On the way to about. Thassos and Alistrati cave
I took a chance on a bus tour. Departure of the bus from Odessa. Having passed Moldova in 40 minutes, Romania 350 km, Bulgaria 500 km, we arrived in mainland Greece, Central Macedonia in the ancient Byzantine city of Serres. It was Sunday, all the tables of numerous cafes on the streets were occupied. Some sort of confusion. Greeks are not hasty people, they sit, communicate, drink water, coffee, beer. And such gatherings stretch for the whole day. I sat down in an empty seat and ordered a 300 ml beer for 3 euros. They brought some chips that were not pleasant, then someone brought a glass of water with ice (they take everything with water). Drinking beer with water is not my style. Well, what else to sit? There was no desire to order another beer, which was "nothing". And we went with my neighbor on the bus around the city. Fountains near some event being prepared with tables. Photo rating 0 We came across a tavern, ordered pitogiros (snack - flatbread, rolled up in a bag, with meat, fried potatoes, onions, herbs and vegetables + sauces). There were no greens, there were two sauces. One of a suspicious color, they did not risk it, they took it only with ketchup. It costs 2.7 euros. They brought a carafe of water, very handy. Without water, it would be impossible to eat everything, but I wanted to, because it was delicious, the meat was thinly cut and in large quantities. Having mastered the pitogiros, the satisfied ones went on, sat on the boulevard, looked at the Greeks. Many slender and handsome (men). After a long bus ride from 9:00 to 14:00. the next day, tired a little and went to the hotel. Tomorrow to the cave of Alistrati or to the canyon of the river Angiti. This is in one place, but due to the time limit, someone goes to the cave, someone to the canyon at will. Arriving at the village Alistrati, located in an amphitheater in a mountainous area on the slopes of Mount Menikio, approached the entrance to the cave. Another group was still in the cave and it was 20 minutes before our visit. Hopping I reached the canyon of the river. Angiti, quickly photographed and back. Photo rating 0 The canyon, with the Angiti River flowing through it, is directly related to the emergence of a cave (a split in the earth's crust). Even rafting on Angiti is offered. On the way to the canyon, a piece of iron passes, it turns out that a small train with 50 seats runs, walking and educational excursions, there are even rock paintings. On the hill of St. Constantine has a park with an observation deck. The park has a zoo with ostriches, llamas, deer, peacocks and pheasants. But alas, we were not given time for all this. Why I don't like group trips. There is a cafeteria in front of the entrance to the cave, and of course, the sale of everything. So, on to the cave. The guide speaks Greek and our guide translates. The cave was discovered by locals on top of the mountain in 1988. Since 1998 The cave has been opened to the public. The length of the cave is 3 km, the area is 25000 sq. m. The cave is located at the bottom of an underground lake, later (it seems as a result of certain actions) the lake dried up. The cave was formed about 3 million years ago. Karst formations, blinding white stalactites up to 18 meters high and stalagmites up to 15 meters long are a unique sight. The photos are blurred because they hissed at me "stop taking pictures, do not disgrace our group". So I apologize for such photos, but they still convey the atmosphere of this cave. It is grandiose in height, very ancient in its formations. I compare with the New Athos cave in Abkhazia. There we were transported in trolleys along the railway for quite a long time. It is longer in length, much less in height, but it is "fresh" and beautiful in its own way precisely with freshness. Alistrati Cave is the largest in Europe, the guide said so.
