Northern capital of Greece
Hello, dear friends. I want to share with you my impressions of a trip to the northern capital of Greece - the city of Thessaloniki. I went on a sightseeing tour as a tourist, with my friends who came to northern Greece, Halkidiki for the first time. Thessaloniki is a special city, it is permeated with centuries of history and a variety of cultures and nationalities. Walking along it, you seem to be transported deep into the centuries. There is a sense of modernity and antiquity at the same time.
Thessaloniki greeted us with a bewitching landscape of the upper city (Anopoli). The tour itself started even earlier, on the road, when the escort was very informative and lively (I have a special professional interest in such things) told about upcoming plans and timing, and also talked about how to navigate the city so as not to get lost and see the main attractions during free time: the four main streets of the city, how to quickly find the archaeological museum.
At the observation deck of Anapoli - Kastro, our guide Panagiotis was waiting for us. His stories and manner of narration were also very lively, with a special charm, so there was definitely no need to be bored. He held a real rendezvous with the city for us.
After the fortifications of the old city, we went down by bus towards the sea, and our first stop there was the church of Demetrius of Thessalonica. This temple is the most important in Thessaloniki, and Demetrius is the patron saint of Thessaloniki, to whom its inhabitants show special honor and respect. The day of this saint (October 26) is one of the most important local holidays. In the temple, the guests of the excursion drew some water from the holy spring, and bought several icons in the church shop. Of course, to visit the temple it is better to be dressed according to the canon, not quite strictly, but not in a T-shirt and a short skirt, the weather was with a pleasant breeze, so everyone was more or less dressed in clothes that covered their shoulders and legs. After that, we went on foot to the ancient Roman agora, where we saw many archaeological architectural finds and building foundations.
We spent our free time (4 hours) with benefit, visited the Rotunda, a very unusual building with ancient, very beautiful mosaics, which in its history managed to visit an ancient religious building, and then a Byzantine temple and a mosque. Now it is open to the public after a long restoration. We also walked through the archaeological museum, leaving the museum of Byzantium next time. We walked through several shops on the main shopping street of Tsimiski, bought some gifts and accessories, drank coffee in a cafe on the waterfront overlooking the sea, and went to the main symbol of Thessaloniki - the White Tower, where there was a collection point. Four hours may not seem like enough for a walk, but if you plan well and focus on what you want to see, they are quite enough. This trip is still a sightseeing tour to get a general impression of the city and enjoy a walk around it.
When all the guests were gathered, we set off on our return journey, but we had another pleasant stop in the wine cellar with a good selection of wines from the wineries of northern Greece and beyond, as well as other traditional drinks and souvenirs.
We had a good impression of the trip, we learned a lot of new and useful information.
