Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Alistráti caves
Daily: Easter-Sept 9am-7pm, until 8pm in Aug; rest of year 9am-5pm; 1hr guided tours only • €8 • No photography •
T
23240 82045,
W
alistraticave.gr
Reached down a scenic side road 6km southeast of the village, the
Alistráti caves
were
first explored in the mid-1970s and surpass those at Pérama; indeed they are claimed to
be the most extensive of their kind in Europe not requiring special equipment or
training to visit. These gigantic limestone cavities are over two million years old, and
bristle with a variety of wonderful formations, including the relatively rare eccentrites
and helictites, respectively stalactites sticking out at angles, rather than hanging
vertically, and twisted forms resembling sticks of barley sugar. The entrance, a long
tunnel bored into the hillside, takes you right into the caverns, and a winding path
weaves its way through masses of stalagmites, many of them outstandingly beautiful,
and some exceeding 15m in height.
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
ALISTRÁTI
Ì
Arhondiko Voziki
Signposted from main road
T
23240 20400,
W
hotelboziki.gr.
A delightfully restored
tobacco factory-cum-mansion, painted a rich yellow, with
beautifully furnishe
d pe
riod rooms and a swimming pool.
Breakfast included.
€50
Ifiyenia
On main road
T
23240 31886.
The comfy
cushioned chairs and gingham tablecloths are deceptive:
this cheap local taverna does an interesting range of salads,
seafood pasta and pork chops for a mere €6.
Daily
noon-1am.
Philippi
Tues-Sun: June-Oct 8am-7pm; Nov-May 8.30am-3pm • €3 • half-hourly buses from Kavála or Dhráma
Just 14km short of Kavála on the busy road from Dhráma, you come to
PHILIPPI
(Filippoi on some maps and signs), a famous battlefield during the civil wars of Ancient
Rome and the subject of one of St Paul's Epistles. Apart from the scattered Roman
ruins, the principal remains of the site are several impressive, although derelict,
basilican churches
.
4
Brief history
Philippi was named after Philip II of Macedon, who wrested it from the Thracians
in 356 BC for the sake of nearby gold mines on Mount Pangéo. However, it owed
its later importance and prosperity to the Roman construction of the Via Egnatía.
With Kavála/Neapolis as its port, Philippi was essentially the easternmost town of
Roman-occupied Europe. Here, as at Actium (see p.259), the fate of the Roman
Empire was decided, at the
Battle of Philippi
in 42 BC. After assassinating Julius
Caesar, Brutus and Cassius had fled east of the Adriatic and, against their better
judgement, were forced into confrontation on the Philippi plains with the
pursuing armies of Antony and Octavian and were comprehensively beaten in two
successive battles.
St Paul
landed at Kavála and visited Philippi in 49 AD, and so began his religious
mission in Europe. Despite being cast into prison, he retained a special affection for the
Philippians, his first converts, and the congregation that he established was one of the
earliest to flourish in Greece.
The site
The most conspicuous of the churches at the site is the
Direkler
(Turkish for
“columns” or “piers”), to the south of the modern road which here follows the line
of the Via Egnatía. Also known as Basilica B, this was an unsuccessful attempt by its
sixth-century architect to improve the basilica design by adding a dome. The central
arch of its west wall and a few pillars of reused antique drums stand amid remains
of the Roman
forum
. A line of second-century porticoes spreads outwards in front
of the church, and on their east side are the foundations of a colonnaded octagonal
