Host Country Studies Trip to Lake Plastira
May 18, 2015
Lake Plastira is a dreamy location, synonymous to peace & endless natural beauty. Every season has a separate & stunning scenery to offer generously, as well as endless opportunities for enjoyment and well-being. We chose to visit Lake Plastira in May when nature is at its best. We were eager to discover how this extraordinary rural landscape of lush valleys, thick forests and ominous mountains is still off the beaten track.
Thursday, May 14
It’s an exciting,
long trip to Lake Plastira, crossing Mount Olympus territory and the
plains of Thessaly.
On our way we stopped at Larissa so that we could visit The Municipal
Gallery of Larissa- G.I. Katsigras Museum. Established by G.I.
Katsigras, a well-known surgeon and collector, the Municipal Gallery is
one of the most significant art collections in the country and unique in
the periphery. It consists of 781 paintings, carvings and prints of
important Greek artists dating from 1850 to 1950. The highlight of the
Collection is a set of office furniture designed by Ernst Moritz Theodor
Ziller for the famous archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann. At the new
Municipal Gallery building our students had a chance the see the work of
major Greek artists like Lytras, Iakovidis, Volanakis, Maleas,
Parthenis, Triantafillidis, Gounaropoulos, Asteriadis, and many more.
Friday, May 15
Friday morning was dedicated to Lake Plastira, an artificial lake fed
by Tavropos river, located near the city of Karditsa. The lake is named
after the Greek general and politician Nikolaos Plastiras, who was the
first to visualize the construction of an artificial lake in the area.
We drove 58 klm around the Lake so that we could visit the most
important sights of the area. We visited the Botanical Garden in
Neochori, the breath-taking Monastery of Panagia Pelekiti, the Lake
Plastiras Damp, the Lambero Beach area, and the Village of Neraida where
Nikolaos Plastiras was born.
Saturday, May 16
Saturday was a morning dedicated to fun and activities. Tavropos
Activities Center took us to Kalyvia Pezoulas, a charming small bay and
organized for us a morning of activities like biking, water biking and
archery. It was a day full of energy, excitement and dynamism on one
hand, tranquility, serenity and peacefulness on the other. It sounds
paradoxical but that’s exactly what we felt. We simply had a wonderful
time!!!
Amalia Spiliakou
Host Country Studies Coordinator
