VOLOS: A CITY OF ANCIENT AND MODERN CONTRADICTIONS

BY: JANET STEINBERG

WELCOME TO VOLOS, GREECE

"Kalispera" (kal-ee-speh-ra).  Good afternoon.  It’s a beautiful day in Volos, a popular cruise port on the Pagasitic Gulf.  Volos, nestled beneath the majestic Mt. Pelion, is a lively, little city of approximately 71,000 people.  A city of ancient and modern contradictions, Volos passed from Turkish rule to that of Greece in 1881. 

VOLOS HARBOR

It was from Mt. Pelion’s mythical playground of the Greek Gods that Jason and the Argonauts are said to have set off to find the “Golden Fleece”. Mt. Pelion is also said to be the home of the half-man, half-horse, centaurs and the place where a beauty contest between the goddesses Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite took place.

Cruise ship shore excursions offer their passengers several choices of excursions on the island. Some chose to explore the mythical villages of Mt. Pelion. In total, there are 24 picturesque villages that overlook the Aegean.  Others can opt for an old-fashioned train ride along the Pelion Peninsula while still others can set out on a full-day adventure to the spectacular 15^th-century Meteora Monasteries.

DOWNTOWN VOLOS

Imposing granite rock formations, rising more than 900 feet above the Plain of Thessaly, are a breathtaking sight.  But even more miraculous than this sight of nature is the fact that by the year 1500, 24 monasteries were built at the apex of those rock towers.  Until the year 1920 one could only reach the Meteora Monasteries by climbing into a net basket and being lifted up to the top by a rope pulley system.  Since then, the ambitious can reach the top by climbing steps that have been carved into the stone.

BID FAREWELL TO VOLOS

After a beautiful day in Volos, as you head back to your floating palace, you can say kali nichta " (kal-ee-nick-tah)..good night…and epharisto  (e-fair-is-toe)… thank you…for a fascinating day on the little-known Greek port city of Volos.

JANET STEINBERG is an award-winning Travel Writer and a Travel Consultant with THE TRAVEL AUTHORITY in Mariemont, Ohio.