Events calendar Dodecanese

The biggest Greek religious festival, whose date varies every year, is the occasion of several days of celebration and meditation. On the program: a week in slow motion, punctuated by religious celebrations with in particular the procession of theepitafios on Friday and the mass on Saturday evening, followed by a great meal and the lamayiritsa (a soup of offal). It is particularly interesting to visit Patmos where the most solemn celebrations are held, with the reproduction of the Last Supper and the washing of the feet on Holy Thursday.

For a week, at the end of July, Patmos hosts an international film festival. Directors, scriptwriters and actors come to conferences and screenings. Contemporary auteur films, both fiction and documentary, are screened in the open-air cinema set up for the occasion in the schoolyard in Skala. It's a magical and incredibly gentle moment to be in the cinema under the stars...

The summer panigyria do not stop at the end of August but continue for part of the autumn. Thus, on September 2, a great celebration is held in the monastery of Agios Mammas, on the heights of Fri, on the island of Kassos. In Astipalaia, the patron saint of the island, Saint Anthimos, is celebrated on September 3: an icon of the saint is shown in procession through the streets of Chora. On September 17, all the Sofias are celebrated in Karpathos. Many Karpathian women were given this name in baptism, hence the importance of the local panigyria in honor of the saint.

On July 19, a very special tradition continues year after year in the port of Kastellorizo: dressed people throw themselves into the water to commemorate the return of the inhabitants to the island after their evacuation during the war of national independence. The story goes that the pope, who remained alone on the island for the duration of this evacuation, threw himself - with joy! - in the waters of the port when he saw the inhabitants return. It is the occasion for great celebrations and rituals where all generations meet in the water of the port.

July 23, 1944, marked the date of the deportation of the Jewish community of Rhodes and Kos to Athens and then to Auschwitz. For three days, this tragic event is commemorated, with only 10% of the community leaving alive. In Rhodes, a memorial ceremony is held on the Jewish Martyrs' Square, followed by a procession in the former Jewish quarter to the synagogue where a religious service is held. Round tables and projections are also organized.