Patras is the largest city and main port of the Peloponnese. The city was founded in 1100, but grown into an important port in Roman times. After the Second Crusade became the site of a Roman Catholic archbishop. In 1408 the town was under the rule of Venice, and in 1460 returned to the hands of the Turks, who destroyed it in 1821. It was then rebuilt in neo-classical style with stacked rectangular streets.
Every spring the city hosts one of the most colorful carnivals in Europe. It includes parades with giant satirical figures in assisting thousands of visitors. Patras is famous for supporting the development of local culture and urban literature; was the European Capital of Culture in 2006.
Patras, 130 miles (230km) west of Athens, is situated just west of the narrow mouth to the Gulf of Corinth, on the northwest shore of the Peloponnesian peninsula. Three of the "Eptanisa" (seven islands) off Greece's western coast are about a two hour trip from this, Greece's third-largest city (metro pop. 213,000). The three islands, who have their own beauty, are Zakinthos, Kefalonia, and Ithaca. Ithaca was the home of Homer's Ulysses.
One of the reasons Patras is called Greece's Gateway to the West is that thousands of Greek emigrants passed through this port city on their way to new lands, chiefly the USA, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Another reason is that Patras is still a major shipping center. It has constant, close communication and trade relations with Italy and the rest of Western Europe.
Rio is a town and a former municipality in Achaea, West Greece. The former municipality had a population of around 13,000. The campus of the University of Patras is located in Rio.
Agios Andreas is a neighbourhood in the south-central part of the city of Patras, 2 km from the downtown core.
