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 Owing its riches to a mineral
wealth of gold and silver in antiquity, for the past two centuries
Sifnos
has been rich in poets, writers, ceramists, farmers and stone masons.
Sifnos! The islands Cycladic
landscape has bloomed through a culture born out of daily life,
celebrations, feasts, the whiteness of its houses, well-cared walking paths,
fabulously preserved stone-walls that terrace the fields, wise cultivation
of the land, the creation of artwork from clay, the harvesting of olives,
the encounter with the saltiness of the blue sea.
Sifnos is one of the few islands
that have kept their architectural landscape unaltered. Simplicity,
aesthetics, the harmonious blending of the buildings with the beauty of the
natural environment, the striking white against the greenish-brown stone
walls, the grey of the rocks against the green of the bushes and the olive
trees, together they create an air of simplicity that immediately charms
visitors.
The rich tradition of Sifnos is
alive and well.
 The age-old art of the pinwheel
that for hundreds of years made Sifnos the main supplier of household
utensils across Greece and the Mediterranean back when the word tsikalas
(cooking vessel maker) was synonymous to Sifniot is still one of the
most profitable professions among the locals. It is an art that visitors can
watch unfolding at one of the numerous ceramic workshops strewn around the
island. Visitors can watch as earth is turned into a masterpiece taking on
shape and usefulness, before they can make it their own.
 The cultivation of land in
Sifnos takes place with the very same traditional method as long ago, in
well attended fields supported by terraced stone walls to this day. Sifniot
farmers plant their summer produce, waterless most of the time, such as
melons, watermelons, string beans, tomatoes, without the use of chemicals or
fertilizers. The local villagers still use
beasts of burden to thresh the sty in their fields.
Stock raising with herds of
semi-wild goats and sheep still takes place with the same age-old methods,
used to produce traditional varieties of cheeses, such as manoura and myzithra.
The culinary art, traditional cooking of delectable local dishes, such as revithokeftedes,
mastelo, kaparosalata, baked chickpeas, traditional sweets, almond
cookies, biscotti and koulouria; cooking and our products at the disposal
of our visitors.
 Our religious tradition in all
its ceremonial glory; our feasts, uniquely taking place in far away
monasteries, where, after the evening mass, the faithful share a meal of
chickpeas, meat or fried codfish (depending on the religious occasion),
accompanied with wine and traditional music, compliments of the panigyra
(one of the faithful celebrating an event or nameday.
Our traditional music, our
dances, songs, the local music-like dialect, our feasts and other
merriments, make up our daily lives, our weapon for competitiveness in the
tourist sector.
This is what makes us unique,
this is what we promote; this is what we keep alive and unaltered.
The feasts FEASTS, not
festivals.
The merriments MERRIMENTS, not
happenings.
The celebrations CELEBRATIONS,
not parties or fiestas.at www.sifnos.gr
MUNICIPALITY OF SIFNOS
Apollonia - Sifnos Island
84003 Cyclades, Greece
Tel. : +30 22840 31111 and 31345
Fax: +30 22840 33076
MUNICIPAL ENTERPRISE FOR THE
TOURIST DEVELOPMENT OF SIFNOS
84003 Cyclades, Greece
Tel: +30 22840 31975 and 31977
Fax:+30 22840 28961
Website: www.sifnos.gr
E-mail: detasifn@otenet.gr |
