Chorio Kimolos

Chorio is the largest village and the capital of beautiful Kimolos. We find it in the southeast of the island at the foot of Mount Xaplovouni on top of a hill overlooking the Aegean and its port Pshati.

Like Kimolos, Chorio has a somewhat sleepy air, here mass tourism has not yet invaded the territory by virtue of the fact that the island being very small, the accommodation possibilities are very limited. Most of the population is concentrated here and the village has a traditional architecture of the Cycladic Islands with typical whitewashed stone houses with blue windows and doors, delightful flower gardens, narrow and cobbled streets that become real labyrinths, an infinity of churches with the classic blue dome and of course a medieval castle dating back to the 14th-16th century around which the town developed and enlarged at the end of the 17th century and after the Greek Revolution of 1821.

In its center, small cafes where you can meet the locals, taverns offering local cuisine and traditional Greek dishes, inviting pastry shops that will make you gain weight in no time and all kinds of shops. Among its interesting mazes Open Libraries run by volunteers called Kimolistas where you can borrow free books to devour during your beach holiday but which must be returned.

About eight hundred meters below Chorio is its port, the only way of communication with the rest of the world, while just above the capital are the classic windmills which are now in ruins. From here the view is sublime and a walk to reach them is certainly a worthwhile effort. The ruins of the past are scattered among the silent stone lanes and among old reddish or yellow local stone buildings which are falling apart giving an almost ghostly atmosphere. Above all the Paliokastro silhouette (the castle) at a height of 365 meters above sea level where you get lost with your eyes beyond the horizon.

Chorio Characteristic are the numerous churches considered important archaeological monuments and therefore protected by the Ministry of Culture. The most impressive is the Panagia Odigitria church built between 1867 and 1874 by the inhabitants themselves who dedicated seven years of their time to give it life and where the Archaeological Museum and the Folklore Museum are located opposite. The largest on the island where there is a building that will house an archaeological collection with finds from the 8th century BC. Then there is the the Christ Nativity church, the decidedly older one dating back to 1592 which is assumed to exist even before the Kastro. With a very humble shape, it has a portico that divides the two naves and inside there are two wooden icons from the 18th century.

To the fortress north , the majestic  Agios Ioannis Chrysostomos church with the unplastered external walls enhanced by the colors of the local stone. Originally its shape was a cross surmounted by an octagonal dome, later it was extended towards the west. It is accessed from a small area that houses a well from which it is possible to see the complete outline of the church. To the south, the portal with a splendid mullioned window enriched with Kimolos trachytic stone decorations.