The place to take your olives

[Spud50]

Can anyone tell me if the olive pressing place in Karsiyaka is open every day. Do you need a certain amount of olives? Althogh we have lived here for 5 years, this is the first time we have picked ur wn olives and want to get them pressed.

Thanks for any info.

[BLUE BUTTERFLY]

My tc hubby and friends take their olives to the press at Karaolangolu, not sure of the opening times but will find out for you.

[Spud50]

Thank you. Can you also tell me how to get there?

[waddo]

Have used three different press's over the years and find the one at Karaolangolu is the best so far. Don't forget to take your containers for the olive oil! Don't forget to pick up a loaf of local (the cheapy one) bread as well so you can dip into your fresh, hot olive oil and taste the product! Last year - you can only say what happened last year as it seems to change every year - you paid for a "run" at a set price, that will have changed as the electric prices have gone up. It is a magic experiance with everyone happy and giving sly looks at everyone elses olives to check on size, color and quality!! Have seen flat bed trucks loaded down with sacks and sacks of olives down to little old lady's with a single carrier bag full - all are accepted and if you have few they may go in with others so that it is worth doing a single run! Take them down in sacks or plastic crates but do not keep them in the sacks yourself for more than about four days or they will start to sweat and go bad on you - that's because every olive has a worm in it and they all start to move around which makes the olives move around and get hot!! Figure - rough guide - on 25kgs of olives giving you 3 to 5 ltrs of oil. Some years its much less and some years its much more. Wait for the first rain before you pick as it makes the olive fatter and you end up with more oil. Good luck and have fun.

[Spud50]

Thanks Waddo - really informative. Now only need to know how to get there. We live to the east of Girne so don't know Karaolanoglu very well.

[frontalman]

Is it OK to pick them now? I didn't see any announcement.

[karmels]

frontalman.
This is done in the local press, it will tell the locals when the olive mills will open.
Olives are regulated as are many thing on this Island.

[aerhere]

The olive mill looked as if it was open for business at Karsyiaka at 9.30am this morning. Doors open and vans parked outside.

[BLUE BUTTERFLY]

Thanks Waddo - really informative. Now only need to know how to get there. We live to the east of Girne so don't know Karaolanoglu very well.

I haven't been along that way for a while so not sure if the names of restaurants etc have changed.

The best I can do is, if coming from Girne on the main road, Lemar, and what used to be a car wash is on your left, a little further on, on your right is the press. No one seems to be sure of the opening times and I don't know when, legally, they are allowed to harvest the olives but have seen a number of locals gathering them.

[frontalman]

Karmels, I know all that. I just wanted to know if anyone has seen the actual announcement in print.

[karmels]

As this would have been in the local press and 90% of expats don't read Turkish, and do the other 10% read the local papers.

[waddo]

Not seen the announcement yet either but been very busy for last few weeks so may have missed it. Normally it is around the 26th of Sept but lots of people wait till the first rains have happened so the olives get a bit plumper!! Will ask my TC mates and see if the date has been released yet.

[frontalman]

I've seen some local people out picking today, so I assume its OK. I always thought the time for picking started towards the end of October, anyway I'll go out and pick our six tomorrow