2023-04-23 10:01:52
Dhe Pelion was never occupied by the Ottomans. The 1624 meter long Greek mountain range stretching out into the Mediterranean Sea has always been a stronghold against foreign invaders. Not only the Turkish, but also the later German occupiers had to deal with the desire for freedom of the proud mountain villagers. Due to the geographic conditions, they gained a kind of autonomy early on and cultivated a Greek national feeling that fueled their struggle for independence. There were repeated clashes with the Turkish troops in the course of the 19th century. One of the heaviest battles took place in 1878 near the mountain village of Makrinitsa. An impressive piece of land high up in the mountains, which today, as then, can only be reached via an endless number of switchbacks.
Already during the arduous approach, the name of the place is presented scenically by many small waterfalls and dripping stones: Makrinitsa has its Slavic origin in “mokrina”, “wet place”. However, most travel guides know the place primarily by its current nickname: “Balcony of Pelion”. The fact that this title has been rightfully earned becomes immediately apparent when you get out of the car and take a look over the small wall of the temporary parking lot: the wide coastal foreland is picturesque, the fine urban structure of Volos, the regional center, offers a rambling view and soon makes him lost in the glittering sea. In fact, all of this is as clear in front of you as if you were looking across the street from a balcony. Close enough to touch, it seems, is this strangely rough, primeval piece of Greece, Mount Pelion, which exerts a mysterious attraction precisely because nobody has really conquered it before. Not from foreign soldiers and ambitious rulers, but also not from tourism agencies or hotel chain investors.
Wealthy retirees from UK
Difficult accessibility has so far kept the area from appearing on the favorite lists of invading holidaymakers. Only three hours by car from Thessaloniki, and a good five hours from Athens, come here only if you are serious. A few decades ago, it was mainly hippies and dropouts, couples who taught their children independently under olive trees, or love communities that settled in old farmhouses. Today, wealthy pensioners from Great Britain or Germany buy their retirement homes here – and a world-famous pop star also lives here.
This is where many partisans hid: The small mountain village of Makrinitsa
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Bild: Picture Alliance
But let’s stay on the balcony for a moment, in Makrinitsa. There, where the wild dogs lie on stone streets. A few shops sell souvenirs and honey, visitors sit under magnificent plane trees over coffee and let their conversations be drowned out by the sound of a rushing fountain. During the walk, one repeatedly comes across placards and posters with the emblem of a blonde woman dressed in black, surrounded by a group of children. When asked, one learns that this is the “teacher with the blond hair” – a young faithful woman who married a man only to have him go to the Greek-Italian front a few hours later.
collaboration with the Germans
It takes a moment to understand that what is being told here is the melodramatic plot of what appears to be a nationally famous film shot here in Makrinitsa in the late 1970s. And that the “blonde woman” is not just anyone, but one of the most well-known actresses of Greek post-war cinema: Aliki Vougiouklaki, something like Anita Ekberg from the Peloponnese, whose father was killed in 1943 by the Greek Liberation Army ELAS for collaborating with the Germans. How it felt for them to shoot in one of the strongholds of that murderous resistance, the residents have nothing to say about it.
#balcony #happiness