Tuesday 6th May 2008

We had decided to spend two nights at Finikounda and have a relaxing day today. After a late start we walked the mile and a half into the village and were very pleasantly surprised. The main road had bypassed the village and we had not realised how pleasant it was. On the advice of a fellow camper, we took a side road up a low hill to a chapel with lovely views and then descended a narrow twisting lane through old houses to the port. Fishermen were painting their boat in bright green and with a yellow sun on the bow whilst broadcasting very pleasant Greek music to the whole of the port through a loudspeaker mounted on the cabin. The harbour and beach front is lined with tavernas and cafés and, although there are a number of campsites and some rooms, it is difficult to see how they could all make a good living. I indulged one of my many weaknesses and had an ice cream whilst we explored the harbour and the shops.
We returned for a late lunch of barbecued pork chops and then I decided to do some shopping. I had decided to make stuffed aubergines using a recipe from a classic, idiosyncratically translated Greek cookbook. The recipe requires small, thin fruits and I had specially bought some in Leonidio, which is famous for this type of aubergine. This will be tomorrow's dinner. Earlier in our Peloponnesian travels, in the northern village of Planitero, I had bought some stone-ground flour from a watermill and I was keen to make some bread from it. This turned out to be very successful, producing a close-textured loaf of excellent flavour and with that typically Greek golden colour. Warm bread for tea – lovely!
Meanwhile, Jane had been threatening to go for a swim, but I have heard this before and suspected that she would only get as far as paddling and decide that it was too cold. She set off determinedly for the beach (all of 30m away) suitably equipment with towel and dressed in swimming costume and returned some time later proclaiming that the “water was lovely”. Unfortunately, there were no witnesses and I have no photographic evidence of what was Jane's first swim of the Odyssey.
Photos: Finikounda beach from the chapel – the campsite is about halfway along the beach; An old house in Finikounda; Putting the finishing touches to the sun symbol.

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.

Sunday 4th May 2008

Githio is the gateway to area of the Peloponnese known as the Mani and this was our destination. The region is isolated, wild and barren, wind blasts the mountains removing what little soil has formed and in the Summer the land is baked by the fierce sun leaving bare rock, brown vegetation and vicious scrub. Very little grows in the Mani due to the almost total lack of water and even the Olive trees, renown for their resistance to drought, are stunted. Even in living memory the Mani was only accessible by mule and was certainly not a place for casual visitors.
The area was occupied in Neolithic times, as demonstrated by cave paintings in the famous Dirou Caves, and both the Phonecians and Mycenaens had outposts here. Needless to say, being surrounded by sea, it held a strategic position overlooking sea routes. However it is likely that the modern population descended from Dorian and Spartan settlers and the tough Spartans would certainly have been well suited to this harsh environment. The lack of water and arable land meant that living was extremely hard and this lead to the development of a feudal culture with constant inter-clan conflict. These conflicts developed and deepened over many generations and vendettas were very common. The clans built towers within their villages in order to demonstrate their power and defend themselves from their enemies. These were often very close to them and towers were sometimes within metres on each other. Each family wanted to have the highest tower so that they were able to look down on the other towers. The conflicts lead to continuous fighting and guns and even canon were fired at the other towers. Etiquettes were observed during the fighting – women were respected and would not be attacked, to the point that the women would obtain supplies such as ammunition and gunpowder and bring them into the towers without danger of being killed. They were a very religious community but this would not would not stop them blowing up a chapel if they thought that one of their enemies was inside. It was therefore dangerous for men to go to church and the wealthier families would build a wall around their towers and include a chapel within the compound. Unlike the rest of Greece, there are very few large churches in the Mani but small chapels proliferate, some dating back to the 6th Century.
There was simply not enough land to support the population and this not only lead to the internal conflicts but also meant that they sought other ways of making a living. Slave trading and piracy were favourites and the seas in the area were notoriously unsafe. The Mani was also a great source of mercenaries willing to fight for any cause as long as the price was right. Even to this day, a high proportion of the Maniots are in the Greek Armed Forces. It is not surprising that these warlike people, with their leader Petrobey Petros Mavromichalis were amongst the first to rise up against the Turks in 1821 in the War of Independence against the Turks that lead to a free Greece.
When we first visited this area some 15 years ago, the Inner Mani (the southern and less accessible part) was very sparsely populated. The towers in the villages were largely in ruins and only old people lived in the few occupied houses, the younger people having moved away to find jobs. Now the situation has changed dramatically with many of the old towers and houses having been renovated. There are still some villages in ruins but it is only a matter of time before they too become second homes or holiday accommodation. Many new houses have been built but it is encouraging to see that they are being built in keeping, often as low towered buildings with natural stone facing. Now with mains water in the Mani, it is difficult to comprehend how hard life would have been. It becomes clearer when you see the terraced hillsides where the inhabitants desperately tried to keep enough soil to grow some crops. Now the people gather the crop of tourism as the area becomes more and more popular.
We circumnavigated the Inner Mani, lucky to be here in Spring when wild flowers abound and the vegetation is still green. Tower-strewn, grey-stoned villages were huddled against the hillsides or strung along high, seemingly inaccessible ridges and contrasted with the ever-present deep blue sea that surrounds the promontory. We drove out of the Inner Mani through Areopolis to our campsite in the Outer Mani between Stoupa and Kardamili.
Photos: The threshing floor and view from the Inner Mani village of Tsikalia; En-suite facilities in Tsikalia – the bath is concreted in next to the cistern. Pleasant, if a little public in the Summer but a little too cold in the Winter, I suspect!; Vathia from above; One of my favourite tiny Greek chapels, this one is in the Inner Mani and has a lovely carved marble doorway.

