Skala Eresou (), also

transliterated Transliteration is a type of conversion of a text from one script to another that involves swapping letters (thus ''trans-'' + '' liter-'') in predictable ways, such as Greek → , Cyrillic → , Greek → the digraph , Armenian → or L ...

as Skala Eressou, is a seaside village on the island of

Lesbos Lesbos or Lesvos ( el, Λέσβος, Lésvos ) is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It has an area of with approximately of coastline, making it the third largest island in Greece. It is separated from Asia Minor by the nar ...

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

, part of the community of

Eresos Eresos (; el, Ερεσός; grc, Ἔρεσος) and its twin beach village Skala Eresou are located in the southwest part of the Greek island of Lesbos. They are villages visited by considerable numbers of tourists. From 1999 until 2010, Ereso ...

. Since the 1980s it has become a popular destination for lesbian tourists.

Overview

"Skala Eresou" means "the ''skala'' of

", where ''skala'' means "landing place for boats". The village has two access roads, one from the north and one from the west. Both lead towards the central square, which is paved with flagstones, but due to the one-way system, vehicle access is restricted. On the outskirts of the village, there are several large car parks. The volcanic character of the west side of Lesbos is shown in the dark grey color of the beach, which extends for almost three kilometers from a small harbour in the east to the headland in the west. In 2006, the beach of Skala Eresou was awarded the Blue Flag, for the cleanliness of its waters and its beach. There are many small family hotels and self-catering apartments for rent within the village or on the outskirts. There is also a dispensary, a pharmacy, a large number of restaurants and bars with several tourist offices. Every summer, Eresos has a large number of visitors, both Greeks and foreigners. Many lesbian women make the pilgrimage to Skala Eresou in order to visit the birthplace of Sappho. The village hosts alternative events throughout the summer, including tai-chi lessons, reiki, shiatsu or ayurvedic massage. A "women festival" takes place in Skala Eresou every September, attracting women tourists. Daily buses run in the summer and the village can be reached by taxis from the airport or the port of

Mytilene Mytilene (; el, Μυτιλήνη, Mytilíni ; tr, Midilli) is the capital of the Greek island of Lesbos, and its port. It is also the capital and administrative center of the North Aegean Region, and hosts the headquarters of the University o ...

for around 100

euro The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...

Famous people

The town is famed for being the birthplace of Sappho, the legendary lyric poet also called the "Tenth Muse." Skala Eresou was also the home for the ancient Greek philosopher Phanias, who was a pupil of

Aristotle Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of ph ...

, and of

Theophrastus Theophrastus (; grc-gre, Θεόφραστος ; c. 371c. 287 BC), a Greek philosopher and the successor to Aristotle in the Peripatetic school. He was a native of Eresos in Lesbos.Gavin Hardy and Laurence Totelin, ''Ancient Botany'', Routle ...

, the father of classical botany. The ancient city walls are still visible from when it was an important trading centre.

References

{{coord, 39, 08, N, 25, 56, E, region:GR_type:city_source:enwiki-GNS, display=title Populated places in Lesbos