Professional Documents
Culture Documents
I HIMARÅS
ÔÏÕÑÉÓÔÉÊÏÓ ÏÄÇÃÏÓ
×ÉÌÁÑÁÓ
TOURIST GUIDE
OF HIMARA
Dear Readers
Vasilis Bolanos
Mayor of Himara
04
SI DO TË MPRINI NË HIMARË ME MAKINË
Distancat kilometrike nga Himara (Spile)
ÐÙÓ ÈÁ ÖÔÁÓÅÔÅ ÓÔÇÍ ×ÉÌÁÑÁ ÌÅ ÁÕÔÏÊÉÍÇÔÏ
×éëéïìåôñéêÝò áðïóôÜóåéò áðü ×éìÜñá (ÓðÞëéá)
HOW TO REACH HIMARA WITH A CAR
ÁÑÔÁ
Distances in kilometers from Himara (Spilia)
ÁÕËÙÍÁ
ÔÅÐÅËÅÍÉ
ÏÑÉÊÏ
ÃÑÁÌÌÁÔÁ
ËÉ
ÁÐ
Ï
ÕÑ
ÉÁ
ÄÏÕÊÁÔÅÓ
ÁÊ
ÑÏ
ËOÃÁÑÁÓ
ÊÅ
ÑÁ
ION
ÕÍ
ÉÁ
ÐÁËÁÓÁ
IO ÄÑÕÌÁÄÅÓ
ÂÏÕÍÏ
ÐÕËÉÏÕÑÉ
×ÉÌÁÑÁ
Athina (via Kakavia) AèÞíá (ìÝóù ÊáêáâéÜò) 587 ÊÏÕÄÅÓÉ
Borsh Ìðüñóé 17
ÊÇÐÁÑÏ
Dhrimades (Dhermi) ÄñõìÜäåò 17 ÌÐÏÑÓÉ
ÁÑÃÕÑÏÊÁÓÔÑÏ
Jorgucati ÃåùñãïõôóÜôåò 84
ÐÉÊÅÑÍÉ
Himara (Kastro) ×éìÜñá (ÊÜóôñï) 3
Igoumenitsa Çãïõìåíßôóá 121 ËÏÕÊÏÂÏ
Ilias Çëßáò (ËéÜôåò) 12
Ioannina ÉùÜííéíá 155 ÁÃ. ÂÁÓÉËÇÓ ÄÅËÂÉÍÏ
Llogara ËïãáñÜò 36
Luêïvá Ëïýêïâï 32 ÖÏÉÍÉÊÉ
Nivica Íßâéôóá 41
Palasa ÐáëÜóá 20
Piqerni ÐéêÝñíé 25 ÁÃ. ÓÁÑÁÍÔÁ
Palermo ÐÜíïñìïò 7
Qeparo Êçðáñü 13
Sarandë ¢ãéïé ÓáñÜíôá 54
Shën Vasil ¢ãéïò Âáóßëçò 39
Tirana Ôßñáíá 275
Vlora Áõëþíá 73
ÂÏÕÈÑÙÔÏ 05
Vuno Âïýíï 8
VUNO
FEW The region of Himara, named after the county town of Himara
WORDS (Heimarra) on the shores of the Ionian Sea, historically commen-
ABOUT ces at the village of Nivitsa to the south and ends at the Logaras
HIMARA mountain ridge to the north. On the one hand lies the deep blue of
the Ionian Sea and a continuous series of peninsulas, capes and
bays, some of which, like Panormos, are closed and sheltered from
the wind, while others provide long and beautiful beaches; and on
the other side lies the mass of the Akrokeravnia mountain range,
with high peaks that include Tsika, Avgo, and Messimeri. This strip
of land between the mountain peaks and the sea is the beautiful
BORSH
and historic land of Himara, with its villages and their old, stone-
built houses, the Byzantine churches and monasteries, the castles
and other monuments, as well as the people of Heimarra, hospi-
table and proud, who have remained unbowed throughout history.
