Although it had been lovely to have the company of Jay and
Julie it was time to move on. We had our breakfast on the sea wall and were
excited to see a dolphin/porpoise (it was too far away for us to tell) lazily
circling in the bay. We packed up and said our goodbyes and headed off inland
to Mystras, a Byzantine ruined city. It
was a lovely journey, we are really enjoying the Greek countryside. On the way
we stopped at a couple of campsites and chose one to come back to later in the
day. When we arrived at Mystras it was midday and 33C – not the best time to
explore an ancient site but the site closed at 3pm and was not going to be open
again for a couple of days due to the Greek Easter holidays. So it was now or never.
We had a quick light salad lunch, packed lots of water and suntan lotion and
set off.
Mystras is an almost complete Byzantine city that was once
home to 20,000 people. On the summit was a large fortress and it was worth the
climb up to see the wonderful views across the plains and up to the Taiyetos
mountains. On the lower half of the city there were numerous churches, a
convent and remains of other dwellings. Many of the buildings contained well
preserved frescos dating from the 14C. We did well considering the heat to see
as much as we had done by the time the bells rang at 3pm and we were happy to
return to our campsite. The campsite was empty when we arrived but was run by a
very pleasant and helpful Greek man. We used the laundry facilities and cleared
all our washing. It was good to know it was
all going to dry quickly.
5th May
As the owner of the campsite did not mind how long we stayed
we decided to leave in the late afternoon.
This gave Jacqui time to do some work whilst Mike washed the van. Although it was hot outside the van stayed reasonable
cool but we were both pleased to have a shower before we set off at 4pm. I left
with a load of oranges picked from the campsite and a kilo of Greek honey which
I thought was a good price at 8 euros.
We travelled from Mystras back into Sparta to get some cash and
then drove to Geraki. From there the sat nav threw a wobbly that took us on a
very convoluted route towards Mario. I cant believe it was the fastest or the
shortest route (as she is set) but it was a most stunning drive. We saw about
500 goats and 3 tortoises on the road. The scenery started off as scrubland but
became more wooded as we rose higher. Eventually our route took us down to the
coast and we stopped just outside Lakos. We actually drove into Lakos as Mike
had identified an overnight stop but it was full of motorhomes parked side by
side and we could not face it after all our secluded spots. We found a wide
layby overlooking the coast and pulled in. it turned out to be a bad choice as
the road was busy even after 2.00am. I wonder if this was because it was Easter
Sunday. Anyway we had very little sleep that night.
Monday 6th May
Today we had planned to head north towards Nafpolio. But
after an hours drive we came to a quiet little bay called Paralio Astros. It
was so lovely that when a Dutch couple asked if we were staying the night as
they did not want to be alone with their camper and we said yes. We spent most
of the day reading in the sun/shade and cooling ourselves off in the sea. It
was a lovely sandy bay that stayed shallow for ages.
In the late afternoon we cycled off towards a causeway we
could see. It was the small but busy town of Paralio Astros. We had a good look
around resisting the bars and came home for supper and early bed but although
tired Jacqui found it too hot to sleep well.
Tuesday 7th May, Paralio Astros
We loved our most recent location so we decided we would
stay for another day. This is one of the great benefits of travelling in a
motorhome at your own pace. More reading and swimming. After lunch we moved the
van towards the town. However in the late afternoon the sun went behind the
clouds and the wind got up. So after another walk through the town we decided
to spend the night back at our original camping spot which was more sheltered.
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