September 10, 2011
On Saturday we squeezed in a week’s worth of activities in one day. I woke Bill up at 8:00 (this is the man who gets up at 4:30am at home) because I wanted to get to Mycenae archaelogical site early before the heat of the day. It was maybe a 20 minute ride from Nafplio through country roads and farms. We made it there before any tour groups, in fact the parking lot was almost empty. It was still cool with a nice breeze.
Ancient Mycenae was a fortress city built high on a hill overlooking fertile plains with views of mountains and sea in the distance. It was the center of a rich and powerful civiliation that thrived between 1600 and 1200B. Some of the structures date to 3000 BC.
Some think the heroes of the Trojan War were from Mycanean civilization and that the tombs filled with gold were those of Agamenmon. There were huge walls and you wonder how they lifted those huge rocks to build multi-story buildings. The museum was excellent filled with things from day to day life – pottery, jewelry, coins, religious artifacts. Overall an awe-inspiring place.
Our next destination was Ancient Epidavros across the peninsula. We took the scenic route through the secondary and tertiary roads through the mountains. Bill is a good sport driving a 1.4 liter manual engine up and down these curvy narrow roads. Passed through tiny villages along the way.
Stopped for lunch in Agios Yiannis at a place in the main plaza called Taverna Plateia. Lovely tavern with the best food we’ve had – quintessiantal taverna meal. Lamb chops, greens grown on themountain, salata, bread baked in their wood oven. Wow. And we were the only ones sitting there on the courtyard watching the village men take a long lunch break across the way.
Some beautiful vistas of the sea as we approached Epidavros.
Epidavros was a healing center for doctors-priests to work their magic with an amazing theatre with acoustics to put any modern venue to shame. Site includes a temple to the god of healing – Asklepios. The theatre is the main draw for this site. Sitting up high in the original seats you can hear every word from the stage without microphones.
Quick visit to the tiny museum which included many headless statues and ancient medical instruments.
After this we were ready for a swim. Drove back towards Nafplion and found a little cove in Ancient Assini called Kalmata. Clear water with rocky bottom. So refreshing.
Back to village to sit on the porch of our room at Pension Dafni. Spectacular views of the sea, the town and the Fortress above the town. I crashed a local wedding at the church. Lots of car honking lets guests know the wedding party is on their way.
Entertaining night watching people in the plateia – kids running around playing soccer, bike riding while adultsl sit and eat and listen to an awful Greek rock band.
Tomorrow is another adventure as we leave Nafplion and head south towards Monenmvasia.