| The reason
they are sterile is the fact that when they were bought from humans, their
mothers were killed and thus they didn’t have the necessary 2 to 5 years
of education needed for their survival in the wilderness.
The bear
is the only animal that cannot be adopted by another female bear after
the extinction of its physical mother so the bears are being taken care
of by members of the Arktouros organization.
After spending
half an hour with our guide watching the bears from afar, we went back
to the village of Nymphaion (the name comes from the mythical forest creatures
the Nymphs).
The following
morning we set off for Lakes Prespes at the very end of Greece,
the lakes are located on the borders of Albania and the former Yugoslavia.
The two lakes are the biggest in the whole of Greece and are considered
a natural park protected by the state and Natura 2000, a European environmental
treaty.
They are considered
as a very important natural environment where unique kinds of flora and
fauna grow. Our first stop was at the small village of Psarades (aka the
Fishermen), where each country’s borders are lost somewhere in the middle
of the Big Prespa lake. For a person living in a city such as Athens,
the surroundings where quite extraordinary for we had reached the very
end of our country at this very village! On one side we could see the steep
mountains covered still with snow and on the other the endless lake! Mesmerized
by the view we wondered for a while before leaving for another beauty in
the area called Aghios Achillios isle.
There’s a floating
bridge to connect the isle withland that took us about 15 minutes to cross.
When we set foot on the isle we were informed by the information boards
that this tiny land was a religious outlet ever since the Middle Ages and
that there are remains of churches scattered throughout the isle.
The most important
monument is the Basilika of Aghios Achillios built in the name of the Serbian
king Serghio during the 10th century AD. The remains of the church are
still enormous and the visitor can get an idea of its original proportions.
Getting back to the mainland we left for the town of Florina, the capital
of the county.
Florina is
much like Aspen, Colorado to give you a idea of the environment.
After an hour’s drive through the mountains again, we reached a picturesque
town that is remote but that can be reached by train or bus from the main
cities of Greece. Located in a valley inbetween the surrounding mountains
has kept Florina's characteristic architectural style and atmosphere alive;
this is one of the reasons why the world famous Greek film director Theodore
Aggelopoulos chose to film a motion picture here with the late Marchello
Mastroyianni. Florina is known for the red hot peppers it grows and the
delicious home made sweets with fruits and syrup that local pastry shops
make and sell. Having bought our provisions for home we again went back
to Kastoria for the evening and the Resurrection mass at midnight.
During Easter
Sunday we decided to go to the well known river Aliakmonas and especially
to the village of Nestorio where once a year a very popular river party
is held by the river banks with a great number of attendees from all over
Greece. The sight and sound of the water flowing down the river with the
power of its own, was inspiring to me. Rivers were considered deities of
nature by the Ancient Greeks and were worshiped as such. We spent much
time looking at the running water and observing the surroundings. When
my friends tried to put their feet in, their reaction was to freak out
because of the cold running water! The area nearby has beenb developed
for camping and during the river party, a 3 day rock festival is held with
many young and old people enjoying the concert.
Late in the
afternoon, we decided to visit the traditional village of Siatista in the
county of Kozani. The reason why we wanted to see this place was because
it resembles much of the architecture and character of Kastoria and it
is known to be a trade center for furs and merchandise from long ago. When
we reached Siatista we discovered that it had expanded and that a number
of traditional mansions are still standing, some of them quite obsolete
and some others in better condition. A number of public buildings and
churches were outstanding as well. What impressed me throughout my
visit to the above mentioned places was the fact that the people there
were extremely kind and sociable with visitors, greeting us on our way
and always there to provide us with directions when we needed assistance
on our way to sightseeing.
Last but not
least when we spent time in Kastoria we visited the Prehistoric Housing
Estates of Dispilio (a village four kms before Kastoria). The prehistoric
remains were discovered by archeologists at a spot near the lake back in
the 1930’s; at the time of their discovery the remains appeared as wooden
poles emerging from the water near the shores of the lake. Sixty years
later, an exhibition area was constructed where the remains were found,
showing how people during the Paleolithic age built their houses along
the lake, constructed their equipment out of natural resources and made
their living out of fishing, hunting and cultivating the land. It is
quite impressive to think that many of the techniques used during that
era can still be found among the most primitive populations in the most
remote places of our world!
The following
are the Marialena's previous articles that for the magazine:
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