Geography
The Lasithi Plateau stretches (11 km (6.8 mi) in the E-W direction and 6 km (3.7 mi) in the N-S direction. It is approximately 70 km (43 mi) east from Heraklion and lies at an average altitude of 840 m (2,760 ft), which makes it one of the few permanently inhabited areas of such altitude around the Mediterranean. Winters are often very harsh and snow on the plain and surrounding mountains can persist until mid-spring. Lasithi plateau is famous for its white-sailed windmills that have been used for decades to irrigate the land. Despite their vast number (some 10,000) in the past, most of them have been abandoned nowadays in favour of modern diesel and electrical pumps. Also, because the water table is close to the "surface" of the ground, all burials in cemeteries there, are above ground, in a stone mausoleum, or a stone box with decorations. This is because the plateau is in a "bowl" shape, and there is impervious rock just "below" the surface of the ground.
Read more about this topic: Oropedio Lasithiou
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