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Islands for Tourists

The Ionian islands of Corfu and Levkas are known for their green landscape. Zakinthos for its fragrant gardens and ITHAKA for its miniature harbors, Most of the CYCLADES are barren, with white houses and windmills. CHIOS, LESBOS. SAMOS and Ikaria are fertile with abundant springs and thick woods. Amorgos and Santorini have dramatic and colorful cliffs. Set in transparent seas, Rhodes and Crete are sprinkled with beautiful historic towns surrounded by orchards, vineyards. fields of wheat and tree-clad mountains.

Rural settlements are dotted over much of the mainland and the islands. Most houses are built of stone and timber, with tiled roofs, wooden pillars and balconies hanging over narrow, sloping streets. Inland villages develop around the plate to, the lively central square; the centre of most coastal towns is the harbor.

The mountain ranges of central and southern Greece form a mass of jagged, rocky prongs, and descend through craggy ridges to sea-girt peninsulas and promontories, as In the southern Peloponnese and CHALCIDICE. Deep gulfs and inlets penetrate the land, so that no place in Greece is more than 70 km (45 miles) from the sea. The narrow coastal plain meets the sea in a fretwork of bays, some of which are inaccessible from land, Elsewhere, gulfs are bounded by mountains cradling tiny harbors and fishing villages, or bordered by pine-clad slopes.

Each season lends its own charm to the landscape. Spring comes early in April and myriads of Mediterranean plants burst into a blaze of colour. The hot season starts in May and builds to an average summer temperature of 27°C (81°F), with heat waves reaching 40°C (104°F). Cool breezes may temper the heat on the coasts and the islands, but the clear air and bright sunshine bring out all the beauty of the landscape. Winters are warm and wet in the lowlands, but there is snow in the mountains.

While the Greek summer is a great tourist attraction, the country's rich history brings visitors all year. The grandeur of ancient civilizations is recalled by spectacular ruins. Most are in the central and southern parts of Greece and the islands. The Bronze Age (2000-1100 BC) produced the splendid Minoan palaces of KNOSSOS, Faistos and Mallia in Crete, the citadels of MYCENAC and Tirins, and the city of ancient Thira on Santorini. Athens contains the most important group of architectural landmarks of the Classical period (500-30 BC) at the Acropolis.

The ancient sites of DELPHI and OLYMPIA and the ruins of the sacred city of DELOS are great tourist attractions. The theatre of EPWHAVRO5, which overlooks the Argolic plain, and the Roman Odeon of Herodes Attikos at the foot of the Acropolis are used for international festivals of drama and dance.

Byzantine monuments include elegant churches and monasteries decorated with mosaics. Saloniki, which was the second city of Byzantium, has a rich heritage of these stylish churches, and the monasteries of DAPUNI and Osios Loukas are famous for their art treasures.

Venetian and Frankish occupation early in the 13th century enriched Greece's capes and islands with picturesque castles and walled cities such as MONEMYASIA, NAXOS, Koroni and, most beautiful of all, Rhodes. Museums contain magnificent collections.

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