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Travel
Guide for
Greek Islands |
Kalymnos
island
Sea your dreams
come true by taking a cruise to the Greek Islands
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Kalymnos .Situated between Kos and Leros rises the fourth largest island in the Dodecanese- Kalymnos.
Surrounded by other smaller islets- of which, however, only Pserimos and
Tenedos are inhabited-Kalymnos adorns the Northern part of the Dodecanese
islands with its mountainous landscape. One can find a great variety
of herbs such as thyme ,sage, thimble and oregano ,while exploring the Kalymnian honey. The island has to display a number of fertile valleys
.'Vathi' being the most famous .It is full of citrus orchards for local
consumption and export. Kalymnos is the best known as the island of some of
the world's finest sponge divers. The sea has always been a focal element in
the local life, which has preserved its traditional character co lour and
style to a great extent . Its picturesque landscapes, its clear blue seas
and the hospitality of the locals are just a small sample of what the island
can generously offer its visitors .The latter have the unique chance of
going island - hopping to the various nearby islands .Such day- trips to
places like Patmos ,Lipsi ,Astipalea,Leros,Kos and Nisyros are made possible
by the island's geographical location.
Have you seen
the isle where the fig tree blossoms .where the grarled olive three
spreads its silvery leaves ? Have you beheld the daughter of the Sun and the
Sea. the mother of the sponge? She who conceives young lions, breeds giants
and the ings of the Main?T' is Kalymnos you have seen ,one of the Twelve
Islands.''
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HISTORIAN REVIEW There
have been few archaeological findings to shed light on who the first
inhabitants of the island of Kalymnos were . At about the 2nd Millennium BC
Kalymnos was conquered and colonized by the Phoenicians . Evidence of the
island's prosperity during those prehistoric times are the ruins at Emporio
and Vathi on the East side of the island . Later we find
Kalymnos under the yoke of different conquerors: the Persians ,the Venetians
,the Genoese, the Knights of the Order of Saint John ,the Turks ,and the
Italians from 1912 until nearly the end of the 2nd World War .Kalymnos was
finally liberated on March 31 1947 and was incorporated along with the rest
of the Dodecanese Islands into the Greek Nation in 1948.
SIGHT SEEING Hora was once the
capital town of Kalymnos in the center of the island .Above the town stands
big fortress of a Byzantine construction, built 300 m above sea level
. It comprises ruins of houses and cisterns and 9 churches ,two of which are
renowned for their frescos. The view from the fortress is one of the most
beautiful .Below you spreads the valley of Pothia and the
gleaming sea and the island of Kos in the distance. Not far from Hora stands
the Temple of the Hellenistic period, built in Doric style. Parts of
this ancient temple were used to by Saint Helen or by the Byzantine Emperor
Arcadius. There are many other sites of interest; among them the fortress
of Kastelli just past the resort of Massouri, the picturesque island of
Telendos ,where the ruined Byzantine fortress of St Constantine is situated
and the gigantic Neolithic fort of Emporio .On the other side of the island
in Vathi, within Hellenistic walls stand the ruins of a Paleo-Christian
basilica .Also worth visiting are the tombs at Damos ,the church of Saint
John in Argos and many others .Local sponge factories will undoubtfully
brief you on the sponge fishing and processing methods which are known to be
friendly to the environment.
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