ROADTRIP TO NESTANI AND TRIPOLIS

Text and research by Giota Christoforou, translation by Eva Trombetas

There is a village, gripped at the foot of mount Artemisio, makes you feel nostalgic. Because its name mean Nostos, that is, the need to return home. As the famous Portes (doors) opened and Pausanias passed in order to continue his tour in Arcadia, he met the village Nestani or Philippios Fountain. Macedonian king Philip II built the stone fountain in 338 BC after the battle at Chaeronea, when he encamped at Nestani or else Tsipiana. The stone fountain is located on the low hill of the ancient Acropolis. The ruins preserved from the Acropolis testify to two semicircular towers and a gate.

Nestani's Acropolis

The plane trees cover the square of the village with their shade, inviting the visitor to relax and admire the old mansions. Indeed, if the visitor finds himself in the village on the feast of St. George, he will be initiated into the custom revived in honor of the saint. The event unfolds on the hill of Goulas, where the chapel of St. George is located. Those who want to take part in the event, dress up in the traditional costume of the place, hold flowers and lilacs in their hands, put on their walking sticks the flowering plant Alexanders (smyrnium olusatrum) and all together descend from Goulas dancing, to end up in the square of the village.

Nestani

On the hill Goulas is the monastery of Panagia Gorgoepikoou. Place of pilgrimage to the surviving icon of the Virgin Mary, painted by the Evangelist Luke and that you order by faith, she will quickly bring it to you. As you leave, stand for a while at the stone fence of the monastery and gaze at the plain of Mantineia. The residents are engaged in agricultural production and among the fine products they produce are apples, pears, honey, vegetables, cereals and the local wine under the alleged name "Mantineia". After all, the region has been subject to the European programme "wine roads". Undoubtedly Nestani has to promote climbing tourism as well as mountaineering. Specifically from the top of the hill of Stochos, where the chapel of St. John the theologian is located, there is a climbing field with the cooperation of E.O.S. Tripolis. At the same peak a chapel testifies to the religious element of the place and the worship of the inhabitants to saint John the theologian who once cured the heat of malaria.

monastery of Panagia Gorgoepikoou

Leaving Nestani via the Corinth - Tripolis National Road, the distance takes about 20 minutes to Tripolis. On the way, after Artemisio, you can see the Αrgon pedion (field), which if you come summer you will see an endless meadow, but if you come winter you will think it is a lake. Then, driving in a straight line we reach the capital of Arcadia, Tripolis.

Argon pedion, Artemisio

"Greeks never submitted to the Turk Sultan! Greeks always had their own king, their own army, their own castle! Our king is the Marble King (Constantine XI Palaiologos, Byzantine emperor), our army are armatoloi (greek soldiers) and klephts (klephts = thieves, greek mountain warriors), our castles are Mani (Laconia) and Souli (Epirus)!" - Theodoros Kolokotronis (1770-1843) (Theodoros Kolokotronis was the most famous and important Greek general and the leader of the Greek war against Ottoman Empire 1821-1829)

The leading figure of Theodore Kolokotronis and Tripolis or Tripolitsa are two important names, identical and interwoven with the liberation of the Greek nation. In Tripolis on high, in his "seat" thinking the old man of Morias (Kolokotronis) and he was preparing the strategy to follow to free our nation from the Turkish occupation. "Kathisma" (kathisma = seat) is located on the hill named Agiothodora, just outside Tripolis and is part of mount Mainalo. You can visit it from the path that is near the chapel of Agioi Theodoroi.

monastery of Pano Chrepa

And then Kolokotronis marched to the Monastery of Pano Chrepa where he would devoutly worship the Gospel and commune before the great battle. In the monastery keep the Grail and the Gospel that the elder humbly worshiped. The monastery is located 10 km from Tripolis. Rightly the fir-covered monastery is considered to be located at the highest point of the Peloponnese, at 1280 m. Built 1100 AD, it experienced many looting and raids but the miraculous icon of the Virgin Mary, protected the faithful. In a miraculous way the icon for three times left the church of St. George in Tripolis where it was kept and returned to where it was found. A divine sign that showed exactly where the Virgin Mary wanted the monastery to be built. The monastery is dedicated to the assumption and celebrates every year on the 14th of September, the day of the Holy Cross and on the 15th of August.

