Greece

Distance (260 ks)
We left Monemvassia and travelled to our first stop the amazing village of Mystras near Sparta. Unfortuanely we only had about 45 minutes to quickly look around. Currently, there are many preservation projects under way. It is a huge site and should take about a day to tour properly.The castle was built in 1249.

Then more riding through interesting and beautiful landscapes. More windy, narrow roads through barren surreal landscapes in the region known as the Mani. This area at the southern most tip of the Peloponnese was isolated and the families who lived here built fortress type homes with towers. They are still seen dotting the landscape.

(The Mani)

When we finally arrive at our destination, Gerolimenas we were met by the village dogs! Several walked along with us as we toured the small town streets. Several folks on the trip named this young dog Bonnie. We wanted to take her home...what a cutie!

We really enjoyed our dinner that night at the hotel. It was fun trying to order with a very friendly young Polish waiter who didnt speak much english and we spoke no Polish, we did a lot of pointing and smiling. The food was good and we left a huge tip for the overworked young waiter.

This little village turned out to be one of our favorite places on the tour. The hotel was charming and comfortable, situated across the road from a nice little beach it offered a very nice view of the island. The hotel rooms and balconies were covered with beautiful Night Blooming Jasmin, Pink Beauganvillia, and fig trees. It smelled great!

We spent the first evening having dinner on the island in the fortress city of Monemvassia which cannot be seen from the mainland and can only be accessed across a small causeway. The name Monemvassia is derived from two Greek words, mone and emvasia, meaning "single entrance".

(Kevin at the Gate to Monemvassia)

The next day, while everyone else took the optional loop ride to a nearby fishing village, Kevin and I explored Monemvassia. We climbed to the top to see Agia Sophia, a beautiful byzantine church. We explored the network of tiny cobblestone streets and shops. I purchased a really neat ring with the image of the goddess Artemis from a jeweler. Her shop had some beautiful designs which she and her father create.

There are no motorized vehicles in the town, not that any could fit through the tiny passage ways. It is quiet there with only the sounds of people and occassionaly the clip-clop of pack horses being used to bring in supplies.

Rooftops of Monemvassia

Distance (170 ks)
After an evening of rain with thunder and lightning it was nice to see the sun with a few clouds for the beginning of our second day. We all climbed on our bikes eager to go and headed up the hill from our hotel. We went about 1 kilometer and arrived at our first ancient sight of the day! Ancient Mycenae.
According to legend, Mycenae was the castle and city of Agamemnon, the Achaean king who sacked the city of Troy. Homer mentions it in his writtings.

(Kay and Cindy leaving the gate)

Kevin and I really enjoyed seeing the Lions gate. We both had studied the image in Art History class many years ago. We finished exploring Agamemnons place and headed south on a twisty, curvy coastal road.

We wound our way up, up and around more mountain roads to the very cool monastery of Elona in Leonidio,perched precariously on the edge of a cliff!

This little monastery had recently been in the international press due to the theft of their icon. The 700 year old icon was considered miraculous and was responsible for the founding of the monastery when 2 sheperds reportedly saw the icon glowing and suspended on the cliffside. It is said to have healing powers. Unfortunately for us the icon was still missing when we visited Elona.

To find out what happened next follow the link below
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061007/ap_on_en_ot/icon_of_elona

Lunch in the village of Kosmas was very nice. I had another Greek salad (they are so good!) and Kevin had goat, which he enjoyed.

Filling up with Petrol...no self serve in Greece!

On to Monemvassia...

Distance (190 ks)
After spending a wonderful day and night in Athens we left our hotel,The Herodion, to start our 8 day adventure.
In the morning, after we met our fellow travellers we all boarded a bus which took us to the bike depot to pick up our motorcycles in Rafina


Kevin got to ride a bright yellow Triumph Daytona. I was given a Triumph Bonneville to ride instead of a Daytona or Sprint which I had requested.

I was very disappointed and quite nervous.
The ride to Corinth was very fast and the traffic is a little crazy compared to what we are used to in Vermont.

(Boats in Canal at Corinth)

After a few rest stops and lunch we made our way to Ancient Epidavros - a beautiful ancient theatre with amazing acoustics. My camera was not working that day so I need to scan photos from Kevin's camera and post later.

This is a view from Ancient Mycenae. We stayed over night in a very nice hotel not far from this sight. The dinner was delicious! and it was really nice to get to know the other riders in our group.

Athens is a great place to visit...to bad it is so far away!
The flights over were fine except about 5 hours too long!
After no sleep on the flight from Boston to Paris we had to run to catch our plane to Athens. Then sit in another plane for over three hours. The trip is worth it so far. We were picked up at the airport and taken to ure hotel. The Herodion Hotel very nice and only 1 block from the base of the Acropolis and the Plaka (tourist shopping district)We were exhausted but managed to clean up and meet several of the other people who will be riding in our tour. There is a family from Portland Oregan and a couple from Florida.

Saturday-
We slept ok and after breakfast went to explore Athens and all of the ancient sites...which there are many.

The Acropolis is amazing and it is a beautiful view from way up there but I think we would have enjoyed it more if there were about 5000 less tourists also trying to hike up and take pictures...who knew other people were interested in seeing a very old building!

Tourists!

Temple of Zeus

We walked around the city from 10:00 am till about 3:00 pm
then finally dragged our sore feet back to the hotel to relax a little bit. After a few hours we were off again to have dinner at a cafe and then more walking a window shopping.

grafitti- greek style

Tonight we need to rest up because tomorrow we will start the bike tour! Hope the weather stays as wnoderful as it has been. Sunny, blue sky and about 80 degrees.