Khelone
Welcome to our "Microchori", our tiny village within Megalochori (meaning: big village in Greek), Methana.
In 2020 we bought a crumbling ruin in which we immediately saw as an opportunity to create something incredible. Everyone thought we was crazy, except for our friend Joana Smith, who together with her loyal craftsman, Altin Alla, brought to life what we sketched three years ago.
We always joked about one day having a house in which the whole space would be a kitchen - and now we have it for real: the whole of the original house is a cooking, dining, and hosting space, with a dining table for 12, built by Altin, old tavern chairs, and a ceiling made of bamboo he picked and crafted personally, keeping the nearly 200 years old beams holding the once again, original roof tiles.
We have several small terraces to get away, if craving privacy, and also a large sea & sunset view terrace overlooking the hills the locals call “The Sleeping Lady” - it’s where we hold our sharing circles, yoga classes, and where we get together to dance, but at summer nights some of our guests choose to sleep here too.
About the rooms - The Master Bedroom is our largest, and the only one connected to the main house - the kitchen, dining room and living room. It has two windows - one opens to the village and the other to the back garden, accessible through a door that leads to the private roof terrace with sea views.
True to its name, The Cave Room is a natural cleft in the mountain behind our house, which we expanded into a room with two walls. There is a window on the door - which overlooks the entrance of the main house and the small square in front of it. This room is the closest to the bathroom, which is also located in a small cave.
The Lighthouse is the highest, sunniest point of all, with two windows facing the sea, and a terrace overlooking the village and the sea. It was once a donkey stable - the nearly 200-year-old stone walls have remained, the ceiling itself was raised. This unit offers the most privacy, and has a private roof terrace too.
The Watchtower next to the gate is our only room with single beds - it is intended for those who like to share their room with another traveler. This building was once a workshop, used to store tools. It's window on the door has a seaview. Right next to this room, we also built a second bathroom, nestled between the rocks.
The name of our house is Khelone - named by a nymph, who loved her home so much that she didn't even go to the wedding of the king and queen of the gods, Hera and Zeus, instead she bathed at home when Hermes, the royal messenger broke in on her, and as a punishment, he turned her into the world's first turtle in the world, according to Greek mythology.
She is also referred to the Greek Goddess of Being Late. She is our chosen patron saint... as we too, are never really in a hurry.
