Greece guide

Information about Greece and the Greek islands

Meteora

The Meteora Monasteries are perched upon the summits of some precipitous and isolated rocky pinnacles. They rise above the almost flat valley of the Pineios (Pinios) river, 9 km beyond Kalambaka in Thessaly. The monastic history of the Meteora goes back to the Il th century A.D. when the first hermits sought peace and solitude in the rifts and caves of these rocks but the first monasteries were not built until the 14th century A.D.,attaining their peak in the 16th. Of the 13 large and 20 small monasteries and hermit's cells, only four are now occupied. These are at: Megalo Meteoro, Moni Varlaam, Moni Aghias Triadas and Moni Aghiou Stefanou. The monasteries of Meteora, in the province of Thessaly, are one of the most extraordinary sights in the mainland of Greece. Built on top of huge pinnacles of Granite rock, the monasteries provided monks with peaceful havens from increasing bloodshed as the Byzantine Empire waned at the end of the 14th century. The earliest monasteries were reached by climbing articulated removable ladders. Later, windlasses were used so monks could be hauled up in nets, a method used until the 1920s. In modern days the access to the monasteries is by steps carved into the rocks and the windlasses are used only for hauling up provisions and food.

Cyclades

The Cycladic islands are the most picturesque islands of Greece ,with white buildings and bright-blue church domes, while golden beaches meet the Greek aquamarine sea. Some of the Cyclades islands, such as Mykonos island, Santorini island, Paros island ,Delos, Amorgos island ,and Ios island, have vigorously embraced the tourist industry; others, such as Andros island, Kea, Serifos island and Sikinos island, are visited partly by foreigners but are favorites with holiday-makers from Greece. The diverse outlines of the Greek islands as they protrude from the blue waters of the Aegean, bathed in the dazzling sunlight and embellished with little white houses, resemble, in the words of the Nobel Prize-winning poet Odysseas Elytis, "stone horses with rampant manes". Above all, the people who live here, with their own individual approach to the world, bring to life the narrow alleyways of the villages and the pathways of the countryside, the countless tiny chapels, the white windmills, the dovecotes or the wind-bitten hillsides and are themselves a basic feature of the charm which this possess. The Greek island of Mykonos,between Syros and Tinos, is the most expensive and heavily visited of all Greek islands. It has the most sophisticated nightlife and is the gay capital of Greece . The town is an labyrinth of chic boutiques and small white houses with brightly painted balconies decorated with boukavilias and clemataries Santorini (also known as Thira) is regarded by many as the most spectacular of the Greek islands. Thousands of tourists come every year to gape at the sea-filled caldera, a vestige of what was probably the world's largest volcanic eruption, ever. Despite the crowds who visit in the summer, Santorini's weirdness is its black-sand beaches and mighty cliffs.

If you want to escape the tourist crowd, Sikinos, Anafi and the small greek islands to the east of Naxos offers an alternative.

Crete is the largest island of Greece and almost a quarter of all visitors to Greece. It's still possible to find some peace by visiting the undeveloped west coast, the mountainous interior and the villages of the Lassithi province , Crete was the center of the Minoan civilization, the first advanced civilization of Europe, which flourished from 2800 to 1450 BC. The palace of Knossos, a few kilometers outside Crete's main city, Heraklion, lies the ruins of the ancient Palace of Knossos which is believed to have been the center of the Minoan civilization between 3000-1400 BC. The Palace was discovered by Sir Arthur Evans who started his archaeological excavations in 1900.The other Great Palace of the Minoan remains of Crete is Phaistos where the first Linear B script was discovered on the famous disc of Phaistos . Heraklion is a modern wealthy city and main port of Crete, the other large towns are , Chania and Rethymno, with beautiful Venetian buildings and Castles .Other places are Matala, on the southwest coast,the Samaria Gorge,   Agia Galini , Vai ,Ierapetra ,Hora Sfakion or Sfakia, Agios Nikolaos ,Malia and Milatos.

Dodecanese Islands

The Dodecanese (twelve islands) located at the south east Aegean Sea. Because of their strategic position, the Dodecanese  islands have been invaded  and occupied throw the years from various invaders Crusaders, Ottomans, the Knights of St John, Italians and Germans during the second world war. Rhodes Greece is the largest of the Dodecanese islands and its town is the largest inhabited medieval settlement of Europe. The famous Avenue of the Knights has magnificent medieval buildings and the impressive Grand Masters palace. Other attractions is the Acropolis of Lindos at the south .
Other popular islands in the Dodecanese include Karpathos, Nisyros, Kos ,Kalymnos ,Leros , Symi and Patmos. The untouristy islands of Lipsi Furni Agathonisi Astypalea Halki and Tilos as well as  Kastellorizo and Kasos ,have nice beaches without large crowds of tourists, Leros one of the most green of the island is the place to experience traditional island life. 

Ionian Islands

The Ionian islands group consists of seven main islands: Corfu, Paxi, Kefallonia, Zakynthos(Zante), Ithaki, Lefkada and Kythira.Along the west coast of Greece, the Ionian islands are the only group not in the Aegean, and in many ways they are more effected of their close neighbor, Italy. Except from tiny island Meganisi, none are 'undiscovered', although, as with all Greek islands, anyone who forays into their hinterlands will be rewarded with the delights of unspoiled villages. Corfu, is considered by many to be the most beautiful of the Greek islands.

Northeastern Aegean Islands

Samos, Chios, Ikaria, Lesvos(Mytilini) Limnos, Samothraki and Thasos. Chios with the famous Mastiha production,Samos the island of Pythagoras and Lesvos with its famous OUZO

Sporades

The Sporades are a group of islands in the northern part of the Aegean Sea and comprise of the islands Skiathos, Skopelos, Alonissos and Skyros. 

Saronic Gulf Islands

The five Saronic Gulf islands are all close to Athens, and Salamis is almost a suburb of the capital. Aegina, Hydra, Spetses and Poros are all a varied in architecture and terrain, but they all receive an inordinate number of tourists, mostly from Athens like Aegina where the famous Greek author Nikos Kazantzakis wrote his book Zorba The Greek.Hydra,once the meeting place of the Athenian sophisticate people manages to retain an air of superiority and grandeur. Motor vehicles, including mopeds, are banned from the island!Spetses the island of the Greek Revolution Heroes,Salamina famous from its ancient history and its hero Ajax,AIAS in Greek and Poros the Pine trees island

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