Sigri
Encyclopedia
Lesbos Island
Lesbos is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It has an area of with 320 kilometres of coastline, making it the third largest Greek island. It is separated from Turkey by the narrow Mytilini Strait....
. Its name derives from the Greek word for security, based on the fact that it has a safe harbour. Sigri has a Turkish castle, built in 1746 during the Ottoman occupation, which looks over the bay and the long island of Nissiopi
Nissiopi
Nissiopi is a long island in front of Sigri's harbour, which stretches across the mouth of the bay and acts as a buffer to the prevailing winds. In the middle stands an old pharos lighthouse to help ships navigate in the rough east Aegean seas....
, which stretches across the mouth of the bay and acts as a buffer to the prevailing winds. The port of Sigri is able to accommodate large vessels, even cruise ship-size ferry boats coming from the mainline. Almost all shipping to Lesbos, however, comes into the east of the island.
There are quite a number of restaurants, specialising naturally in fish, but also in the local delicacies such as a type of spinach, called horta, which is boiled and served with lemon and salt.
Sigri is home to the Natural History Museum of the Lesvos Petrified Forest which was established in 1994 to study, research, promote, preserve, and conserve the Petrified Forest of Lesvos
Petrified Forest of Lesvos
The petrified forest of Lesvos is a petrified forest on Lesvos in Greece.It has been designated as a protected natural monument. The petrified forest of Lesvos was formed from the fossilized remains of plants, which can be found in many localities on the western part of Lesvos Island...
. The forest itself is a few kilometers to the east inland from Sigri.
This is the dry end of the island of Lesbos fairly lacking in vegetation and agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
. Its beaches have the most sand of all of Lesbos, contrasting with the rockier and pebble beaches to the east. This area is sparsely populated and only frequented by a small number of tourists. It is quite windy relative to east Lesbos, but has not yet been discovered by wind surfers. The sea is not that safe, although within the large bays the waves and currents are gentle.
The village beach, a glorious near-180 degree sweep of volcanic grey sand, is normally safe for children, shelving very gently out to the rocky floor of the shallow bay. Inflatables should ideally be tethered, or their users closely supervised, because of the breeze.
There are six clothes-optional sandy beaches within walking distance of Sigri.