2024-08-05 07:39:14
Endless sandy beaches that gently slope down to the turquoise blue sea. Streets full of sunset view bars and small souvenir shops. Couples walking in love. The village of Skala Eresou on the east coast of the Greek island of Lesbos looks like any other Mediterranean tourist destination. Except that you hardly ever meet a man here. It is the home of lesbians.
From our special correspondent – The Flamingo bar is right on the beach. The pergola protects most of the colorful armchairs from the sun, but the sun’s rays still reach some of them. Cats bask there while people hide in the shade with iced drinks.
A middle-aged barmaid with short hair and a white tank top emblazoned with Cali Surf is circling the tables. “This has always been a gay bar,” he explains. He has been working here for six years and, like many people, is not a local. I came here looking for a new life.
A rainbow flag flies over the entrance to the Flamingo bar. | Photo: Jakub Plíhal
The group of Germans sitting at one of the tables did not go that far. They came here on vacation. “When I found out that Lesvos existed at the age of 14, I was excited. Finally, a place where I would feel at home,” says Rachel enthusiastically, who is on the island for the first time. She gestures quickly as she talks, and even though her eyes are covered by sunglasses, her wide smile shows how excited she is.
Her friends agree that the atmosphere here is unique. Before going to the island, Tyna stayed for a few days in Athens, where you could also find lesbian bars, but she says that it cannot be compared to the atmosphere in Skala Eresou.
A festival for women
Every other bar and shop has a rainbow flag. Groups of women and girls of different ages walk through the narrow streets away from the beach, others sit on armchairs and couches. The events in the village are reminiscent of Pride, a summer celebration of the pride of sexual minorities, which begins in Prague on Monday.
An international festival takes place in Skala Eresou every year in September, and the hotels in the area are packed to bursting. But the place attracts queer women all year round. In the summer, families with children or ordinary tourists sometimes visit here, but they get lost in groups of girls holding hands.
However, Lesbos is generally not very touristy. The Greek island, located just a few kilometers from Turkey, is known more for the waves of migrants who arrive here on boats across the Aegean Sea. But it was he who gave the name to women who love other women – lesbians.
Poet Sappho
In the village of Skala Eresou, the poetess Sappho was born here in the seventh century BC. She was among the most important cultural figures of ancient Greece and influenced many other generations of poets.
Sappho led a group of girls who worshiped the goddess of love Aphrodite and the nine Muses with music and poetry. In her love poems, she often praised the beauty of other women, professed her love for them and described sexual desires.
Elsewhere on Lesbos, however, there is no similar atmosphere as in the local village. Although Greece approved marriage for same-sex couples this February, it became the first Orthodox country in the world. The island, where almost no tourists go and where most foreigners now come from Afghanistan, is still among the more conservative parts of the country.
“Most people on the island are still against us being able to get married. It’s sad,” assesses one of the local barmaids. He prefers to spend his time in Skala Eresou, which is famous for its openness.
“I’m really very happy here. I’d like to come back here again, maybe even for a longer period,” adds Rachel, and her friends nod. Their trip together was just their first taste of home, as Rachel calls it.
Rachel and Zara in the village of Skala Eresou. | Photo: Jakub Plíhal