Around Lassi: from the city to the Tilegrafos, to the lighthouse of Agioi Theodoroi, to the sinkholes and back to the city The walker’s orientation and safety is solely their responsibility. The present report, the relevant tracks (gpx) and the rest of the informational material are just supplementary. The proper equipment is necessary, depending on the weather conditions and the nature of the route.  Route’s type: circular Route’s duration: 2 hours and 20 minutes Route’s length: 7,300 meters Level of difficulty: easy Suggested season: All seasons, if weather conditions permit it. During summer, you should avoid midday hours. The route: It is an urban course in the city and in the wider area of Argostoli. The march starts from the central square of Argostoli and after crossing the Napier Park, we ascend the hill of Tilegrafos with the panoramic view of the city of Argostoli. The uphill road, which is asphalt at the beginning, passes the borders of the built area of the city and the nature of Tilegrafos, and after following it - making the necessary "hairpin bend" (turn) - we reach the dirt road and the heart of the hill. We continue the gentle ascent through the hill and in a short while we reach the viewpoint, from where we gaze at the bay of Argostoli, with Lixouri in front of us, while at our feet we can see the area of Lassi and Piniatoro. We continue our course through the hill, until we reach the monument to the Fallen Italians of the Acqui Division. From this point, we descend from the asphalt towards the sea, through a beautiful area with houses, gardens and a view of the bay. Reaching the coast we continue north until we reach the iconic lighthouse of Agioi Theodoroi. From the lighthouse we head east having the Fanari beach next to it, and after about seven hundred meters, we reach the famous katavothres (sinkholes) and the facilities that surround them. Actually, from the Katavothres our return to the town centre starts, where most of the way to and from the marina is by a beautifully landscaped pedestrian/cycle path. From the cruise ship pier - where the tourist information office is located - we turn off Israel Street leaving the beach. At the Radicals monument, we follow the avenue of the same name, which will take us to the starting point at the main square. The dirt road to Tilegrafos does not present any particular difficulties, so the whole route can be done by car and is therefore suitable for people with disabilities. In Kefalonia there are Health Centres in Sami and Hospitals in Argostoli and Lixouri. There are also police services in Fiskardo, Sami, Poros, Lixouri and Argostoli. Citizen Service Centres are in Argostoli, Livathou, Poros and in Agia Efthimia. Argostoli Argostoli is the capital of Kefalonia and the largest city of the island, with a population of 9,748 permanent residents, according to the last census (2011). It is built on the hills around the lagoon of Koutavos. The area has been inhabited since 1600. In 1757 the Venetian rulers of Kefalonia decided to move the capital of the island, which until then was the Castle of Agios Georgios, to Argostoli. The town of Argostoli was the scene of some of the most important historical moments of the whole island, such as the burning of the 'Golden Bible', the Libro d'Oro, in the square of Campana, which put an end to the discrimination between the nobility and the people. But also, one of the most important battles between the rebellious Kefalonians and the English garrison, in 1849, was fought on the city's De Bosset stone bridge. The town of Argostoli, before the devastating earthquakes of 1953, had buildings of great architectural value, both public and private, with many Western European influences. Today the heart of the city beats around the central square and between Lithostrotou and Siteboron street, where we will find museums, a library, statues, theatres, neoclassical buildings, but also many shops, cafes and bars.  Napier Gardens Napier Gardens is a park created during the English rule, in the early 19th century, and is located near the central square of Argostoli. It takes its name from its founder, the Governor of Kefalonia, Charles James Napier, who bought a vineyard in the area then called "Koutoupi" and turned it into an elevated park for his children to play in. The park remained in the possession of the Napier family until 1905, when the Municipality of Argostoli managed to acquire it and turn it into a municipal grove of the city and a place of leisure and entertainment, as it remains until today. At that time, the Municipality made many important interventions in the area, such as shaping the ground, planting, placing water pipes, constructing a pavilion, placing seats. Napier Street was also landscaped in the same year. The bust of Napier was created in 1906 by the sculptor Ioannis Kokkinos, when it was placed within the garden. During the German occupation, the garden was severely damaged. This was followed by the earthquakes, the long-term abandonment of the Garden and only under the mayorate of Gerasimos Forte the restoration of the historic Garden was carried out (2003-2004), with funding from the 3rd Community Support Framework. It was beautified with various plants, new benches were installed and in ten places signs with bilingual historical texts and rich photographic material were erected to guide and inform the visitor. Today the garden has regained its former glamour and popularity. Walking along the pebbled paths of the lush park, with its landscaped paths and event areas, the visitor can see the Iroo of Argostoli, the work of the sculptor G. Bonanos, erected in 1927, the bust of the founder of the garden and a kiosk, built today, like the original one.  