Monday, January 21
Not too far from Kalamata our destination was Messene, or was it Messini or was it Messenae or was it something else similar. Of course none of these are to be confused with Mycenae, which is also on the Peloponnese peninsula, but is somewhat further to the East. There are two towns with similar names in this region and, while their names may be distinct in Greek, they are quite similar in English. This is compounded by the fact that the names are often translated into different spellings. We were pretty sure we’d chosen the right town but we weren’t going to be 100% sure until we actually got there. It took just under an hour to get there. Our way took us through some back roads, over some mountain passes, through narrow winding roads with constant switchbacks. It was a lot of fun.
Our ticket, which costs €6.00 / $6.90, entitled us to entry to the archeological site and the museum. They probably take credit cards but I took the opportunity to lighten my load and get rid of a large number of coins I’d been carrying around. We went to the archeological site first.
At first glance the site looks to be a good size but it’s much larger than you think. It’s built all along a hill in three sections and you can’t even see the third section until you’ve walked passed the second. There is a perimeter road that will take you through all three sections and we walked the entire thing.
The first area you come to has some Roman era ruins of a large house that had been turned into a basilica during Byzantine times but your attention immediately goes to the Roman era theater just down the hill. We’d explore that later as the path takes you along the ridge where you encounter the North Stoa (Marketplace). The Stoa was very large and extended along the entire hilltop. The most well preserved item was the Bema/Rostrum. It had been flanked with large bronze statues of Messenian officials and was the place where public announcements of all sorts were made.
Further on we found a large complex that had contained the Temple of Asklepios and the Ekklesiasterior, a theater-like structure that was used for cult performances. The complex held several other smaller temples. In front there were some later additions including a grave monument and baths. Tucked away in the back, and easily missed, was the remains of a Roman era house complete with mosaic floors. This was all part of the second section. The best stuff was yet to come.
(The Ekklesiasterior)
The third section was an even larger complex that held the stadium and the gymnasium. A large part of the colonnade around the stadium was intact. It was a very impressive sight. The ancients would have entered through a marble road that led through a propylaea, past a statue of Theseus and past a monument to Heracles. Next to the monument to Heracles was a large, odd-looking grave monument where eight members of an aristocratic Messenian family had been buried. The base of the building was square and it was topped with an inverted funnel leading to a corinthian capital.
(The Stadium Surrounded by Columns)
At the end of the path the gymnasium was plain to see. Next to it was a Palaistra (a gym for wrestling) and a bath. The biggest attraction was the stadium. It had been used for ancient Olympic-style athletic contests and was later used for Roman style games. In the back of the stadium was a building that looked like a small temple. It turned out to be a mausoleum to the Sadthidae family.
(The Stadium)
Back up the hill we returned to the second section and found a number of ruins, the most important one was the Temple of Messene.
We probably spent close to two hours at the site. On a fine day it would make for a lovely walk among some amazing old buildings (it was drizzling and wet for much of the time we were there). There are good quality signs in Greek and in English at most of the sites which helps to understand how things were laid out. If you have the opportunity to see Messene it would be worth your while.
Just up the road, the way we had come, we found the archeological museum. It’s rather small and we’d driven right passed it without noticing it on our way to the site. Many of the signs at the site had referenced bronze sculptures. We expected to find them at the museum but they weren’t there. Most of what we did find were some lovely sculptures – mostly Roman copies of famous Greek statues. The museum is just a couple of small rooms but it’s definitely worth seeing.
Our next destination was the Temple of Apollo Epikourios in the town of Eira almost two hours away. Along our drive we stopped for lunch in a small town called Valyra. There weren’t too many choices but we noticed a large restaurant that was open. We stopped at the end of town, parked the car and walked the length of the town to get there. It took about 60 seconds. The restaurant had no menu so we tried to choose from pictures of the food that were hanging above the counter. Those were only available at dinner time. For lunch our choices were fried pork schnitzel with peas or fried pork schnitzel with potato salad. We decided to share one order of the fried pork schnitzel – and the potato salad.
After we were seated the woman who was preparing the food walked over to our table and began a conversation. She asked us where we were from and things went from there. She had lived in Rochester, NY for some years and had a son who was currently living in Chicago. She was very sweet and probably just yearned to use her English.
The schnitzel was huge and easily enough for the both of us. It was very tasty but the German style potato salad was wonderful. It had a vinegar dressing and was laced with onions and dill. With two cokes the meal came to €8.50 / $9.75. We didn’t think they even had a credit card machine so we paid cash. On the way out the woman gave us their card and told us that they were on Google and Facebook. It struck us as very funny.
If you like long drives on steep narrow twisting winding mountain roads with many switchbacks where you have to drive around sleeping dogs, avoid goats jumping into the road and wait for sheep to amble by, then a drive to the Temple of Apollo Epikourios is just want the doctor ordered. Our little underpowered car was no match for these roads; we spent a lot of time in second gear. The temple was open until 6:30 pm so we weren’t in a hurry and we enjoyed the scenery and the distractions. Everywhere you look in the entire peninsula there are olive trees as far as the eye can see. These can’t be considered olive groves or even olive forests. There are entire mountain ranges packed full of olive trees. Some of the groves were quite old. Olive trees have been know to live for 2,000 years. We saw quite a few that must have come close to half that age. It was plain to see that even the ancient trees had been planted by men in long straight rows. Olive trees have been important in Greece for well over 2,500 years.
We finally arrived at the Temple of Apollo Epikourios at 3:00 pm. The sign on the gate said that the site closed at 3:15 pm. In panic we ran up the hill to the ticket booth where we learned that the site was actually closing at 4:00 pm. We only had an hour to explore but we would make do. The cost of entry was €3.00 / $3.45 per person. Credit cards are accepted. For a country that thrives on tourism you’d think they would do better at keeping their websites updated.
When doing our research we’d found that the temple, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, was protected by a large tent to help with the restoration efforts. The latest restoration project began in 1975. It was halted in 2015 due to lack of funding.
Apollo Epikourios is one of the best persevered temples from the classical period. It’s a typical marble structure with doric columns. The walls of the cella are virtually intact. We were able to peer into the chamber and see many smaller columns. Restoration efforts have been nearly completed on one end and have not yet been started on the other. We suspect it will be many years before restoration work has been completed and the tent removed. When completed it will be a magnificent sight.
(The Temple of Apollo Epikourios)
We hurried our visit with the temple and went to see what else there was. The site seemed rather large. There were some signs telling of buildings that used to be there but everywhere you looked there were spare parts that had been organized and categorized. These parts were all for the temple and will be used as part of the restoration efforts. There was little else too see so, after walking around the entire site, we went back to the tent for a closer examination.
Distance walked: 5.4 miles