Maria Derdevani News Today

Taking the turning for Chalastra, gateway to the Axios Delta National Park, the silence was so sudden it was as if someone had flicked a switch. Far from the snarl of the hooting, honking traffic on Thessaloniki’s motorway, I was on a narrow tree-fringed road and the only sounds were the buzz of cicadas and the clamouring from storks’ nests high overhead.

Forget the expensive French version. Greece’s alternative has flamingos, wild horses and gourmet treats – without the crowds