'Klidonas' is an annual festival celebrated in Ermioni, on the evening of 23rd June.  Klidonas was originally celebrated throughout ancient Greece as it was an ancient pagan fire purification ceremony and celebrated the start of summer, a form of summer solstice.  During the Christian era, the festival was adopted by the new religion as the birth date of Saint John the Baptist, although you will not see any priests/papas from the Orthodox Church* at the festival.  The festival was resurrected in Ermioni many years ago, having a two year break during the global coronavirus pandemic.  Klidonas restarted again last year, when for the first time it was held at the Mandrakia side of Ermioni, begining around 9:00pm, and for the first time had an English translation of the festival events during the evening.

Each year, there have been different arrangements and choreography to the evenings entertainment, but usually the festival begins with a parade of young children carrying lanterns, accompanied by musicians and singers into the central arena.  Then come the young maidens with their terracotta urns, parade around the central hearth and wishing well, and fill their urns with 'silent water'.  They then go to the 'mystic' urn, fill it with clean water and place a piece of personal 'lucky-charm' inside with a secret wish.  This is left outside to be bathed in the starlight, as the maidens dream of the man they will marry.  A young boy is then tasked with taking out a random piece of 'lucky-charm' from the mystic urn, to which each maiden retrieves her posession reciting her own prophecy.

For their wishes and fortunes to be granted, the maidens have to destroy their terracotta urns on the ground.  The central hearth is then set alight and the maidens dance around it.  When the folk dances are finished, the maidens jump over the central fire in a ceremony of purification.  At this point, everyone brave enough lines up to jump over the fire, either in pairs or on their own.  This finale has to be strictly controlled by supervising adults, in regards to health and safety.  As the festival comes to a close, the audience slowly disperse to the tavernas and bars to complete their evening.  Everyone is welcome, festival admission is FREE.

*In actual fact, the Greek Orthodox Church celebrates the Nativity (birth) of Aghios Ioannis (Saint John) the Baptist on 24th June.   The Klidonas festival is now also celebrated in Kilada on the evening of 23rd June and in Porto Heli on the evening of 24th June.   Various versions of Klidonas exist in different parts of Greece, but it was quite an elaborate sacred ceremony in the ancient times.