Varkiza (Greek: Βάρκιζα), also Alianthos (Αλίανθος), is a suburb of greater Athens forming part of the municipality of Vari-Voula-Vouliagmeni in southern

Attica Attica ( el, Αττική, Ancient Greek ''Attikḗ'' or , or ), or the Attic Peninsula, is a historical region that encompasses the city of Athens, the capital of Greece and its countryside. It is a peninsula projecting into the Aegean Se ...

of the

Megalo Daktylo This is a list of common affixes used when scientific name, scientifically naming species, particularly extinct species for whom only their scientific names are used, along with their derivations. *a-, an-: ''Pronunciation'': /ə/, /a/, /ən/, ...

(''Large Finger''). It lies approximately 2 km south of Vari, 22 km S of

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

city centre, SW of the

Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport Athens International Airport ''Eleftherios Venizelos'' ( el, Διεθνής Αερολιμένας Αθηνών «Ελευθέριος Βενιζέλος», ''Diethnís Aeroliménas Athinón "Elefthérios Venizélos"''), commonly initialised as ...

and the Attiki Odos (numbers 6 and 62), NW of Cape

Sounio Cape Sounion (Modern Greek: Aκρωτήριο Σούνιο ''Akrotírio Soúnio'' ; grc, Ἄκρον Σούνιον ''Άkron Soúnion'', latinized ''Sunium''; Venetian: ''Capo Colonne'' "Cape of Columns") is the promontory at the southernmost ...

, and south of the Hymettus Ring. The locality is linked with

Poseidonos Avenue Poseidonos Avenue ( el, Λεωφόρος Ποσειδώνος), also known as Paraliaki (), is the main coastal road of Athens, Greece. It runs from new Faliro in Piraeus to Glyfada and beyond, traversing all the coastal suburbs of Athens; thus it ...

( GR-91), just east of Vouliagmeni. The Hymettus mountains lie to the northwest and the Mesogeian plain to the north. Another mountain lies toward the northeast. Most of the area's streets take names from Greek mythology, and its main street, Poseidonos, forms a connection with the route running from Neo Faliro down toward the Glyfada boundary. Forests cover partpart of the municipality, but much of the mountainous area is rocky and grassy. Varkiza has a widely known beach, which has tennis courts, parkland and fields, restaurants, taverns, complexes and other amenities. The

urban sprawl Urban sprawl (also known as suburban sprawl or urban encroachment) is defined as "the spreading of urban developments (such as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city." Urban sprawl has been described as the unrestricted growt ...

sporadically covers the farmlands and moves west of Varkiza. The population were rural until the 1960s while suburban housing sprang up between the 1960s and the 1990s, making most of the population urban and expanding to this day. Housing development began in the central part of district where farmland once used to dominate its central areas and within the

Saronic Gulf The Saronic Gulf (Greek: Σαρωνικός κόλπος, ''Saronikós kólpos'') or Gulf of Aegina in Greece is formed between the peninsulas of Attica and Argolis and forms part of the Aegean Sea. It defines the eastern side of the isthmus of Co ...

. Later, Varkiza became part of the Athens urban area, and in the 1960s, the connecting highway had two lanes added.

History

The Treaty of Varkiza was signed in 1945 in an attempt to end the

Greek Civil War The Greek Civil War ( el, ο Eμφύλιος �όλεμος ''o Emfýlios'' 'Pólemos'' "the Civil War") took place from 1946 to 1949. It was mainly fought against the established Kingdom of Greece, which was supported by the United Kingdom ...

. It was signed at the Kanelopoulos Mansion, which is located at Vari.

Other

Varkiza has one school (dimotiko), banks, a church, restaurants, bars, taverns, a post office and couple of squares ('' plateies''). Since 2001 Varkiza has been hugely modernised. Varkiza just after the World War II was a small village for fishermen but today has developed to a small town for the rich with one of the best beaches in Attiki. In the summer the population triples as Varkiza resort is right next to the top summer clubs which are located on the "Glyfada strip".

External links

{{commons, Varkiza
Greek Travel Pages
Populated places in East Attica Vari-Voula-Vouliagmeni

History

Other

See also

External links