The village of Sokaras on Crete

Sokaras is a village situated in the fertile Messara Plain, in an area which is mostly agricultural. The village probaly got its name from a Byzantine family named Sokaras ("the maker of ropes"). Sokaras is accessible via an exit on the route from Pyrgos to Asimi. At the entrance of the village stands a very small church and there is a cemetery. In the village of Sokaras are a number of churches and there is a memorial to World War II, in the form of a large image of an angel. There is also a small supermarket.

If you drive into the village, than take the right hand exit and follow the dirt road from there, you end up in a deserted village with a Byzantine church (the Panaghia Veloulianis). The direction to the village, which dates from the 16th century, is indicated by a brown sign. Once about 100 people lived here, but since 1961 it has been completely deserted. East of Sokaras situated on a rock is the Acropolis of Vagiotes, with rooms that are carved into a rock. In the vicinity of Sokaras is yet another Byzantine church.