Difference between revisions of "Lesvos"
Revision as of 22:09, 18 July 2010
It is a birthplace of numerous poets and writers since the Greek antiquity till the recent years; the island of Lesbos is still inspiring, through this cultural heritage and its natural beauties of landscape contrasts, an easygoing lifestyle, expressed by its people as a familiarity towards all its visitors.
Eventhough they inaccurately say it is due to the erotic element in some poems by the famous Sappho', instead of Lesbos (Λέσβος) it is popular to refer to the island by the name of its capital town of Mytilene (Μυτιλήνη). Spellings of Lesvos and Mitilini are also widespread transliterations, reflecting the actual Greek pronunciations.
Of all the islands of Greece, Lesbos is only preceded in area by Crete (South) and Evvia (Centre). However, in terms of administration, the prefecture of Lesvos comprises of three major islands, Lesbos, Lemnos at the northwest, and the tiny Agios Efstratios, located in the middle between the first two islands.
Geograhically, Lesbos includes two seawater gulfs, with narrow openings both to the south, that elongate the coastline and shaping the island characteristically like a fig tree or plane tree leaf, as described by the native nobelist poet Odysseas Elytis.
Towns and Villages
The administrative and natural capital of Lesvos is Mytilene (Μυτιλήνη), at the east end.
The Ancient Greek poet Sappho, whose erotic poems gave rise to the word lesbian, was born in Eressos (Ερεσός) in the South-Western part of Lesvos.
Greek is most common but many people, especially younger ones, know English as a second Language.
The island is served by Odysseas Elytis (Οδυσσέας Ελύτης) airport, named for the 20th century Greek poet of the same name, which is located in the far South-East of the island, around 8km South of Mytilene. Flights run regularly to/from Athens, Thessaloniki, Chios and Lemnos. Internationally, the island is a popular holiday destination so is served by regular charter flights.
The island is also connected with the mainland and other islands by ship. Many major companies offer routes between Lesbos and Athens. The main shipping company is NEL Lines. Third class tickets (No bed) is about 42 Euros return from Athens. First class with a bed and tv cost 120 Euros. I suggest not travelling third class as the bathrooms are disgusting! The trip is 11-13 hours depending on which ship you board. There are four, Agios Rafael is the slowest and Mitilini is the fastes taking 11 hours. It is a tiresome journey, so it would be better to try book on ships that depart late in the afternoon and travel by night, arriving at their destination a couple of hours after dawn. You won't miss any scenery, since the ship crosses the Aegean Sea and for hours you would only be viewing endless water.
Jale Tur maintains a year-round ferry service between Mytilene and Ayvalık, Turkey, a city opposite Mytilene on the Aegean coast. During high season there are boats every day; outside season a few times a week (weather permitting). The crossing takes about 90 minutes. The ferry does take cars, but is fairly small. Advance reservation is recommended. Contact: Jale Tur, Atatürk Caddesi, Güzide Apt. No:5, Ayvalık, Turkey / Tzeims Aristarchou Street 1 (around the corner from Kountouriotou), Mytilene, Lesvos, Greece (both in Ayvalık and in Mytilene directly opposite the entrance/exit of the immigration/customs building on the waterfront), ☎ +90 266 331 31 70 / +30 22510 41400 (email@example.com, fax: +90 266 331 41 30 / +30 22510 41402), . € 40 p.p. one way, € 50 return trip; compact car € 70. During high season several other companies also maintain ferry services between Mytilene and Ayvalık.
Local buses run all around the main roads; tickets are 1 Euro each for a single trip. You can buy tickets over the counter at local coffee shops or small deli shops. The major bus stop and information station is located at Mitilini.
Taxis are cheap, and most use the meter. They do drive like crazy though. Taxis based in Mitilini are yellow and most are turbo Opels. Taxis not based in Mitilini are grey-coloured and rarely use the meter. The latter taxis use mostly fixed fares for trips connecting various locations outside Mitilini, with an average cost of around 1 Euro per Km.
A good way to see the island is to rent a car. A local, good quality and affordable car rental place, Auto Moto, can be found at the airport, and many more car rental places at and around Kountouriotou Street at Mitilini's harbour front. Recommended if you are a confident driver! The locals drive pretty fast, but usually obey the traffic rules. The roads are generally quite good, and even the mountain roads not too challenging.
The island offers nice hiking routes between the villages. The hiking maps are available in tourist offices.
The island offers a variety of sea-food with reasonable prices.
Also the sweets of the island and the local spirit "Ouzo" are quite an experience.
Coffee is the most available drink on the island, even more than water. Prices start from 1-5 Euros
Alcohol is sold at every Coffee shop in every village or bars in the capital Mitilini near the wharf where the ferry will drop you off. Almost all Major hotels serve Alcohol as well.Price : 3-12 Euros.
Lesbos is famous for its Ouzo.
Lesvos is quite well-known for the great number of its local, traditional products. As mentioned before, Lesvos is very famous for Ouzo, as it is considered one of the places it originates from. Also, Lesvos is quite famous for its pottery. Agiasos and Mandamados are the two villages that have the biggest tradition in ceramic art. Many ceramists live and work in these villages. Some of the ceramists there are Antonia Gavve( and Demetrios Hadjigiannis. Except for ceramics, woodcraft is also very developed in Lesvos.
Never take photos of Military compounds/bases.
The Greeks are quite friendly and traveling around would be very safe.