and then with a change of the light they appear like an emerald and then a Sapphire.   These beautiful seas are set against a backdrop of really lush green countryside, the hillsides dotted with towering cypress trees. The rocky outcrops of Santorini this is not. 

As we lunched on this simple meze with a chilled glass of wine, we watched the local fishermen preparing their boats for the next days catch of Calamari. At that moment I felt a little sad that we had to leave later that afternoon. Clearly there was so much more to discover. I had a feeling that there were wonderful little secluded beaches, just waiting for us to visit that afternoon. Sailing away from Ithaca that afternoon, I jotted down in my little notebook that this beautiful Island was a must do, to go back to and spend a lot more time on my next visit to the Ionian Islands.