1. At the last day we visited Pelion and especially Makrinitsa. The houses of this village are built in a typical traditional way of the past: P E L I O N Manor Houses... Cobbles... Fountains... Qualified workmen and builders spent a lot of time and were dedicated to their constructions. Craftsmen from Epirus came to Pelion and taught their local colleagues how to carve the stones, how to use them in building and how to built houses, cobbles and bridges, using materials from the natural environment, such as stones and wood. In many cases, where they built the foundations of a construction, they broke every rock that they found, using the stones in the building. Do not forget that transferring materials was not so easy at those times. So, in this way, many houses were built utterly embedded in the natural environment. The folk architecture of Pelion holds a significant position in the Greek architecture. The mason houses of Pelion, surrounded by the green landscape, are scattered in plane trees, cool streams, flowery slopes, uphill cobbles, fragrant flower gardens and lush gardens with dense vegetation. Traditional verandas, decorative windows that offer a fairy sense, doors and lintels with carved wood, are in harmony with the natural environment, leading to a unique visual result. Pelion villages were not fortified, but in almost all of them there were castellated houses that were like fortresses. The castellated houses started to being built in early 17th. century, influenced by similar houses of the Turkish landlords of Thessaly. They were tall houses like fortresses, and they were built near the areas that Turks had their land, such as Ano Volos, Lechonia, and around the castle of Golos. Later, when the circumstances enabled the development of trade and the local people of Pelion had their own money, they built also castellated houses, which were similar to the Turkish ones. Indicative examples of this kind of houses can be found today in Kissos (Pitsos’s houses), Makrinitsa (Konstantidis’s mason house), Agios Lavrentios and Agios Georgios. Fortunately, the special conditions of building constructions, that are in force in Pelion, protect and retain the beauty of these houses. Nevertheless, in some cases there are minor problems… Apart from the houses and the churches, there are also other buildings that reveal the excellence and elegance of the craftsmen of Pelion… The stone arched bridges, embraced by the ivy over the years, complete the beautiful image. In the mountainous part of Pelion, during the years of the Turkish occupation, twenty-four villages, well-known to both Greek and foreign tourists, were developed. Until today they pertain much of their original character, which makes them some of the most significant traditional regions in Greece. The factors that contributed to the villages’ development were many, but they pertain mainly to the fertile land with running water, the easy transportation by the sea, the local government with the privileges given by the Turkish conquerors, the investments by the expatriates (mainly those living in Egypt) from Pelion, and of course the passion that characterized even the simplest construction. Pelion’s architecture deserves a particular reference and the mason houses of Pelion that are preserved until today, bringing to mind the glorious past times, are worth being explored by the visitor. Fortunately, the special conditions of building constructions, that are in force in Pelion, protect and retain the beauty of these houses. Nevertheless, in some cases there are minor problems… Apart from the houses and the churches, there are also other buildings that reveal the excellence and elegance of the craftsmen of Pelion… The stone arched bridges, embraced by the ivy over the years, complete the beautiful image. Another unique feature of Pelion is the cobbles. In Pelion, there is a wide network of cobbles, which initial purpose of construction was not of course fun or hiking, but they constituted the national transportation network. Through this network, the financial life of the villages can be observed (e.g. by how big was a cobble, how many bridges meets each cobble, etc.). The cobbles that served a great part of the transportation, were constructed bigger. Fortunately, nowadays, a lot of the cobbles of Pelion are pertained and the visitors who love hiking, have the opportunity to admire them. Wood curving, painting, and stone curving have contributed in the decoration of Monasteries, old mason houses, picturesque squares, curved fountains, which constitute the wonderful accomplishments of the folk artistic sensibility. Additionally, one of the most common and most interesting constructions in Pelion is fountains which, created with the passion of local craftsmen, constitute real works of art. Decorated with stone curved themes inspired by nature, history, religious tradition, they are real masterpieces. Each fountain has its own name as well as its own history...