Lesvos
That was my father's reaction twenty one years ago, seconds after I told him I was going to go to Lesvos with my friends. I have to say, that time was better than when I told him I was going to go to Mykonos (since I'm a guy, not a girl), but it was still pretty scary. See, parents have this twisted image in their heads when it comes to certain islands. Your son tells you he wants to go to Mykonos, you automatically wonder if he's gay. Your son tells you he wants to go to Lesvos with his friends, you automatically wonder which one of his girl friends is a lesbian. It's sad and it's stupid, but it's the way it works sometimes. Thankfully, I managed to stay away from these stereotypes and I won't pass them on to my son.
So, is Lesvos anything more than a Mecca for gay women? Well, I'm no expert, but when you hear that it was known as the "Garden of the Aegean" to the Ottomans, you tend to guess. yes. Yes, Lesvos is a lot more. Lesvos is a mother to beauty, to art (with the excellent example of Sappho, but let's leave this for later), to greenery. It's also known as the Red Island for its politics. That has to mean something, right?
So I finally convinced my parents to let me go. Well, "convinced" is a strong word, really. It didn't take much - I just promised I'd be good. So,I took Leela, Hope, Chris and Michael and we left. Six hours later, we were there.
Lesvos Hotels
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So, what does Lesvos look like?
Lesvos and mostly Mytilini, its capital, has a revved-up, slightly gritty atmosphere. Lesvos has a beautiful and lush natural environment: thick southern forests and idyllic orchards, a variety of birds and plants, energizing hot-springs. Lesvos is a semi-traditional Greek Island, with lots of villages and archaeological or historical sites; tourism hasn't gotten to it yet, you see. Its people are honestly some of the sweetest and most com-plaisant people I've ever met.
Which places should I not miss in Lesvos?
Well, I'm tempted to start with the fossilized forest, but I think I'm going to start with the museums, because there are lots of them and I should really tell you about them. First of all, behind the ferry dock there is the two-wing, which exhibits Hellenistic mosaics. Then there's Teriade Museum that houses the collection of Stratis Eleftheriadis, a local who immigrated to Paris in the early 20th century, adopting the name "Teriade". There he became a publisher of avant-garde art and literature and the museum exhibits his life' s work. But my favorite museum is the Theofilos Museum. The Theofilos Museum contains over 60 paintings by locally-born Theofilos Hatzimihail,Greece's mostcele-brated naïvepainter.Hatzimihail executed creditable portraits of personalities he met on his travels, among others. Suffice to say, this museum is a must.
Now, I'll go back to the forest I mentioned, where you will also find the Natural History Museum that focuses on it. In Sigri, you see, is a 20 million year old petrified forest. Covering 37000 acres, it's the only one in Europe and even bigger than the famous one in Arizona. The trees were fossilized after being buried in volcanic ash and even though most of them are still buried below, it's definitely a place you should NOT miss. Then there are a couple of places that are gathered all together: the Museum of Traditional Arts and Crafts. The cathedral Ag. Athanasios, Ag. Therapon that was built over a temple of Apollo or perhaps even the school of Sappho, the Municipal Gardens (a green and shady oasis with a scattering of cafés) and the Municipal Theatre. All of these places are worth a visit, especially the museum and the theatre and the fact that they're all gathered in one place makes it so much easier, doesn't it?
Finally, there are two villages you should visit. The one is Plomari. Plomari, full of attractive houses that date from the 19th century, is the Ouzo capital of Lesvos, with five distilleries still in operation, the most famous being
Lesvos stands out for its architecture and especially its beautiful mansions that exist on the island, meaning towers created during the 17th century for purposes of safety from the pirates. These buildings really enchant the visitors with their grandeur and although they are a characteristic of Lesvos tradition some of them are left to the deterioration of time. Enter my page Lesvos Architecture - Lesbian Mansions to learn more about these architectural miracles.
