Overnight in Lake Spirit Boutique Hotel & Spa
After visiting the final 2 monasteries in Meteora, we were on our way to Ioannina which was a 2 hour (104km) drive from Meteora. Ioannina (pronounced as Yannena) is a medium sized town situated on the lovely Lake Pamvotida. It has many cafes, bars, and shops close to the city centre and the lakeside. Here are the sites we visited :
- Vikos Gorge
- Stone bridges
- City Center
- Ioannina Castle
- Pasha Mosque and the ruins of the madrasas
- Lake Pamvotida
After checking into our hotel, and having a light lunch, we got a map and some information from the receptionist of the places we were planning to visit that afternoon – Vikos Gorge and some stone bridges.
Vikos gorge Oxya Viewpoint – is less than an hour north of Ioannina and a premier natural attraction in Greece and to many ‘the Grand Canyon of Greece’. The gorge is a UNESCO world heritage site and part of the Aoos National park. At its deepest point it is an astounding 1000m deep. We drove to the easily accessible lookout point, the Oxya Viewpoint. Parking is available and there were only 2 other parked cars. The viewpoint is less than half a mile from the parking lot. It was hard to capture the depth or the beauty of this gorge in a picture.
If you have more time and are adventurous, a 13km well-signposted moderately difficult hiking trail takes you down to the gorge and back up the other side. The trail starts at Monodendri and ends at Vikos. It will probably take at least 5 hours to hike this trail.
Zagori Stone bridges – Zagori is a municipality, and a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Pindus mountains in Epirus, 30 miles north of Ioannina. Aoos National park and Vikos Gorge are part of Zagori. There are about 46 villages of Zagori interconnected by newly constructed roads. The stone bridges that we were planning to see were built between 17th – 19th century and are named after the merchants who funded their construction. There are about 60 single/double/triple arched bridges and we had time to visit 2 of them.
Noutsou or Kokkorou Stone Bridge – The Noutsou or Kokkorou Bridge is a stone single-arch bridge built in 1750 as a connection between the 2 rocks over the river. The river below the bridge was all dried up.
Kalogeriko Bridge or Plakida – This 3-arched bridge was built as a safe way to get to the nearby watermill.
City of Ioannina – The city center with a Clock tower in Dimokratias Square was about a mile walking distance from out hotel. The monumental Clock Tower of the city was built in 1905 on the initiative of Osman Pasha the Kurd, who was the general commander of Epirus and Southern Albania.
Ioannina Castle – As you walk further down from the clocktower you will reach the Castle which is the fortified old town of the city. The present fortification dates largely to the reconstruction under Ali Pasha in the late Ottoman period, but also incorporates pre-existing Byzantine elements.
Aslan Pasha Complex – The Aslan Pasha Mosque, one of the most important mosques of Ioannina, was built in the early 17th century by Aslan Pasha of Monodendri Zagoriou. According to tradition, it is built on the site of the Byzantine church of Agios Ioannis, in the northeastern section of the citadel, as part of a complex including a madrasa.
As part of the Aslan Pasha Complex, the mederse sits to the southwest of the Mosque in the northeastern citadel. It was probably constructed in the first half of the 17th century, the same time as the mosque.
Lake Pamvotida – After exploring the castle, we walked to the beautiful Lake Pamvotida. You can take a walk on the lakeside which is filled with restaurants and shops.
Is it worth visiting Ioannina? – Only if you have the time in my opinion. The town itself did not give me the vibe of a typical European town which was what I was looking for. If you have half a day to spare, you can visit Vikos Gorge and the stone bridges and be on you way. If you have a whole day and are into hiking, there is a 13-mile hike that will take you down to the gorge and may be an adventurous thing to do.