It was a relatively short journey to the Prespa Lakes and it was a very pleasant journey. Getting out of Kastoria was, however, interesting. We knew that we needed to head towards Florina but at one point we had three choices – the roads ahead, behind and to the left were all signposted to Florina. We looked at the map and took an educated guess at the left turn. It was correct but the steepness and narrowness of the road at the beginning made us wonder. One of the reasons for going to Prespa was the wildlife but we were treated to some views early when a pair of Golden Oriels flew across just in front of the van with a brilliant flash of golden yellow. This reminded me of a holiday in Greece many years ago when our son was very young. Simon had already developed a strong interest in birds passed on by his grandparents. He was very keen to spot unusual birds and knew all of their names. He would point and exclaim that he had seen a bird that simply doesn't live in Greece. We tried to let him down gently by showing him the bird book and explaining that it couldn't be that bird, to which he would reply “But it might have been”. We heard this on many occasions during the holiday. It was when we were visiting the royal palace in Vergina (north west of Thessalonika) that Simon pointed to a tree in the centre of the site and confidently (as ever) stated “Golden Oriel”. I wasn't there at the time but Jane looked over and, amazingly, it was a Golden Oriel. I arrived back just in time to see it fly away! They are the shyest of birds and, despite the many visits that we have made to Greece, today was only the second time that we have seen them.
We arrived at Mikri (Little) Prespa Lake and made our way to Aghia Germanos where there is a very good visitors' centre. Much has been done to improve the environment for the wildlife here and the project is supported by the EU (unsurprisingly) but also by many wildlife organizations including the British RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds). The most encouraging aspect of the project is that it involves Greek, Albanian and FYROM (Former Yugoslavian Republic Of Macedonia) all of whose borders meet in the middle of Megali (Large) Prespa Lake. It is good to see these three countries, who have many tensions between them, cooperating in the non-contentious area of nature conservation.
Outside of the conservation area immediately around the lake, the very fertile land is used mainly for growing beans. Prespa is famous for its dried beans and whilst we were there the farmers were erecting poles to support the beans. This is another example of cross-border cooperation – the once vilified and hunted illegal Albanian immigrants are now accepted as essential to the economy of this region. They provide all of the labour for the local agriculture and most of the fields would remain unused if it were not for this workforce. The Albanians work through the Spring, Summer and Autumn, returning in the Winter when the harsh weather (down to -10 to -15°C) means that agriculture comes to a halt. Both lakes freeze during this time and there are snowfalls right through to May – we were visiting at the right time!
Whilst we were in Aghia Germanos, we sought out the church of Aghia Germanos built in the early 11th century. It contains some excellent frescoes including the common 'guide to martyrdom' or '101 ways to be killed'.
We drove to the strip of land between the two lakes and stopped before lunch before moving on to the island of Agios Achillios, linked to the mainland by a floating bridge. We were already captivated by the area, abundant in wildlife and so peaceful. On the way to the island we watched pelicans and egrets fly overhead and cormorants drying their wings on the edge of the reed beds. The island was linked to the mainland in relatively modern times and there are traces of both the fortifications that protected the narrow strip of land and the paved road under the shallow lake. Occupied by the Ancient Greeks and Romans (of which little evidence survives), the island has on it the ruins of five monasteries many built with the stone from the ancient towns. The island and the surrounding countryside was an important religious area from the 9th century up to and including the Turkish occupation. We walked to the far end of the island and admired the views over Mikra Prespa before getting back to the van before the impending thunderstorm broke, spotting two tortoises on the way. We were lucky – there was rain over Megali Prespa and at the opposite end of Mikra Prespa but it missed us.
We had checked with the visitors' centre that it was OK to wild park and we parked up on the small strip of land between the two lakes, close to a sailing club. As I was phoning my mother I spotted what I thought was a tortoise and Jane went out to take a photograph - it turned out to be a terrapin. This really was a magical place to wild camp. We were on Greek land facing out on to Megali Prespa, with FYROM to the right and Albania to the left. The sun was going down and colouring the sky, Pelicans were flying over us and just behind the van at the top of a telegraph pole was a storks nest with a number of young. The parent birds arrived back with food on a regular basis and occasionally they would make that evocative clattering sound with their beaks.
Photos: Typical fishing boat on the lake at Kastoria; Frescoes in the church of Aghia Germanos; The island of Agios Achillos; Tortoise; One of the many fields of beans at Prespa.
We arrived at Mikri (Little) Prespa Lake and made our way to Aghia Germanos where there is a very good visitors' centre. Much has been done to improve the environment for the wildlife here and the project is supported by the EU (unsurprisingly) but also by many wildlife organizations including the British RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds). The most encouraging aspect of the project is that it involves Greek, Albanian and FYROM (Former Yugoslavian Republic Of Macedonia) all of whose borders meet in the middle of Megali (Large) Prespa Lake. It is good to see these three countries, who have many tensions between them, cooperating in the non-contentious area of nature conservation.
Outside of the conservation area immediately around the lake, the very fertile land is used mainly for growing beans. Prespa is famous for its dried beans and whilst we were there the farmers were erecting poles to support the beans. This is another example of cross-border cooperation – the once vilified and hunted illegal Albanian immigrants are now accepted as essential to the economy of this region. They provide all of the labour for the local agriculture and most of the fields would remain unused if it were not for this workforce. The Albanians work through the Spring, Summer and Autumn, returning in the Winter when the harsh weather (down to -10 to -15°C) means that agriculture comes to a halt. Both lakes freeze during this time and there are snowfalls right through to May – we were visiting at the right time!
Whilst we were in Aghia Germanos, we sought out the church of Aghia Germanos built in the early 11th century. It contains some excellent frescoes including the common 'guide to martyrdom' or '101 ways to be killed'.
We drove to the strip of land between the two lakes and stopped before lunch before moving on to the island of Agios Achillios, linked to the mainland by a floating bridge. We were already captivated by the area, abundant in wildlife and so peaceful. On the way to the island we watched pelicans and egrets fly overhead and cormorants drying their wings on the edge of the reed beds. The island was linked to the mainland in relatively modern times and there are traces of both the fortifications that protected the narrow strip of land and the paved road under the shallow lake. Occupied by the Ancient Greeks and Romans (of which little evidence survives), the island has on it the ruins of five monasteries many built with the stone from the ancient towns. The island and the surrounding countryside was an important religious area from the 9th century up to and including the Turkish occupation. We walked to the far end of the island and admired the views over Mikra Prespa before getting back to the van before the impending thunderstorm broke, spotting two tortoises on the way. We were lucky – there was rain over Megali Prespa and at the opposite end of Mikra Prespa but it missed us.
We had checked with the visitors' centre that it was OK to wild park and we parked up on the small strip of land between the two lakes, close to a sailing club. As I was phoning my mother I spotted what I thought was a tortoise and Jane went out to take a photograph - it turned out to be a terrapin. This really was a magical place to wild camp. We were on Greek land facing out on to Megali Prespa, with FYROM to the right and Albania to the left. The sun was going down and colouring the sky, Pelicans were flying over us and just behind the van at the top of a telegraph pole was a storks nest with a number of young. The parent birds arrived back with food on a regular basis and occasionally they would make that evocative clattering sound with their beaks.
Photos: Typical fishing boat on the lake at Kastoria; Frescoes in the church of Aghia Germanos; The island of Agios Achillos; Tortoise; One of the many fields of beans at Prespa.
1 comment:
off white outlet
golden goose sneakers
goyard bag
air jordan
off-white
yeezy
off white
off white shoes
kyrie 7 shoes
supreme new york
Post a Comment