All places have a face. The face of Thasos is like that of an old friend. Cool like its squares, sweet like the figs and walnuts drying in jars on the windowsills of houses, familiar like the smells wafting from village houses, and expressive like its holidaymakers. Thasos, then, is reminiscent of an old friend, awakening familiar and accessible emotions.

A pine-covered rock that escaped from the mainland, and the opposite estuary of Nestos sent it sailing into the sea. A precious stone, rather, because of its underground and above-ground riches. This is what Thassos looks like from above, breathing in the air of the Aegean. The simplicity and beauty of its Macedonian soul remain alive to this day. But one must persevere, one must want to discover. With this baggage, we began this journey.

At the port of Keramoti we are caught at noon. In the waning days of summer, the middays are getting hotter and hotter. The ship waits docked at the dock before it starts its regular route to the island again. For a moment, the ship’s slats creak and the propeller begins to struggle with the water. Passengers walk on deck, looking out to sea and anticipating the moments of unforgettable moments that are approaching. The sun and the melemite eagerly envelop us.

A mad flock of seagulls gather around the ship, looking for their prey. The generous hands of the passengers, young and old, invite them within reach. Offshore we pass Thasopoula, a stony and uninhabited islet, one of the many that surround the coast of Thassos. The sunlit city of Limenas is growing larger and larger, and everyone’s eyes anxiously search the cove of the bay. Shortly afterwards, the friendly company of seagulls escort us away to the moorland of Limenas.

I’m looking at the clock. About half an hour! So close to the northern states and far from the organized tourist interests of the capital. But even so, few islands manage to keep their island character intact. With a bow for these unadulterated places we set off for the traditional mountain settlements of Thassos and the southern coastal villages. First waiting for us is the village of Kazaviti, from where we will make our excursions.

Kazaviti

The Thassians founded their mountainous settlements, such as Kazaviti, Maries, Theologos, Panagia, among the mountainsides, in places inaccessible or unseen from the sea, driven by the long activity of pirates. These settlements have kept in them to this day the colour of the past village life. On the coast they only preserved their “Skales”, the huts where mainly fishermen lived and moored their boats. In recent years, the inhabitants have begun to settle in the Skales again. This time to reap the benefits of tourism.

We follow the paved road, which circles like a necklace the mountainous interior of the island, the fertile valleys, the verdant gullies and the Ypsarion or Psario, the highest mountain peak, from where its abundant waters flow. On the staircase of Prinos we move inland and in about 7 km we reach Kazaviti.

Two settlements, the Small and the Large Kazaviti, are built opposite each other on two hillsides, which at their roots merge into a green valley. Nature is generous in this region. The hamlets climb up the mountainside, surrounded by lush vegetation of plane trees, chestnut trees and century-old holly trees.

Kazaviti is one of the most picturesque villages of Thassos. This is due to the fact that it was completely deserted 20-30 years ago and thus remained untouched by unfortunate architectural interventions. However, its traditional houses were lost to the ravages of time. Thanks to a German philhellene who bought and restored some of these remarkable buildings, the village was transformed into a lively settlement. In our time, all over the village, young people are restoring their grandfathers’ houses, using the same traditional techniques they were taught by their grandfathers.

Once we pass the small gorge with the water and the lush vegetation we reach the first houses of the large settlement and then the square. There three century-old plane trees cool the evening atmosphere. Its two taverns are full. On the colourful tablecloths half-eaten watermelons, meat on the spit and plenty of tsipouro. Specialities include lamb and beans. The pale light from the lamps of the square, the warm crowd of children playing, look like the setting of an old Greek film.

From the square start the narrow cobbled streets, leading up to the neighbourhoods. As we wander around the uphill cobbled streets, we come across fountains and stone two-storey houses, with wooden balconies, loggias and cajamas, and painted ceilings. The older ones are roofed with slate, the newer ones with tiles. The tall chimneys complete the charming picture. In some courtyards there are ovens and abandoned wine presses, where the shadows of the bustling human presence are still visible.

