Greece - Korina Miller [251]
Thrace was also a vital defensive zone for the Byzantine capital. However, its flatness left it vulnerable to marauding Goths, Huns, Vandals, Bulgars, Pechenegs, Cumans and even poorly behaved Latin Crusaders – probably why relatively few historic structures remain. Indeed, only the Ottoman Turks, who invaded in the mid-14th century, could enforce extended periods of peace and quiet.
Thrace’s turbulent past was reawakened in the late 19th century. During the Russo-Turkish War of 1877, the Balkan Wars of 1912–13 and WWI up to the failed Greek invasion of Asia Minor in 1922, the territory changed hands frequently. The ancient Greek concept of hubris explains, as well as anything else, why the region’s modern borders exist as they do; if not for various bombastic decisions on different sides, any of the three countries sharing Thrace could have taken more of it than they finally did.
What sets Greek Thrace apart is its Turkish minority. Along with the Greeks of Constantinople and Imvros (Gökçeada) and Tenedos (Bozcaada) islands, these Turks were exempt during the 1923 population exchanges mandated by the Lausanne Treaty – a treaty that the Greek government has increasingly begun to reference, self-defensively, when other issues of minority rights are invoked. However, while Turkey’s Greek population has dwindled, the Turkish one in Greek Thrace is flourishing.
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XANTHI ΞΑΝΘΗ
pop 45,118
The first important Thracian town when coming from Macedonia, atmospheric Xanthi boasts an old quarter of traditional Ottoman houses set on steep, winding streets. It’s home to an intriguing minority Muslim population comprised of Turks and Bulgarian-speaking Pomaks. Once wealthy for its tobacco industry, Xanthi boasts the former mansions of tobacco barons, and that old regal Thrace survives in the stylish restaurants and cafes found in what’s now a university town sustained by tobacco and other agricultural exploits.
Although definitely still a backwater for most, Xanthi’s importance has increased with the construction of the Egnatia Odos Hwy. Besides being the gateway to eastern Thrace, Xanthi lies near the Macedonian ports of Keramoti and Kavala, which have ferries to Thasos, Samothraki and other islands. Just north of Xanthi, the rippling Rhodopi Mountains are a little-visited but beautiful area filled with deep forests and unique mountain villages – great for off-the-beaten-track adventures.
Orientation & Information
The bus and train stations are on Xanthi’s south side, the former 800m southeast of the main square (Plateia Dimokratias), and the latter 2km south of it. Dimokritou (later, Karaoli) leads to Plateia Dimokratias from the bus station, as does 28 Oktovriou, from the train station. North of Plateia Dimokratias, the Old Town occupies a hill crowned by a shaded pine forest with trails and picnic tables.
ATM-equipped banks, restaurants and shops line Plateia Dimokratias and nearby Plateia Antiko.
Magic Bus Internet Cafe ( 25410 26580; Anexarhou 2; per hr €1.40; 8am-2am) Between the bus station and Hotel Paris.
Police ( 25410 23333; cnr Nestou & Lykourgou Thrakis)
Post office (A Georgiou 16)
Web (Vasileos Konstantinou 63; per hr €2.40; 24hr) Internet access off Plateia Antiko.
Sights & Activities
Overlooking modern Xanthi from a serene hillside, Old Xanthi features pastel-coloured, timber-framed houses on narrow, winding lanes, and grand old neoclassical mansions once owned by wealthy tobacco merchants. This faded grandeur, combined with the bulbous, white-plastered bubbles jutting from humble homes, gives the place a slightly forlorn feel. Nevertheless, the animated shouting of little boys kicking footballs livens up Old Xanthi, also home to the Muslim minority, witnessed by the modern mosque and the satellite dishes tuned to Turkish TV stations.
The stately Folk Museum (Antika 5-7; admission