Harry's Peloponnese Guide: Patras, Capital of Achaea

Patras is Greece's western portal to Europe and an important seaport with much commercial and passenger traffic. Today, a university town with many young people, it is the third largest city in Greece and its roots may be traced to the late Mycenaean period circa 1400 BC. About 1100 BC, after being displaced by the Dorians, there arrived, Achaean refugees from Laconia who supplanted the local population and gave their leaders name to the area. Patreus. Saint Andrew, the towns patron saint, gave the message of Christianity to the area only to be crucified by the Romans. He has a large cathedral devoted to him for his troubles There are upper and lower parts to the city. The hill to the north east boasts the remains of a Venetian Castle built on the site of the ancient acropolis. There is a yearly carnival which commences just before the beginning of Lent.

Hint: I hate to say this about a place that must have some redeeming qualities but unless you have friends here or are prepared to spend time getting to know its charms: Leave as soon as possible, noisy, smelly, frenetic, over priced, a cross between Tel Aviv and Manhattan. Accommodations wise they have you between a rock and hard place and charge accordingly.

The one plus: A lively night scene with lots of singles cruising downtown strip. I was here to get the ferry from Rio to transfer myself and party to central Greece, these ferries leave every 10 minutes, cost about $20 for you and your car or take the new Rio Bridge (@25 eu). I have also been here after arriving by ferry from Brindisi Italy. I caught a bus to Athens, took about 2.5 hours.

Left to right: Patras Castle, Odeon at Patras, Map Patras / Nafpatakos Central Greece accessible by car ferry via Rio just up the road towards Athens.

left to right: Cog Wheel railroad to Vouraikos Gorge, War of Independence declared March 25th, 1821, Aghia Lavra Monastery. Patras main square right.

Below: St. Andrews Cathedral Patras. Typical beach, Gulf of Patras, some local color.

Left Docks for ferries to Italy. Patras view from Castle.

Aigeira

70 km east of Patras on the E65 highway lies Roman Aigeira

Classical Aigeira whose name comes from the Greek word for shield, was excavated by the Austrian Archaeological Institute in 1915, 1926 and 1972. The antiquities lie on both sides of the road that goes to Aigai just past a water fountain near a stopping place.

The most significant structure is the Theater, rebuilt during the Roman period, beyond which are a semicircular group of naiskoi in one of which was found a head by the sculptor Eukleidis. A large building from the Hellenistic/Roman periods is to the west, which may have been the bath house of the Gymnasium, as troughs and channels have been found. The climb up to the acropolis, which sits on two terraces, is quite steep, and remains there are more scanty, and include pottery and Mycenaean buildings, as well as a Hellenistic /Roman square with shops.

There are also some architectural fragments and foundations of the 7th century BC which may be from a Temple of Artemis-Iphigeneia, which was mentioned in the writings of Pausanius. Homer referred to the city as 'Hyperesia' in the Iliad. Its inhabitants allegedly repelled a Sikyonian invasion by tying torches to the horns of goats one night, so that they would appear to be reinforcements who had come to help them.