Let's take a look at the villages of Himara. First of all, the
county town of Himara, which includes the individual settle-
ments of Kastro (Castle); Old Himara (Palaia Himara) with its
monuments and its unique architecture; Spilia (Cave) on the
beach which is the modern economic and tourist hub; Potami
(the river) with its wonderful beach and its hotel rooms; even
Livadi (Meadow) with its wonderful sea; Zamari; Michaili;
Stefaneli etc
North of Himara the first village we encounter is
Vouno, a wonderful place with old stone houses, and
a wonderful beach at Gyali. Then there is the small
village of Liates (Elias) and close by is the wonderful
beach at Zypaea that leads to a magnificent and
steep canyon. After Liates, the road takes us to Dry-
mades, a large and particularly beautiful village,
with old churches, lovely houses and, crowning the
top of the hill, overlooking the village, the Monaste-
ry of Panagia (the Mother of Christ), further up in
26 DHRYMADHES the mountain there is an other monastery Stavrou or
Stavridi (the holy cross). The ravine of the river lies between the
two slopes on which Drymades are built, and at certain points the
river bed forms waterfalls. The beach at Drymades is called Giali-
skari and is perhaps the most beautiful stretch of AKROKERAVNIA
sand in the region.
After Drymades, to the north we come to the
final village, Palassa, the ancient town of Palae-
ste; then the road winds up the Akrokeravnia
Mountains along a breathtaking cliff edge, over-
looked by Tsika, the highest peak. Along the
mountain ridge, where the road starts to wind
down towards Avlona lies Logaras, and here the-
re are a number of taverns in this woody region.
North of Himara there are two mountain vil-
lages that cannot be reached on the sea route. In
order to get acquainted with these villages, we
have to take other roads that scrabble up the
Akrokeravnia Mountains.
Pyliouri is at the highest al-
titude, built like an eagle's
nest, with magnificent views
over the Ionian Sea. It lies
above the clouds and above
the circling eagles that are
common to the area. Its na-
me comes from being the Pyli
or Gateway to the mountains;
and its inhabitants have a
long history of being moun-
tain warriors who guarded
the mountain pass into Hi-
mara. The second village is Koudessi, located at a
lower altitude on the slopes of the Akrokeravnia
on an inland valley that heads southward.
We return to Himara and head south: after the
beach at Lamana we come across the closed bay
of Panormos. In the centre of the bay is a penin-
sula on which is Panormos Castle, which is still in
excellent condition, along with the little chapel
of Agios Nikolaos. We continue on and soon come JALISKARI
across the village of Kiparo. High on the hill Old Kiparo perches
precariously, a veritable museum of local architecture with
wonderful old houses and churches. New Kiparo next to the sea
offers a wonderful beach. This is the end of the Municipality of
Himara: the remaining villages we will come across historically 27
belonged to the county of Himara but now belong to the Prefe-
cture of Agioi Saranta, but we will include them on our tour,
wanting to show you all the hi-
storical region of Himara.
We continue, therefore, for
another four kilometres, before
we come to Borsi, which in anti-
quity was known as Maeandreia,
and during Byzantine years was
Sopoto. The castle at Sopoto is
located a little to the north of
QEPARO
the present-day village, on top
of a hill. This village has wonderful running waters, a lovely beach
and a number of taverns. It is also the only village in the area with
Muslim inhabitants. The inhabitants of all the other villages are
ILIAS
28
History
29
In the fifth century BC Chaonia took part in the Pelo-
ponnesian war on the side of the Spartans, as did all of Epirus with
the exception of Amvracia. The region set off on military
expedition under its lords Photios and Nicanor against the Acar-
nanians. The expedition was a failure and this marked the begin-
ning of the decline
BUTRINT - VUTHROTO
of Chaonia and the
rise of the Molos-
sias the dominant
power in the regi-
on.Later the Molo-
ssian King Neopto-
lemos would create
the confederation
of Epirotes, where
one of the three generals had to be a Chaon.
The Romans landed their forces and invaded Epirus. They
took terrible vengeance for the victories of King Pyrrus, destro-
ying most Epirote cities and selling many Epirotes as slaves.
Later Epirus would also bear the brunt of destruction from the
barbarian raids of the Goths, the Huns, the Ostrogoths and Slavs.
During the Byzantine era, Justinian renovated and fortified the
castle of Himara, making it the seat of a bishopric; however the
raids and destruction would continue as the area suffered the
depredations of the Saracens, Bulgarians, Crusaders, Serbs,
Albanians and Turks.
