Our tour inside the village starts from the fountain, built opposite the building of Ameliko in the beginning of the cobbled path leading to the main square. From there we continue towards the square to meet the main parish church of St. Nicholas, patron of the travelers built by local craftsmen modeled the Cathedral of Athens and decorated with excellent reliefs that adorn the main entrance. Opposite the church of St. Nicholas stands in the school building which was constructed with donations of emigrant community and operated until late during the decade of 1980. Following the narrow path extending between the church of St. Nicholas and the school we reach a crossroads to take the road that leads to the chapel of saint Apostles. On the way we meet one of the imposing houses of the village, the property of Gkosios family, also known as “Gkosiadiko”. Final stop on our route is the small Church of the Holy Apostles, with the three fountains representing the three neighborhoods of the village. Alternatively, rather than follow the path to Saint Apostles you can move towards from the main square to the bridge of Mesargias Bridge – Rachi on the northern edge of the village. From this point begins the path to the bridge of Gallina, which is the final station of the route.

 

(POI = Ameliko, Agios Nickolaos, Craftsmen, School, Saint Apostles, Mesargia bridge Galina bridge)

 

Ameliko: The Ameliko was the Community building that served the needs of hosting foreign visitors or tax collectors who spent the night obligatorily at the village. Now it houses the offices of the cultural association. Opposite the building of Ameliko there is an icon in which was kept in the past the Tabernacle for the sacrament of seriously ill because of the distance in which  was the central parish church of St. Nicholas.

Parish Church of St. Nicholas

The parish church of St. Nicholas is built on the location where was originally the older church of Our Lady and later St. Nicholas in 1640, which the residents were forced to demolish in order to build another bigger one in 1802. In 1908 the residents will take the initiative to build a new church to strengthen the association of expatriate from Kastaniani of St. Louis. Inside the church is kept a set of images from the oldest temple as well as a rare icon of the 16th century with clear influences of western art depicting the Adoration of the Magi.

Local craftsmen

Among the craftsmen of Kastaniani stands a craftsman named Konstantinos Gossios, known by the nickname Giortolis whose significant works are still preserved in the village and who traveled to America at a young age. The oldest surviving work is the stone reliefs image of Santa Kuriaki in the lower margin of which there is the inscription EXPENDITURE OF ANAGNOSTOU / BY HAND OF K.G.GKOSIOS.1909. Giortolis worked in the construction of the parish church of St. Nicholas. According to local tradition, they carried him on site every day with the mule because  the harrow had cut his foot, a kind of improvised sled with which they carried the stone from the quarries that were above the Agios Dimitrios church.

School

The school functioned as single-class, two-classes, three-classes and four-classes. From 1904 until 1908 there was Scolarcheio and housekeeping section where girls were taught weaving crafts, embroidery and sewing (Gkasios). The school was maintained by a) mandatory annual contribution of each family b) the income of church and school properties c) rents from watermills d) of the proceeds of exponentiation of images taken every day at the feast of Epiphany.  He received further support from the club “Saint Nicholas” founded in 1909 in St. Louis, United States.

Galina Bridge

Located in the homonymous district of Kastaniani north of the town center. It is the work of the years 1936 to 1938 and according to tradition, the artisans used for the construction the same mold with the bridge of Malnitsa located in the homonymous stream outside Kastaniani in the road to Blisgianni (Langada). The opening reaches 7.84 meters and width 4.7 meters

Masargia – Rachi Bridge

It is located in the center of the homonymous district. As creation year is referred 1895 while the parapets were annexed in 1931 while in 1967 repairs  were made to the bridge. The opening reaches 4.96 meters and length 12 meters

Saint Apostles

The legend wants as settlers of Saint Apostles the family of Gkosaioi who came to Kastaniani from Grammousta of Kastoria. According to the same tradition in the church wall are built the bones of their ancestors.   The fountain next to the church, built in 1923 with the costs of “KASTANIANI BENEFICIAL ASSOCIATION IN AMERICA”