Palia Mitzela, the "vanished" village of Pelion

Follow the forest route from Pouri to Ano Kerassia and 4.6 km after Pouri, at a right-hand hairpin turn, leave your car and follow the red marks on the trees that indicate the path leading to Palia Mitzela. You’ll cross over the Lagonika stream by stepping on the single-arched stone bridge of Diakoumis and continue uphill on a path that alternates with cobbled sections. After 30 minutes of walking through dense vegetation, you’ll arrive at Palia Mitzela. The toponym is of Vlach origin, derived from “Moun tzela,” meaning a small forested mountain. One of the earliest written references to this name is an inscription from 1687 in the old monastery of Tsagarada. 

A few ruins, the apse of a church, and a stone wall where, centuries ago, the “Pazari,” the village’s local market, once stood, testify that human life and activity once flourished here. Today, nature has reclaimed everything—roots, bushes, and moss cover every stone once carved by human hands. It’s hard to imagine that within this dense forest there once stood a settlement with 19 churches (some say 24!) and 800 inhabitants, and even harder to guess what drove people to settle here, in a place without crops or obvious resources. Some say they were shepherds and lumberjacks; others claim they were skilled seafarers with many small boats and even ships, and some even say they were pirates—so many tales abound! If they were sailors, where was their port? At the beach of Ovrios? But there’s no trace of a port there! And if they were indeed pirates, then why, according to legend, did their village suffer pirate raids? 

Unsubdued people

Most agree, however, that the people of Mitzela were unsubdued, which is why their village was completely destroyed twice. The first time was in the 13th century by the Franks, because, according to historian G. Kordatos, they resisted the pressures of a Cardinal named Pelagius and did not recognize papal authority. The second time was in 1827 or 1828 by the Turks, in retaliation for the participation of Mitzela’s people (especially the Kalamidai, the Siskoi, and the Grizanos families) in the national liberation struggle. Legend preserves the names of the women—Kamperaina, Archonto, Kavoukaina, Skenteraina, Marios Paflaina, and Lenio Kameni—who, in order to avoid capture and dishonor, threw themselves off the cliffs or drowned in the sea, along with their children. Those who survived the Turkish onslaught took refuge on Skiathos, where they remained for about six years, until Queen Amalia granted them land near Almyros. There, they built Nea Mitzela, which was later renamed Amaliapoli. 

The legend of Palia Mitzela owes little to the faint visible remains and much more to oral tradition and folk songs that praise the heroism of the Mitzelans—especially the women—who in exemplary fashion “reimagined” the Dance of Zalongo.