Zagori consists of 45 villages with specific historic and cultural attributes and natural geographic boundaries. Zagori is best known for its recent history as this is reflected in the luxurious stone constructions of the Ottoman occupation period. Zagorian migrants of the 18th century were traveling to Constantinople, Asia Minor, Venice, Central Europe, Africa and later to America, bringing back wealth as also elements of the cultural and social status of the places where they had lived. The different vegetation zones of the area correspond to different cultural units and people. The summer pastures of the mountain peaks correspond to transhumance shepherds who during the winter used to move to the mainland coast. Today some of them have abandoned the pastoralist way of life and they live permanently in the villages of the area occupied in tourist business. A linguistic distinctive in the past community, the Vlachs, live in the forested areas of Aoos and Vardas valleys. These people are occupied today mainly in logging. In the oak zone, where most settlements occur the landscape shows a multifunctional character and mirrors an agricultural and livestock production designed to cover the needs of each family in the past. In this cultural landscape we can see today relicts of terraces, stone paved lanes, threshing floors, straw huts and abandoned today shredded trees. |