Lesvos, with five distilleries still in operation, the most famous being The other one is the village of Mithymna or Molyvos, as the locals still call it. Mithymna is the most popular and prettiest town of Lesvos. Legend holds that Achilles besieged Mithymna with little success until the daughter of the king fell in love with him and opened the city gates, a kindness Achilles rewarded by having her slain for betraying her father. Mithymna is full of dark-grey stone houses with red-tiled roofs, while its agora is lined with boutiques and canopied with vines. There's also a small archaeological museum on the way up to the striking Genoese Castle.
Are there any archaeological or historical sites I should visit?
A few things come to mind, honestly. The first one is the Kastro. Surrounded by pine groves, this Byzantine foundation of Emperor Justinian that was built in the 6th century still impresses with its curtain walls. Many ramparts and towers were destroyed during the Ottoman siege of 1462, but it does include columns from the 600 BC Temple of Apollo hastily crammed in between the stones like a collage. Now, want a creepy fact about it? Justinian blinded every prisoner he sent there.
Another place that comes to mind is the Ionic Temple of Mesi. Built in the fourth or third century BC, it was dedicated to Aphrodite and its foundations and column drums still remain.
Then there's the Roman Aquaduct at the village of Moria, approximately 600 meters to the west of it, actually. The remains of this fantastic technical achievement of the first 3 centuries AD that rise up are quite impressive.
Finally, don't forget to visit the ruins of the Christian Temple of Chalinados, an early Christian basilica of Agios Georgios. The ruins were restored by professor Orlandos in 1937.
What about Lesvos' beaches?
There are all kinds of beaches in Lesvos, really. There are beaches busy with water sports and there are beaches that are deserted even in the summer. There are beaches ideal for the children and there are beaches that are ideal for jet-skiing or windsurfing. There is absolutely no way you won't find what you're looking for here. Skala Eressos is not only the best beach in Lesvos, but also one of the best in Greece. It's ideal for kids and the sunset is lovely to watch from there!
Kalloni and Petra are two of Lesvos' most beautiful beaches, also good for families with children. Petra is a big resort style beach with rental umbrellas, beach chairs, showers and changing stations, along with a line of restaurants. The beach at Baloutsas is usually totally empty, mainly because you can easily destroy your car getting there. But if you have a jeep, it's definitely worth your time. Other beaches worth your time are the usually empty beach of Tavari, the beach of Agios Ermoyennis (believe me, you will want to visit this beach, no matter how crowded it may be) and the beach of the village of Ana-xos.
What about food?
Let's start with Averof, on Pavlou Koundouriotou Street, at the port. Averof is one of the most popular restaurants in Lesvos and a perso-nal favorite, with delicious family-style cuisine. You can even make your own selection from the large pots!
To Kastro and o Ermis are two tavernas facing each other on Ermou Street. Their menu is similar, as well as the scenery (both have a terrace) so you'll have to iny-meeny-miney-moe your way to one of them. Really, they're both pretty good, with great dishes.
Eftalou Taverna is also one of the best in Lesvos, with delicious stuffed courgette flowers and lots of other delicacies. Finally, don't miss Faros at the end of Molyvos harbor. Excellent seafood.
What about nightlife?
Oh, nightlife is definitely a thing in Lesvos. Just like with the beaches, there's variety: Greek music clubs, piano bars, nightclubs. There's even a cinema and a summer theatre festival, if you're into that kind of thing.
Gatelousi is an amazing alfresco nightclub with a restaurant that runs from 10 pm to 5 am. Conga is an open-air bar and club by the waves. The Other Bar is a dancing bar in the harbor with Greek nights on Thursday. As for Magenta Club, it pumps out a club sandwich of sounds!
OK, how do I get to Lesvos?
Thankfully, Lesvos has an airport (with a lovely beach right across from it by the way, so if there are flight delays you know where to go wait), so getting there is easy. There are at least three flights daily from Athens to Lesvos and one daily from Thessaloniki.
By sea, there is at least one ferry daily to Piraeus (12 hours) and three weekly high-speed services (6 hours). There are also two weekly to Thessaloniki.
