Summer nights in Petra are something for those who like to hang out late but who are too sensitive or uptight for loud disco music or crazy drunken young men yelling in the streets. Compared to other famous summer night beach destinations in the Mediterranean, night life in Petra is actually very much on the sane side, much more subdue and 'normal' than those on other Greek holiday islands or the Balearic Islands popular with younger people.
Perhaps this 'classier' style of night life in Petra has something to do with the fact that the island of Lesvos itself is after all, a fairly non-typical, upmarket holiday destination, and those who seek out this island are mostly the more discerning type of tourists who come here not because of cheap booze and party opportunities, but are in search of a truly relaxing and rewarding scenic corner in Greece where they can enjoy genuine Greek cuisines and Greek hospitality in one of the most beautiful places in the Mediterranean. Most of the holidaymakers I come across on Lesvos are not the 'loud type', but are mostly older people or professionals who do not mind spending more for a peaceful and fulfilling holiday experience in a small coastal Greek village. Quite a few of them choose Lesvos because they are looking for a place slightly out of the beaten track.
Indeed, the nice thing about spending your holidays on Lesvos is, there are no ugly high-rise apartment-hotels or kitschy mega size resorts so commonly seen on other holiday destinations around the Mediterranean basin. Most tourist accommodations in Petra and other resorts on the island of Lesvos are small to mid-size establishments with just a couple of rooms; many of them are often family-run and managed by owners themselves. This gives holiday resorts on Lesvos a more personal touch, and a distinctive edge over their competitors in other parts of the Aegean and the Mediterreanean, because more often than not, visitors to Petra or Molivos can come into contact with real Greeks who are either natives of the island, or who have been living and working on this beautiful island over a long period of time, and hence they are able to experience true northern Aegean style of living unique to this part of Greece, instead of the conventional form of mass summer tourism available all over southern Europe.
Being the place where some of the world's best ouzo are produced, the island of Lesvos has an equally impressive culinary repertoire to match its reputation as the world capital of ouzo. In fact it is difficult not to eat well on Lesvos. The island has some of the most innovative restaurants serving delicious Greek and Mediterreanean fares using fresh local ingredients and daily catch from the sea. Treat yourself to a wonderful dinner al fresco at the seaside of Petra, or at one of the local taverns in the centre of the village, accompanied by the sound of live music and a few glasses of ouzo from Plomari, the town on Lesvos famous for ouzo production, and spend the next few hours enjoying that captivating atmosphere which will leave a long aftertaste in your mind.
Another thing not to be missed when visiting Petra is to go up the rock-cut steps which lead to the Greek Orthodox church of Panagia Glykofiloussa in the evenings for one of the most comprehensive and enchanting views of Petra village and the surrounding sea in the night. There is a slightly mystic, even mysterious, air, that surrounds the church on top of the giant rock when you look at it in the night from the bottom of the steps.
While on many holiday islands in Greece, Greek nights with traditional music and dancing have become a commercialised event, something that is being performed in hotels or specific venues at dinner times to satisfy the curiosity of tourists from abroad, in Petra such events take place spontaneously on the streets. It was dinner time, with tourists and locals alike dining outside under the grapevines on tables set up at the side of the crowded little street in the village centre, and all of a sudden music burst out, and people started to leave their table and began dancing in the middle of the street, joined by more onlookers and applaused by all those around. There is so much vivacity and spontaneity in the whole thing, it makes one feel rejuvenated, almost as if one is on an adrenaline shot.
This is not to say that commercialisation brought about by the onset of tourism does not exist in Petra. Of course there are shops and stores that cater mostly to foreign tourists visiting the island, selling items such as gift-packaged olive oil, olive soaps, miniature ouzo bottles, haircare and skincare products made of olive oil and other 'typically Greek' ingredients etc. But the degree of commercialisation as seen on the tourist spots of Lesvos is by and large much more in check, much more agreeable, than on 99% of the big-name tourist resorts in southern Europe. Certainly the presence of such souvenir shops in Petra or Molivos are not so overpowering (which was the case in the old town of Rhodes during the high season, or on the island of Santorini between May and November) to such an extent that I felt as though I was being overwhelmed, even suffocated, by the sheer numbers of these shops.
So, come enjoy the stunning sea and the soft sandy beach during the day, be prepared for the ouzo and the food in the evenings, and test your feet at one of the village dance parties should you feel like it. This is how life should be like, life at its very best. Once you have tasted the dolce vita of summer nights in Petra or Molivos, it will stay with you forever and you will be hooked for life, for good.
Copyrights@2012. All text and photos by YC Cheng. All Rights Reserved.
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