THE TURKISH SEBIL WATER FOUNTAIN OF HERAKLION - "A PLACE TO DRINK AND GATHER."

 

     When walking through Karnarous Square in Heraklion (pop. 177,000), I noticed some small tables and coffee being served next to an old round domed building. It was so picturesque that I decided to stop for a coffee. I then noticed water sprockets coming out of the wall where I was sitting and soon learned that this structure is a Sebil Water Fountain that was built in 1776 to provide free water to the public.

   During the Ottoman period, when water was not easily available to many, it was common for wealthy Turks to pay for the construction of the fountains so everyone would have clean drinking water. This well-preserved fountain, built by Hadji Ibrahim Aga, is the only Sebil or "charity fountain" that is still standing in Heraklion.

    Today is Thanksgiving in America and I will once again head down to Karnarous Square to enjoy a coffee and pastry from a nearby bakery while I watch the flock of blackbirds land on the roof of this old Sybil and I will remember to count my blessings. 

KARNAROUS SQUARE and MARKET STREET

ANATIOTIKA – A TASTE OF THE GREEK ISLANDS IN THE MIDST OF ATHENS

Sometimes a meandering city walk takes you to “other places,” like the tiny whitewashed homes built into the rock on the northeast slope of Acropolis Hill in Athens that are reminiscent of the nearby islands.

Anatiotika is a neighborhood of about 45 delightful tiny homes that were originally built in the early 1800s by migrants from the Greek island of Anafi. The workers were recruited by King Otto of Greece to build his palace. In the evenings they built small residences for their families that resembled the homes they left behind in Anafi, a small island east of Santorini in the south Aegean Sea.

   Today the homes in Anatiotika are mostly owned and inhabited by the original descendants of the settlers from Anafi and the law states they cannot be sold but must be passed down to family members or sold to the Greek State.

The walk along these steep and narrow passages to view the tiny homes also offers a spectacular view of the city and Mt. Lycabettus in the distance.