Tuesday, January 22
Our plan was to visit the fabled Palace of Nestor. It’s a 13th Century BC Mycenaean palace which was mentioned by Homer in both The Illiad and The Odyssey. The drive was just a little over an hour long and when we got there we found the site was closed. According to all of the information we could find it was supposed to be open every day except Monday. That no longer seems to be the case.
The palace, which we have seen artifacts from in Athens, is said to be the best preserved Mycenaean palace known. We were rather disappointed. Trying to make lemonade from lemons we headed into the nearby town of Chora to visit their archeological museum. We figured that it would probably have a good bit of information about the palace. Instead of being closed on Mondays it, too, is now closed on Tuesdays, grumble, grumble.
Since it was now past noon Deborah was inclined to head back home but the thought of a completely wasted day was just too much for me. There were a couple of castles nearby and I convinced Deborah to visit one. We decided to see the one in the town of Methoni.
We’ve done quite a bit of driving through the Peloponnese and the scenery never disappoints. You pass from giant olive groves to forests of orange trees. Along the coast there are high, snow capped mountains and, of course, the beautiful Mediterranean Sea. The journey is often as interesting as the destination.
When we got to the town of Pilos we made a wrong turn and instead of continuing on the main road we were directed into town. It turned out to be a fortunate accident. We found a parking spot in the center of town and headed into a small restaurant that was just across the street. We decided to share an arugula salad and a pasta amatriciana. The salad was quite good but the pasta was so-so.
Back in the car we continued along the coast until we found Methoni. It’s a tiny little town. At the end of the main street we found the waterfront and parked. The castle was just a short walk from there.
The castle was built by the Venetians in the 13th Century. It’s a large complex surrounded by a moat and built on rocks that jut into the sea. Entry can only be gained by crossing a narrow bridge that extends over the moat. It’s an impressive sight and bears a large image of a winged lion – the symbol of Saint Mark, the patron saint of the Venetians.
(Methoni Castle)
Would it shock you if we told you that the castle was closed? It was. Still, we were able to walk around the castle and along the beachfront path. The sun was shining, the castle was in the forefront, the waves were crashing at its base and there were large mountains in the background. It was almost enough to get us over the disappointments of the day.
Distance walked: 2.0 miles
Wednesday, January 23
This morning we left Kalamata and headed toward our next destination: Nafplio. Along the way we stopped to visit Sparta, one of the most famous towns from antiquity. We planned to see the remains of the ancient city and the archeological museum.
We knew that there was very little left of the ancient city but we still had to see it for ourselves. Most of the buildings are from the Roman or Byzantine periods and all you can see is ruins except for the theater that was built in the 1st Century AD. It was one of the largest theaters in ancient Greece and it’s still pretty impressive today. Entry was free of charge.
(Theater of Ancient Sparta)
Afterwards we drove over to the museum. The narrow streets were filled with cars and when we finally got to the museum we were unable to find a parking space. We drove the length of the town before we decided to park back by the archeological site and walk.
The museum grounds include a small park where some old statutes are on display. There is a small colonnade of six statues leading to the front door. All are beautiful works. It’s surprising that they are being left to the elements.
The museum contained many artifacts that were found at the archeological site. There was a nice collection of clay masks, quite a few bronze votive figurines and a number of lead votive figurines. One entire room was dedicated to Roman era mosaics and the next held a number of Roman copies of famous Greek statues. Our favorite was a statue of Eros from the 1st Century AD. The original had been attributed to Phidias.
(Roman Copy of Phidias’ Eros)
We had lunch at a restaurant in town. The inside of the restaurant was very smokey so, in spite of the cold, we sat outside near one of the torch heaters. We had a chicken sandwich and a burger. Both came with fresh fries that were seasoned with sea salt and oregano. That may sound weird but they were absolutely delicious. The Greeks seem to use dill or oregano on just about everything.
Next we visited the Museum of the Olive and Greek Olive Oil. Yeah, we expected it to be a somewhat commercial operation that was more focused on selling us overpriced olive oil than informing us about olives but we decided to take a chance. It turned out well. The museum traces the history of olives and olive oil starting from the prehistoric period. By the 14th Century BC olive oil was an important and valuable commodity. By the Byzantine era olives were widely available and had become a common food.
The production of olive oil has changed little since antiquity. The process involves crushing the olive, pressing it and separating the oil from the water and sediment. The technology may have improved but the steps have remained largely the same. During the 1800s olive pits began to be processed for essential oils that were used to produce perfumes and soaps. And no, the museum does not sell olives or olive oil. We almost wished that they did.
On our way back to the car we visited the tomb of Leonidas, who was King of the Spartans when the Spartans were at war with the Persians (remember the movie, “The 300”). The tomb was mostly ruins but it is said that the remains of a body thought to be Leonidas were found there. There is also a nice statue of him near the archeological park.
(Statue of Leonidas)
We arrived in Nafplio in the evening. Our apartment has two bedrooms, is rather spacious and is just a 10 minute walk to the old town district. We can’t count how many times people have told us that we absolutely must visit Nafplio. Well, we’ll have several days to enjoy it for ourselves.
Distance walked: 7.8 miles