These wine presses once produced the famous Thassian wine, the most important of all the products of Thassos. This more than anything else glorified it and made it famous beyond the Greek states of that time. Throughout antiquity it was praised by the Athenians and the Roman emperors, rulers and kings, from Crete to the depths of Asia Minor. The western regions, and in particular Kazaviti, were among the most wine-producing areas. Today the vineyards have become scarce and wine production has been reduced. However, most of the island’s inhabitants maintain a vineyard that will provide them with the wine and tsipouro of the year.

In the evening in Kazaviti, the agar gives off a balsamic coolness. At sunset, the brilliant Aposperitis bids farewell to the departing day with its cold light. The blue and golden Aegean sunset spreads its colourful feast on the sea, the walls of the houses and the leaves of the trees. In the darkness of the summer midnight, the village lights distract the eye and lure the mind into fleeting thoughts of the satisfying first day in Thassos.

Panagia, Potamia, Potamia Bay

In a history book I came across I read that the legend about the name of Thassos says that when Zeus, transformed into a bull, stole Europe, her father Agenor ordered his four sons to search for her. He even commanded them not to return to their homeland unless they brought her with them. So Phoenicia headed south, Kilica went north, Cadmus wandered through Greece, and Thassos, after travelling to distant lands, reached the green Thassos, where he remained, giving it his name.

The next morning we continue our wanderings in the place that captured Thassos with its natural beauties. We hardly leave Kazaviti and its therapeutically cool climate, and head to the eastern side of the island and the village of Panagia, a traditional settlement of Thassos with a rich history, which was once the capital of the island.

On the way we make a stop at the beach of Makriammos one of the most famous beaches of Thassos, 3 km from Limenas. We were very disappointed when we were stopped at the entrance of the beach asking us to cut a ticket for the sea! Some luxury bungalows have taken over the management of the beach. This incident was enough to discourage us so we continued on our way.

The light is still white, cold when we reach the Virgin Mary. But we feel that the yellow tones won’t be long in pouring out everywhere. We gladly put on our cardigan to avenge the brutal approaching midday sun.

The village is lucky enough to be located on the island’s ring road, a fact that has kept it alive throughout the years. Its white houses embrace the church of Panagia, built with ancient stones. Many running waters mingle in the square, plane trees, walnut trees and chapels have kept intact the colour of the village, which has respected its past. The reason is the great devotion of its inhabitants to the traditions and customs of the place.

Anastasion, was the Byzantine name of the village. In 1832 the church of Panagia gave its name to it. Both the name of the village and the existence of 11 extra-churches indicate the strong religiousness of the inhabitants. On the eve of August 15, the women of Panagia prepare the kourbani, boiled meat with crushed wheat, and distribute it after the service in the church yard, while on the first day of Lent, Clean Monday, a traditional carnival is held and floats parade through the streets of the village.

Panagia is famous for its delicious roasts and for the spoon sweets, made by the women of the village, following the traditional recipes, which include local honey. In the square with its many waters and the huge plane tree that shades it, the smells waft from the barbecues and taverns. Two cheerful middle-aged ladies lounge on the adjacent bench. They came from Kavala on the same day. They tell me that thirty years ago there were only a few “cafés of the bad time” in the villages’ Skala. They are enjoying the breeze and look inquisitively at some tourist who has taken off his shoes and is dipping his feet in the water. “More foreigners enjoy them than our people,” says one to the other. Indeed, the distribution of people between the Skales and the mountain settlements is uneven.

After Panagia the road starts to descend again. Soon the tiled stone houses of Potamia appear. They descend the pine-covered slopes of the Ypsarios. Its high peaks hang over them. It is built at the roots of the mountain. The land around it is green. Potamia is the home of the sculptor Polygnotos Vagi and there is a museum of his works in the village. From Potamia the paths start, to the top of the mountain and to Theologos. But this will be a future project for us.

The bay of Potamia stretches at the feet of these two villages. The Golden Sand and Golden Beach are the beaches at the Skales of Panagia and Potamia respectively. They join together in an endless coastline, one of the most famous of Thassos, only a few kilometers away from the villages. In Thassos, it is fortunate for the indecisive or those with a few days to spare, that mountain and sea are so close to each other. The coast is very well organised with tourist accommodation, tavernas and a market. Also, Potamia beach is an attraction for visitors who prefer camping. Unfortunately, as is the case with all of Thassos’ beaches, the lack of measures and building restrictions takes away some of their charm.

