Avgonima, a village in the municipality of Omiroupoli, is located in central Chios. Its distance from the city centre is 16 km and it lies on the west of the island, at a 6 km- distance from Anavatos village.
The village is a very old, medieval one and its oldest buildings date from the 11th century. According to legend the village has been destroyed by pirates.
This picturesque medieval fortress- village is unique and according to legend it was built on a rocky land, after the construction of Nea Moni monastery had been completed by some builders who, having gained their freedom, started a new life on the mountains around the monastery. The construction workers had been convicts, who had been doing their sentence working for the convert.
Many of houses were in contact with one another and there arte still nowadays the crossings (which now are built in doors) from one house to the other mainly in the outer part of the village. The purpose was to offer the inhabitant a chance to escape in case the enemies entered one house. .
Today the village has been carefully restored, in most of its parts, by the contemporary owners of little farms. It has very few residents, but several visitors spend there their weekends.
Don't hesitate to chat with our friend Georges, if you can spot him (it's easy, he is a tall, dark man dressed in white from head to toes). He'll be happy to tell you stories about the village and the surrounding areas.