15 March 2025 – Misty Monemvasia

Miles driven today = 51

Total Miles to date = 1,974

Shortly after we left Gythieo this morning we rounded a bend to be presented with this view of the good ship Dimitrios which was stranded on Vaitaki Beach in December 1981 and has slowly been rusting away there ever since.

Shortly after this we headed inland to Skala for a quick Lidl shop and then continued eastward via Vlachiotis and Molaoi and then skirting around the hilltop town of Sykia.  The sky had been crystal clear for the entire morning to this point but as we approached the East Coast at Agios Kiriaki we were shrouded in a weird Sea mist blowing on to the coast.

Our destination was Monemvasia, which is an island fortress just offshore of the modern town of Gefira.  We crossed the causeway onto the island and parked up, only occasionally being able to see glimpses of the rock looming out of the mist above us.

So we had a quick lunch, by which time the mist had cleared a little, and we commenced the 1km walk to the other end of the rock.

From the landward side there is very little evidence to indicate that the island has ever had any sort of large scale human habitation.

But as we continued we started to see fortress walls high on the cliffs above us.

We reached the gateway into the town.  This is the only way in or out. 

The entrance is also Z shaped making it completely inaccessible to modern vehicles.  The only way of transporting anything into the town, whether it be food and drink for the hotels and tavernas or building supplies for the renovations, is by wheelbarrow.

Monemvasia was founded by the Byzantines in the 6^th Century and quickly grew to become a significant port.

It is fortified on all sides and traditionally was always the last place to fall to invading armies.  In fact it was never taken by force, only by siege.

The town was previously split into two with the upper town, which nowadays is completely ruined, high on the cliff tops.

The lower town and it’s mazelike network of alleys, steps and tunnels had more than 800 homes.

It also had 40 churches, many of which have been restored.

But a number of which are still in ruins.

This is the main square which had a well at its centre.

The Cathedral was built in 1293 and is the largest medieval church in Southern Greece.

This whole area has been restored and converted into a boutique hotel.

We escaped the coachloads of tourists and the heat by having a couple of fruit juices in the shade of their patio.

We explored some of the back alleys and discovered the steps up to the upper town.  Oh to be young again, I’d have skipped up there in a heartbeat.  But not today.

Then we strolled back down the main thoroughfare while the majority of the tourists were in the tavernas for lunch.  There was some interesting local produce on display.

Walking back to the van we could now see back across the causeway to Gefira

There are no official stopovers in the area and I had read that the only place the police tend to turn a blind eye is at the harbour.  We went to have a look.  It seemed peaceful enough and had great views across to the island but the temperature was now in the mid 20s so spending the rest of the day surrounded by concrete didn’t really appeal.

However, before we left the campsite this morning I was having a chat with one of our German neighbours and he told me about a little beach side park up they had used a couple of nights ago which is only 3km to the South, so we headed on to investigate. 

And here we are.  We still have a good view of Monemvasia and we are on our own other than a Belgian van whose occupants only returned from a mammoth bike ride as we were having our tea sometime after 6.

The beach is quite rocky with an amalgamation of what appear to be oyster and occasionally scallop shells set into the rock.  I’ve no idea if these are as the result of historical shellfish farming or whether the shells have been there for thousands or even millions of years and are only now being exposed by the tide.

But we’ve enjoyed our last bit of time on the coast for a few days.  Tomorrow we head inland to Sparti.

16 March 2025 - Mystra