Athens (briefly) then on to The Peleponnese

From a great week on Crete, we flew to Athens where we had two very busy sight-seeing days planned.  On day one we strolled central Athens and the neighbourhoods that surround it (Monastiraki, Plaka, Thissio and the Central Market and Syntagma Square areas).  We accidentally caught the changing of the guard by the Evzones (light infantry) at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

We pass through the Arch of Hadrian (Hadrian's Gate) that honours the Roman Emperor Hadrian, but no one is quite sure if there was another purpose to it.

... and on to stroll the ruins of the Temple of Olympian Zeus

… and a nearby park, other monuments and buildings:

Late in the afternoon as we were climbing up to the Acropolis we both were victims of pick-pockets.  Our last day then was spent replacing a cell phone and finding replacement eyeglasses.  Bummer.

We rented a car and got out of Athens as quickly as possible.  Perhaps we will give her a second chance on our way out of the country.

An hour out of Athens the first stop on the way to the Peloponnese is to view the 6.4 kilometres long Corinth Canal which connects the Gulf of Corinth with the Saronic Gulf in the Aegean Sea.  Because the canal completely bisects the narrow Isthmus of Corinth, some people claim that the Peloponnese is actually an island now and no longer a peninsula of Greece.  Its supposed value lies in ships being able to avoid a 700 km sail around the Peloponnese.

The canal was first proposed in the 7th. century BC; the soil was broken on the project in 67 AD and with many problems ranging from curses and deaths, financial issues to geological issues such as the wake of ships undercutting the canal and rock falling into the canal, it wasn't completed until 1893.  Since then there have been closures on and off, especially during World War II when it was a target of the bombing.  Today, due to its narrow width the canal is mostly used by tourist ships and personal boats.

Onward to Nafplio, one of the most beautiful port towns in the Peloponnese and not yet on the big tourist circuits.  This area has been inhabited since ancient times, so it has been ruled by many nations over the years.

Today its also known as "the proposal capital of Greece"

because so many men propose to their sweethearts here.

Nafplio was one of the first places in Greece that won its independence by over-powering the ruling Turks.

The first thing to do is to walk the seawall. 

We pass the boat that takes tourists on a five-minute ride to explore the Venetian "castle in the sea" (Bourtzi Castle).  As you can imagine, it has served many purposes over the centuries, including a prison.

No matter where you are in Nafplio the enormous Castle of Palamidi is looking down at you.  There are 999 stairs from the old town to the castle, plus more to climb when you get there, so we drive.  This is a fascinating ruin and we spend about two-and-a-half hours hiking in it.  Lights shine on the castle after dark, beautiful.  It appears to float above the town and perhaps it does at 216 meters above sea level.

There is a little church here and we see some church elders leading a group of young people through the ruins into the church.

There are water tanks inside the fortress that still today contribute to Nafplio's water supply.

The beaches here are pebbles and the waves can really crash in.  At one time someone built a couple of natural sea pools by throwing up some breakwater structures.  Inside, the sea is calm but not many people choose to use it.  Bottom right photo in the collage below,

Nafplio has one of the cleanest, well-preserved and repaired old towns that we've seen.  It's lovely strolling the narrow streets here.  For a small city, its main square (Syntagma) is huge, filled with cafes, play areas for children, a mosque, beautiful neoclassical buildings and a general gathering space for citizens.

Random Photos Nafplio

A short drive away from Nafplio is a day worth of immersion in history with the archaeological sites and museums of both Mycenae and Nemea.

Below is the Lion Gate of Mycenae (built-in ~1250 BC), the main entrance to the Bronze Age citadel.  The Lions lost their heads some time ago.

It's not agreed on the purpose of the small figures below: perhaps toys for children to accompany them to the next world … or something else?

The ruins of Mycenae are mostly rocks.  It takes a great deal of imagination to get a sense of what it was like, so in some ways, it is surprising to walk into the archaeological museum and see such well-preserved artifacts.  The site of Nemea is somewhat more built.

On Panagitsa Hill near Mycenae is the Treasury (tomb) of Atreus ... well, no one is really sure who is buried here.  This tomb was the tallest and widest beehive tomb in the world for over 1,000 years.  The lintel over the door weighs 120 tons.  It's fascinating to read how this was built (advanced geometry and physics were definitely involved).  The walls leading into it are huge and all dry stone stacking.  In its day it was richly decorated, but little remains of that today.  It's deceptively large inside.  Many treasures were stored here.

 In Ancient Greece, five sites were considered sanctuaries where festivals were held under the protection of the gods to celebrate and honour the gods, and to celebrate the physical and mental aspects of well-rounded human beings.  These sites (Olympia, Delphi, Nemea, Isthmia and Athens) had both stadiums for games and theatres for plays and/or musical contests. 

