Discover traditional Crete. Highland village of Anogeia

Village of Anogeia invites to the festival of art and music

If you want understand the soul of Crete – try to hear it in the music. Visit the ancient highland village of Anogeia on the slopes of Mount Ida (Psiloritis).

Every year in the first week of July here is held Iakinthia (Hyacinth) Festival – a cultural event combining theater performances, concerts and poetry readings. Events are taking place under the shade of trees in the Stone Theatre near the temple in honor of St. Hyacinth at an altitude of 1260 m. The festival is devoted to different themes and as usual makes links between Cretan music as well as folk tradition and musical traditions of other parts of Greece and Mediterranean.

If you miss the Iakinthia, it is possible to enjoy the traditional Cretan music during open-air concerts in Anogeia. In the summer musical and theatrical performances are organized in the central square of Agios Georgios. It’s a perfect place to experience the local life.

 

Ancient tunes on the “upper ground”

The village of Anogeia (is pronounced “Anoya”) is one of the oldest between large settlements in Crete, located in the heart of the island.

The exact date of the emergence of the village is not known, but there is a legend that one day a shepherd found on one of the slopes of Psiloritis an icon of Saint John the Baptist. He carefully wrapped it in a towel and brought home, putted it to other icons. The next day he was amazed to learn that the icon disappeared. Being frightened, he returned to the finding place and saw it laying there. This inexplicable phenomenon was seen as a sign from heaven to build on that site a temple of St. John the Baptist and the Church of St. John was the first building of the village.

The first mentioning of Anogeia in the Byzantine chronicles dated from 1182, when Crete was divided into 12 principalities. In one of them was Anogeia which translates as “upper ground”. It can be supposed that the village owes its name to the geographic location: the village is situated at an altitude of 740 m above sea level.

Even in medieval times Anogeia was a large settlement (according to a Byzantine census of the sixteenth century it had 911 homeowners – adult men). There are many versions of emergence of this village. According to the first of them, residents of the ancient city of Axos migrated in this highland, when the Venetians destroyed their town. The second version says that the locals are descendants of Kuretes, which once protected the baby Zeus.

The isolated and almost inaccessible position of a highland village led to emergence of  an unique subculture in Anogeia. Villagers are strictly keeping chaste manners, traditions, customs and even their peculiar dialect of the Greek language, full of ancient Greek and Dorian words. The musical heritage plays a special role. Exactly Anogeia gave the world the names of one of the most famous musical dynasties in Greece – from Xylouris family. Nikos Xylouris is rightly called “Cretan Bob Marley”. It was he, who opened for the world the traditional Cretan music, making it known and loved far beyond the island.

 

Brave fighters for freedom and independence

Important historical events in Crete did not pass Anogeia.

Throughout its history, the village was reborn three times from the ashes: twice destroyed by the Turks in the XIX century and last time during the Second World War in 1944, when local farmers were actively involved in a guerrilla war and helped British saboteurs to capture the German General von Kreipe and to take him to Africa. For this the Germans burned most of Anogeia and shot all the men who had not managed to escape. It survived a few houses and the Byzantine church of St. John (XI cent.).

Inhabitant of Anogeia took an active part in the famous Battle of Crete (the largest airborne operation of Nazi Germany aiming at seizing Crete, it is described in detail in our issue number 4). A committee of freedom fighters was established in Anogeia, the village was the core of resistance in Crete. After the war, Anogeia was awarded with the Military Cross First Class. In 1946, the village and its surroundings have been transformed into the municipality of Anogeia still existing now.

 

Craft of hand spinning and weaving in highland

But not only music, dialect and distinctive, freedom-loving character make the village of Anogeia attractive for tourists. The commitment to the ancient traditions is evident here in the organization of everyday life and even in clothing. Many residents still wear wide old-time trousers and jerkins.

The village is one of the major centers of handicrafts on the island. Local master craftswoman have united in the first Greek professional association for the manufacture and sale of own embroideries and fabrics, high-quality products with distinctive traditional design, which they produce still using traditional wooden weaving-looms.

Visiting a weaving workshop you receive an unforgettable experience. As a rule, the weaving-loom is located near the entrance to the studio, and visitors can witness the production of fabric as well as get a master class from local weavers. Here you can also buy ready-made products.

The whole center of Anogeia is a large exhibition and sale of various masterpieces of the weaving art. But remember – you should bargain buying any product. It is a tradition, and despite the fact, that the hand-made carpets or fabrics, in any case, cannot be cheap, you should try to reduce the price, set by local craftswoman, spoiled with the attention of tourists.

Legendary Greek hospitality

It is most convenient to visit the village of Anogeia by a rental car. The village is situated not very far from the main tourist centers – 36 km from Heraklion, 9 km from Axos and 54 km from Rethymnon. Anogeia will be happy to reveal its cultural potential to many tourist climbed so high in the mountains as soon as they have parked cars and walk around the village on foot.

As a rule, a look around the village takes about three hours. Penetration into village’s identity occurs insensibly. It is very quiet and peaceful here, in contrast to the boiling life at the bottom, by the sea. The people with whom you communicate are surprisingly uncomplicated and welcoming. Visiting the village you get an impression of a very long backward time travel and a look deep into the soul and history of Crete.

You will not have any problem with parking, and the level of service will be not disappointing. Despite its patriarchal traditions, Anogeia has been and remains one of the largest highland villages of Crete. If you need to spend a night here, you can easily stay in a cheap hotel or in a room.

In addition to the museum of a famous Cretan musician and most interesting craft workshops, 4 churches are located in Anogeia: of St. Georges, St. Demetrius, Dormition of the Mother of God and of St. John with frescoes of the XII-XIV centuries.

When you wish to take a bit to eat, local taverns offer you their menus with authentic domestic cuisine. You can taste traditional mountain food – andikristo: goat or sheep ribs, that were prepared in a special way over open fire. It is rightly considered, that the best lamb in Crete is in Anogeia. Huge mountain pastures and crystal mountain air contribute to breeding flocks around this beautiful place. We also recommend you to try the traditional pasta, cooked in meat broth, and mizithra – a local fresh sheep cheese which is more like a quark.

Places to visit around

Moving towards the village of Anogeia you can visit the Vosakou Monastery. It is a very beautiful monastery built in the XII century and hidden in the Talea mountains. It was empty, has been abandoned and restored only in this century. Here you can touch the relics of St. George the Victorious and take part in the epiclesis.

We recommend also to take a look at the Sfendoni Cave (13 km from Anogeia) also known as Zoniana: 145 meter long cave, one of the longest and most beautiful Greek caves, which age is more than 8 million years; it is known for the numerous stalactites and stalagmites in different colors – white, red and gray.

At any time of year, it is worth to visit Idaion Andron, a cave, where very important archeological finds were discovered. It is located about 25 km south of the village of Anogeia, on the plateau Nida. According to mythology, the goddess Rhea hid the newborn Zeus in this cave from his father Cronus (Saturn), who devoured his children. Helping to hide Zeus, the Kuretes (Cretan demons and spirits) rattled with their shields and spears in front of cave whenever the baby started to cry, and this cave is called the cave of Zeus. There are two of them on the island. One is on the plateau of Lassithi – the Diktaean cave, where Rhea gave birth, and another is that, where she hid Zeus.

Composed by Anna Prikhodko

July, 2016