Dreams come alive in the Cyclades

Μylopotamos

From the port of Kea, Korissia or Livadi, we take the central road uphill to the capital of the island, Iulida or Chora. We pass the old factory of Enameled and in the 2nd kilometer we see the traditional estate of Milopotamos.The estate extends along green valleys who keep supplied from the ancient years the famous river of Kea, Elixos.  

Stone and wood fenses, private houses, surrounded from abundant greenery.Along the torrent eleven old water mills from the years of Venetians testify the years of the rich agricultural production of the island.

Water Mills

The water mills of Kea are buildings of exceptional architecture. The most important characteristic is the horizontal winged axis and the big stone conical structure, "Varadi", the workshop of each water mill. Each varadi is ten metres high and they gathered the needfull quantity of water for the preasure to start turning the wings. For many years they were working day and night, grinding huge quantities of wheat untill the closing of Enameled factory and the migration of the inhabitants. Only one of the water mills continued to work untill 1980.

Folklore Museum of Kea in Mylopotamos

We follow the cultural journey Elixos 2 in the middle of Milopotamos untill the road is branching to the right, to the path of water mills, and to the left uphills to the cobbled path pf the capital.And there we meet the Exhibition - Museum of Folklore Inheritance of Kea. It is created with loving care and its intentions are the maintenance and development of the agricultural inheritance of Kea and the acquintance of the visitors and the young people with the traditional life of island.

The Museum is estblished in an old wood and stone bulding of 1845 - the same year of the construction of the cobbled road from the capital to the port. For more than one hundrend years was an inn serving the residents of the area tha the travelers.  

The exhibits are old agriculture tools, objects of domestic use and decoration for the houses of Kea, clothes from 19th century, photos, etc.

Around the museum and among the orange trees there is the stone ampitheatre in which during the summer take place events like the wine festival, honey festival and fairy tales festival, and the visitor can participate and have an idea of the cultural tradition of Kea.

The project is under the auspices ot the European programme «LEADER»