The tradition of an Olympic "truce" started as far back as 776 BC to ensure that the host city was not attacked and that spectators and participants could travel unharmed to the games.

There are a couple of myths about the origins of the pan-Hellenic games in Nemea.  While these may have faded with time, Nemea is remembered for its Temple of Zeus, the king of gods and the supreme god of the Olympians who could hurl lightning bolts when displeased.  Two original columns from ancient times are still standing and the site shows the fascinating process of how fallen columns can be restored and the equipment used today to do so.

Random photos of Nemea

If you go to Nafplio take a little more time than we did so that you can also see Epidavros, known in its day as a healing centre, but most famous today for its huge, symmetrical ancient theatre, where plays are still performed.  Its a half-hour drive from Nafplio.

Now we are off to Kardamili.  There are two ways to get there and Google maps refused to take us on the route with fewer kilometres.  Perhaps it warns everyone away to the longer but faster and safer highway route.  We over-ride Google and take highway 82 from Sparta to Kalamata.  I think this road has more hairpin and switchback curves than the Amalfi coast ... and it certainly goes on for much longer.  Rolling under rock overhangs is an interesting experience and tunnels accentuate the wildness of this mountainous area.  What a ride!  It's probably the most beautiful road we've ever travelled.  A dream road for motorcyclists.  Double-clicking on the photo below will open it more.  The yellow line on the map is the highway.

Kardimili is a picturesque seaside town that again is off the tourist path.  The beaches are rocky - well, stoney!  But the water is that colour of blue that you only see in some of these gorgeous seas ... and the temperature ... just enough to be a bit of a relief from the 30 degrees plus air temperature ... a very slight coolness, but warm enough to stay in for hours at a time.  Heaven.

I came across this lovely piece that describes Kardimili and the surrounding area.  Worth the read if you plan to go: Kardamili

Our Airbnb is the long-time summer home of a Greek family that lives in Athens.  It's right on the main street, so everyone knows where we're at.

At Ritsa beach, we find a great local guy and his wife, who if you arrive after 12 noon, give you a beach lounger for free.  For 2.50 Euro you get a paper coffee cup full of wine delivered to your chair and a cup full of peanuts.  His meal prices are lower than anywhere we've been and they serve food from 9 am to 9 pm.  We become his regulars every afternoon.

The old town of Kardamili can be explored in a couple of hours.  They have done a nice job of putting things on display and telling a bit of the history...all for 2 Euro admission.

Clay roof tiles have been used for generations and long ago provided an outlet for artistic expression as people decorated them.

We did one nice hike up into the mountains to the ancient Byzantine church of Agia Sophia, then a goat trail detour down into a gorge to the Likaki Monastery, then back to our Airbnb ... about 3 hours in all.

The history of Agia Sophia is hard to find.  Perhaps the church served a village long ago that is no longer here.

In the top left photo below, the camera is looking back down over Kardamili.  A couple of photos of the path to the church.  Bottom row, second photo in is a shot across the valley and the last two photos are of the gate to the graveyard and the small graveyard.

As we admire the church a shepherd and his dog lead their sheep out of a mountainside corral and into pastures for grazing.  It's a minimalist lifestyle.

Likaki Monastery just up from the bottom of the Vigos Gorge was built in 1570 and the frescoes inside and out were painted in 1783.  The building is closed for renovations.  Apparently, the frescoes inside have suffered damage from humans carving their names into them.

We are enjoying these small villages, so we decide to stay in a couple more.  Our next two stops Nafpaktos and Nidri on Lefkada (an Ionian) Island are off of the Peloponnese so we'll cover them in another post.  Before leaving the peninsula we spend a few hours in Ancient Olympia.

I don't consider myself a sports fan and considered skipping the Olympia Archaeological site and Museum and am so glad that we didn't.  I do value all of the positive things that sport and competition can bring to a person and the Olympics is the ultimate sports event.  To walk where the Olympians got ready for the games and competed 3,000 years ago is an amazing experience.  The site is huge, it could hold 45,000 spectators.  

Below is the Krypte, the entrance to the stadium used by athletes and judges.  Spectators sat on the grassy slopes, while the judges got the stone seats.

Lining both sides leading up to the entrance was "a walk of shame".  Here were statues of the mighty Zeus, each one paid for by those found cheating at the games and the base inscribed with the name of the one who cheated.  As the athletes passed these statues on their way through the arch, it was a reminder of what could happen, should they cheat.  Ancient cheating involved things like bribery (usually between athletes trying to influence the outcome); lying and claiming another nation-state as their own; or starting early in a footrace.

Below is the Monumental Fountain (or Fountain of Herodes Atticus) that provided fresh water to the site.  Atticus, an Athenian millionaire AD 153, first had to build an aqua duct to bring water to the sanctuary, distribute it throughout the site, with one distribution branch leading to this magnificent fountain.

