Famous Place In Ancient Greece

Below is an article submitted to us by a true expert on Greece, from Greece, Maria Athanasopoulou !

Why would somebody want to have vacations in Greece?

To visit the New Acropolis Museum and understand better the universal claim of the people who know and respect history to return The Marbles of Parthenon home.

To visit also Ancient Olympia, the Epidauros Theatre, Delphi, Knossos, Mycenes, Ancient Pella and Vergina and the Temple of Apollo Epicureus at Phygaleia (near Andritsena).

To walk on eternal crossroads of culture and civilization

To see many and interesting museums

To observe the deep blue of the Aegean Sea and bring peace and serenity to his soul.

To swim in fabulus seas, whose water shines under the glorious sunshine.

To taste authentic traditional cooking recipes and realise that the Mediterranean way of nutrition offers health and … much of taste!

To see with his own eyes the Greeks, who have learned to enjoy each day the joy of life.

To enjoy the dew of the Ionian Sea, diving in it’s green water.

To see unique locations, like the Santorini’s Volkano, the Elafonissos of Laconia, the forest of Sigri in Lesvos,.which trees have tumed in to stone, Mani, Nafplio, the extraordinary landscape of Melos, the old city of Rhodes, the famous Kerkira (Corfu) and Paleochora beach at Crete.

To see beautiful places, even if decides not to go to any of the above places, but to explore…

To see mount Olympus, the mountain which was “carrying” the 12 ancient greek Gods.

To know how is for somebody to live at a place where people still look in the eye
and tell “goodmorning”.

To remember, even for a few days, that a human being doesn’t need much to feel happy. A beautiful landscape which you share with people who you love, is able to make you realise the true meaning of life!

Thanks Maria! What a wonderful and refreshing view. Thank you to Katerina Magounaki & Artemis for the beautiful pictures.

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Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Greece: Best Kept Secrets

at 3:47 PM 3 comments

Due to the rich and lengthy cultural history of Greece, there are bound to be MANY amazing secrets. We filtered through many of them and with the help of some new found Greek friends, we narrowed it down! Check it out!


Folegandros: A small island of Greece located in the south west edge of the Cyclade Islands. This 12 square foot, rugged island is like a dot in the Aegean Sea. Barely populated with 600 people inhabiting the island, this little piece of heaven is the island to be if you are looking for quiet romance, peace and spectacular scenery.

Folegandros used to be a place of exile. It was considered the Aegean Alcatraz. The small missed the tourism boom, but couldn’t be happier. The town is picturesque consisting of the traditional picture we form in our heads when we think of Greece; the tall cliff housing in blue and white. No building is greater than two stories high. The island only contains one taxi and one bus as forms of public transportation. Every sign in the town is hand painted as well! There is something to be said for a quiet society.

It is not easy to get to this little secluded island. Supplies are brought to the island by boat from Athens. One of the only islands that brings passengers to Folegandros is Santorini. There is no real schedule for the ferry headed to Folegandros so don’t expect to follow the schedule or expect the ferry to leave on days it is suppose to leave. At least you know when you get there you truly will be on an exclusive island!

Some activities you must look into are cave exploration by row boat. Snorkeling around the open cave area is beautiful. The best beaches in Foleganros are Agios Nikolaos and Angali. Additionally, the sunrise is something that must not be missed. One Folegandros local said "One thousand sunsets equals one of our sunrises”. You should watch the sunset over the Panaghia Church which is at the highest peak of the island. The local was also quoted as saying, “When you see the sun over Panaghia Church, you will not need to recharge your batteries for the next twenty years."


Corfu: Corfu is also known as Kerkya and is said to be the greenest and most beautiful island in the country of Greece, if not the world. The eastern side of the island has long beaches and bays while the western side of the island is drastically different as it is steep and rocky with deep coves and beaches.

Corfu has a few secluded beaches but can be very touristy during travel season. There are plenty of spots to relax and a lot of night life for those who are looking for entertainment.

The weather is ideal for outdoor water sports and other beach activities. Rocky coves are ideal for great snorkeling and scuba diving. In the summer, the weather is dry, sunny and warm. It can be cool at night so bringing a light sweater is recommended. The weather is very different from other regions of Greece as it tends to be cooler. The winter months are actually rainy and humid; quite mild.

