Mesa Gonia – echoes of an ancient wine capital
Time to share the next small village on the Greek island of Santorini (if you’ve missed it, I’m planning to write a blog post on each of the villages of the island for you to get a sense of what to expect). Today let’s take a look at the small rural village just 8 km from Fira – Mesa Gonia! (second name Episkopi Gonias)
This small village is surrounded by grape wines, and not without a reason. This place used to be one of the highest ranking and important wine tasting places on the island of Santorini, before it was destroyed by a massive earthquake. Some of the past glory still has been preserved – you can visit the Roussos Winery, which is still one of the oldest wineries on the island (it was established around 1836) and it has lots of treats and surprises for all you wine lovers!
Mesa Gonia is definitely a quiet place suitable for people who enjoy their own space and try to avoid crowds, it’s even quieter than the nearby village of Kamari. As for places to see, there’s the winery and the church of Panagia Episkopi, which is said to be the most important monument from the Byzantine times in Santorini. ‘
All in all, it’s a small and beautiful village with small taverns and beautiful churches – all you can ask for your holiday getaway!
Here are few pictures from Mesa Gonia and Panagia Episkopi.
Panagia Episkopi
SANTORINI PHOTOGRAPHER ANNA SULTE 