Below is the Palaistra, a training ground for athletes who compete in wrestling events.  It also served as their living quarters during training.

This portion of a triangular pedestal is all that remains of the winged statue of Victory by the famous sculptor Paeonios.  It celebrated the victory of the Messenians and the Naupactins over the Spartans in 421 BC and stood 12 meters tall.

These fallen columns are remains from the Temple of Zeus.  They are enormous:

Random photos from the Site:

Treasures from the archaeological site of Ancient Olympia housed in the Museum:

Random from the Museum.  The photo top left is an ancient smoker used in bee-keeping.  The centre photo shows the detail carved into the breast/abdominal plate of a statue.

The Peloponnese is a big landmass.  There is so much to see that we didn't get to, such as Monemvasia, Gythos, Mystras and more.  I think four to six weeks would give a much fuller picture of all there is here.

On to the mainland for a few stops.

Morocco Part 3 - the last 5 or so Days

Leaving Todra Valley at the foothills of the Atlas Mountains we travel about five hours in total to Ait Ben Haddou a UNESCO World Heritage site on a former caravan route between the Sahara and Marrakesh.

We have several stops along the entire journey to admire the scenery.  I no longer can put a name to every photo ... just the memory of timeless beauty remains constant.

And somewhere along the way, someone takes a photo of the seven of us, Mohamed our guide and Lasham our driver.

We stop for lunch at Ouarzazate, Morocco's Hollywood and all decline a tour of the movie studios there, so we can just stretch our legs at our own pace, although one can't miss the studios in their prominent locations and larger than life gates.

The landscape of Ouarzazate (war-za-zat to help with pronunciation) has been made to look like Tibet, Ancient Rome, Somalia and Egypt in popular movies.

Ait Ben Haddou is more known for its backdrop in Game of Thrones than it is for its value as a World Heritage Site.  It's precious for the architectural authenticity of its earthen buildings.  From the bedroom window of our guesthouse, we can see the ksar or earthen houses grouped together behind defensive walls.

From our window, we also see something that at first I think is a wedding photo shoot, but our guide tells us later that it was probably an ad or a part for TV or a movie being photographed with the ksar as a backdrop.

As we walk about town before dinner we admire how sections of the adobe buildings are elaborately decorated.

Back at the guest house, our host gives us a lesson on preparing couscous the way it is done in Morocco that is hand-rolled from semolina, a time-intensive process.  No instant couscous here.  I wrote down his recipe step by step, then lost it, but here is one from the Internet that seems very close: Hand-rolled Cous Cous from Semolina 

I am surprised at the number of seasonings used in the couscous.  Personally, I will stick with the instant, whole wheat kind.  Our gracious host also takes on to learn each of our names and to show us how to write our names in Arabic and then autographs them.  His nickname is 'Action' because he has been an extra in many movies made here.

In the morning, we have breakfast on an upper patio, then Mohamed walks with us over to the buildings of Ait Ben Haddou.  As we climb up, there are great views.

Thanks, Susi for the photo

Again, we look forward to the next leg of the trip with great anticipation.  We are travelling for four hours over the spectacular Tizi n' Tichka Pass of the High Atlas Mountains at 2,260 metres above sea level to Toubkal National Park to Imlil.  We learn that the Barbary lion used to call this territory of North Africa home, but since 1942 has been regionally extinct.

Then, while our luggage is being transported we trek for an hour up into the remote village of Aroumd (population about 1,900) and stay in a family-run, Berber mountain home (gite).  Aroumd is the highest village in the Ait Mizane Valley and also serves as a base camp for mountaineers who want to summit Mount Toubakal, the highest peak in North Africa.  Our gite host also takes people to the peak and Mohamed has done the climb too.

The photo below is looking up to the Gite from the ground before going in the door.

The food and the evening here are wonderful and the children a delight.  I seem to have lost all but one photo from the evening.

In the morning our host takes us on a trek into the valley and to the village where his sister and her family live.  The tea she serves us is a welcome treat at the half-way point of our hike.

Views of the village from the gite and photos from the hike to the village:

The hospitality here has been second to none.  It seems that we are going too soon.

The next stop is a five-hour drive westward towards the Atlantic Coast and the fishing town of Essaouira.

On the way, we stop at a place that makes argan oil, a kitchen staple in Morocco for centuries, known for its subtle nutty flavour and its many potential health benefits.  Its also used in cosmetics and hair and skin products.  Here a woman grinds - and grinds - and grinds the kernels from the argan tree that is endemic in Morocco until she has oil.  Her hand is a blur as she rotates her grinder.

