Monday 5th May 2008

We drove to Kardamili this morning and looked around this very pretty village. Although Kardamili is very much a tourist destination, it is still a real lived-in town and all the better for it. We stopped at a lay-by for lunch with a wonderful view south down the coast over Kardamili and Stoupa. We then drove on through Kalamata, justly famous for its olives and olive oil, to Koroni on the peninsular that forms the south west tip of the Peloponnese. Koroni on the south east corner and Methoni on the south west corner of this peninsular were extremely important strategic locations securing major sea routes. Koroni was occupied in ancient times when it was known as Asine but it is the more modern castle that is the town's most obvious feature today. Although I say that the castle is more modern, the work mainly of the Venetians, it is largely built using blocks from ancient Asine and its successor from the 9th century AD, Korone. We navigated through the narrow streets with difficulty, especially when we encountered parked cars and parked a little way from the entrance to the castle. Entering through the main gate, we found houses built within the grounds and then found a convent occupying the castle keep area. This was not mentioned in our guidebooks but was absolutely enchanting. I had to wear an ankle-length wrap to cover my legs as I was wearing shorts and, although this felt very peculiar, it was well worth the inconvenience. The convent of St. John the Baptist is modern, built in the early 1900s, but used many parts of the existing castle – there were walks on the battlements, hermit cells built into the walls, chapels built in and against the walls. Open areas between the buildings contained vines, orange and lemon trees, vegetables and a greenhouse. The highest part of the keep, a small tower, gave fantastic views in every direction. The nuns were very welcoming and, despite the hardships of convent life, seemed very content with their lives in such a beautiful place. We spent some time exploring the convent, admiring the views, looking at the chapels and wondering at the cell of the founding monk, a space of no more than 2m square with a tiny door and window.
We came out of Koroni on a back road that took us round on a very picturesque coastal route to Finikounda. We had a choice of at least four campsites in Finikounda but chose Camping Thines, a very pleasant, relatively new site with very good facilities and right next to a sandy beach.
Photos: The traditional 'Zythestiatorion' ('beer seller' - bar) in Kardamili; Outer Mani village and fortified church; The convent in Koroni castle.