General: Greece

Off the beaten tracks, on the northern mainland of Greece, let me take you on a journey from antiquity to the modern age. Discover the beauty of nature, the joy of Greek lifeystle and the witnesses of history in the beautiful region of Greek Macedonia.

You may be wondering about the term "Macedonia", as I have just written an opinion about a country which bears the same name. Macedonia in fact refers to the ancient kingdom ...
...of the world in the 4th Century BC.

Nowadays, as nation states rediscover historical symbols for the purpose of stirring nationalism, the "Macedonian Question" has led to some political and diplomatic turmoil: Greece only refers to the country Macedonia as "FYROM", which stands for "Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" - just as they do with Turkey, still calling Istanbul by its Byzantine name Constantinople.
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Off the beaten tracks, on the northern mainland of Greece, let me take you on a journey from antiquity to the modern age. Discover the beauty of nature, the joy of Greek lifeystle and the witnesses of history in the beautiful region of Greek Macedonia.

You may be wondering about the term "Macedonia", as I have just written an opinion about a country which bears the same name. Macedonia in fact refers to the ancient kingdom of Philip and Alexander the Great, which was the center of the world in the 4th Century BC.

Nowadays, as nation states rediscover historical symbols for the purpose of stirring nationalism, the "Macedonian Question" has led to some political and diplomatic turmoil: Greece only refers to the country Macedonia as "FYROM", which stands for "Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" - just as they do with Turkey, still calling Istanbul by its Byzantine name Constantinople.

I won't get into this any further - I like Greece, Macedonia (country) and Turkey all the same and have friends in all of these places. But since in 1994 I was awarded the title of "Goodwill Ambassador for Greek Macedonia", I can't let go without a detailed travel review of this region, and it's well worth the effort.

This opinion is mainly a guide for culture travel, but you will also find some hints on nature, entertainment and dining in the text. And, as you will be glad to read, northern Greece is mostly tourist-free.

SALONIKI

Our tour starts in Thessalonike (or Saloniki), Greece's second largest city and industrial center. Thessalonike has its own airport (SKG) which is served by most European airlines, including a wide choice of scheduled and charter flights from the UK. Although Saloniki was "Cultural Capitol of Europe" in 1998, there isn't much left of the Byzantine architecture, and even less of the ancient site developed by King Phillip. Today Saloniki stands out mainly for being Greece's most important harbour. There are, however, at least three sights which are not to be missed.

Explore Saloniki from the Seaside. The White Tower (Turkish, 15th Century) and the Thriumphal Arch of Galerius (Roman, 303 AD) are the main attractions. Nearby, the seaside promenade with its many cafés makes for a nice afternoon walk. When relaxing on the terrace of one of the cafés and enjoying the sensation of the beauties passing by, try a Greek Frappé. This is an iced mixture of coffee and milk, available with several added flavours, perfect on a hot summer day.

The upper city provides for a welcome escape from the noisy city downhill. Visit the Vlatádon Manastery, the last one of formerly twenty monastaries in Saloniki. From there you get to the city wall which offers some nice inland views. Most important to a food lover like myself, the upper city is home to Saloniki's best restaurants. Here you get served what is possibly the best Swordfish in all of Greece. Enjoy it with a glass of Ouzo mixed with water (no ice!).

An absolute must-see is the Archaeological Museum. The collection includes all the artifacts discovered in the Great Tomb of Vergina (we will get to that later). The most important exhibit is the Gold Larnax which dates back to 336 BC and contains the remains of King Philip, father of Alexander the Great. The larnax bears the 16-pointed Star, the emblem of the Macedonian dynasty. When this was discovered in the 1980s, it started the whole Macedonian chauvinism mentioned before.

CHALKIDIKI and MOUNT ATHOS

The Chalkidiki peninsula is situated 50 miles southeast of Saloniki and has three fingers - Kassandra, Sithonia and Athos. The beaches of Kassandra and Sithonia are a little bit touristic. Athos, however, may be the most exclusive place on earth for the culture seeker: it is home to a monk republic with around threehundred orthodox monasteries, which requires a weeks-long admission process for a single visit.

Regular tourists can embark a boat in Saloniki or Ouranopolis (last town before the border) and ship up and down the Athos peninsula. The boat tour offers a view of around fifty monasteries on the western slopes of Mount Athos and certainly is worth doing. From Ouranopolis it lasts three hours, from Saloniki a whole day.

The holy mountain is THE center of the Christian Orthodox Church and represents all orthodox confessions (Greek, Iberian, Bulgarian, Serbian and Russian) except the most seclusive, Syrian. It contains the most important and beautiful artefacts, reliques and icons of Orthodoxy, most of which have never been exhibited in the outside world. The monasteries are the most outstanding examples of Byzantine architecture on earth (from what I hear).