Areos square, Tripolis

The capital of Arcadia stands proud historically, after its liberation from the Ottoman army and the successful victory of the Greek people, thanks to the strategy of Theodoros Kolokotronis. The Old man of Moria (Moria = Peloponnese) liberated Tripoli on September 23, 1821. The city nowadays has everything a provincial a great city would want. History, attractions, culture, geographical location, economic development, combined with monuments, neoclassical buildings, museums and cultural value. Great architects curated the first neoclassical buildings, from 1830 onwards, such as Ernest Ziller, Stamatis Kleanthis and Anastasios Metaxas.

Malliaropouleio theatre of Tripolis

Sources say about Tripolis that at the foot of Mainalon the first settlements were built, by greek breeders between the 8th and 10th century. In the Venetian chronicles in 1467 the city is mentioned as a ruined castle, with the name Dripolitsa, while in an ecclesiastical document in 1563 it is mentioned as Hydropolitsa name that comes from a very important project, the aqueduct, which exploited the waters of the springs Mana. The tour of the beautiful city is fascinating since its squares and neoclassical buildings are abundant. In the central square of Agios Vasilios, there is the magnificent church of Agios Vasilios, built with marbles from Doliana. The temple has been built on the ruins of the mosque of Bekir Pasha. Its trademark huge arches that internally housed shops. In the same square, enjoy the Viennese atmosphere at the"cafe to Mega". A cafe with a warm atmosphere, velvet, wood and mirrors, paintings, traditional and timeless, offers not only coffee but also poetry and tango evenings as well as book presentations, but also theatrical performances before the creation of the Malliaropouleio theatre. The cultural point of the city is the Malliaropouleio theatre, which is housed in a neoclassical building donated by Dr. Ioannis Malliaropoulos and is located in Petrinos square. Theatrical nights began in 1910. It is a place of hospitality of great artists, with evenings of theatrical and musical performances that take part successfully, by the theater team of Tripolis. Also, the War Museum of the city is housed in the house of Ioannis Malliaropoulos. This is a very good organization of exhibits, which are uniforms, weapons, manuscripts, heirlooms and photographs, which are presented in chronological order, from the revolution of 1821 to the war of 1940, so that the visitor is fully covered by the visit to the museum. From his collection stands out the cast of Theodoros Kolokotronis. Neoclassical building of 1861 is the prefectural mansion located in Independence square, while the Administrative Services of the University of Peloponnese, hosted in the house of Kostas Karyotakis, which has been renovated (Kostas Karyotakis 1896-1928, was a famous poet).

the house of Kostas Karyotakis

The statue of Theodoros Kolokotronis on horseback was placed in Areos square in 1970 and undoubtedly stands imposing and imperious on the elegant statue. Here are also kept the bones of the elder, which were transferred in 1930 to Tripolis, by Eleftherios Venizelos. Behind the statue is the column of qualifiers. Earlier the square was also called Seragiou square, but then from other names, it finally got its name from the ancient greek god Aris, the god of war, due to the fact that at the same time there were many army battalions in the city. It is considered one of the largest squares in Greece. The great feast on Easter Sunday is held every year with great success. The traditional feast starts early, as does the baking of the traditional obelia, as dance and music frame the celebration. The beautiful park is full of shops. West of the square there is the courthouse with the statues of Tertseti and Polyzoidis, who were judges of Kolokotronis and Plapouta. The two judges, well aware of the innocence of the accused, refused to sign the decision condemning them to death for high treason. Their move caused their imprisonment and savage abuse by the Bavarian Regency.

