Author: Tour Europe

Thrace is mostly mountainous and was first inhabited by Pelasgians, a race closely connected to the other Greek tribes. Thracians founded Eleusis in Attica and the mythical musicians Orpheus and Mousaios were from Thrace. In ancient times, Thrace stretched from Mt. Olympus in the south to the Danube in the north, and among its most…

INTRODUCTION Our tour of Chalkidiki begins from coastal Nea Herakleia, a settlement founded by refugees from Asia Minor, expelled from their homelands in 1922. Here was found a silver reliquary of the early Christian period, which is exhibited in the Museum of Byzantine Civilization of Thessaloniki. Taking the road to Nea Moudania, a drive of…

In antiquity, Olynthos, Potidaea, Stageira, and other cities of Chalkidiki, most of which were colonies founded by southern Greek cities, were very much part of the flourishing civilization that developed in the rest of the Greek world. Finds from excavations – pottery, sculpture – show the influence of southern Greek workshops, the products of which…

NISYROS According to legend, Nisyros, which lies at the center of the Dodecanese group, was formed when Poseidon broke a piece of rock of’ Kos and hurled it at the Giant Polybotes. The Carians were the first inhabitants of the island, which, during the classical period, was independent. It continued to be a free island…

CHIOS The history of Chios goes back to legendary times. Its first inhabitants were Pelasgians, then Cretans, and perhaps Carians and Leleges lived there too. During historical times, Ionians from the Asia Minor coast arrived, and soon turned Chios into a flourishing commercial, artistic, and literary center, until it was taken by the Persians in…

IERAPETRA Ierapetra is the only town on the southern coast of Crete. It is a prosperous agricultural center with long stretches of beach on either side. The people live off fishing, vegetable growing, and tourism. The town’s strong oriental flavor comes from its maze of alleyways lined with single-story houses, which must have been owned…

NAXOS Naxos is the largest, most fertile of the Cyclades. It has vineyards, olive groves, and orchards and also grows vegetables. It also has emery and marble quarries. Naxos town is a small, picturesque town with a strong medieval character. Not far from the town are the ruins of a Mycenaean settlement and an impressive…

This group of islands has been called the Dodecanese ( 12 islands ) because the main ones are twelve in number: Patmos, Kalymnos, Leros, Kos, Nisyros, Astypalaea, Tilos, Symi, Chalki, Karpathos, Kassos, Rhodes, and Kastellorizo. In the next several articles, we will describe all of them, one by one. RHODES Rhodes with its constant sunshine,…

Alexandroupolis Alexandroupolis ( 341 km from Thessaloniki via Amphipolis ) is one of the new towns of Greece and its most easterly port in the north. Its visitors enjoy modern amenities, such as comfortable hotels, camping sites, good restaurants, and sandy beaches. Alexandroupolis is the capital of the Prefecture of Evros, and the last important…

KASOS This tiny island, almost nudging Karpathos, is 17 km long and about 4 km wide. A mountain range extends the length of the island and the south coast is almost inaccessible. On the northern side, several small villages are clustering around the island capital, Ophrys. Inland is a fertile plain. Access to Kasos is…

PATMOS Patmos is a rocky barren island that must have been practically unknown in ancient times since it is very rarely mentioned by ancient writers. The Romans turned it into a place of exile. Here, Saint John spent some time in exile and during his stay in a cave he wrote his «Book of Apocalypse»….

Xanthi Xanthi lies at the foot of Mount Rodopi ( 219 km from Thessaloniki ) and preserves many of its old traditional houses, as well as its castle on the top of the hills which shelter the town from the north winds. It Is the capital of the Prefecture of Rhodope and an Important center…

LIMNOS Administratively, Limnos belongs to the district of Lesvos. it has an area of 477 square kilometers and is situated in the South Thracian sea between Chalkidiki and the Turkish coast. It boasts a pleasantly dry climate, a lot of greenery, and sandy beaches. The chief town of the island is Myrina or Castro. Another…

