Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
9
Archeological museum
Tues-Sun: June-Sept 8am-8pm; Oct-May 8.30am-3pm • €4 •
T
22730 62811
Finally opened to the public in 2010, the splendid new
archeological museum
has a
number of fascinating and well-labelled exhibits laid out over two floors. Star billing on
the ground floor goes to the stunning collection of
gold coins
from a jar found by a Dutch
archeologist at the west end of the island, plus there is a substantial number of votary
objects and some Greek, Hellenistic and Roman statuary. Upstairs is the home for larger
statues, such as the Roman Emperor Trajan and a fine
kouros
from 540-530 BC, but the
most interesting display is on the subject of
ancient Greek dwellings
. The large outdoor site
behind the building contains some splendid mosaics but it is not set to open until 2013.
The castle and around
Sámos's most complete
castle
, the nineteenth-century
pýrgos
of local chieftain Lykourgos
Logothetis, overlooks both town and the shoreline where he, together with a certain
“Kapetan Stamatis” and Admiral Kanaris, oversaw decisive naval and land victories
against the Turks in the summer of 1824. The final battle was won on Transfiguration
Day (Aug 6) - thus the dedication of the
church
by the castle - with an annual fireworks
show commemorating the triumph. Also next to the castle are the remains of an early
Christian basilica
, occupying the grounds of a slightly larger Roman villa.
Efpalínio Órygma
Tues-Sun: June-Sept 8am-8pm; Oct-May 8.30am-3pm • €4 •
T
22730 62813
The well-signposted
Efpalínio Órygma
is a 1036m aqueduct bored through the
mountain just north of Pythagório. Designed by one Eupalinos of Mégara, and built
by slave labour at the behest of Polykrates, it guaranteed the ancient town a siege-proof
water supply, and remained in use until late Byzantine times. Even though the work
crews started digging from opposite sides of the mountain, the horizontal deviation
from true about halfway along - 8m - is remarkably slight, and the vertical error nil: a
tribute to the competence of ancient surveyors. Unfortunately, only about the first
120m section of the tunnel is well lit and currently accessible to visitors.
Panayía Spilianí
Cave open daylight hours • Free
On the way up to the Efpalínio Órygma is the well-marked turning for the monastery of
Panayía Spilianí
. The monastery itself, now bereft of nuns or monks, has been insensitively
restored and the grounds are crammed with souvenir kiosks, but behind the courtyard the
raison d'être
of the place is still magnificent: a cool, illuminated, hundred-metre
cave
, at the
drippy end of which is a subterranean shrine to the Virgin. This was supposedly the
residence of the ancient oracular priestess Phyto, and a hiding place from medieval pirates.
Potokáki
The local, variable
beach
stretches several kilometres west of the Logothetis castle,
punctuated part-way along by the end of the airport runway and the cluster of
nondescript hotels known as
POTOKÁKI
. Although you'll have to contend with the
hotel crowds and low-flying jets, the western end of the sand-and-pebble beach is well
groomed, the water clean and sports available.
ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION
PYTHAGÓRIO
By ferry
Ferries and hydrofoils dock at the jetty in the
middle of the seafront.
By bus
The main bus stop is on the seafront, near the jetty.
By car
Street parking is impossible - use the pricey car
park near the main T-junction or the free one just west
behind the town beach.
Tourist o
ce
The information booth is a few paces along
from the taxi rank on Lykourgoú Logothéti (June-Sept
Mon-Fri 9am-1pm & 5-9pm;
T
22730 62274).
Services
Several ATMs line Lykourgoú Logothéti; the post
office is near the bus stop.
