Mariana Is a very knowledgeable host and I truly enjoyed the bread and wine making she demonstrated. I am so looking forward to her sending us the recipes The lunch she prepared was delicious and I am definitely going to make it for family. If you are a foodie you will enjoy her company and everything she offers.

This was for me a very memorable experience. Mariana is not only a cook but a formally trained in Archaeologist and Sociologist with an emphasis on trends in food developed over many centuries. As Mariana made the cheeses and breads she outlined the trends through conquering nations, culinary explorers and their adaptation to Cretan cuisine. Her explanation of the historical introduction of certain foods and cooking techniques to Crete and beyond made this much more than a "here's the recipe" course. Sitting in the garden surrounded by olives trees, hanging the freshly made cheese on the tree to strain, whilst a variety of breads with and without toppings cooked in several open stone fires and an outside oven (fourno), made this, to me, a valuable and enjoyable learning experience. Before leaving Australia I was baking bread in a cast iron pot. Mariana explained the emphasis on clay pot cooking in Crete and a number of techniques, their historical roots and their uses today. Thank you Mariana and her husband John for being fine and accommodating hosts.

I took the 'Eating in ancient Greece' cooking class. It was a cooking lesson, a history lesson and a meal all in one! I enjoyed it very much. I was by myself but Mariana had me group with four other lovely people and we learned so many interesting things and cooked and laughed. A very interesting class by an experimental archaeologist who is an Gourmand award - winning author as well. Food was great.

I’m thoroughly fascinated with Mariana's cooking courses. I took two of them and I enjoyed the entire process, from mixing historically-appropriate ingredients and cooking over an open fire to using replicas of historic equipment and tools. Mariana is extremely generous with her knowledge and responded to every question in such a warm and nuturing way!