Greece /Macedonia /Chalkidiki | |||||
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Halkidiki is a peninsula, southeast of the city of Thessaloniki (Greece's second largest city). With its characteristic three peninsulas, Kassandra, Sithonia, Athos and it resembles a trident piercing the Aegean. Sunny, golden sandy beaches, deep and picturesque gulfs, traditional villages and modern tourist resorts, small islands and sheltered bays, pine-clad hills descending to the sea, Mediterranean climate and magnificent natural beauty compose the picture of today's Halkidiki. The capital of Halkidiki is Poligiros, located in the center of Halkidiki (69 km from Thessaloniki). Kassandra, the westernmost prong of Halkidiki, being the closest to Thessaloniki, is the most popular and populated of the three peninsulas. Its white beaches and rocky, pine-studded promontories were the first to attract visitors, both Greeks and foreigners. Kassandra is the most domesticated of the three prongs. Its plains are golden with cultivated fields; its rolling hills blessed with lush vegetation and serene pine forests. Sithonia is the second peninsula of Halkidiki. The rugged, exciting landscape of this middle prong appeals to nature lovers and holiday makers. The coastline is attractively varied - a succession of fishermen's hamlets, picturesque little harbors, deserted beaches of all sizes surrounded by trees and bushes. Sithonia is a symphony in blue and green; names do not exist for all the shades and hues of vegetation, sea and sky you'll find here. Mount Athos (Agion Oros) is the last prong and the most beautiful of all. Civilization has not intruded into the Holly Mountain, which is inhabited solely by monks. Rising majestically out of the sea to a height of 2,033 m, Athos is covered with virgin forests; its physical beauty is almost overwhelming. The magnificent peninsula has been the sole province of men dedicated to the work ship of God and the Virgin for well over a thousand years. In 885, the Byzantine emperor Basil I, proclaimed it the exclusive domain of monks and hermits. |
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