Aegina

Only 20 kilometres from the Athenian port of Piraeus, Aegina is an ideal place to stay if you wish to remain close to Athens but do not wish to stay in the city itself. Aegina is a pleasant enough location with with low-lying mountains and numerous coves. If you like pistachio nuts, then this is the place for you, as it is the main centre for growing them in Greece.

Neo-classical buildings run along the length of the waterfront, and it is these buildings that house most of the tavernas and bars in the town.

The waterfront is not just the preserve of the tourist industry, Aegina still has a thriving fishing community, and it is common during the day, to see the fishermen, sat on the quayside mending their nets.

Aegina has many fine churches, but the largest of them all adjoins the monastery of Agios Nektarios. and can be reached by the bus that runs from the main town to the beach resort of Agia Marina. The church houses the tomb of the bishop from Aegina, Metropolite Pentapoleos, Nektarios Kefalas,who died in 1920 and was canonized in 1967. and is now known as Saint Nektarios.

The Temple of Aphaia, dedicated to the Cretan nymph Aphaia, sits on a hilltop Surrounded by pine trees, above the resort town of Agia Marina. The Doric temple, which is the best preserved of all the classical temples in the Greek islands, was built in about 490 B.C. 34 years before the island was conquered by the Athenians, and predates the Parthenon in Athens by around sixty years. It can be easily reached, as it is located along the Aegina town - Agia Marina bus route.

The port of Agia Marina is a busy resort town with little of the character of Aegina town. The beach can become quite crowded, and is well overlooked by the many hotels that have sprouted up around the bay. Holidaymakers are well catered for with a large selection of tavernas, bars, and takeaway outlets.

History

The island has been inhabited for over 4000 years, and during the 7th century B.C. it was a prosperous independent state. It was the first place in Europe to mint its own silver coins, and with their legendary nautical skills, the inhabitants of Aegina controlled the majority of the trade throughout Greece. All this prosperity attracted the attention of the islands great rival, the nearby city state of Athens, who eventually conquered the island in 456 B.C.