I first heard about this retreat in Kythera in June 2023 when I visited the local herbalist, Sara Scopsi in Kythera at her apothecary, Elixrysos. Sara told me there had just been a retreat on the island run by an American herbalist of Greek descent, Maria Christodoulou, and asked did I know that Juliette de Bairacli Levy lived on Kythera for ten years? And that a documentary made about her was mostly filmed on the island?

Well, I was excited, amazed, and embarrassed. Juliette’s DVD, Juliette of the Herbs, had been sitting in my cupboard, for about three years, still wrapped in plastic. How could I not have watched it, and how did I not know that Juliette had lived on the island of my ancestors from about 1983? I watched the documentary as soon as possible when I returned home.

When I found out that Maria was organising another tour of Kythera in June 2024 – I simply had to be there! The tour was for seven days, but since I was on holiday with my husband, I thought that might be too long to leave him on his own, so Maria kindly agreed to my suggestion of joining them for the day they visited Juliette’s cottage in the tiny village of Paleopoli.

I was so excited! I had not seen the announcement that Rosemary Gladstar and Tish Streeton would join the tour. Tish produced the documentary about Juliette (by the way, Tish has a daughter called Tulsi, the name of one of my favourite herbs). The thought suddenly occurred to me as I walked towards the café in the picturesque village of Avlemonas to join Maria and the group, “I wonder if Rosemary Gladstar will be here”. I felt an extra buzz of excitement as I saw Rosemary happily chatting and smiling as I rounded the corner.

By the time I joined the group, they had already been together for three days. There were practitioners and lay people from all over the United States, England, Norway, Canada, and now me, all the way from Australia. I was the new kid in the class, so everyone was very friendly and interested in who I was and where I was from.

Interestingly, many people asked me if I was a ‘home herbalist’ or a ‘clinical herbalist’. Many of the people on the retreat were ‘home herbalists’, they were interested in herbal remedies and made their own soaps, creams, and tinctures for friends and family, but not many practised as clinical herbalists. The herbal profession is different worldwide, and we often lament the restrictions placed upon us in Australia. Still, by comparison, in some countries people do not have the opportunity to be practising clinical herbalists.

We boarded a coach (an amazing feat of bravery considering the narrow roads on the island) and made our way inland to Aloizianika for a soap-making workshop with a lady called Fotini. Fotini hosted the group (about twenty of us) in the little courtyard of her house where she spoke about her history of learning to make soaps from her grandmother in the village of Mitata. Fotini was born in Australia, of Kytherian parents, and then relocated to the family home in Aloizianika in her forties. My maternal grandmother was born in Mitata and Fotini and I discovered that, as our grandmothers had the same maiden name, we must be related somewhere down the family line. In the heat of the Greek summer sun, Fotini showed us how she makes goat milk and Sempreviva soap.

Sempreviva, meaning ‘ever alive’, is the name of the beautiful little plant Helichrysum stoechas, which has very pretty little yellow flowers known as the elixir of life. She grows on sea cliffs and the dry, rocky coastlines of Kythera. The yellow flowers do not die, hence their name. Essential oil has been distilled from Sempreviva for many centuries. It takes a lot of flowers to create this oil, which makes it very expensive and endangers the herb. The oil is a very effective vulnerary and has been used traditionally as a nervine, an anti-inflammatory, and stops the spread of bacteria and viruses. This oil is often called the “Oil of Ancestry” and was used in rituals of birth and death, with the belief that it can help release you from the pain of unresolved, generational emotional wounds, allowing you to let go of the past and to refocus on your life’s destiny—a truly special little plant.

Fotini had some sempreviva plants infusing in olive oil, which she blended together with oats and more olive oil to make a second tray of soap.  I still have a small amount of these soaps at home. As I use them, I breathe in the aromas and essence of the island.

Once the workshop finished, we wandered through the beautiful narrow streets of Aloizianika, marvelling at the architecture and the contrast of restored and run-down houses. We boarded the coach again and were taken to a restaurant at Paleopoli called Skandeia. This restaurant has been family-owned and operated for many years, and the owners had spent many hours chatting with Juliette over meals, while her beloved Afghan hounds sat quietly under the table.

After lunch, we walked down the road to Limni Beach, labelled ‘Juliette’s Beach’ by those who knew her, passing many beautiful aromatic Vitex agnus-castus trees. These trees grow prolifically in Greece. She lets you know she’s around, as her peppery aroma wafts over you as you pass by. Juliette talked about finding heart-shaped stones all over her beach. It’s true! After a refreshing swim in the Mediterranean waters, we collected a few heart-shaped stones to place at the base of the olive tree in her front garden. At Juliette’s beach, I found the opportunity to speak to Rosemary and Tish about Estuary Learning and gave them a brochure each to take home with them. Rosemary is such a warm, gentle person who was only too happy to accommodate everyone wanting a chat.

We then walked back up the road, stepping over broken fences, through an overgrown path to Juliette’s cottage. Everyone was silent. It was such a surreal experience to see that iconic green door, which I had seen in the documentary that Tish had filmed. Rosemary and Tish recounted stories about their experiences with Juliette, with fondness and laughter. Tish spoke of her surprise when she first met Juliette, who was standing beneath a huge olive tree at the time. Surprise because Juliette’s diminutive stature belied her reputation of having a big personality; known as she was, for being fiercely independent and strong minded (Juliette is a Scorpio, by the way).

Tish also recounted how difficult it was to follow Juliette around with the day's large, heavy cameras and film equipment.

Rosemary and Maria crafted a beautiful ceremony for us to immerse ourselves in, starting with humming to tune us all in, then singing, accompanied by two sisters in the group with their guitar and percussion. We were invited to write something meaningful on a bay leaf provided by Maria and to hang it on the majestic old olive tree. This was such a special moment of reverence, everyone deep in their experiences and mysticism of the special place of a special person. It was hard to leave, and we all could have stayed there for hours, embracing the healing energy of that little rundown cottage and overgrown garden.

Wow, what a day! How special! I am so grateful. Everything aligned for me to be there that day, to honour Juliette and her time in my ancestral home, and to meet and laugh with, and introduce Estuary Learning to, Tish, Rosemary, and Maria, and the other participants of the retreat.

I finish with this lovely quote of Juliette’s on the flap of her book, The Illustrated Herbal Handbook:

“(I am) a wanderer in search of the sun.”

To hear more of Juliette’s time in Kythera follow these links:

• Tish & Rosemary on the making of Juliette of the Herbs

• Article by Maria for United Plant Savers

• James Preneas memories of Juliette

To learn more about the extraordinary work of harvesting Sempreviva I recommend reading the article, Out of the Blue (see page 8).  It explains in great detail the amazing effort it takes to harvest this plant