The area of Odysseus
Agia | Karevostasi | Arilla | Sivota | Perdika
This area in West Thesprotia belongs to the municipality of Igoumenitsa and is the largest of the regional unit of Thesprotia. This area was created by the merger of 5 former municipalities: Igoumenitsa, Margariti, Parapotamos, Sivota and Perdika. The tour goes through this beautiful natural area around Perdika, Arilla, Sivota and Sarakiniko. This is the Mondain Luxues area of this environment.
West Thespotria has an ancient history and gives the feeling of traveling back in time, where antiquity created by the myths and legends about the battle between Odysseus and Poseidon are mixed with surrealism, beauty and reality. A visit to this area is a special experience at it’s own.
This is a special day trip for Travellers who love nature, beautiful calm beaches, picturesque villages and impressive – impactfull views. It is a tour by car through the suitable environment in the border area of Epirus to Threspotia and goes Through nature, the paths between the olive groves over beautiful beaches. During the tour you get the views of the region. You can walk and swim and eat delicious food in traditional taverns and restaurants.
This tour is by car and together with a local travel guide who knows all these hidden places and where you cannot get to by bus and get lost when you don’t know the area.
HISTORY & MYTHOLOGY
Odysseus and Poseidon
Brief explanation of the Myth of Odysseus:
Mythology shows that Odysseus, the king of the island of Ithaca, had won the area for himself during the Trojan War through his cunning trick with the wooden horse, called the Trojan Horse. He fought on the side of the Greeks and in this way won the war for the Greeks.
According to the prophecy from the Myth about Odysseus, he traveled through Epirus and came across the kingdom of Thesprotis, Odysseus spent many years of his adventurous life and wanderings in this area where he had incurred the hatred of Poseidon, the God of the Sea. Odysseus realized that this had to be the end of his adventure, when he met a traveler who mistook his oar for a winnowing fan. According to Teiresias, Odysseus plants the oar in the ground, sacrifices a ram, an ox and a boar to Poseidon and rejoices that he could stay in this area of Thesprotia in Ithaca from then on and a soft, painless death far from the sea, after his blissful reunion with Penelope. Who all that time Penelope, Odysseus’ wife, waited for the homecoming of her husband, while she was harassed by many “suitors”. About a prophecy he received from Teiresias, about his journey to Hades. The full myth about Odysseus and Penelope are in the wikipedia.