|
Kalymnos is one of the most interesting Islands of
Dodecanese.The Island is also called "Nisi ton Agalmaton"
(Island of Statues), because it has many statues, which were made, by
expenses of the sculpture Mihali Kokkinou and his daughter Irinis
Kokkinou-Lalopoulou. Its coasts have beautiful beaches, some pebbled and
some sandy. The cave of Nymphon and of Kefala, in the south, and the cave
of Dascaleio, in the north, places of worship in ancient times, are today
among the attractions of island. The most important product of the fertile
valleys of the island is citrus fruit, which also are exported. In the
waters of its sea, 700 m. from Kalymnos, there is the small barren island
of Telendos, a quiet characteristic place of fishermen and of sponge
divers.
The most beautiful beaches are on the west coast of the
island and are Panormos, Kantouni, Linaria and Plati Gialo.Other beaches
on the west coast are Mirties, Masouri, the gulf of Arginonta and
Emborios.On the east coast of the island there are beaches in Ormo Akri
and at the harbor of Bathi.
Kalymnos
is a great place for a holiday. An island that is really Greek, but
quickly feels like home. You'll want to come back! The holiday season
starts in late April/early May, peaks around mid August and ends in
October. Late October is the quietest time. You'll always find somewhere
to stay - and even in August the resorts aren't uncomfortably crowded. The
availability of flights is less certain. It's wise to book ahead. Package
holidays are sold at reasonable prices in many European countries - especially the UK, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Holland, Germany,
Belgium and France.
Sponge fishing has been carried out in Greece since time
immemorial. The use of sponges was described by Aristotle and mentioned in
both Homer"s Iliad and the Odyssey. For centuries now the Greek sponge
trade has focused around the Dodecanese, with one indisputable epicenter -
the island of Kalymnos.
Finding sponges, diving to harvest them from the ocean bed and selling
them throughout the world is a commerce in which Kalymnos has excelled.
Little wonders that sponges have been called "the Kalymnian gold". But
sponge diving represents much more even than this. It is a skill, a
challenge, a saga of loss and gain, of appalling tragedy and fierce pride
that remain to this day a poignant and inextricable part of the very soul
of this rugged island. To know this story is to understand something of
the essence of Kalymnos and its people
