Traditional Cretan handicrafts, basket weaving, costume-making, embroidery pottery, workshops, seminars and traditional jewelry will take center stage during the 5th Festival of Culture, Tradition & Arts to be held in the coastal town of Sitia, Eastern Crete.
The three-day event, organized by the Argastiri Sitia Diktinnna Cultural association, is aimed at showcasing and preserving traditional arts and crafts as well as local customs.
The annual festival kicks off on Friday and includes a presentation of Crete’s famous “kazanema” raki (tsikoudia) distillation process, traditional Cretan dancing with the participation of local dance schools and troupes and concerts featuring Cretan musicians Giorgos Skordalos, Irini Anastasiadi, and others.
Visitors will also have the chance to sample traditional recipes made with local ingredients and learn more about Sitia cuisine prepared by regional cultural associations.
A highlight of this year’s festival is the presentation of the traditional “Pidichtos” circle dance with the participation of over 100 volunteers, dancers, and dance instructors. The aim of the lively Cretan happening, organizers say, is to bring people together and to promote the region’s famous dance which literally means “to jump”.
The Argastiri Siteia Diktinnna Cultural Association is listed on the Greek Culture Ministry Cultural Organizations Registry and contributes through its work to the preservation of Sitia, Cretan and Greek heritage.
The 5th Sitia Culture, Tradition & Arts Festival takes place on June 28-30 along the Papies pedestrian walkway under the Venetian Walls (Kazarma Fortress) in Sitia, Crete. For more on the event go here.
The festival is made possible with the support of the Culture Ministry, the Region of Crete, the Regional Unit of Lassithi, the Sitia Municipality and port authority, and dozens of volunteers.
