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PATRAS
Patras is the third largest city of Greece, and the
capital of the Achaea prefecture of Greece and of the
Region of West Greece. Patras is located in the
southwest part of Greece in Peloponnesos and has a
history of 4000 years. Patras's metropolitan area has a
population of over 200,000 and is an important
commercial center and a busy port, with regular car-ferry
services to and from Italy. Patras is 215 km W of Athens
by road, 94 km NE of Pyrgos, 7 km S of Rio, 134 km W of
Corinth, 77 km NW of Kalavryta, and 144 km NW of Tripoli.
The city nowadays is divided into the Upper and Lower
part with broad flights of steps, as well as streets,
giving access between the two levels. The upper part is
the older and more picturesque but the lower part is
attractively laid out with plenty of squares. The most
notable squares are Psila Alonia and Georgiou I square.
There are a lot of neoclassical buildings like the ''theatre
"Apollon" in Georgiou I Square, the Town Hall, the
headquarters of the Local Trade Association and the
Justice Court.
The most significant, open to visit, ancient monument in
Patras is the Roman Odeon, now reconstructed and used as
an open-air theatre for performances and concerts during
the summer period. Overlooking the whole town is the
ruined Castle, whose current outline dates back to the
Venetian invasion of the town (1687-1715). In current
times, its interior is laid out as a public garden.
Close to the seafront, between the site of the new and
the old port, there is the monumental church of St
Andrew and in a projection of land stands a replica of
the city's old lighthouse, built as a part of a
coastline beautification project. Generally, much of
Patras' coastline has streets running alongside. Roads
include Akte Dymaion in the south, and Iroon
Polytechneiou in the north. Unfortunately, due to bad
urban design planning and institutional weakness on the
part of the City Council, which in turn is due to the
lack of financial planning, most of the city's coastal
areas are not in an ideal situation and spots are being
illegally occupied by shops which are illegally built on
the coastline. This is contrary to the Constitution of
Greece of 2001 declares that the Greek coastline is a "National
Treasure" and as such it belongs to the People.
The city is endowed with many neoclassical buildings and
mansions from late 19th-early 20th century, which now
enhance the city centre. Years of neglect and the
absence of protection enforcement, as well as recent
earthquakes, had contributed to the destruction of many,
but today most surviving neoclassical buildings are
under protection status. A project for the restoration
of the city's architectural heritage is part of the 2006
Cultural Capital bid. |
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