In 1403 Charles, King of Naples, landed on the beach of
Himara and pushed the Albanian-speaking people to the
north. Some years later the Himariotes, led by the
local lord Georgios Stressios, a personal friend of
Georgios Kastriotis, attempted to stop the invasion of
Epirus by the Ottoman Turks. After the fall of Krugia,
Himara remained the only free region in all of Epirus,
and was self-governed under the protection of the
Venetian Republic. In 1473 the people of Himara, under
Vlassis campaigned against the Turks and with Venetian
assistance took the fort of Sopoto (now Borsi) and reached
from Avlona (Valona) to Sagiada, but were betrayed by the
Venetians, who came to terms with the Turks and signed a
peace treaty. In 1481 the people of Himara rebelled against
Turkish rule. Led by Korkodilos Kladas and his son Skender-
bey Ioannis Kastriotis, and with assistance from the King
of Naples, they liberated the city. With Ioannis Kastriotis
as administrator the city managed to impose suzerainty
tax on the Turkish commandant of Valona. Himaran
30
20
10
KING PYRROS
independence would last ten years, after which the city would fall
to the army of Sultan Bayezid. The forced conversion to Islam of
the inland villages commenced. One of those converted to Islam,
from the village of Palassa would reach the rank of Pasha in
Valona under the name Liaz
Pasha. The attempt to impose
Islam became more general,
but the Himariotes resisted
desperately, finally achieving
a peace treaty that recogni-
sed Turkish sovereignty but
maintained exceptional pri-
vileges. Thirty-three Greek
villages of Himara created the
Autonomous Keravnian Com-
monwealth, that was self-governed, free from taxation or con-
scription, with a local justice system, and the right to bear arms
throughout Epirus, rights that Himara held for centuries.
Despite the privileges and the essential autonomy obtained
by Himara, throughout the Ottoman years the town continued to
struggle against the Turks: there was not a single revolt, war or
revolution in which Himara refused to take part.
During the seventeen seventies, Cosmas Aetolos came to
Himara, recommending that its inhabitants build schools rather
than so many churches. At the time Himara had a
great many churches, one for every saint. The
people of Himara heeded his counsel and built a
school that would become renowned as the
Akrokeravnian School of Himara. Near the school
they also built a large and impressive church to
the Agioi Pantes (All Saints), seeking to venerate
all the saints together. During that period Greek
schools were established in the villages of Vou-
no, Drymades, Kiparo, Pikerni, Agios Vasileios
and Lykouressi. Rich philanthropists from Himara
provided money to benefit the region and to
maintain the schools.
Then came the years when Ali Pasha ruled in Ioannina. Ali AKROKERAVNIAN SCHOOL
Pasha tried with all the means at his disposal to conquer Himara, OF HIMARA
drawing a noose ever tighter around the region, taking and
destroying the villages of Himara, exiling their inhabitants to
Salaora, near Arta, building the castle at Panormos, on the ruins
of an older castle and a monastery to control the Himariotes.
In 1821, when the Greek War of Independence broke out, Hi-
mariotes were among the first to rally to the flag of rebellion
31
throughout the land. Athanassios Himariotes was with Ypsi-
lantis in Moldavia, Spyros Spyromilios was at Valtos, at Messo-
longhi, at Phaleron, other famous fighters also made their na-
mes, including Gkiokas, Dimitriou, Harissis, Nestos, Zahos,
Dimas, Goretsis, Doukas.
On the 5 November 1912 Major Spyros Spyromilios
from Himara in charge of a force of Himaran volunte-
ers and Cretan gendarmes made a landing liberating
Himara. Over the following days he would liberate the
entire county.
On 9 February 1914 the people of Himara reacted
against the plans of the Great Powers to include the
town within the boundaries of the Albanian state, up
to 1921 Himara was successively autonomous, under
Greek Administration, Italian military occupation and
once more autonomous.
QEPARO During the 1940-1941 war between Greece and
Italy, important battles took place in the region around Himara.
On December 22, 1940 the Greek army entered Himara and the
citizens welcomed them with enthusiastic celebrations.
In 1945 the people of Himara refused to participate in the
plebiscite that would legalise the regime of Enver Hoxha. Many
locals were arrested. The man behind the movement, Andreas
Dimas was buried alive. The regime went on to shut down the
Greek school, the Akrokeravnia School and remove from Hima-
riotes all minority rights.
Sights Monuments
SOPOTO
PIRATES CAVE
34
Beaches
35
SI DO TE UDHETONI - ÐÙÓ ÈÁ ÔÁÎÉÄÅØÅÔÅ - HOW TO COME
36
RRUGA DETARE ÄÉÁ ÈÁËÁÓÓÇÓ BY SEA
37
KU DO TE PUSHONI - ÐÏÕ ÈÁ ÌÅÉÍÅÔÅ - ÁCCOMODATION
HOTELE - ÎÅÍÏÄÏ×ÅÉÁ - HOTELS
ALEXANDROS, 14 rooms,
DHRYMADHES (DHERMI)
Tel.+(0)682246805
HOTEL DHRYMADHES, 20 rooms,
DHRYMADHES (DHERMI)
Tel.+(0)692074000
BUNGALOWS DHRYMADHES, 30
rooms, DHRYMADHES (DHERMI)
Tel.+(0)692074000
DORIAN, 24 rooms, DHRYMADHES
(DHERMI) Tel.+(0)0692537337
38
DHOMA ME QYRA - ÄÙÌÁÔÉÁ êáé ÃÊÁÑÓÏÍÉÅÑÅÓ -
ROOMS and APARTMENTS
HIMARA - SPILIA XIMAÑÁ - ÓÐÇËÉÁ
Rooms Tel.
