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WHAT TO SEE |
  
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| But there is more to Calabria than physical beauty, holidays in nature, good food (and good wines), up-to-date tourist facilities, sports events and entertainment: there is also the great sense of hospitality of its inhabitants, rather in the Greek style as befits Magna Graecia. Then you can brush up your cultural interests thanks to the many reminders of the ancient civilizations that settled in this region over the centuries: from the Greeks to the Romans, Byzantium to the Normans.
Between bathes, between a boat trip and an excursion to the hills, after riding along the beach on horseback or before you go dancing, you can take advantage of your holiday to follow interesting routes through archaeological areas, visit museums, historic towns and monuments, or places that are renowned for their handicrafts and folklore. What about a few examples? The Aragonese castle at Castrovillari, the archaeological site of old Sybaris at Sibari and Locri, the Albanian towns in Greek-Sila, the attractive little places in Small Sila such as the village of Mancuso, the Byzantine monasteries at Rossano, Cirņ with its fine wines and the remains of ancient Crimisi, Crotone which was one of the most important towns in Magna Graecia, with its harbour and the surrounding area including Capocolonna, Isola Capo Rizzuto and Le Castella, other old towns such as Hipponion at Vibo Valentia and Mataurum at Gioia Tauro. In fact, this is just the place for a "different" holiday, different from traditional holidays among crowds, cement and a consumer society. And among so many different things, the most different of all is the sea: a crystal clear sea lapping sheer cliffs, mysterious caves, romantic bays, beaches that are almost out of this world, with sand of fantastic colours, pink, white, red, gold, grey and even black. In other places it looks as though huge carpets of fruit were being dipped gently in the sea: oranges, lemons, olives, jasmine and flowers of all colours. Calabria can be easily reached from all parts of the world. There are convenient train and airline services, charter flights and all-inclusive tours at prices anyone can afford, toll-free modern motorways. But we advise you to come to Calabria by car, preferably in May and June or September and October, to avoid the hottest time of the year when the resorts are busiest; alternatively you can come by air or rail, rent a car and travel about like hippies, though with a little more money in your pockets, in search of the true face of this land.
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