The capital of Chios
Chios town stretches along the eastern coast of the island opposite the Turkish coast and is built on the site of the ancient city, of which only a few traces remain. The old quarter with its stone buildings, the picturesque market with herbs and spoon sweets and the castle attract more and more visitors. You will walk through the narrow streets -where hardly a car can pass- with the stone walls and the doors ornate with proud arches.
It is also worth visiting the Byzantine Museum, near Bounaki Square, on the site of an old mosque, the Argentis Ethnological and Folklore Museum, housed in the Public Library building, the Iustiniani Exhibition building, at the southwest entrance of the castle, which includes early Christian mosaics , post-Byzantine frescoes, portable icons and wood carvings, and the Homer Spiritual Center.
Visit Anavatos, an abandoned settlement in the center of the island hidden behind mountains.
You will swim at the beaches near Xora and south, towards Karfas, at the nice beach with fine white sand, which has pedaloes and canoes.
Take a stroll through Kampos, a suburb that is essentially an extension of the city, full of citrus groves. Here are the old Genoese mansions, built with “thyme stone”, reddish limestone from the village of Thymiana. Behind the high walls and gateways with shields are cobbled courtyards, stone and marble fountains and verdant orchards watered with manganese. Both in Chora and in Kampos you will find many hotels and rooms or apartments for rent.
In Chios you will taste many local products of excellent quality, as the fertile soil and the Mediterranean climate of the island favor the production of many products. Mastic is used to make liqueur, ouzo, tsureki, ice cream, candies, perfumes and cosmetics. However, apart from the trademark product of Chios, on the island you will try dishes and delicacies, such as mastelo, Chios olives, malathropita, spughgato, mamoulia.
On November 11, the liberation of the island from the Turks is officially celebrated. A beautiful custom is revived on New Year’s Eve, with the Holy Royal steamboats and the dancing in the town square. In August, the World Homogeneous Congress and numerous cultural events are organized.
