Top Exo Chora Classes: Reviews and Recommendations
Exo Chora, is that traditional village set way up in the hills of Zakynthos, Greece, so offers a really special glimpse into island life. Instead of just ticking off the usual tourist stops, getting involved in local classes and workshops really gets you properly connected with the place and its culture. You get to meet local people, learn some new skills, and it is almost like, take away memories way richer than just some postcards, isn’t it?
This article will be talking you through some of the top classes and workshops that Exo Chora seems to have on offer. From cooking traditional Zakynthian food to learning about olive oil making, you might well discover a whole other side to this Greek island, a side far from the busy beaches and tourist shops.
1. Zakynthian Cooking Class: A Taste of Tradition
If you are the sort that fancies more than just eating Greek food, why don’t you learn how to make it? Loads of Zakynthian cooking classes tend to focus on some real dishes which have come from this island. They’ll typically run for a few hours and you will usually get stuck right in, preparing some island staples, actually like sofrito, or maybe some baked aubergine.
Usually, these classes happen in family-run tavernas or even in people’s homes, so you might well be sure it’s an authentic thing. Under the guidance of your instructors, very likely locals who just love to share their food culture, you will get the hang of the basic techniques and find out how key ingredients are actually produced, that so makes Zakynthian food taste Zakynthian. Best part? At the end, you get to eat what you have made, normally with some local wine. I think it makes a great sociable way to enjoy and learn something a little bit different.
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2. Olive Oil Workshop: From Grove to Bottle
Zakynthos has these long-standing traditions tied in with growing olives, which has come to be a big thing for the island. Attending an olive oil workshop can show you every aspect of the oil-making process, straight from picking olives, to using traditional presses. These workshops, in some respects, are often held at the olive farms themselves, where you’ll be told, alright by the farmers themselves, about which olive varieties they tend to grow, and just how they actually care for the trees right through the year.
You might well learn all about the pressing methods, from some ancient stone mills right up to those modern extraction processes, discovering just how it actually influences the flavour, and then the quality of the oil. Most times, there will be a tasting session, so that means you get to sample quite a few different olive oils and learn to tell those differences between them, and just understand what makes the rather good quality oil, stand out. This really adds such an insightful way to appreciate all those local products and the hard work which has gone into producing them.
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3. Traditional Pottery Class: Hands-On Creativity
Pottery has its roots really deep right into Greek culture, and you get a chance to find out how very traditional methods work, by taking part in a pottery class in Exo Chora. These classes cater to just all skill levels, no matter whether you have ever touched clay or even not before. Run by local artisans, I think it is a brilliant experience, being shown methods which have come to be handed down through the generations.
I find that you will likely get the opportunity to get hands-on with the pottery wheel, in some respects learning how to form that clay, and then you can just create your very own pots and decorative items. Just finding out how to work with the clay and make some classic Zakynthian designs is just a proper satisfying creative outlet, it seems like. That bit of taking something you’ve made away with you at the end means that it is almost like, you’ve got a really memorable keepsake, too.
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4. Zakynthian Dance Workshop: Steps Through History
Finding out how Zakynthian dance works might be a pretty amazing way to immerse yourself into the culture there. Some dance workshops just often teach you some very typical dances on the island, all that along with history too, telling you just where that dance has come from, its symbolism and just how it mirrors local Zakynthian traditions. All these classes are meant just for people of any and all skill levels, making it truly open to pretty much anyone eager enough to get involved.
Getting guided by local dance teachers, who are truly passionate about all things cultural heritage, you will soon start just learning to follow those rhythms and some key steps. Finding out about how a dance embodies aspects tied to storytelling as well as expressions that happen within the society, means a deeply enlightening experience and something pretty much different compared to just all those typical tourist outings, arguably. Besides, being physically active with all those cultural art forms, actually creates connections, that too with, both history, as well as other like-minded individuals involved.
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5. Hiking and Nature Photography: Capturing Exo Chora’s Beauty
For those of you who have got a bit of a thing for exploring the outdoors combined with capturing all the beauty there, it’s almost, why don’t you go to one of these guided hiking tours in and around Exo Chora where you are likely to get some help with taking great photographs, very? Exo Chora is literally circled by landscapes, just so picturesque. What this means is that you get chances to snap landscapes, those of local wildlife, and historical spots just peppered across that region. The hiking trips normally cater to nearly all fitness stages, and you’re probably being led by local experts that clearly know all the great viewpoints and routes to be heading for, clearly.
That guidance does usually feature ways to get very technically minded too, that means, learning the ins and outs about all those camera settings and maybe even that composition advice, basically. By intermixing exploration into creativity in that setting that can be nothing but just gorgeous, this activity becomes especially brilliant, I reckon. Also, just imagine displaying those pictures on canvas or just framing them for décor for back home; then you would surely have gained a reminder in physical format connected to all those very magical Zakynthos moments.
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