The Island

Lesvos is located at the Northeastern Aegean Sea, only five nautical miles away from the Turkish coast. The history of the island is like a colorful tapestry, woven by eastern smells, refugees from Asia Minor, Greek thinkers, poets, scholars and painters, a true palimpsest of places and people. Lesvos is at the crossroads of West and East. It is a big island, the third largest island in Greece, after Crete and Euboea. Our Nobel laureate poet, Odysseas Elytis, imagined Lesvos like a sycamore leaf, which was thrown away in the middle of the Sea by some God, to amuse himself. It is a place where not only civilizations co-exist, but also the Sun and the Moon reign in harmony. Geographically, the most characteristic element of the island are the two semi-enclosed gulfs at the southern part of the island: The biggest one is the Kalloni Gulf, with saltpans on its shores as well as a beautiful wetland, which is a habitat for many aquatic bird species. The smallest of the two is the Gulf of Yera, near Mytilene, the magic and majestic capital of the island. The moonlike landscape at the western part of the island with the fossil forest at Sigri takes one’s breath away. On the other hand, in Northern Lesvos, one can find pine tree forests and green lush vegetation, while on the southern part of the island (where Plomari is located) there are olive trees and the climate is dryer. Besides, olive trees cover at least one fourth of the island while olive oil and olives are among the most famous and popular products of Lesvos, along with cheese, great fish and delicious meat. However, it is ouzo that holds a special place at the heart of every resident and visitor of the island. Lesvos and ouzo Barbayanni are interlinked and complimentary words, since the island produces the most famous, renowned and recognized ouzo in Greece, ouzo Varvayanni from Plomari.