This year's summer excursion for the Alikarnassos KAPI was to eastern Makedonia and Thraki. Two hundred enthusiastic members and friends, on four buses, started from the Iraklion Harbour to discover the natural beauty, the cities, the villages, the abbeys, and the people, of this distant region of Greece.

Our base for the journey was the coastal city of Kavala and we loved seeing the Aegean from so far up north. From there we covered a lot of kilometres visiting the abbey of the Panaghia of Ikosifinissa, then on to Drama, Xanthi, Komotini, and Porto Lagos. With a boat, we passed over to Thasos and visited the Abbey of the Archangel.

Each city had its own unique character and transported to us the echo of its history, its demographic and geographic identity. The big plain of Xanthi – Komotini, in the shade of Mt Papikio, and the biodiversity of the river Nestos, the lake Vistonida and the Thrakiko Sea, compose the natural setting of the region which made this excursion a beautiful experience.

The last stop in our return was Thessaloniki, our country's beautiful co-capital. The reciprocal love of its residents towards the Cretans moved us.

I want to believe that all the KAPI members brought back some beautiful memories and impressions from the excursion.

I would like to personally thank all the KAPI members who always reward us morally for our efforts to offer them unique experiences.

And, I would like to thank Mayor Vangelis Sisamakis for the subsidy from the municipality's fund and all those who worked very hard to make this trip such a beautiful experience.