We leave the happy bathers behind us and follow the paved road again. On our left the sea stretches out, hugged tightly by the deep green of the pine trees. Unfortunately, big fires hit Thassos in the 80s and burned more than 20,000 acres of its beautiful forest. However, the island is still regenerating, always forested. That is why Thassos is otherwise called the “Floating Forest“.

The coast forms small rocky coves. At a bend in the road the rocky island of Grambousa appears. We pass the area of Koinira and the popular Paradise Beach and continue to travel through a pine-clad landscape on the southeastern side of the island, heading towards Alyki.

Alyki

The peninsula of Alyki welcomes us to the southern coast of the island. This narrow neck of land, persistently flirting with the sea, is a natural beauty with pine trees, olive groves and ancient monuments. The two small picturesque beaches that encircle it are ideal for raking and diving off the rocks into the transparent sea. But Alyki is also ideal for diving into history, as the remains of ancient times make it a real museum. All of these things, then, together give the place an alien energy that sparks us from the first moment.

Alyki, whose name must have come from the word alki, meaning power, was the crossroads through which ancient Thassos communicated with the rest of the island. In its double natural harbour, ships found protection from the winds, arriving here to load the famous white Thassian marble, which was and still is held in high esteem.

The settlement of Alyki experienced periods of great prosperity in ancient times but more so in the Middle Ages. On the right edge of the eastern beach we can see the ruins of an ancient sanctuary of the 7^th century BC almost touching the wave. Going up the narrow path we find two early Christian churches built on the foundations of older shrines. These two basilicas must have been built in the second half of the 5^th century AD and were neglected when the settlement became deserted due to the abandonment of the quarries.

Following the path we will reach the centre of the archaean quarries, which lie at the southern end of the small peninsula. The marble quarrying site was worked systematically for more than a thousand years, until it ceased in the 6^th century A.D. Signs of mining activity are evident everywhere: quarried marbles, marble columns, square pieces of stone ready for extraction.

The steep cliffs of white and smooth marble, carved and polished by wind and water, scattered in the sea, reflect the sunlight in a glittering symphony.

On the west beach, swimming, tsipouro and coffee by the sea are a relief. The sea is transparent and at our feet the marble sand. In the taverns the octopus have been dripping their juices for a long time and the fish abundantly gushes its extortionate fragrances.

As we return to Kazaviti from the west side, the difficult passage of cars at the height of Potos makes us curious to make a stop. The once small fishing village, which was the Skala of Theologos, has been transformed into one of the island’s most famous and cosmopolitan resorts. Its shops are bustling with people and the streets are a veritable riot. Unlike those who were now starting their entertainment for us the night was leaving lazily, tired from the long day. The moon was at midnight and we made our way back.

Maries, Kastro, Theologos

Theologos was the old capital of Thassos. The village lies 220 meters above sea level and is about 60 km from Limenas. The community of Theologos now covers 2/5 of its total area. The settlements Potos, Astris, Thimonia, Alyki, Koinira belong to it and were built to serve mainly seasonal needs of its inhabitants.

Those who have a jeep can also reach Theologos from the forest roads, which pass through the mountain and connect the mountain villages. We took the asphalt road, which starts from the centre of Potos. On the way inland we cross a vast olive grove. The huge trunks of its olive trees count many summers.

In Thassos the cultivation of the olive tree is deeply rooted in time and is as intensive as in the past. Thassos is the largest olive-growing region in northern Greece after Chalkidiki. Almost all the plains and slopes close to the sea, which are well oriented, grow olives. Low olive trees, of the thrubolia variety, give good quality light-coloured oil and very tasty edible olives. In fact, the Thassians, when they mention the word “tree”, mean exclusively the oil tree, since 95% of the tree cultivation consists of olive trees.

Theologos is built in a simple and harsh landscape in the centre of Thassos. The head village, which dominates the southern part of the island, is clinging to the edge of the mountain range that separates the eastern part of Thassos from the southern part. You think its stone-built houses are a continuation of the grey stone mass, which seems to form well-crafted round steps that climb up to the top. To this day, many residents have remained in Theologos, enjoying its abundant clear waters and dense vegetation.