Tilegrafos The so-called "Tilegrafos" was an optical signal office on the hill of Ai Thanasis, above Argostoli at the site "Koutsomylos". At this point the view is panoramic to the sea. From here, we can see at a distance of several kilometers, if a boat approaches Argostoli. In front of us, we have both the bay of Livadi (Lixouri) and the bay of Argostoli with the port. In "Tilegrafos" there was a huge cross-shaped tower, wooden at the beginning, constructed in 1850, which later became metallic. From this cross, they hung flags that served as a signal to the harbour, according to a system of suspensions they had devised. In this way, the type of ship, its position and where it was going were determined precisely and every half an hour. Of course, the Tilegrafos had its keeper, who was the only person responsible for sending a signal with the flags. During the English rule, he was an English officer of the Argostoli guard. With the Union of the Ionian Islands with Greece (1864), Tilegrafos passed into Greek hands and was operated by the military forces that had settled in Argostoli. In 1916-17, during the occupation of the island by the French forces, the "Tilegrafos" was used for the communication of the French ships and was manned by their own personnel. Tilegrafos stopped flying flags in 1940. The permanent end came with the earthquakes of 1953. Although Tilegrafos is a monument to local navigation, today it is completely abandoned. All that remains is the "hole" where the huge metal cross used to be. Monument to the Italian Fallen of the Acqui Division At the top of the hill, in Fanari, on the outskirts of Argostoli, is the Monument to the Fallen Italians. There is a white cross and next to it the inscriptions, which in Greek and Italian remind visitors of the horrors of war and the sacrifice of the Italian soldiers of the Acqui Division. The Monument was built in 1978. It was the Acqui Division, consisting of 12,000 men in total, that occupied Kefalonia in April 1940. Kefalonia, like the rest of the Ionian Islands, became an Italian protectorate. In July 1943, the fascist Italian government of Mussolini fell and a few days later, a regiment of the German army landed in Kefalonia. On September 8, 1943, Italy concluded an armistice with our Anglo-American allies. Immediately, the German administration asked the administration of the Acqui Division to surrender their weapons in the central square of Argostoli, in exchange for the safe return of all Italian soldiers to their country. Negotiations did not lead to an agreement, and so on 15 September the fighting began, during which 1,300 Italian soldiers were killed, mainly by German air force. On 22 September the commander of the Acqui Division asked for the surrender of its soldiers to the Germans. However, thousands of Italians were executed by the Germans in the following days, violating all international treaties concerning prisoners of war. The German administration forbade the burying of Italian soldiers, whose bodies were burned or thrown into the sea. Many Italians were saved, thanks to the help of the Kefalonians, who in many cases paid for their humanitarianism with harsh reprisals. Those Italians who escaped the massacre were forced to cooperate with the Germans, and those who refused were sent to the forced labour camps, where most of them died. When, in September 1944, the Germans were forced to leave Kefalonia, those Italians who had survived were able to return home with their weapons and flags. Every year a ceremony is held at the Memorial of Fallen Italians, attended by representatives of Italy and Greece. The Lighthouse of Agioi Theodoroi The lighthouse of Agioi Theodoroi is located in the area of Lassi, near Argostoli in Kefalonia. It takes its name from the chapel of Agioi Theodoroi which is located nearby. It is a unique circular structure, based on 20 white Doric columns, while its tower is 8 metres high. The peculiarity of its shape is due to a happy coincidence: there was a windmill in the area. The builders, in an attempt to save materials, constructed a circular staircase in the middle of the tower and a series of columns around it to support the structure, mainly because of the earthquakes that were strong in the area. It was built in 1828 by the English, when Charles Napier was in command. The height of the tower is 8 metres and the focal height is 11 metres. It was destroyed in the 1953 earthquakes and rebuilt in 1964 by Takis Pavlatos, a Kefalonian architect, according to the original 1828 English architectural plan. It was incorporated into the Greek lighthouse network in 1863, with the attachment of the Ionian Islands. In 1995 it was declared a listed building by the Ministry of Culture. It not only provides a directional light for incoming and outgoing ships, but is also a classic, romantic spot for locals and visitors. Katavothres (The sinkholes) One of the most important geological phenomena observed in Kefalonia, the sinkholes, have occupied scientists around the world and have been considered another "mystery" of the island. At the cape of Agioi Theodoroi, next to the lighthouse of Argostoli, we can still see today the point where the sea water flows with momentum into the ground. This is exactly what a "sinkhole" is: a crack in the ground, into which water flows. It seems that the English Stevens was the first to observe and record the phenomenon, and he even decided to use the momentum of the water as it was lost in the sinkholes and built a watermill at this point, which still exists. Katavothres' most interesting thing though, is that water runs below the entire island, from west to east, a distance of about 15 kilometres: In 1963, geologists Viktor Maurin and Josef Zetl from the Technical University of Graz, Austria, poured 160 kilos of dye into one of the Katavothres. Two weeks later traces of this dye appeared in the waters on the other side of the island, in the bay of Sami, in Karavomilos and in the Melissani cave! The majority of the phenomena associated with the groundwater of Kefalonia can be explained, according to geologists, by the position of the island at the junction of the tectonic plates of the