Lakonia Region

English speakers can thank the Lakonians for the word laconic (terse or concise; of few words), which many still are.

This region contains Sparta, which was rebuilt in the 19th century on the ruins of the ancient city. This causes complications for the modern citizens. Every home addition or excavation for a new water line is accompanied by prayers to any appropriate deity that ancient ruins will not be uncovered, because then work must stop immediately, and the site must be investigated and catalogued, which can take many months.

The ancient city of Mystras, a centre of culture of the Byzantine Empire, is 7 km west of here. The ruins of a Frankish fortress dominate the hillside, with the remains of many churches, libraries, strongholds, palaces and monasteries contained by the upper and lower walled towns descending below it.

Our host in Sparta was Stathis Stathopoulos, yet another old friend of Barb's (an activist she knew in Toronto) was more loquacious than most Lakonians. He took us for dinner, and we discussed the political and economic situation in Greece. His opinion is that the Greek economy is hanging by a thread. He is a part-time community college teacher, who, although he has been diligently teaching his courses, hasn't been paid since October. While we were at his house, we saw a demonstration of firefighters on the news, the same guys who were called heroes for fighting the forest fires in 2007, who also haven't been paid in months.

The next morning we went to the Museum of the Olive, which traced the roots (get it?) of the olive and olive oil from earliest times. We now know more about the history and production of olive oil and other products than any reasonable person should, but it was a lovely museum.

We then drove to Monemvasia, a perfect fortress town built on a tower of rock with sheer cliffs rising hundreds of feet from the sea. This town was the leading commercial centre for the region during the Byzantine era. It was famous throughout Europe for its highly-praised Malvasia-grape wine.

The only access is via a single causeway. We drove across it and followed the narrow road along the base of the rock. This road stopped abruptly at a massive fortified stone gate, where we had to park, as this town was built centuries before the automobile. The narrow passageway through the gate turned sharply to the right and then went straight ahead,, where we emerged into a fabulous stone town. The medieval town is mostly restored, and has stores and restaurants, as well as guest houses. Narrow cobbled streets lead ever upward, and the views of the Myrtoon Sea become more spectacular the higher one goes. These streets are soon stairways, then steep paths that lead to the ruins of the upper town and also those of a large fortress that crowns the hill. Much of the curtain wall at the top of the cliffs is intact, and the ruins are spectacular. We had a lovely lunch on a terrace overlooking the sea, and then Nikos and I climbed to the top of the highest peak. The view was stunning.

We then returned to Sparta where Stathis made us a wonderful avgolemono soup, and we talked for hours.