«Wooded Zakynthos» as Homer called the island, is the garden island lying opposite the north-western coast of the Peloponnese. Several times a day, car ferries ply between Kyllini and Zakynthos. This enchanting island was almost destroyed in the tragic earthquake of 1953. The capital, also called Zakynthos, has been rebuilt in a modification of the…

Florina Florina is a commercial center charming 161 km west of Thessaloniki and only 18 km from the frontier post of Nike on the former Yugoslav border. Near Florina ( 22 km ) is the mountain refuge of Pissoderi, starting point for skiers and mountaineers. Serres Serres, one of the largest Macedonian towns center of…

Halfway to Delphi from Levadia the road turns to the left and leads to the 11th-century Monastery of Ossios Loukas. Its Byzantine cathedral is decorated with splendid mosaics and it is architecturally one of the finest Byzantine monuments in the country. The view from the Monastery’s terrace is superb, taking in the whole of the…

This heroic small town in western Greece lies on the shores of a wide and shallow lagoon in the province of Aetolo-Acarnania. In 1826, during the War of Independence, the world was impressed by the heroic exodus of some 2,000 inhabitants who broke through the lines of the vastly superior Turkish and Egyptian forces. Few…

On the eastern shores of mainland Greece is situated the hot springs health resort of Kamena Vourla. It lies on the edge of a wooded coastline that slopes down to a beautiful beach. Thermopylae is the famous site of the historic battle between the Spartans, led by Leonidas, and the Persian army of Xerxes (…

EUBOEA Euboea is situated along the coast of Boeotia and Attica forming a natural continuation of central Greece. It is 180 km long and its width varies from 7 to 50 km. It has a total area ( together with its islands ) of 3.908 square kilometers and a population of about 170.000 people.Euboea is…

Monemvasia Monemvasia has often been described as the Gibraltar of Greece. It occupies a huge bare rock that rises sheer and grim out of the sea on the east coast of the southern promontory of the Peloponnese. It owes its name to the single passageway by which it can be reached. The medieval town has…

Tripolis Beyond Argos, the first town the visitor to southern Peloponnese comes to is Tripolis, the principal township of the province of Arcadia. Tripolis is itself a summer resort popular with those who want to escape from the heat. Other nearby resorts include Vytina on Mount Menalon, Leonidi, and Astros along the eastern coast of…

The bare hill with the remains of Mycenae, the mighty citadel of Agamemnon, rises only 4 km off the main road which leads from Corinth to Argos, at the 41st kilometer. Mycenae was a fortified royal residence, surrounded by huge Cyclopean walls. According to archaeological evidence, it seems to have been inhabited since 3000 B.C….

This is a fascinating small town built on the site of the ancient city of Aeginion, some 3 km from Meteora. The capital town of the province after which Trikala is named, stands on the site of the province after which Trikala is named, stands on the site of ancient Trikki which together with the…

Patras is the third most important harbor in Greece, lying on the northeastern coast of the Peloponnese. It has some 115,000 inhabitants and is a busy industrial and commercial center as well as a port, with ferryboats connecting with Italy. A pleasant walk can be made as far as the Upper Town or Psila Alonia,…

To the south of Corfu, near the shores of Epirus, are two small islands called Paxi and Antipaxi only 19 square kilometers in area. They have recently been developed into fascinating tourist resorts with comfortable bungalows and fine sandy beaches below the olive groves. Covered with dense subtropical vegetation, they offer a delightful retreat away…

Edessa, the capital town of the district of Pella, is situated on the foothills of Mount Vermio ( Mountain range in Greece ). It is known for its beautiful waterfalls and lies in a sea of green orchards. According to one legend, the first capital of the ancient Macedonian kings lay in the district of…

KOS The island is best known as the birthplace of Hippocrates, the father of medicine. Like Rhodes, it has a superb climate and beautiful scenery. Antiquity has also left traces of a prosperous past. Notable remains of the Classical and the successive periods lie scattered all over Kos. The monuments and places one should not…

Many of the old customs of Chalkidiki are fortunately still observed to this day. Of these, a good number have been brought by the uprooted Greeks from the Propontis, from Smyrna, and other places in Asia Minor. At Galatista, on January 6th and 7th, the custom of the “camel and the bride” is reenacted. It…