Nafplion, Greece
Early this morning, Panorama passed from the Aegean Sea into the Argolic Gulf. Just before seven A.M. we sailed past the Bourtzi castle, which is positioned on a small island at the entrance of the harbor. It was built in the 15th century during the Venetian occupation to guard the only navigable channel into the harbor. After clearing this passage we docked in the port and prepared for our day’s activities.
Once breakfast was finished we boarded our motor coaches and headed out for our morning excursion. The first stop was the ancient site of Mycenae. Ellie and Stella, our Greek guides, led us through the Lion gate and into the ruins that dated back to 1600 B.C. It was once a home for the ruling class of the area, and its hilltop location gave it great views of the lands below. Mycenae is known to have been abandoned in 1100 B.C. but it was not hard to imagine its palatial nature when it was occupied. On our way down we made a short stop at the treasury of Atreus, which is also more commonly known as Agamemnon’s tomb. It is still in good shape and gives you the feeling that you’re walking into a giant underground beehive. Before we returned to the ship for lunch we had one more ancient site to visit that offered a chance for a bit of competition. We journeyed through the Nemean valley to see the well preserved stadium in Ancient Nemea. It was once a host to Olympic Games in antiquity ,and it still gives us a good idea of what a stadium looked like back then. After Ellie and Stella explained how these competitions were run when the site was in use we decided to stage a competition of our own. Our young Olympians made a run of the stadium in a footrace to score points for their own “Panoramic” games. Customary olive wreaths were bestowed on all of our participants and a few visiting runners.
In the afternoon we observed the local tradition of a siesta and then late in the day we prepared to “storm” the fortress of Palamidhi. This is a formidable citadel positioned high above the town that is known as one of the most well preserved Venetian fortresses of the area. It was built between 1711 and 1714 and was designed to be impenetrable but fell to the Ottomans in 1715 and then eventually to the Greeks in 1822. Luckily for us the gates were open and we launched our “assault” via our motor coaches. Stella and Ellie gave us a brief introduction to the site and offered us some insight to its history. After this we had time to wander the fort on our own and enjoy some great looks at the town and gulf far below. We found numerous lookouts, walkways and tunnels before we had to decide how to return to the Panorama. Some chose the “civilized” route via the coach while others braved the 900+ steps down to the base of the fortress walls.
The ship stayed alongside for the evening and many guests chose to dine ashore and enjoy the harbor. A search for the best ice cream or gelato was high on the list. It was nice to see the town come alive as the day drew to a close.
