The Retreat

This rural retreat has been designed around its setting. It blends in wonderfully with its surroundings and offers excellent sea views to east, south and west. Sunrise and sunset, open sea, neighbouring islands and the countryside.

The property was designed and built in 1986. The house is furnished in a very individual style which reflects the owner’s interests and travels.
This house is set in an olive grove on a sloping site of 6500m². It also has almonds and a variety of plants which the owners have cultivated over the years.

It is approached through wrought iron gates and up a long weatherproof drive which has low level lighting for night use. The property is fully fenced.

The house is situated at the highest point of the plot to offer superb views. On going through a covered porch you enter into a large (9.65m x 7m approximately) open plan room with solid beams. There are windows on two sides (seven in all) and doors which open onto a large terrace. All windows in the house are fitted with fly screens and the woodwork both doors and windows are of a very high quality. The house is fully tiled throughout in a light ceramic tile. An unusual and very attractive feature of this house is that the balcony doors in the main room and master bedroom have several stained glass panels set amongst plain panels in a very unusual design.

The terrace is approximately 10m x 3m and runs the entire length of the house. There is ample outside seating including day beds, loungers, hammocks, tables and chairs. It is surfaced with plaka stone and there are steps leading down from the terrace to the well planted gardens.

The main open plan room is allotted into areas. As you enter the room to the right is the dining area with a large table for six but which can open out for more guests if necessary. To the right is a well fitted kitchen area with wooden cupboards, electric cooker, fridge etc. It is divided from the seating area by bookshelves. In the cosy seating area are sofas, individual chairs, side tables and a large wood burner which, I am told, throws out an amazing amount of heat for all year living.

There are several fantastic pieces of German wooden furniture dating from 1935 by a very famous furniture designer. (The owner is prepared to sell the furnishings at a separate price.) One of these pieces is a huge wardrobe/shelving unit which the present owner uses as a room divider to separate the main room from the guest bedroom and bathroom area which is approached by going up two steps from the main room.

This leads on to a small hallway with a double guest bedroom to the left (2.9 x 2.8m) which could be altered to serve as a study. Next along the hallway is a second door which opens onto the front terrace. Opposite this is a very pretty and quite ornate bathroom tiled in pink and white tiles set at an angle. There is a white bath with rather grand claw feet, hand basin, toilet and a washing machine which is set into a unit. There are also mirrors and a small marble table. All fittings are of a very good quality.

From the hallway a wooden staircase leads to the upper floor where there is a double bedroom and en suite shower room. This room has a beamed ceiling which allows for a cool circulation of air. There is also a unique feature on the wall near the bed in the form of a window without glass which allows a viewpoint to the lower floor and again circulation of air, and in the winter, heat from the wood burner. The bedroom opens onto a terrace which has plaka stone floors and also has exterior steps which lead down to the front ground floor terrace. The terrace (3.75m x 3.3m) has great 180 degree views and has ample room for a table and chairs plus sun loungers. There is a pergola for shade.

Off the bedroom is the shower room which has a shower rather than a bath but is furnished to the same high standard as the lower bathroom.

As you look at the house face on the left is a cleared flat area laid to gravel which extends out from the front terrace. It would be possible to extend or double the size of this house to provide for extra bedrooms with very little fuss if the buyer wished.