In an argan tree plantation, you can see goats up as high as ten meters in the branches as they climb up to eat the fruit and leaves.  Go to Google Images to see some many examples: Moroccan Goats in Argan Trees

The medina here is attractive and small enough that we can walk about without getting lost, once a local guide has walked us through.  We admire the marquetry work done in some of the woodworking shops here and go back later just to get a closer look.  It is some of the finest in the world.    

Our local guide for the medina tour has some first-hand knowledge of how the marquetry is done and in the shop can share with us in detail how it's done.

Here is an article that explains the process:  The Artistry of Marquetry   

We are also led to a shop that makes fine jewellery.

I do get a pedicure in the medina, but not being shoppers, we spend our time in the port and outside the walls at the beach, where we've discovered a restaurant that we like.

Early morning at the port when the fishermen arrive with their catch is a spectacle.  What a busy place: citizens circling around to see what they can buy to take home, seagulls circling ever closer, which the fishermen fend off with a long stick, homeless cats of which there are far too many here and perhaps some restaurant owners.  A few photos from the port:

This is the day we say goodbye to our soft-spoken, kind and gentlemanly driver Lahsam.  The final leg of this journey to Marrakech is by bus.

Mohamed takes us by city bus to the famous Djemaa el-Fnaa - a riot of colour, noise, aromas, music, people ...

This is the largest public space in the world.  To say its overwhelming is an understatement.  As darkness descends, the place gets ever busier.  We climb to a rooftop patio to get a view of the square from above.  We eat street food in the bazaar, many delicious little plates of one item each that Mohamed orders up for us.

...then Mohamed leads us home, confident that we will do it on our own the next day ... and we do.

In the morning Paul and I head off to see the famous Jardin Majorelle, a 2-and-a-half acre botanical garden and artist's landscape garden created by the French artist Jacques Majorelle over forty years ago.  The property was purchased in the 1980s by the fashion designers Yves Saint-Laurent and Pierre Berge who restored it.  A large number of plantings are cacti.  We have seen numerous cacti and other gardens and this one truly outshines all of them.

The huge jade plants in colourful pots throughout the garden and the hedge of jades are delightful.  They obviously like the growing conditions here.

The bamboo forest feels solitary and secluded even with hoards of people.  Water gardens, ferns and fountains keep everything fresh.  The splashes of colour in the pots are like jewels amongst the plants.

Exploring Djemma el-Fnaa and its souks by daylight.  The wares are the same as we've seen in Medina's throughout Morocco, its the sheer numbers of them that make this place so remarkable.

One of the first things we hear is the music of the snake charmer.

Paul's not too sure about wearing this one:

There are numerous palaces to see in the medina of Marrakech.  We pick the Bahia Palace and spend several hours exploring it.  This palace was built at the end of the 19th. century by Si Moussa, grand vizier to the sultan Sidi Mohammed ben Abderahmane as his personal residence.  The work on it was continued later by his son.  They brought in craftsmen from Fes to carve, paint and guild many of the public rooms and numerous courtyards. 

The palace was quite a warren of rooms that apparently grew randomly as wives, concubines and children were added to the family.

Unfortunately when Ba Ahmed died all of his possessions were seized by the sultan, so we don't see the fixtures and fittings that should be in place...even still, the Royal family sometimes uses the Bahia palace for some official occasions.

Here are a few of the carved and/or painted ceilings in the palace.  The ceiling, bottom row, third from left is in a courtyard.

Some magnificent doors and doorways:

Close-ups of some exquisite work:

A fireplace and a couple of windows:

Finally, four of the courtyards:

Our last dinner is a communal one where we eat together with Mohamed in our hotel.  We were a pretty compatible, small group that travelled well together.   Mohamed was an excellent guide, greasing the wheels so that all our many transfers went smoothly.  He knew when we needed guidance and when to give us space to explore.  He was willing to answer any and all questions ... and he got them from our inquisitive group.  He was willing to share himself with us, taking us out for a beer during Ramadan; cooking a meal for us in a hotel one evening; bringing us to his family Kasbah for a wonderful home-cooked meal and casual conversation; presenting Savannah with a birthday cake on her day; keeping a very close eye on Katrina when she was ill, and so much more.  The local guides that he selected were each one, a great choice.

For two weeks we went from being quasi travellers to being tourists on a tour and having our every need looked after.  It was a vacation from our (6-month travel) vacation.  The experiences were great and not ones that we could have gotten travelling on our own.  Intrepid Travel has our respect for how they contribute to the local culture and economy in the country where they work (at least here in Morocco).  We would return to Morocco any day, for the food, the music, the landscapes and architecture, the people.  It was a good two weeks.

The next step was to fly from Marrakech to Crete.  You have already seen that post as the blog is behind schedule.  In real-time, we are on the Peloponnese in a small village that we hope to soon write about.

A couple of random photos that had nowhere to go, but caught my fancy: