Valaora is a Greek village in Evrytania which has remained untouched by the Greek financial crisis and the political instability, where capital controls don’t pose an issue. The 300 villagers who live permanently in Valaora Haryana move to their own rhythms cut off from the big cities’ stress and routine, enjoying the “privilege” of living close to nature.
In the mornings they work in the fields and after midday they gather in the village square, at Maria’s café, where they enjoy the summertime, listening to traditional music and often dancing along, while drinking a lot of wine, ouzo and tsipouro.
The villagers have set their own rhythm and their own rules which often surprise visitors. For example, tourists are usually speechless when they first see the menu at Maria café, since nothing costs more than two euros. A glass of tsipouro costs 50 cents, ouzo costs 1 euro and icy beers cost 1.5 euros.
As for other drinks the villagers and visitors don’t have to pay more than 2 euros. “That’s a plus when living in a village. You don’t need a lot to have fun, you can go for a walk and with just one euro you can have the best of times. We always recommend our village to people looking for summer vacation. While others prefer to go to the Greek islands and pay a fortune, here we have fun and spend close to nothing,” said Thomas, one of the picturesque village’s permanent residents.
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