Ithaca bets on hometown hero Odysseus for tourism boom
Locals expect the film to draw more visitors seeking Ithaca’s Homeric history and mythology, with some businesses already selling Odysseus-themed souvenirs.
- Director Nolan's film has drawn global attention to Ithaca, the legendary island of Odysseus, yet not a single scene was filmed there, leaving Ithaca Mayor Dionysis Stanitsas expressing disappointment despite calling the publicity "tremendous."
- Legend holds that Ithaca is where Odysseus landed after years of voyaging, with Homeric monuments and statues of Odysseus and Homer scattered throughout the island's villages and squares.
- Archaeologist Spyros Couvaras said the "driving force" of renewed interest was undoubtedly the movie, yet emphasized "But behind Nolan's film stands Homer," stressing visitors seek history and mythology beyond beaches.
- The island of roughly 3,000 inhabitants held open-air film screenings since July 16, and local businesses now anticipate visitor surges, stocking shops with Homer and Penelope busts and Cyclops Polyphemus merchandise.
- Visitors demonstrate deep personal connections to the Odyssey independent of recent publicity; one 50-year-old tourist explained "I studied Greek when I was a child, and I studied the Odyssey," underscoring the mythology's enduring appeal.
23 Articles
23 Articles
One of the great differences between Homer's Odyssey and his adaptation in Christopher Nolan's film is the weight of Argos, the faithful dog of Odysseus who waited for his return for 20 years. If Homer's original poem only appears in one chapter and very briefly, in the film we see him on several occasions and is the symbol of unconditional fidelity. In Nolan Argos' tape he is already older and tired and ill, but he continues to resist because h…
The Greek island of Ithaka plays a central role in Homer's »Odyssee«. Although Christopher Nolan shot the scenes for his cinema adaptation in Sicily, one wants to earn on site on the hype.
Film "The Odyssey": "A very good publicity" for the island of Ulysses
Between the blue sea and the souvenirs that recall the Homeric poem (ANSA)
Many admirers of the hero of the Trojan war spontaneously associate Ithaca with his legendary king who returned home after ten years of wandering. ...
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