Monemvasia is a beautiful medieval walled city. Its ancient documented history dates back the 8th century. However, it had some settlements above it that date to a much earlier time. These are evidenced by the ruins atop the cliffs above the walled city. Monemvasia is home to only 1,300 people. Its absolutely charming and while it is almost an island, it is not, as it is connected to the mainland by a narrow 200 meter causeway.
The walled city image captured from the water. I hiked up above to the ancient ruins which are pictured below.Within the city flowers abound. Virtually all the construction is of stone and tile. And while it’s as solid as it gets, it does make hanging pictures or mounting a flat-screen bracket a real challenge.Crashing waves at seaside. There are some ladders from the rocks into the water for access. It was very hot so I took a plunge to cool off for a bit.The view from the hike up to ancient ruins above the medieval city.These ruins pre-date the walled city by possibly 800 years. You are able to see that these people really honed their masonry skills in the centuries between. These older ruins appear Flintstonesque when compared to the walled city.An Airbnb outside the walled city. This little dwelling had no windows, only a door. It’s a solid little structure. Could probably survive a direct tsunami hit. Not sure how much demand there is for a place with no windows.
Olympia
Olympia is the birthplace of the Olympics. There are several acres of excavated artifacts and ruins in the park to be explored. It is an active dig from an archaeological perspective.
The field of the original Olympic Games. The games ran for 4 centuries (800BC-400BC) until the Romans banned them because they believed the games to be pagan, and thus contrary to their religious beliefs. What a buzz-kill these Romans must have been, on so many levels.Building ruins at Olympia. Most of this site consists of the old city ruins.Here is one fully erect doric column. The ruins are like a giant puzzle, only these pieces need small cranes and forklifts to move them into place. It appears as though they have given up trying to place them in most of the park. Just put the “DO NOT CROSS” ropes around them, charge the public to view them, and call it a day.This area cleaned up nicely. Ionic columns in the park.Mosaic in the adjacent museum. While the original games were BC, this mosaic only dates back to 700AD. It is more than 3 meters high. That’s a lot of tiles.
Ionian Islands
The Ionian islands are much more lush when compared to the Cyclades. They are considerably more mountainous. The people here are as friendly and welcoming as everywhere else in Greece. It’s a great place for a 2 week sailing charter. It has beautiful beaches, fabulous waters, delicious food, awesome wine, and great sunsets. It has just about everything one requires for a magical time.
One Ionian beach with really good lunch options. Harbor in Nydri on the Island of Lefkas. It resembles the Lake District in northern Italy.Another beautiful beach albeit a bit rocky. One more parting beach image.
And that’s it from here. Not sure where I am headed next but I hope to file an entry from there, possibly Montenegro or Croatia. Thanks for viewing and checking in.
