Text and photo: Irina Ivanova "Half-forgotten island of Kefalonia improvident and unwise to rise from the Ionian Sea, this island is so lost in antiquity, THAT EVEN STONE HERE BREATHE longing for the past, and red earth stunned NOT ONLY sun, but also burdensome weight MEMORY OF SHIPS ODYSSEY were built of Kefalonian Pine,. KEPHALONIAN GIANTS WERE PROTECTED IN HIS, AND SOME APPROVED THAT THE PALACE OF HIS WAS NOT ON ITAK, BUT ON KEPHALONIA. "
In a distant kingdom, in a distant state ....
Like many people of my generation, I grew up on beautiful adventure tales, falling asleep under the "Legends and Myths of Ancient Greece" and dreaming of one day going in the footsteps of the gods and heroes of the Homeric epic. And so, having made a short flight of a 40-seater plane from Athens to Kefalonia, I stepped on the pages of my favorite childhood books ...
Transparent air, saturated with aromas of mountain herbs and the smack of the sea, dizzy from habit. Picturesque houses, surrounded by fragrant flowers, olive groves and vineyards, scattered under the trees by the road lemons, goat climbers, quickly climbing the rocks .... Before me is the simple village life of a small island, which is far from the bustle of civilization, despite the presence of all the necessary fruits of progress. Noting every detail, I try to look at everything through the eyes of that very ingenious navigator who returned home from a long journey, where every bump of a “bare rocky plain lying in the direction of sunset” seems native. Yes, thanks to precisely this description by Homer of the kingdom of Odysseus and other geographical inconsistencies, the question of the location of Ithaki remains open. An island with this name exists, but numerous archaeological excavations did not give any evidence of the existence of an ancient powerful kingdom, having found only traces of a small Mycenaean settlement.
Perhaps, of course, Homer simply invented it .... But there is another version. The land of Paliki, on the western tip of the island of Kefalonia, is much more suitable for Ithaca's description in the Odyssey, and once it was not a peninsula, but an island separated by a narrow strait in Kefalonia. Centuries later, as a result of geological processes, the strait disappeared, and Paliki connected with the head island. But we will not delve into the hypotheses of scientists and return to legends and myths.
The many faces of tetrapolis
The origin of the name of the island of Kefalonia is also perhaps mythical, on behalf of his first king Kefal, son of the god Hermes and daughter Kekrop, who was expelled from Attica for the accidental murder of his wife Prokrida. By the way, Odysseus, king of Ithaca, also leads from Kefal. Mullet divided the territory into four autonomous districts, giving them the names of their four sons - Sami, Palli, Krani and Pronni.
So the island received the name Tetrapolis (Greek: tetra-four, polis-city), i.e., Four-city. In antiquity, all four cities were independent, had their own rulers and even their own coins. Now, of course, there are much more cities and villages, and all of them are managed by a single administrative center in the capital of Kefalonia and Ithaca - Argostoli.
The catastrophic earthquake of 1953 left only the most charming northern port village of Fiskardo intact, destroying all other ancient buildings. Perhaps that is why the largest island of the Ionian Sea, in comparison with the islands of the Aegean Sea, is not so popular among our tourists who prefer to combine measured outdoor recreation with the study of historical monuments. But here are some of the best beaches in Europe, awarded the international distinction and quality - the “blue flag”. For all 15 days of my stay in May on the island, I met only one Russian-speaking couple! Local guides say that a few Russians come here only in the summer, when a direct charter flight from St. Petersburg opens. And so, the main tourist contingent is the British, Germans and Italians.
Despite the fact that after the earthquake, the cities were completely rebuilt anew, pieces of history are still preserved here. It is best to rent a car, a guide with a map and travel around all the sights on your own, so as not to be tied to the rather meager (according to my impressions) bus excursion program, but to fully immerse yourself in the atmosphere of the island
I was lucky to settle in the southern most popular village of Skala among tourists, where of all the relics only the ruins of the mansion with elements of an interesting mosaic of an unknown rich man from the Roman nobility (III century BC) were preserved. On the local promenade with landscaped, mostly pebble beaches - the largest number of hotels of a good standard, restaurants and cafes. Some of them differ from the "home" style of taverns, attracting foreigners the opportunity to alternate beach vacations with breakfast, lunch and dinner, without leaving far from their sunbeds.
There are so many visitors here in the summer that in the evenings the promenade is blocked for traffic, and it turns into a busy street for a promenade. Here I especially liked the Pikiona restaurant - with a beach, a private pool and excellent service, which, when the influx of tourists in Greece has the habit of "limping" ...
Just a 15-minute drive from Skala, behind a small pass is the village of Poros, built on the ruins of the ancient city of Pronni. In the tavern, located on a rock directly above the sea, from the terrace of which there is a beautiful view of the port, in the evenings we came to taste fresh fish and listen to Greek songs with a guitar performed by the mistress of Vula, who has an unusually clear, strong voice. By the way, she and her suit prepare and serve visitors.
Another port of Kefalonia - Sami - is famous not only for its ancient ruins, but also for Antisamos beach, where scenes of the film about love and war "Captain Corelli's Mandolin" were shot, including the one where the captain was shot. The main stream of ships from nearby islands arrives in Sami.
Yachtsmen prefer a picturesque harbor in the northern part of the island, which I already mentioned, Fiskardo. This is a real coastal idyll: cute colorful houses of surviving Venetian architecture, cozy cafes, yacht masts and cats squinting in the sun
Ferries to Ithaca daily run from the ports of Kefalonia. It is advisable to reserve a place for a car in advance, at the height of the season there are a lot of people who want to visit the "official" Odyssey house. His monument is erected on the main square of the village of Stavros, and roads from here lead directly to the Homer school, where he organizes walking tours once a week. The poet himself, like the heroes of his works, is a rather mysterious person. It is generally accepted that he lived around the VIII century. BC e., and for the honor of being called his homeland, the "seven cities" argued that Ithaka was not on the list. But according to detailed descriptions of the terrain, landscape, life and other details, this kingdom surpasses all the rest, as if Homer lived there for a very long time and knew the country from the inside. Again, the main character of the Odyssey and one of the main characters of the Iliad is the king of the island of Ithaki. It is unlikely that the poet, who lived in Athens, would devote such a significant part of his works to “not his”. In any case, if the location of the homeland of Odyssey is still controversial, the origin of the creator of the hero himself is no less doubtful.
What facts - for, what - against, what kind of events described by Homer happened here - staying "at the Odyssey" on these beautiful Ionian Islands, it is so exciting to assume your own versions ...