Corfu has a lot of vegetation due to the rainy winter months and its olives growing season lasts much longer than anywhere else is Greece. The Mediterranean island has 3 million olive trees!

Nekromanteion of Acheron

The most famous nekromanteion (or nekyomanteion), or oracle of the dead, of the ancient Greek world lies near the northwest shores of the Acherousian Lake, where Acheron and Kokytos, the rivers of Hades, meet. Ancient literary sources describe the Acherousian Lake as the place where the dead began their descent to Hades, and associate Ephyra, the Epirote city located further north, with the ancient cult of the god of death. The nekromanteion attracted people wishing to meet the souls of the dead, as these were able to foresee the future after having left their body. Homer provides the earliest reference to the nekromanteion of Acheron in his Odyssey, when Circe advises Ulysses to meet Teiresias, the blind seer, in the underworld in order to get an oracle for his return to Ithaka (k, 488, etc). Homer also gives a vivid account of the mortal Odysseus's descent to Hades (l, 24, et.c.). The resemblance between the setting described by Homer and the site of the nekromanteion is astonishing, a fact also noted almost one thousand years later by Pausanias, who argues that Homer had visited this area (1.17.5). Other Greek heroes also attempted the descent into Hades: Orpheus seeking to bring back his beloved Eurydice, Hercules in his search for Cerberus, the tree-headed dog guarding the exit from Hades, whom King Eristheas had asked for, and Theseus with Peirithos in order to seize Persephone.

Three Mycenaean children's graves (fourteenth-thirteenth centuries BC) with a small number of grave gifts are the earliest traces of activity on the hill, where the nekromanteion was established. Pottery sherds and fragments of terracotta figurines from the west foot of the hill dating up to the mid-seventh century BC indicate that a sanctuary dedicated to the Earth goddess was later founded in this area. The remains of the actual nekromanteion date from the Hellenistic period. These comprise the sanctuary's main building, erected in the early Hellenistic period (late fourth-early third century BC), and an annex of the late third century BC, which consisted of a central courtyard surrounded by rooms and warehouses. The sanctuary operated in this form continuously for approximately two centuries, but was burnt down and ceased to function after the Roman conquest of Macedonia in 167 BC. The sanctuary's courtyard was occupied once again in the first century, when Roman settlers arrived in the plain of Acheron. The convent of Agios Ioannis Prodromos and its cemetery were established over the ancient ruins in the early eighteenth century.

Excavated in 1958-1964 and 1976-1977 by the Archaeological Society at Athens, the nekromanteion of Acheron was the first sanctuary and oracle of the gods of the underworld to be brought to light.

The nekromanteion of Acheron was built on a hilltop specially flattened for this purpose. A rectangular enclosure in polygonal masonry, entered from the north, surrounds a square building, the main temple, which two parallel walls divide into a central hall and two side aisles. Underneath the central hall is a rock-hewn subterranean room, the dark palace of Persephone and Hades, whose ceiling was supported by fifteen poros arches. Archaeological evidence dates the temple to the early Hellenistic period (late fourth-third century BC). A group of rooms and warehouses surrounding a central court was added to the original building in the late third century BC, during a second building phase. The new annex was used for lodging priests and visitors.

Architecturaly the building resembles a mausoleum, or grandiose funerary monument, like those built for various monarchs in Asia Minor and the East in the late fifth century BC (e.g. the monument of Mausolus at Alikarnassus). Made of excellent polygonal masonry, it had iron-clad gates and was divided internally into corridors, adapted to the chthonic cults and their rituals. During these rituals, the followers entered a dark hallway and were led by the priest to the appropriate preparation chambers, where they fasted and underwent catharsis, before performing a sacrifice. They then entered a large dark hall, where they met the souls of the dead.

Hundreds of vases containing offerings, lamps, and smaller vases, often decorated in the Athenian West Slope style, were discovered during excavations. Millstones, sea-shells, farming and construction tools, and figurines of Persephone and Cerberus were stored in the warehouses.

Administrative Information




Official Unit:
33th Ephorate of Prehistoric and Classical Antiquities

Mesopotamos (Prefecture of Preveza)

Telephone: +30 26840 41.206, 26510-25.490, 35.498, 39.348, 35.371