Of all the buildings of the village, the post-Byzantine churches, all of them roofed with greyish slate slabs, have a special place: the metropolis of Agios Dimitrios with the finely carved woodcarvings of the iconostasis, the despotic and the pulpit, made around 1806. For their creation the monk Ignatius Philotheitis gave 18 years of his life. The Panagia, built in 1870, and Agia Paraskevi with its frescoes, carved ceilings and tall bell tower.

As we walk through the alleys of the village, we see the old olive grove, which used to be full of life during the olive harvest, standing half-ruined.

The narrow streets that cross this mountainous settlement widen at some point and create small picturesque squares. Running waters, taverns and cafes under the shade of the broad-leaved mulberry trees, old houses painted with local blue stone and beautiful mansions with flowered courtyards and carpenter’s stalls decorate the streets of the village. On the opposite side of the valley where the village is built, the ruins of a Turkish settlement can be seen, whose inhabitants abandoned it after the revolution of 1821.

Of all the residences, the most outstanding is the renovated mansion of Hatzigeorgis Metaxas, who, apart from being the president of the island, was the instigator and leader of the revolution in Thassos in 1821. After the failure of the uprising, he exiled himself to Tinos and asked his compatriots to blame him for the uprising in order to escape the massacre by the Turks. The entrance of the building opens onto the street, while its loggia overlooks the mountain opposite, where, according to the locals, there was a Frankish tower.

The architecture of Thassos, although it is an Aegean island, is not related to that of the other Aegean islands. On the contrary, I think it is more related to the architecture of mainland Macedonia, without lacking its own elements. The entrance doors, for example, made of wood, are usually arched. The lintels are also arched. They are made of pine wood, which is abundant on the island. Also, the exterior of the buildings have shades of blue, while the cornices and roof overhangs were decorated with various shapes in colour combinations, where, in addition to blue, white, red and ochre yellow predominated.

Our next destination is Kastro, a remote small mountain settlement, almost abandoned now. The easiest access to it is from Limenaria. From there we enter Kalyvia and follow the dirt road that enters the interior of the village and leads to the picturesque mountain village.

Kastro is probably the oldest village of Thassos. According to an inscription found earlier in the settlement, the castle must have existed as early as 1434. It was inhabited without interruption until the end of the 19^th century, when its gradual abandonment began. Today its few inhabitants, who settle in Limenaria in winter, are engaged in animal husbandry.

The stone-built traditional houses are built at an altitude of about 600 meters, on a plateau formed by the mountain. In recent years, many of them have begun to be restored by their owners, who use them as resorts for a few days of the year. At the edge of the village, at the top of the mountain, stands the small white and picturesque chapel of the cemetery, surrounded by the walls of the medieval fortification and a little further down, seemingly hanging on the edge of the cliff, is the chapel. The view from here is simple. Below lies the plain of the island, beyond it the sea, and in the distance the silhouette of the peninsula of Athos can be seen.

We drink our coffee in the picturesque café of the small square with the majestic oak tree. Right next to us rises the church of Agios Athanasios, the patron saint of the inhabitants of the castle. The cafeteria owner, who also holds the key to the church, informs us that on the saint’s feast day the village relives its old glories. A lavish feast is set up, which begins on the eve of his feast day and lasts for three days.

Another memorable mountain settlement is Maries. The branch of the main road network starts from Skala of Maries and ends in Maries, after crossing a fertile valley. It is said to be named after two Marias, which were the only ones to survive after a pirate raid.

In a spacious courtyard rises the old church dedicated to Taxiarches and celebrates on November 8th. It is one of the oldest churches in Thassos and is decorated with many works of monks. In the past, the village had close relations with the opposite Mount Athos monasteries, which had several monasteries in it.

The old village awaits us, built in a green gorge. It is one of the oldest on the island. Its narrow streets and traditional houses run down the green mountainside. Alongside the grills and olive trees grow plane trees, walnut and chestnut trees. The village square is small and welcoming. For a while we enjoy its coolness.

From Maries a dirt road continues in the interior of the island. Colourful beehives are scattered by the dozens along the roadsides in the interior of the island, under the dense pine trees or in the meadows and small clearings. The many pine trees and wildflowers have always provided food for hundreds of beehives, which were and still are reared by the Thassians. The honey they make is blond and fragrant.