Females aren't admitted at all, and the minimum age is 21. Visas can be sought by Professors, teachers and students of the following faculties: Theology, History of Arts, Architecture and Philosophy. You must apply for an endorsement from the Athos Republic's embassy in Athens or the consulate in Thessaloniki. This will get you a visa issued by the Greek Ministry of Northern Greek Affairs. Greek embassies abroad CANNOT issue endorsement and visas fo Mount Athos. A total of ten visitors are allowed per day, for a maximum period of four days.

IMATHIA REGION and ANCIENT MACEDONIA

~ VERIA

50 miles west of Saloniki lies Veria, built by King Philip and originally called Beroia. The second half of the road from Saloniki to Veria leads through endless pineaple plantations. With 30,000 inhabitants, Veria is the capitol of Imathia Region which also includes the cities of Naoussa (see below), Katerini, and the archeological site of Vergina (also below).

Until 1996, much of the inner city of Veria looked somewhat like it had been bombed in the second world war (which it has't been), because the buildings were so deteriorated. But due to iniative and investment by the Kalaitzis family, local industrials who have made a little fortune with exporting lamb fleeces, a lot of the houses have been rebuilt in the traditional Macedonian style to host shops, restaurants, pubs, clubs and art galeries. Their eldest son, Thomas (for the initiated reader: a graduate from Warwick University and an Alumni of AIESEC), now runs the "Epharisto" restaurant and terrace bar, of course the best in town. Should you ever get there, send Thomas my greetings and he will invite you to a good bottle of wine (I bet he will).

The nightlife in Veria is phantastic in Summer. The streets are crowded by young people well into the early morning, and you can eat and drink throughout the whole night. In order to prevent a hangover, end the night with a soup made from intestines (sory, forgot the name), sounds terrible, but tastes quite okay and is a perfect remedy for headaches.

Veria has the highest density of Byzantine churches per capita in the world, but most of them are rather plain compared to what can be seen elsewhere in Greece.

~ NAOUSSA and MOUNT VERMION

The best Greek wines come from the vinyards around the town of Naoussa, around ten miles north of Veria. Unlike in France, Italy and Spain, it is hard to find small wineries who sell their own products. Instead the wine business here is mostly controlled by the giant Yiannis Boutari & Son Inc., the largest wine and spirits producer in Greece.

None the less, Boutari dont only produce cheap wines for the masses, but have some exquisite "small wines" on offer, produced in very little quantity. A tour of the Boutari premises is not to be missed, you can taste some very good samples, and the whole cultivation and production process is explained in detail.

Outside Naoussa and below Mount Vermion, nature spoils you with small rivers and creeks, running through forests and small canyons. In the middle of this recreation area lies the only good hotel in the region, Hotel Vermion, with its own park and river. Thomas and I once planned an international youth conference here, but due to the "Greek art of getting organisational things wrong", this never materialised. Frankly speaking, Greeks' talents for arts and philosophy are much better developed than their business skills.

From Naoussa you can drive all the way up to Mount Vermion, one of the very rare ski resorts in Greece. At 2100m / 7000ft, it has snow well into the middle of March.

~ VERGINA

The Archaeological Site of Vergina represents one of the younger and greater achievements of archaeology. Discovered in 1977 and excavated throughout the 1980s, it has brought to light the ancient city of Aigai, residence of the Macedonian kings. At the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC, this tiny town was the center of an empire which spanned from the Balkan in the west to India and today's Chinese border in the East.

There are two major excavation sites in and around Vergina: the burrial ground and the palace.

The first is comprised of three grave chambers. These include the tombs of King Philip and his wife, and a third unknown person. Fortunately they have left the original burrial mound intact, so you walk underground and get a real idea of what the tombs once looked like. There are beautiful original paintings on the walls and some artifacts on exhibit, although the most important ones have been taken to the Archaeological Museum in Saloniki.

On a plateau one mile outside Vergina lies the Palace which was built in Doric style. Until its discovery it had to shoulder the mass of a hill which had build up on its top, so none of the original buildings could be saved during the excavation. However, the layout still shows well the central court, state rooms, apartments, and cult areas.

Archaeologists are still busy in Vergina. They hope to find the tomb of Alexander the Great, although it remains unclear if his dead body was ever returned to his homeland Macedonia. Alexander died on June 10th, 323 BC, much too young at the age of 33. The truth about his death is covered up by legends, ranging from a mere illness, malaria, to poisoning.

Copyright 2001 by Hansjörg Gebel, Witten, Germany
 

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