TAVERNS - THE OLD PERITHIA - GRILL ROOM - TAVERNA - RES -



	OLD PERITHIA The old village of Perithia is located in the northern part of Corfu, at an altitude of 650 meters, at the foot of the Mount Pantocrator, surrounded by the hills that are filled with greenery and springs. According to the history of Corfu, the village was created round 740B.C., and has been destroyed many times afterwards. In its current form it keeps the features of the Venetian architecture. It was a crowded place which is indicated by the numerous houses, many of which are old mansions with coats of arms, the famous verandas (Botzi), marble staircases and generally rich architectural elements. Nine churches survived and they belong to different families of the village. The name of the village refers to these churches (Peri + Thia which means surrounded by Gods).


	Very impressive is the old school with Skordilis’ coat of arms (local lord)on the arch that you can see at the entrance. For many centuries the villagers lived mainly from farming. At first the agriculture on the mountain was limited mostly on wheat, legumes and vinery. Later on it was expanded with the acquisition and cultivation of fields located lower, towards the beach. The villagers used to work there all day and at night the would return to the “Village” as they used to call it. When they didn’t feel threatened by pirates and other invaders they built second homes at those fields. This is how the 12 neighbourhoods of Perithia were made. The first one “Agios Ilias” is located 6km from Kassiopi. Old Perithia was the capital of the Municipality of Kassiopi in the years 1866-1912, which included almost the entire northern part of the island. After the union of the Ionian Islands in 1864 and the division of the island into municipalities, it became the capital of Kassiopi Municipality with a gendarmerie station, town hall, school building (all of this are preserved).


	The village is divided into two parts, the central part with the square and “Pera Horio” (the Village Beyond) which is separated by a stream. At the end of the World War II the village was gradually abandoned and the residents were involved with tourism and the cultivation of olive trees near the coast. Before this, the village was full of life. Especially in the middle of spring, the village was always packed with people. All the shops were open. In the afternoon, the lords of the last generation would meet at the square (they rarely played cards but they used to talk mainly about politics or tell interesting stories). All the houses were full of life. The open windows of the houses in the evenings were lit by the dim light of the oil lamp and the serenity of the night was only interrupted by the sound of the shepherds’ flute and the bells of the flocks that were wandering about on the surrounding hills.


	Every now and then the young people that could sing would go ai about 22:00 – 23:00 at the hill of St. Panteleimon (the ruined chapel behind the old school) and sing. Sometimes at the midnight hours serenades were being sung under certain windows. Old Perithia is an excellent example of architecture and measure. It has about 130 houses, that were built mostly by following the Venetian architecture’s orders and are built of stone as well as the streets of the village Around the village there are nine churches. At the entrance of the village stands the steeple of St. James the Persian located in front of the church (manufactured by Kassari brothers). The bell tower is a remarkable religious monument, which gives even today a sense of the past’s glory to the villaget. On the other side of the village one can admire the oldest church, St. Nicholas of Petra which is pre-Christian. Old Perithia, has inspired great personalities like Chris Tsirigotis, who was the first Greek psychiatrist and the founder of the psychiatric clinic in Corfu. He was born in 1841. Also, John Sarakinos, teacher and poet, who in one of his poetry collections he has dedicated a poem to the village he was born in. Finally, Old Perithia inspired many people of science and arts (i.e. doctor Delakeza and the composer Aleko Kassari), and that is something we can understand considering the beauty and aura of this place. RELIGIOUS CUSTOMS OLD PERITHEIA'S LITANY The last Sunday of July is dedicated to Virgin Mary, because she is said to have saved the youth of the village from a fatal epidemic in 1863 after many prayers. A litany is taking place every year to celebrate this.


	Before this, the village was full of life. Especially in the middle of spring, the village was always packed with people. All the shops were open. In the afternoon, the lords of the last generation would meet at the square (they rarely played cards but they used to talk mainly about politics or tell interesting stories). All the houses were full of life. The open windows of the houses in the evenings were lit by the dim light of the oil lamp and the serenity of the night was only interrupted by the sound of the shepherds’ flute and the bells of the flocks that were wandering about on the surrounding hills. Every now and then the young people that could sing would go ai about 22:00 – 23:00 at the hill of St. Panteleimon (the ruined chapel behind the old school) and sing. Sometimes at the midnight hours serenades were being sung under certain windows. Old Perithia is an excellent example of architecture and measure. It has about 130 houses, that were built mostly by following the Venetian architecture’s orders and are built of stone as well as the streets of the village. Around the village there are nine churches. At the entrance of the village stands the steeple of St. James the Persian located in front of the church (manufactured by Kassari brothers). The bell tower is a remarkable religious monument, which gives even today a sense of the past’s glory to the villaget. On the other side of the village one can admire the oldest church, St. Nicholas of Petra which is pre-Christian. Old Perithia, has inspired great personalities like Chris Tsirigotis, who was the first Greek psychiatrist and the founder of the psychiatric clinic in Corfu. He was born in 1841. Also, John Sarakinos, teacher and poet, who in one of his poetry collections he has dedicated a poem to the village he was born in. Finally, Old Perithia inspired many people of science and arts (i.e. doctor Delakeza and the composer Aleko Kassari), and that is something we can understand considering the beauty and aura of this place.