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3 Unusual and Unique Destinations in Greece
Greece is full of history, beautiful landscapes, beaches and cities. However, this European country also has a stranger side, as we can see in the following unique places to visit in Greece. 1. Tourlitis Lighthouse, Andros, GreeceLooking at images of this fascinating lighthouse, it makes you wonder how they managed to build it! The lighthouse is perched on a narrow spire of rock and looks like something a wizard would choose as his home.
The Tourlitis Lighthouse stands off the coast of Andros and was first built in 1897. It turns out the stone column they chose to construct the lighthouse has been shaped by years of natural erosion. However, the original lighthouse didn’t last too long and saw its end in World War II. For a while, no one bothered to rebuild the lighthouse, but finally in the 1990s, an oil tycoon replaced the iconic building, dedicating it to his daughter. As the lighthouse isn’t easy to reach, it eventually became the first automated lighthouse in Greece and while you can’t actually visit, it is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the area and is definitely photogenic! 2. The Monasteries of MeteoraStaying with mind-boggling construction works, we now head to Meteora near to Thessaly in Greece. Here the Orthodox Church built a series of awe-inspiring monasteries, perched on top of several gigantic sandstone pillars. The word “Meteora” translates to “suspended rocks” or “suspended in the air,” an appropriate description of these marvels, built on top of the weather eroded sandstone rock towers.
It turns out that during the Ottoman conquest in the area in 1453, Orthodox monks had to head to remote locations for safety. This made Meteora the perfect place for a little seclusion, with only a series of rope ladders to climb up. Nowadays the monasteries can be accessed via a series of steps, carved into the stone. The most popular is Great Meteora, but Roussanou, pictured above, is in an excellent position for taking great photos of the Metamorfosis Church and the Varlaam Monastery, pictured below.
Climbing up to these remarkable monasteries makes for the ideal selfies from your holiday in Greece to post on social media. Your friends will think you have headed somewhere truly magical, which is, of course, true! 3. The Prehistoric Village of Akrotiri, SantoriniAkrotiri is a little older than the previous two sites, as it was built by the Minoans on the island of Santorini. What used to be a bustlng Minoan town is very well-preserved, likely due to the eruption of the volcano on which the town stood in the second millennium BC. Like Pompeii in Italy, the town was covered by volcanic matter from Thera, burying the buildings and all their contents.
Unlike Pompeii, however, no bodies were found, so the residents must have had enough notice to flee to safety. The only valuable item found on the site was a small gold statue, so they must have had time to collect their valuables before leaving. The
Minoan civilization lived in Crete and the surrounding islands from around
3600-1400 BC. Experts believe the town was highly sophisticated for its
time, with multi-storey buildings, elaborate draining systems and even
indoor toilets. This has led historians and scholars to believe Akrotiri
could have served as inspiration for Plato to write of the city of Atlantis.
He had written of a “great and wonderful empire” that was destroyed in
one day by violent earthquakes and floods. This is easy to believe, when
looking at this remarkable
fresco found in Akrotiri.
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Latest update: August 27, 2019
