SIGHTS

The island in the Pamvotida lake is an integral part of the history of Ioannina: it is related with the history and the death of Ali Pasha.There is  already evidence , from the Byzantine and Post-Byzantine period, of organized living on the island based on the eight monastery compounds.

The monastery Saint Nicholaos Philanthropinon (1292), Saint Nicholaos, also Diliou or Stratigopoulou, monastery Eleousis or Saint Nicholaos Goumaton (15th century),  monastery of Metamorphosis Sotiros, compounds that are located on the north west side of the island and monastery Profiti Elia on the top of the hill, the monastery Kimiseos Theotokou   and  last the monastery Saint Panteleimon. In the cells of this last monastery still exist the bulletholes  that were fired against Ali Pasha when he tried to rescue himself from the wa siege by Hoursit Pasha.

 In these monasteries and especially in the monastery of Saint Nicholaos Philanthropinon, exquisite Post-Byzantine murals are preserved.  What is remarkable about the above monastery 

 is the full figure portrayal  of seven ancient philosophers as Plato, Solon, Aristotelis, Plutarch, Thoukididis, Apollonius and Hilon. 

 Today the island is inhabited, which is a rare  phenomenon worldwide, by 100 families who are all occupied with tourism and fishing.

 The island is  connected with the city of Ioannina by ferries  which cross every half hour during  the summer period  and every hour in winter. On the island there are shops with folk

 art items and restaurants which serve fishes, eels, frog-legs e.t.c. It represents an important pole of touristic development of Ioannina.