Saturday 3rd May 2008

The choice of buses into Githio is quite limited at this time of year with two before 08:30 and then nothing until 13:20. Coming back is also strange with the only bus after midday being 18:45. We decided to have a relaxing morning (more blog writing) and catch the 13:20, which gave us plenty of time to investigate Githio and find an Internet café before catching the bus back.
We were convinced that we had missed the bus but it finally arrived 15 minutes late and we soon arrived in the centre. We have been to Gythio twice before and really like it. It is a relatively small working port and although it has tourists it is not primarily a tourist resort. Everywhere along the front, octopuses hang on lines drying in the sun and charcoal-grilled octopus is served with ouzo at the ouzeries in the main square. When we first came to Githio over 15 years ago, there were a number of ouzeries but we could only find one this time and it looked much smarter than when we first saw it.
We walked along the front before diving into the back streets up the hill that showed little evidence of the 'prettification' evident in other seaside towns – this was a relatively poor area. We came across an open church and took a look in. It was very pretty inside and had been decorated with flowers ready for a wedding. As we looked closer, we saw well over 200 gifts of sugared almonds in a large tray and more in flowered decorated baskets. This is a traditional gift at Greek weddings but there were also a similar number of gift boxes ready to be filled. Greek weddings must be even more expensive than English ones judging by the number of guests that they were expecting!
Coming down to the sea at the far end of the town, we arrived at small island on Marathonisi, now joined by a short causeway to the mainland. It was here in antiquity when the island was called Kranai that Paris spent his first night of passion with Helen before leaving for Troy. This is now the fishing port with many small fishing boats moored and a small boatyard just beyond the pretty chapel. In previous visits to Gythio we always saw large numbers of fish, something that kept a very young Simon occupied and, to be honest, his parents as well. When we were up above the the island in the back streets, Jane had spotted a shoal of large fish circling in the deep waters and as we walked along the causeway we saw many fish of all sizes. It looked as if the fishing boats had no need to go out – they only needed to fish from the island!
It was time for that ouzo and we returned to the square to the 'Mezeaopoleio', which I assume means that it serves meze (little dishes of food) with the drinks. It is probably just rose-tinted spectacles but I am sure that the ouzo measures were smaller and that we had more than four small pieces of (delicious) octopus between us last time. It was certainly more expensive, although at €2 (£1.60) each, I wasn't really complaining.
We found out that there was an Internet Café very near the bus station so we went in search. On the way, Jane spotted a large brown tourist sign on a gate - 'Site of the Sanctuary of Zeus Kappota' – we decided to investigate. Beyond the gate was an short, narrow alleyway between two high buildings and at the end of the alleyway was the solid stone cliff of the hill. That was it! It followed on from the theme of the non-existent sites near Sapounakeika but this was exceptional – it was an empty alley! It was obviously where the sanctuary used to be but why they went to the trouble and expense of signing it, I have no idea.
We managed to catch up on a few emails and post some of the blog before returning on the bus to yet another barbecue.
Photos: Swallow on a wire – there were swallows all around us chattering loudly and building nests in the shower block; Octopus drying on the line outside the Mezeaopoleio; Marathonisi island; Gythio and its fishing boats.

