>
>
>
>MUSEUMS
The spellbinding city of Thessaloniki offers a plethora of museums showcasing findings from regional excavations as well as masterpieces of fine art. From the Archaeological and Byzantine Museums housing exhibits with immense historical and cultural value to the Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art with its permanent collections, the city of Thessaloniki is a shrine of cultural vitality. Other must-see museums include the Jewish Museum, the Museum for the Macedonian Struggle, the Folklore Museum, the Olympic Museum, the History Centre of Thessaloniki, the Film Museum, the War Museum and Kemal Atatürk’s house, all taking visitors on a thrilling quest to unearth the secrets of the past. Those who would rather leave the past behind can explore the future in the Noesis Science Centre and Technology Museum, where you can discover the universe at the Planetarium, take a trip on a motion simulator and marvel at images on the 3D giant screen ‘Cosmo-theatre’ cinema, the biggest flat screen cinema in southern Europe.
Monuments
Thessaloniki’s history is reflected in its wealth of monuments. Evidence of Roman and Ottoman rule can be found throughout the city in the Roman market, the Arch of Galerius (known as “Kamara”), the Hamza Bey Mosque, Alatza Imaret Mosque, Geni Mosque, Bezesteni (covered market), Yahudi Hamam (Ottoman-era bath) and Sintrivani (fountain). Thessaloniki’s symbolic White Tower and Castle also echo the whispers of the past, while the Byzantine churches of Thessaloniki — some of which are protected as international heritage monuments by UNESCO — make up a large part of the city’s religious and cultural heritage. Also known as the “Paleochristian and Byzantine Monuments of Thessaloniki”, some of the most inspiring churches include the Church of St. George or Rotunda, the Church of Acheiropoiitos, the Church of St. Demetrius, the Monastery of Latomou, the Church of Hagia Sofphia, the Church of Panagia Chalkeon, the Church of the Holy Apostles, the Church of Agios Nicolaos Orfanos and the Church of Agios Panteleimonas.
