Yesterday we went to the house Patrick and Joan Leigh Fermor built in the 1960s.
It was left to the Bernaki Museum in Athens and it turned out to need a restoration programme far beyond the museum’s purse. So it was fortunate the Stavros Niarchos Foundation stepped in and restored it to its original state or rather the state the Leigh Fermors would have wished. It only re-opened in 2019 and looks magnificent although more pristine than it would have been when Joan’s many cats were in residence, busy down-holstering the furniture.
Within there are all their books and, of course, a drinks tray – although I was unaware he favoured Jameson’s, there are two bottles.
The rooms are flooded with light and the windows frame super views of sea and forested hills. Outside there is a plethora of places to sit and a bronze bust of P L F.
Today the house is as beautiful as it was more than fifty years ago but its secluded environs have been encroached upon.
This is so beautiful. What a fabulous house and garden – peaceful and calming.