Attractions & Things To Do
Lake Ohrid
Lake Ohrid (Macedonian: Охридско Езеро, Ohridsko Ezero; Albanian: Liqeni i Ohrit or Liqeni i Pogradecit) straddles the mountainous border between the southwestern Republic of Macedonia and eastern Albania. It is one of Europe's deepest and oldest lakes, preserving a unique aquatic ecosystem with more than 200 endemic species that is of worldwide importance.[1] The importance of the lake was further emphasized when it was declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO in 1979. However, human activity on the lake shores and in its catchment area is resulting in the ecosystem coming under stress.
Lake Ohrid is the deepest lake of the Balkans, with a maximum depth of 288 m (940 ft) and a mean depth of 155 m (508 ft). It covers an area of 358 km² (138 sq mi), containing an estimated 55.4 km³ of water. It is 30.4 km long by 14.8 km wide at its maximum extent with a shoreline length of 87.53 km, shared between the Republic of Macedonia (56.02 km) and Albania (31.51 km).
Quite remarkably, exotic species do not seem to be a major issue in Lake Ohrid, although they have been recorded in small populations for several decades or exist in nearby rivers or lakes. The reason lies very probably in the ideal adaptation of the endemic species to the specific conditions in the lake, such as low nutrient availability, good living conditions in greater depth thanks to high water transparency and oxygen content, as well as subaquatic spring inflows supplying cool and oxygen-rich water.
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The White Tower of Thessaloniki
The White Tower of Thessaloniki (Greek: Λευκός Πύργος Lefkos Pyrgos), is a monument and museum on the waterfront of the city of Thessaloniki, capital of the region of Macedonia in northern Greece. Originally constructed by the Ottomans to fortify the city's harbour, it became a notorious prison and scene of mass executions during the period of Ottoman rule. It was substantially remodeled and its exterior was whitewashed after Greece gained control of the city in 1912. It has been adopted as the symbol of the city.
It was built on the place where an older, Byzantine tower once stood. This Byzantine tower connected the east wall of the fortification of Thessalonike (the part preserved today) with the sea wall, which was demolished in 1866. The museum in the White Tower contains various collections of sculptures, frescoes, fragments of mosaic floors and wall mosaics, icons, coins, inscriptions, pottery, glass and metal items. The stairway and the entrance to a floor, after the restoration. Of the most important exhibits of the museum are: Fragment of silk cloth woven with gold thread. It was found in a man's grave, in the basilica of Saint Achilleios at Lake Prespa. Dated to the 11th century A.D. A couple of armlets made of gold and enamel, found in Thessalonike. Dated to the 10th century. Icon depicting the Virgin with Christ Child. It was probably imported to Thessalonike from Cyprus. Dated to ca. 1200 A.D
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Mount Athos
Mount Athos (Greek: Όρος Άθως, Oros Athos) is a mountain on the peninsula of the same name in Macedonia, of northern Greece, called in Greek Agion Oros (Άγιον Όρος, transliterated often as Hagion Oros), or in English, "Holy Mountain". In Classical times, the peninsula was called Akté (Ακτή) (sometimes Acte or Akte). Politically it is known in Greece as the Autonomous Monastic State of the Holy Mountain. This World Heritage Site is home to 20 Eastern Orthodox monasteries and forms a self-governed monastic state within the sovereignty of the Hellenic Republic. Spiritually, Mount Athos comes under the direct jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.
Only monks are allowed to live on Athos and the current population numbers around 1,400. The peninsula, the easternmost "leg" of the larger Chalkidiki peninsula, protrudes into the Aegean Sea for some 60 km at a width between 7 to 12 km and covers an area of about 390 km², with the actual mountain and its steep, densely forested slopes reaching up to 2,033 m. The seas around the end of the peninsula can be dangerous. Xerxes I had a channel excavated across the isthmus to allow the passage of his invasion fleet in 483 BC.
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Museum of Byzantine Culture
The Museum of Byzantine Culture (Greek: Μουσείο Βυζαντινού Πολιτισμού) is a museum in Thessaloniki, Greece, which opened in 1994. It aims in presenting various aspects of life during the byzantine and post-byzantine periods: art, ideology, social structure and religion, as well as how historical changes and the political situation were affecting people' s everyday life.
The museum has collections of sculpture, frescoes, mosaics, icons, and inscriptions from the Byzantine period. It has permanent exhibitions, rooms for temporary thematic exhibitions, conservation workshops, and storerooms. The exhibits include sculptures, wall paintings, mosaic floors, icons, metalwork, coins, inscriptions, glassware, and pottery.
Since 1998, the Museum of Byzantine Culture has been running educational programmes for schoolchildren aged 6–13, who visit the museum with their teachers.
In "Byzantine Castle" archaeological exhibits and information are used to show how the castle was organized and to create a picture of everyday life and production within and outside its walls. There is also a video booth where a fifteen-minute video on castles of Macedonia and Thrace is shown.
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