Friday 2nd May 2008

We were thinking of going into Gythio today but decided on a day of rest. Jane did the washing and I spent many hours catching up with the blog for the whole of the Easter period. The weather was so hot that we put out our awning for shade, one of the very few times that we have used it. We wanted some bread for lunch and walked the few metres from the campsite entrance to the local entrepreneur – a combined fuel station, supermarket and kafenion. It was all on a very small scale, but he had bread, beer, wine on tap and local farm supplies such as olive barrels, wine making equipment, spark plugs – a genuine Greek 'pantopoleio' (everything shop).
We are really getting into barbecues now so today it was chicken legs with roasted lemony potatoes and roasted vegetables cooked in olive oil and tomato sauce.
Photos: Barbecue view!

Thursday 1st May 2008

Approaching Monemvasia from the north as we did yesterday is particularly impressive. A huge unassailable cliff rises from the sea and the island is joined to the mainland by a narrow strip of land and a bridge. The only sign of occupation is the remains of a castle on the top and it is very difficult to believe that over 40,000 people once lived on the island. Approaching from the south as we were today is it possible to see houses crowded into a small area of low land at the far end of the island between the sea and the sheer cliffs.
It is thought that the first people to settle here were the Minoans but the decisive moment in its history was 375 AD when a huge earthquake separated Monemvasia from the mainland leaving just that spit of land. This created the potential for a settlement with incredible natural defences and as we approached today we could really appreciate those qualities. We parked on the island side of the bridge and started the long walk along the narrow strip of low land on the southern side. Towering above us all of the time was that massive cliff and if we were attempting to invade the island we would have been open to constant attack from above as well having to face the defenders in front of us. We then reached the gate to the lower town surrounded by defensive walls. Should this lower town be overrun, the inhabitants could retreat to the upper town, a very large area at the top of those cliffs. The only way up to the upper town was through the lower town and up a winding path through a series of walls. The name Monemvasia means 'one entrance' (moni emvasis) and this made it almost impossible to conquer by force. The defensive weaknesses of the island were food, which had to be brought from the mainland and the lack of springs and, for this reason, every building in the lower and upper towns had a huge cistern in the basement to store water. These made the difference between life and death for the inhabitants in times of attack. The island overlooked the main shipping channel to the Bosphorus and this combined with its defensive capabilities lead to the creation of a wealthy merchant city. It also meant that it was an attractive prize for foreign powers and, despite its apparent security, it was attacked by a succession of invaders. The town of Monemvasia was founded by the Byzantines in 585 AD and was attacked in the 800s by the Saracens (failed); Normans in 1147 (failed); Franks in 1246 (succeeded after a 3 year siege but handed back to the Greeks 14 years later); Venice in 1464 by invitation in order to prevent the Turks, who already controlled much of this area of Greece, from taking the island; the Turks in 1537 when Venice handed Monemvasia to them as part of a treaty (at this point many inhabitants left for Crete and Santorini); the Venetians (again) in 1690; the Turks in 1715 (surrendered without resistance). In 1821 in the war of independence against the Turks, after a four month siege, Monemvasia became the first fortress to be taken by the Greeks. Definitely a chequered history!
When we last visited Monemvasia, at least 15 years ago, I remember the lower town being mainly ruins with only a relatively few occupied houses and a couple of very expensive hotels. It was a major tourist attraction even then but a huge amount of restoration has been done in the intervening period. There are very few ruins left and many of those are in the process of being restored. It will be interesting, when we get home, to compare today's photographs with the slides that I took on our last visit.
The upper town (the kastro) remains ruins but this time, so covered in wild flowers and bushes, it was difficult to see any buildings with only low level remains. It was still obvious that there was a large settlement here spanning hundreds of years including a Turkish bath, massive public cisterns and, of course, the castle itself. The only complete building was the church of Christos Elkomenos (the 'dragged Christ'), built originally in the 11th century but rebuilt and repaired over the years. The views from the kastro are magnificent and the view down from the main gate over the labyrinthine route from the lower town emphasised the difficulty faced by any invader attempting to storm the upper town.
It was another hot day and we were glad to return to the lower town and find a restaurant with a view over the sea and to the mainland where we had camped last night. A Greek salad and tzatziki (quite delicious and very heavy on the garlic) with ice-cold drinks went down very well.
May the first is a national holiday in Greece and it is traditional to collect wild flowers to create a wreath which is then hung on the door of the house. We saw many people collecting wild flowers, bunches of flowers under car windscreen wipers, wreaths on doors and even women with flowers in their hair. The wild flowers were lovely and there were certainly plenty around even after the picking!
We then headed off to our next destination of Gythio, almost due west on the next prong of the southern Peloponnese. On the way we stopped to buy a large net of oranges from a roadside seller and I promised to make some fresh orange juice over the next few days. We also stopped at a modern church, built in the 1960s with beautiful frescos added in the 1980s. The frescos covered the whole of the inside of the building and is was good to see such high quality painting done in traditional style.
This time we had no problem in locating a campsite as there were three to choose from and, as the weather was still very good, we decided to barbecue the souvlaki that we bought yesterday – delicious.
Photos: Monemvasia as seen from the north; A view from the gate into the upper town showing the approach from the lower town; The church of Panagia Chrysaphitissa in the lower town – the small white building to the right houses the sacred spring, unfortunately found to be brackish but we still saw some people tasting the water; The church of Agios Niktrarious in Sykeas; An example of the frescos in the church.

