MARATHONAS
A municipality in the Prefecture of Attica with a unique historical, athletic
and cultural heritage, situated northeast of Athens. It has an area of
96,000,000 sq.m. and a population of 10,000. It is an agricultural district
that has started to develop touristically, and in the Olympic Games of
2004 it will host two Olympic contests: the Marathon Footrace and the Rowing.
Today it comprises the communities of Marathon, Paralia, Kato Souli, Ano
Souli, Kaletzi, Vrana and Avra. It is world famous
for the Battle of Marathon,
which took place in 490 BC between the Greeks and the Persians, and also
for instituting the Marathon Race as an Olympic event at the time of the
revival of the Olympic Games in 1896.
The race was established in connection with the Battle of Marathon in memory
of the hoplite who carried the news of the victory to Athens and then dropped
dead.
The monuments dominating the area are the Tomb of the Athenians and the
Starting Line of the Marathon Race, the first of them historical, and the
second an athletic homage.
In addition to these two unique monuments, there are several other archaeological
areas which form part of the cultural tradition of the district: the Archaeological
Museum at Vrana, with the Tomb of the Plataeans, the Middle Helladic Cemetery
and the Mycenaean Tholos Tomb.
At Tsepi there is an
Early Helladic Cemetery and at Brexiza the ruins of two large ancient buildings
of the 2nd c. AD: one an Egyptian Sanctuary and the other a bath, a bathing
establishment. There are a Medieval Tower at Oinoe, the Cave of Pan and
the Pythio. The district also possesses exceptional beauty spots: the splendid
beach which extends from Schinia to the boundary of the Municipality of
Nea Makri, the Schinia National Park, which has recently been established
and takes in the pine forest, the wetland and the Rowing Centre, Marathon
Lake, the country chapels and the fine route along the Charadros river
from the Lake to the village of Marathona.
For your enjoyment there are numerous fish restaurants along the shore
and taverns in the villages.
PIRAEUS
Greece's central harbour, the heart of the country's shipping and economy.
Its gems: the Municipal Theatre, the Long Walls, the scheduled buildings,
monuments and picturesque harbours of Zea and Mikrolimano.
A city celebrated a thousand times in song, animated day and night, where
the ships' sirens blend with the roar of traffic and people.
SALAMINA ISL.
The island of the historic naval battle, homeland of Euripides, with
important archaeological sites and monasteries.
AEGINA ISL.
Close to Piraeus, it lends itself for vacations, having adequate hotel
resources, archaeological sites, churches and picturesque fishing villages.
The visitor should visit the famous monastery of Saint Nektarios, which
draws thousands of faithful.
Next to Aegina lies the island of Angistri with its spotless beaches. POROS ISL.
An island with special nobility and natural beauty. A strange picture
made up of the adjacent Peloponnesian coast of Galatas, the Lemon Grove
on the other side, the Dockyard (Neorio) and the Monastery.
METHANA
This picturesque peninsula jutting out from the Peloponnese, with its
famous curative baths and volcano unknown to many, draws crowds of visitors.
HYDRA ISL.
The cosmopolitan island with the long tradition and brilliant history,
which ties in wonderfully with today's tourist picture, and which has
embraced culture but kept at a distance horrible things like motorcars
and exhaust fumes.
SPETSES ISL.
The island of Bouboulina and Matrozos, which played a decisive part in
the great nautical history of Greece, and which is now the island with
tradition in tourism and
rich night-life.
KYTHERA ISL.
The island where Aphrodite lives on
in Kytheran legend, with charming villages, greenery, flat sandy beaches
and small coves. Here the Ionian, Myrtonian and Cretan seas meet. It
is an ideal place for vacations.
The verdant island
of Kythera lies between
the southern tip of the Peloponnese and the north-western end
of Crete. It is ringed by wide sandy beaches and clean seas,
while the interior justifiably impresses with traditional villages,
castles, monasteries, and churches.
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