Mystras, Caves and Punctures
"Cross-party talks to restart as Tories step up efforts to oust May."
I was going to say that I could not put it better than UNESCO, but on reflection perhaps I could, but anyway this is what UNESCO say about Mystras.
"The archeological site of Mystras has been included in the UNESCO list of monuments of the Worldwide Cultural Heritage since 1989.
The Late Byzantine settlement at Mystras, which developed after the middle of the 13th century, was from 1262 the seat of the secular and ecclesiastical authorities of the Byzantine empire in the Peloponnese, and from 1348 the capital of the Despotate of the Morea, down to its conquest by the Ottomans in 1460.
The preserved overall urban design of the settlement, and the architecture of the Frankish castle, the Byzantine palace, houses and churches, with their important paintings, make Mystras an invaluable source for the study of the medieval culture of Byzantium and Europe in General."
Because our selected camp site had failed to open we and one other motorhome parked in the lower Mystras car park and were into the site first thing in the morning before most people arrived (a good move).
It is possible, if a bit tiring, to explore the entire site from the lower entrance, however the ticket office suggested that we explore the lower half first then drive to the upper car park (also a good move).
In spite starting from the upper car park the climb up to the castle is exhausting and the castle itself is largely a ruin, however the view is spectacular.
On our way south from Mystras we spotted a tyre repair garage, who on inspecting our tyre declared that they could not repair it but they could send it to Tripoli and it would be back on Saturday or possibly not, or Monday.
So without a spare tyre we drove south to a fine seaside camp site near Gythio (Camping Meltemi 36.73284 22.55202).
From there we drove west to the Diros caves and a near perfect wild camping area on the beach at 36.64125 22.38308. We, like many other motorhomes, followed the signs
to the caves from where you can see, but alas not reach the motorhomes parked on the beach just 200 metres away. To get to the parking area you need to turn right about 1km
from the caves at Kampinares (by the Kampinara Restaurant). Luckily you can walk the 200 metres from the beach area to the caves.
The caves themselves are accessed by a combination of boat (1.2km) and walking (300m). Thankfully there was no commentary on the boat.
On Monday morning we called the garage and they rather surprisingly confirmed that out tyre was back from Tripoli and was fixed!