Nikos Bolanos 4 +(0)3932837
Alekos Dukos +(0)3932089
Fotos Goros 16 0030.6977733649
Nikos Goros +(0)3932202
Nikiforos Konomis 6 +(0)3932201
Vyron Konomis 5 +(0)692218728
Jorgos Lapas 11 +(0)3932921
Agelos Neranzis +(0)3932406
SPILIA - HIMARA Ilias Neranzis +(0)3932415
Paxinos Neranzis 5 +(0)3932405
Rolandos Rondos 4 0030.6944432936
Jorgos Tatos 11 +(0)3932890
Nestor Varfis 3 +(0)3932422
Petros Varfis 8 +(0)3932419
Thodoros Zotos +(0)3932922
HIMARA - LIVADHI XIMAÑÁ - ËÉÂÁÄÉ
JALISKARI Rooms Tel.
Ahilleas Bolanos Rooms
5 Tel.
Spyros Brigos 10 +(0)682268882
Vagelis Goros 8
Pyrros Gumas 4
Nikos Joshis 4
Pandelis Joshis 5
Klearhos Karos 8
Mihalis Kokavesis 3
Odhysseas Kokavesis 5
Simos Kokavesis 3
Vagelis Kutulas 10
Hristoforos Rondos 5 +(0)682268882
Polyhronis Rondos 8
39
Takis Tzavellas 5
HIMARA - MESUNI XIMAÑÁ - MÅÓÏÕÍÉ
Rooms Tel.
Napoleon Goros 5 0030.6977947338
ÊÁÓÔÑÏ ×ÉÌÁÑÁÓ
HIMARA - STEFANELI XIMAÑÁ - ÓÔÅÖÁÍÅËÉ
Rooms Tel.
Spyros Beleris 6 +(0)3932841
Haris Burbos 3 +(0)3932257
Haris Dhimojannis 10 +(0)3932766
Labros Gjicalis 8 +(0)3932650
Zahos Kokavesis 4 +(0)3932633
Panagjiotis Menikos 6 +(0)3932375
Kostas Lazaris 6 +(0)3932834
Kostas Matos 8
Miltos Matos 4
Vyron Matos 12 +(0)3932646
Haris Rondos 4
Stefos Rondos 6 +(0)3932227
Jorgos Tatos 12 +(0)3932890
Nikos Tatos 4 +(0)3932702
41
KU DO HANI - ÐÏÕ ÈÁ ÖÁÔÅ - RESTAURANTS and TAVERNS
HIMARA SPILIA ×ÉÌÁÑÁ - ÓÐÇËÉÁ
Apostolos Cinis +(0)3932423
Lefteris Gjergjis +(0)3932249
JONI Fotis Gjicalis +(0)682446832
IONIO (Benos Bros) +(0)3932263
Vyron Konomis +(0)3932726
PIAZZA (K.Kacelanos) +(0)3932733
Sotiris Rondos
Nestor Varfis +(0)3932422
BORSH ÌÐÏÑÓÉ
Hyto Lala +(0)692485384
Tajar Lala +(0)692397010
Zamir Lala
Ouivara Borsh (Fouat Matti) +(0)692071145
KAKOMEA ÊÁÊÏÌÁÉÁ
Jiorgos Ducis (0030) 6977.894388
Odysseas Ducis +(0)6822249253
JALI ÃÉÁËÉ
Alexandros Balas +(0)692071887
LLOGARA ËÏÃÁÑÁÓ
Albano .+(0)682040134
Apollonia +(0)682710601
Karavi Antonis Hamitis +(0)682802127
Sofoklis Kutelis +(0)682291265
PALASA ÐÁËÁÓÁ
Hotel Palasa
QEPARO ÊÇÐÁÑÏ
Antonis Thanasis 0030.6944704160
Stefanos Kokedhimas +(0)692050041
Christoforos Lekkas +(0)692313475
Minelaos Gjikas 0030.2108643253
47
Layout: ÉÄÅÁÔÏÍ +30 210 3302804