Travel Guide Olymbos

The road to Olymbos is long, winding and magnificent: stop to enjoy the views. At the end of the long journey, you'll find yourself totally immersed in the Karpathian tradition at the gates of the hilltop village, despite the recent onslaught of tourism. The construction of the asphalt road in the late 1970s largely opened up Olymbos, which not so long ago still lived in total autarky! Over the centuries, the isolated inhabitants developed a unique agricultural way of life, based on cereal production, from which local flour was made (hence the many mills that can still be admired today), and goat breeding, which was sent to graze on the islet of Saria, north of Karpathos. Today, still perched on the slopes of Mount Prophitis Ilias, Olymbos is an open-air folk museum. The elders still speak an archaic dialect of Doric origin. Songs and mantinades (droll rhymes and sung oratorical jousts) are accompanied by traditional instruments, such as the lyre, musette and lute, and still grace even the smallest festival. Celebrations are frequent, sometimes leading to large processions through the village streets, particularly on August 15th. Older women still wear the traditional costume, as do young brides: local dress habits die hard. Of course, the arrival of more and more tourists has somewhat eroded the authenticity of the place: try to come early in the morning or stay in the evening to discover the life that goes on here, without the tourists.In the village alleyways, visit the small museum dedicated to local artist Vassilis Hatzivasillis: his naive paintings depict the annual cycles in the village, and short films are shown, documenting the harshness of traditional life just a few decades ago. We also visit the magnificent Church of the Assumption of the Virgin, with its beautiful carved wooden iconostasis and ancient frescoes, some of which date back to Byzantine times. Stop for lunch or coffee in one of the delightful tavernas, with its plunging view over the sea. Accommodation options are few and far between, but guesthouses and studios have become increasingly popular in recent years.