The road that follows one side of the valley and heads towards Gena, meets the artificial pond with pine trees, willows and reed fields. Behind it, one pedestal follows the other. After the first one, the climb becomes more difficult but worth the effort. Small waterfalls spill into the natural pools. Landscape reminiscent of the neighbouring Samothrace.

In the mountainous settlements of Thassos, an otherworldly peace emerges from everything, which deeply imbues the human soul. You feel that you are far from the turbulence of the world, the fever of the century. That you rediscover in the serenity and primitive nature of Aegean nature the calm, the humility, the goodness, which we uncritically squander in the war of urban life.

The Mines of Limenaria, the Monastery of Archangelos, the Giola and the capes, the sea caves and the beaches.

The next day a pleasant surprise awaited us. We happened to meet the beloved president of the cultural club of Kastro, Kosta Vlastaris, who offered to guide us from the sea to the southern coast of Thassos. A route that he himself has been doing since childhood.

We meet him at the port of Limenaria, where his boat is moored. From there we will move east. As soon as we open up to the sea, the peaceful bay of Limenaria with its brightly coloured township will see us off. Limenaria, which today has joined the settlement of Kalyvia, is the largest village of Thassos and carries on its back a great mining past. The headquarters of the mining company was the so-called Palataki by the locals, an impressive structure that dominates the pine-clad hill on the eastern side of the picturesque town.

Our boat lurches rhythmically in the restless wave that takes on flashes of dull gold. The Mining Beach appears first. It stretches blond under the galleries where the German company Speidel began mining the iron ore available on the island in 1903. The mining facilities that today stand mute and abandoned and the accumulated reddish-black solidified iron dust create an unusual but very charming backdrop.

The boat moves on, panting on the choppy sea. Behind us, the sea rises and the sound of its splashing can be heard. We pass Pefkari, one of the first tourist destinations in Thassos, its neighbour Poto and sandy beaches, some quiet and some busy.

At the cape of Agios Antonios the waters look like a gem in the elegant hand of a queen. On its reddish rocks the seagulls bathe in the brilliance of the Mediterranean sun and seem undistracted by our probing presence. Kostas tells us that the great fire of ’85 had reached here, so his young trees are still fresh green.

On the bright horizon of the sea, the bulk of a nearby island, Panagia, and the ridges of Agio Oros can be seen. The breeze smells of thyme and resin as we pass the rocky shores. Now and then we stop and notice the sun beating down on our heads.

In the cape of Salonikios we find the sea cave, the “Kalyva of Maranos”, which took its name from a fisherman who used to put his nets in this place. We enter the sea cave by feel. At one point the light slips in and bathes it, illuminating small greenish buds in the water. The absolute shade gives way to absolute light and the dusky colours to glowing ones.

We sail towards Astrida, a large area full of farms, named for its magnificent xastres. In this area the rocks form a round natural pool, which locals call “Giola“. On the rocks, in the middle of nowhere, tourists like hippies lie down and dive into its holographic waters, just inches from the deep blue sea. On the seabed you can see fallen marble blocks, cut from the surface of the rocks, where in ancient times there was a quarry. Giola can also be reached by a short hike starting from the hotel “Aeria” following the dirt road and then the downhill path through the olive trees towards the coast.

Small and large sea caves in the steep, almost vertical cliffs, succeed one another. Suddenly the nunnery of Archangelos Michael, the patron saint of the island, appears in front of us, a mere eagle’s nest. It seems to hang from the steep cliffs in the vast sea, ready to be crushed.

At the beach Arsanas just below the Monastery we take a dive. The sea, rising all the way, has exhausted my stomach and I wait on the beach while Kostas and our photographer continue on to show him the waters at the beautiful beach of Thymonia. There I think about the boat back. That evening it was, he says, cloudy and ashy – as all harbours are on the day of departure and the peaceful ash-coloured bay was lost in the distance. Between us the sea stretched wider and wider, adorned with the line of white foam that marked our way, and my sorrow was not spoken.

Sources:

-Thassos Kavala, Regina Mosteraki, Adam editions, Athens.

-History of Thassos, Sotiris Gerakoudis, Niragos Publications, Astris Thassos.

-The Limenaria of Kostas Lovulou, George Avgoustidis, University Studio Press, Thessaloniki.