Legend has it, In the winter of 1803, as the village of Kamarina fell to the forces of Ali Pasha, a number of Suliotesses and their children, facing unspeakable horrors and humiliation, chose to sacrifice themselves and their children. Following a tradition of dance and celebration which went back to ancient female rituals the women held hands while dancing and singing and threw themselves and their children off the mountain and into the waters of the Acheron known since ancient times as the “river of woe”. Singing: Στην στεριά δεν ζει το ψάρι, ούτε άνθος στην αμμουδιά, κ’οι Σουλιώτες δεν ζούνε χωρίς την λευτεριά- On land do not live fish, nor flower blossoms in the sand, and Souliotes do not live without freedom!