Gythion

Arrived early morning at the port of Gythion otherwise know as Gytheio or Gythio or Gythium. It is on the eastern shore of the Mani Peninsula in southern Greece. A small town with a population of 4500 that features neo-classical architecture. Had an early tour meeting at 6:45am to tender ashore on a rainy morning. 32 of us transferred to our tour bus heading out to Sparta and Mystras. Our tour guide was Elias who was of Greek/German background. The 45 minute drive took in numerous olive groves and orange trees. We travelled north with the mountain range on our left and fortunately the rain stopped to become partly sunny with temperatures around 21C later in the day. Passing through the town of Sparta we took another 10 minutes to reach Mystras. Here we found the UNESCO world heritage site with the remains of the Byzantine civilisation nestling on the lower slopes of the Taygeto mountains. Features to be viewed looking up the hill are the old fortress and wall, the palace of the despots, Laskaris house, and the Pantanassa Monastery where 4 nuns still live. Our hour long visit to the lower part featured the citadel church of Agios Demetrius, dedicated to Saint Demetrius the patron saint of Thessaloniki. A relatively small church but well preserved from around 1270 featuring interesting frescoes and paintings. It is still used and in fact the current Bishop was expected in 2 days time (26th) to celebrate the feast of the Great Saint Dimitrios. Great views over Sparta in the valley below. From here we boarded our bus and returned to Sparta for a quick visit to see the impressive statue of King Leonidas. Leonidas I was a king of Sparta, the most militaristic city-state in ancient Greece, who achieved immortal fame by leading one of history’s most celebrated last stands. He’s best known for commanding a small force of Greek soldiers, including his personal guard of 300 Spartans, in a defiant stand against the vastly superior Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC. Reboarded our bus for 45 minute return trip to Gythion and the tender pier by 11:20am.