Pieria
This is the region where you can combine your mountain holiday with
a vacation by the sea. Not only will you find the Thermaic coast enchanting,
you'll admire Olympos, the mountain of the gods. Pieria is
thickly forested, with plane trees, pines, poplars and firs on Olympos.
The capital of this prefecture, Katerini, lies between the
plain of Pieria and Mt. Olympos. Some 32 km southwest of Katerini,
the village of Agios Dimitrios is built on a plateau where there are
water and trees galore. The road to Stena Tis Petras, the pass to
Thessaly, is truly exciting, as is a walk up the impressive Olympos
Gorge.
At Dion, 17 km. south of Katerini, archaeologists have brought to
light the extensive ruins of the Macedonians' sanctuary of the gods.
Amidst the lush vegetation and springs of the Pierian plain, just
before the ascent to Olympos begins, one can see the ruins of the
sanctuary buildings - the temples, two theatres and a stadium - while
next to them, to the north, the remains of the ancient city of Dion
stretch out. It was closely associated to Zeus as its name implies
(in Greek the god is called Dias). Thousands of Macedonians used to
flock to this place for the festivities and games dedicated to the
god, which grew in importance after the 5th century BC. |
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Pieria |
