[BACK TO KEA]

Kea

Kea (Tzia) is very close to Athens and offers relaxing vacations and pristine beaches. The picture of the island that remains is of little valleys with vineyards and orchards between mountainous masses, leading to idyllic coves. One and two storehouses with tiled roofs, stone-paved alleyways, chapels, windmills, and monasteries, the most important of which is the Kastriani monastery.

Kea, also called Tzia, has an area of about 121 square kilometers and contains 86 kilometers of beaches. Easily accessible from Athens, Kea offers those who are seeking a restful holiday, clean un-crowded beaches at Pisses, Korissia, Koundouros, Otzia bay and Poles bay. Here one can enjoy delicious fresh fish at picturesque little taverns.

The poet Vacchylides, was born in Ioulis (500 B.C). He was the lyric poet who has sung peace, love and life. The great Sophist Prodikus, became a big tutor in Athens (among his students were Sokrates, Euripides, Isokrates, Thucydides, Xenophon and so on. It was in Kea that the politician Thiramenes, the famous medical doctor Erasistratos, Aristides the law-giver and others have started their career.

In the district of Kalamos, the mineral Miltos (red ochre) was mined. It was used as a remedy as well as a tint for writing and painting, and was exported exclusively to Athens.

The style of the island today in mostly Cycladic but has kept some differences including the style of houses, using tiled roofs instead of the mainly cycladic white washed tower tops. It also has more than 200 churches, some of which, such as Agía Anna, Episkopí and Agio Panteleímon are Byzantine monuments. A nice museum is in Hóra and a few minutes walk from Hóra, one can see a formation of earth in the shape of a 9 meter long Lion, called Liontas by the locals.

The main town on the island, built on the side of a hill, full of cobbled streets, churches and white houses. In ancient times, here was the town of Ioulís, ruins of which are found today. The main temple was dedicated to God Apollo and was built at the top of the hill. In the castle there are many frescos, columns, bases of columns and other objects. Hora -Ioulida or Ioulis, has maintained its Cycladic idiom intact. Built in the shape of an amphitheater (on the side of a mountain), it presents the visitor with an impressive vista of two-story houses and tiled roofs, steep cobbled alleyways and splendid churches with elaborately carved wooden icon screens. It is a picturesque village, with a very interesting archaeological museum. The inhabitants call it Chora (Hora) but its correct name is Ioulis - the one used at its flourish, during historical times.

At the highest point of the village, on the site of the ancient acropolis, is a quarter known as Kastro, which commands a breathtaking view of the nearby islands off the coast of Attica. Not far from here is the famous "Lion of Kea" (6th century BC), hewn out of the slate. 5 km away from Ioulis lays Pyrgos (tower) of Agia Marina, an important fortification work, one of the most important monuments of the island. Next is Kampos of Pisses, where the ancient town Poiessa was sited, with an excellent sandy beach.

To the left of Ioulis, the road leds to the typical countryside of Kea: Parameria, Ellinica, Katomeria, Havouna. The peaceful landscape is full of oaks, whitewashed chapels and lonely farms, built according to the typical architecture of Kea.

On the western side of the island is Agios Nikolaos bay, and deep within it, is the port of Korissia, which is considered to be one of the safest natural harbors in the Mediterranean. Korissia is the port of Kea, occasionally called "Livadi" by the locals. It is 5.5 km from Ioulis and the houses are built around a bay, on a small plain. Korissia is built on the site of the ancient town of Korissia. Excavations in the area brought to light one of the most significant sculptures of the Archaic Years, the "Kouros of Kea", now exhibited in the Archaeological Museum in Athens. On the hill of Agios Savas, one can see the ruins of the walls and towers where the altars of Apollo, Venus and Neptune once stood.

The Archaeological Museum in Hora contains interesting finds dating from the Cycladic period. The interior of the island is dotted with miniature chapels, windmills and monasteries, including that of Our Lady Kastriani, Kea's patron saint.

 

<click to go back>