City of Aegina - Perdika - Moni Island

Starting point of the tour: Center of Aegina

Route Attractions (simple pass):
Archaeological Museum and Temple of Apollo (Kolona)

Route Attractions (including visit):
Orphanage (Kapodistrian buildings)
Government building (Kapodistrian buildings)
Eunardios School (Kapodistrian buildings)
Tower of Markellos
Metropolis of Aegina
Perdika
Moni Island

Tour Schedule:
The city tour begins with a Walking Tour in the historical centre of the island. Aegina is one of the most important islands of Greece. In the centre of the island, the visitor has the opportunity to discover buildings of great historical significance for modern Greece. Walking Tour in the city of Aegina and a short tour. During the tour in the city of Aegina, we will visit some of the most important buildings of modern Greece and then we will be transferred to Moni island, a rare protected must-visit place.

1st Stop
Orphanage (Kapodistrian buildings)
The Orphanage of Aegina was the first school using a peer-to-peer method, as the students of older classes taught the younger ones. Its construction began in mid-1828, on the initiative of Ioannis Kapodistrias and was completed in June of the following year. The building operated also as a prison from time to time, but nowadays it is under renovation.

2nd Stop
Government building (Kapodistrian buildings)
The Government building is located near the Metropolis of Aegina, in the city centre. It is a very important building for modern Greek history. The building originally belonged to the Aeginian Archimandrite Gregorios Moiras. The Government building housed the first government of the free Greece state and at the same time was the residence of Ioannis Kapodistrias. On the first floor, the first room was the office and then the Governor's residence, while the ground floor housed the government offices.

3rd Stop
Eunardios School (Kapodistrian buildings)
One of the most famous Kapodistrian buildings of Aegina and the first neoclassical of the Modern Greek state was the Eunardios (Central) School. Eunardios School was created at a time when the government ministers considered that for the progress of Aegina as a capital city it was necessary to create educational structures. Thus, in 1830, with a donation from the Swiss banker and philhellene G. Einardos, a friend of the then governor Ioannis Kapodistrias, the Einardio School was built.

4th Stop
Tower of Markellos
According to the tradition, the Tower of Markellos was built in Aegina in 1802 and in 1826 was used as the centre of the provisional government of the modern greek state for four years. It was built by the Aeginian elite member Spyros Markellos, a fighter of the '21 Revolution and member of the parliament of Aegina. When Aegina was the capital of the newly formed state, the Tower was also used to house the government ministers.

5th Stop
Metropolis of Aegina
Metropolis of Aegina was used as a boulevard in 1827 and 1828 for the swearing of the first government of Greece, as a gathering place of the Elective Assembly of the Elders and for a short period of time, it covered the needs of the peer-to-peer teaching method school. In the building of Metropolis, the residents of Aegina welcomed Governor Kapodistrias on January 11, 1828.

6th Stop
Perdika
We will be transported to Perdika, from where we will take the boat for our visit to the island of Moni. Perdika is one of the most traditional villages of the Saronic Gulf and a beautiful fishing village of Aegina. A short stop in Perdika, at the small port village, and transfer to the island of Moni.

7th Stop
The Moni island is located to the north of the Saronic Gulf, southwest of Aegina, at a distance of fewer than 1800m away from the port of Perdika. It is pine-covered, with an organized sandy beach and many places for swimming. The peculiarity of this island is that it is not inhabited, but it is a wildlife refuge. On the island, the visitor can find: deer, kri-kri, wild goats, peacocks and squirrels, many of which are friendly - domesticated and keen on approaching visitors.