Thessaloniki has so many Byzantine churches that the city seems to be built on top of them, and the Church of the Prophet Elijah is one of the later ones, dating from the early fourteenth century when the city was still a great centre of art under the Palaiologan emperors. It stands in the upper part of the old town, near Sykiés, a church with a broad central dome on a high drum and alternating courses of stone and brick, the decoration typical of the period. Some of the elements are tall and elegant, giving the building a lightness that surprises in so solid a material.
Like many churches in the city it changed religion more than once. After the Ottoman conquest of 1430 it was turned into a mosque, and it remained so until the Greek army took the city in 1912. The interior has traces of old paintings, though much has been lost. Elijah's was the church of the Palaiologan period, when Thessaloniki was the second city of the empire, and the generation of artists working here influenced the painting of Mount Athos and the Balkans. Today the church is used for services and occasional visits, so check the opening times with the local office.
The trip to the church is a ride through residential Thessaloniki, with pedestrian lanes and short steep climbs. Sykiés is a dense suburb of nearly forty-five thousand people, with a busy main road, shops and cafes, and the neighbouring Ágios Pávlos is smaller. The roads are narrow and parked cars make them tighter, so ride slowly and watch for doors opening. On the hillside above the old city walls, the upper town has little streets of old wooden houses with overhanging upper floors, and some of them have been lovingly restored.
For fuel and food, use the main roads, where stations and grocery shops are plentiful. Greek hospitality can be generous, and a small cafe may offer you a glass of water and a sweet spoon preserve with your coffee, if you ask. The weather is hot in summer and cool, damp and occasionally snowy in winter, so spring and early autumn are the best times for a visit. After the church, walk up to the Byzantine walls, where you can see the whole city and the gulf spread out below.