Wednesday 30th April 2008

Leaving the campsite we drove to Paralia Tyros where we stopped to get supplies including some meat for barbecuing as the weather was definitely improving and the forecast suggested a period of good weather. Giant pork chops, chicken legs (pounded flat for the BBQ using a very large brass weight), pork souvlaki (kebabs) and home-made sausages together with local Tyros hard sheep's cheese were purchased from the butcher.
Our target today was Monemvasia but there were lots of interesting place along the way. We stopped at the large town of Leonidio south of Tyros and wandered around the town. We were surprised to see a restored traction engine parked proudly on the river promenade – that must have been a real status symbol when it was first brought to this area. Leonidio is a bustling market town full of shops, cafés and restaurants. We intended to BBQ that evening, so we contented ourselves with that wonderful Greek fast food, souvlaki pitta – the first one since we arrived in Greece. Whilst we were walking along the main street eating the pitta, we bumped into Chris and Tanya with two visitors. It was great to be able to thank them again in person for the our special Greek Easter and wish them the best for the future.
Just outside of Leonidio we came to my favourite Greek chapel. I had spotted it from the town centre and remembered well the time many years ago (at least 15) that we had approached it from the other direction, down the gorge from Kosmas. The relatively modern Byzantine-style whitewashed church has a backdrop of a huge reddy-brown cliff and became the subject of one of my first attempts at producing a print from a slide in my darkroom back in Somerset. The print graced one of the walls of our house for many years but the colour balance, always very difficult in a novice's darkroom, was not quite right. I was determined to take a digital photograph and try again. The light was perfect as I walked up to the church where I met George, a local man, sitting in the shade under a tree. We had a long, wide-ranging discussion about life in Greece, life in America (his brother and family had moved to America, near New York and had been there for many years), life in England, how to keep healthy and many other subjects. This was quite an achievement given that George spoke very little English and I can only muster about fifty words of Greek. I understood that life in Greece was not easy, but it was a great life; life in America was not good – too fast, too much pressure and the work was too hard; George thought that England was a lovely place and the football teams were very good (it is Chelsea v Liverpool tonight – I told him that Chelsea would win, I wonder whether I was correct); the way to keep healthy is to have a spoonful of olive oil every day washed down with a glass of water. I also found out the name of the saint to whom the chapel was dedicated but two minutes later, I had forgotten – I must find out from Wendy, she is sure to know. I finally got some photographs taken, said goodbye to George and returned to the motorhome and Jane who was wondering what on earth I had been doing.
The drive up to Kosmas is long, windy and incredibly beautiful. I still think that Cheddar Gorge is beautiful but this is on a huge scale. Towards the top of the gorge we stopped at the whitewashed Monastery (actually a convent) of Profitas Elonis set into a sheer cliff on the side of the gorge. Regular readers and experienced Greek travellers will not be surprised to hear that shepherds discovered a spring and miraculous icon here and that is why the monastery was founded. I resisted the temptation to purchase another mug as they were much less naff than the ones at Mega Spilio but I did buy two kilos of local mountain honey from a lady at the entrance. Both are delicious – one is 'four seasons' honey and the other is a pure pine honey.
We drove through the pretty village of Kosmas that was worthy of a stop but we had already done too much of that and needed to get on. Just outside the village we reached 1200m and then started the long descent to the coast through more lovely scenery. The guidebook and the ACSI guide told us of the Camping Paradise site on the beach a few kilometres south of Monemvasia and we headed for that. We failed to find it and at the point that we were about to turn around, we came across three motorhomes parked on a beach. We stopped to enquire about the campsite and found that everyone else had looked for it and failed to find it but we were told that this was an accepted place to camp. Having no other option, we decided to stay with the others and had a simple dinner whilst looking over the sea to Monemvasia in the distance.
Photos: The sleepy side of Leonidio; The very picturesque chapel north of Leonidio; View from the monastery of Profitas Elonis; The monastery itself with the monks cells on the left and the church housing the miraculous icon just below the sacred spring; Any icon you like can be bought at the monastery shop.