Agios Nikolaos of Lasithi is situated on the northeastern part of the island of Crete and the locals call it Agios or Gialos. It is the capital of the Prefecture of Lasithi and the main occupations of the inhabitants are tourism, stockbreeding and also the cultivation of olives.At the center of the town your eyes will be captured by Lake Voulismeni or just “Lake”. It is an enclosed saltwater lagoon, where, according to the myth the goddesses Artemis and Athena used to bathe. The inhabitants of the area have created their own urban legends: according to one the Lake is bottomlessand according to another it is connected to the volcano of Santorini.
The Lake is adorned by a park full of pine trees and salt cedars, from where you can enjoy amazing vistas of the city of Agios Nikolaos. The rock-built path which begins from the park, winds through the nature and ends up at the southern side of the Lake, at the marina where the fishing boats sit. At the Nearchou square you can take a picture of the mosaics that depict sea-life motifs, while also of interest are the stairs that lead to town, which is built upon several hills. Many architects from Agios Nikolaos have contributed to this project through each having constructed a stair, thus leaving their “signature” behind.
From the area of Agios Nikolaos you can set out on an excursion to the surroundings and become acquainted with the neighboring Cretan delights. The beautiful villages of Kritsa and Mochos and the important monasteries of the region, such as that of the Virgin Mary Kardiotissa and of St. George the Epanosifis (female and male convents respectively), deserve a visit. At Elounda you will gaze at the luxurious sea-shore resorts, while from here you can reach the island of Spinalonga by boat, which was used from 1905 as a leper colony. It was here that the successful Greek TV series of 2010-2011 “The Island” was filmed, based on the homonymous novel by Victoria Hislop.
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