Is there anything better on a beautiful, shiny autumn afternoon in the mountains than being near the fireplace, enjoying a delicious cheese platter, a glass of wine and good company? I can’t imagine of anything better. It’s the perfect ending to a wonderful day.

This has been a wonderful day indeed, filled with beauty and nature. The kind of day when you can’t stop walking, admiring, gazing at the scenery that surrounds you in awe.

As you walk through the forest and your lungs fill with fresh air, it almost feels like a cleansing experience that releases you from all the tension and troubling thoughts that you carried with you from the city. You start looking around in curiosity, gazing at the bluish green firs and the fiery red leaves that have fallen off the deciduous trees. Half of them still manage to cling on the trees and the rest have already covered the ground. I love the rustle of leaves under my feet.. Such a healing sound!

We woke up surrounded by a rather misty –quite typical of this season- scenery this morning that slowly changed into a bright blue sky and a shiny golden sun. Although the weather is still quite warm, nature has worn all the beautiful colours of autumn.

We kept walking all day long! Hiked through paths and trails along with the company of friends and a pack of dogs. Our security guard! Moments of joy not only for us but for our four-legged friends as well that never miss a chance to show us how much they enjoy our company. Pretty snouts nuzzle us, constantly asking for hugs and attention. These cuddly and gentle creatures can instantly transform into wild animals if they hear a weird sound or sense threat. Once one of them makes the first move, the rest will follow barking persistently until they make sure we’re not in danger! And then they’re back for more hugs and maybe a much desired treat!

As we hike through the trails, we can’t help but pick some fiery red leaves, acorns, chestnuts and walnuts. I’m gathering my autumn props, straight from the source; nature. And those are my favourite. Store-bought and pre-made ones could never be nearly as good as them. I’m glad we have company and everyone is happy to help with the pursuit of the perfect leaf and branch!

We made a last stop at our veggie garden to pick a few vegetables and then went straight back home. It’s evening already and the sky has this beautiful pink colour right before sunset. We’re about to prepare our dinner and cook in the fireplace. But before that, I’m going to make us a fall cheese platter, the first one for this season! I have to hurry up though, I need the last beams of light to take pictures of it before it gets completely dark outside.

It seems like the perfect time to unseal my kariki! Do you remember the gourd I brought back with me from my trip to Tinos in May, when my daughter and I took part in Tinos Food Paths ’19? We also visited a local cheese dairy during our stay. One of the cheeses produced there –and probably amongst the most impressive ones I’ve ever seen- was kariki. But the gourd I got was too fresh and needed time to age. Around six months. I believe it’s about time to cut it open! The cheese inside the gourd must have an aged taste and scent that resembles Roquefort. I have some aged malathouni cheese as well. Greek cheeses are just phenomenal!

My friend and I prepared our cheese platter and decorated it with a few summer fruits we have left, some figs and grapes, and our very own fresh walnuts and chestnuts.. I couldn’t wait to taste kariki cheese! You see, it’s like aged wine, it can turn out to be amazing but you never know, sometimes you might be unpleasantly surprised..

Our cheese platter looks wonderful! All the flavours and scents are just unbelievable! All we need now is the perfect wine to complete the feast.. It’s already dark outside, we’re all sitting near the fireplace, holding glasses filled with aged red wine as the fire warms us up, body and soul. Looking around, I see joy and delight shining through everyone’s faces!