statue of Theodoros Kolokotronis, Areos Square

Further north, we meet the Apostolopouleio Cultural Center, which hosts many events, conferences and speeches in its halls. Near Areos square you will find the church of one of the two patron saints of the city, the martyr Pavlos. Saint Paul and the new martyr Demetrius are the two patron saints of the city. Saint Paul came from the village of Sopotos Kalavryta and professed the Christian faith with reverence. His death by fire came from the Turks when saint was 28 years old. His holy relics are kept in the holy Monastery of St. Nicholas Varses. The new martyr saint Demetrius invaded Tripoli on the Holy Days of Easter and with courage and boundless faith greeted his former Muslim boss with "Jesus Christ is Risen". The infuriated Turks beheaded him, but the new martyr accepted his martyrdom, with joy and exultation and impatience to be near his God. The Holy cart of the saint is kept today in the Metropolitan church of St. Basil Tripolis and the holy relics are kept in the holy Monastery of St. Nicholas Varses, in a silver reliquary. Every year on May 22 there is a litany of relics, a glorious ceremony in memory of the Saints and patron saints of the city. The church of Agios Dimitrios is located on Cyprus street.

church of St. Basil Tripolis

In Evangelistria Street, the Panarkadian Archaeological Museum, hosts archaeological finds that highlight the passage of the ancient Arcadian presence from the Neolithic period to the early Byzantine years. In the museum stand out, the bust of the statue of Hadrian, a faithful friend of Herod Atticus, the statue of Antinous, the sculptured statue of the enthroned goddess Athena, a column from the Agora decree of Diocletian issued in 301 AD as well as many other exhibits. The neoclassical building of the museum is housed in the building that once functioned as a hospital and is the work of Ernesto Ziller.

Panarkadian Archaeological Museum

Among the sights of Tripolis are also the villa of the greek politician Theodoros Tourkovasilis, reminiscent of a bygone era and nights full of music. The old mansion of the playwright Theodoros Synadinos is located in the heart of Tripoli. One of the three Priestly schools is located in Tripolis, while the other two according to the royal decree were founded in central Greece and the islands. Near the seminary, you can admire the building of the prefecture, which formerly housed the National Bank. It is a beautiful two-storey neoclassical building of the 19th century. In 1892 the Tripolis railway station was inaugurated. The stone station helped transport goods for the purpose of developing trade. The touching short story of Antonis Samarakis "in a border station", became a motion picture, the shooting of which took place at the Tripoli station which is currently out of operation.

villa of Theodoros Tourkovasilis

In a beautiful traditional mansion in Taxiarches square, there is the Folklore Museum of the city. Anastasios Birbilis, the owner of the house, transformed his homestead into a folklore museum. The owner rejoices beyond congratulation, for the objects he exhibits, such as bronze utensils, photographs, bells, chanacas, all arranged at the right time by Mr. Anastasios, a man with passion.

Tripolis railway station

For people who love nature and walking, the warmth of quiet, and the endless chat of birds, let them head to the park of the city, the park of St. George. Hidden in the trees, this beautiful place is about 9 km from the city centre. There you will find not only quiet, but also the zoo with rich fauna of the area, the chapel of St. George, a tourist pavilion and a theater, where in summer you can watch performances and musical evenings. Great place for cycling and walking.

park of St. George

In the cafes of Tripoli will offer you the absolute "nothing" (tipota = nothing)! The delicious drink is made by the distillery of N. Biris and his family and was released before 1949. The distillery of Christopoulos is also known since 1866. After the drink, turn has the food and let's start with the traditional cuisine. In pastry the first reason is kourabiedes, galatopites, galaktoboureko, but also spoon sweets, sphingoi and loukoumades. In cooking the handmade bread, trahanas, boiled meat, kagiana and lagoto. We urge you to try them.

the famous Tripoli's liqueur, tipota (nothing)

In Tripoli, festivities are organized every year on September 23, the day of liberation of the city from the Turks. The events include theatrical events, with a representation of the national struggle. Religious and cultural events, exhibitions, workshops, conferences are also organized, as all the traditions of our country are observed. The capital of Arcadia and heart of the Peloponnese, awaits you to discover its treasures.