Peloponnese, Greece

January 2, 2023

The Greek South. The Peloponnese.

Since we only "flew over" the northern part of Greece, it was time, after two months, to leave the "Elea Beach" and finally explore the Greek South. It was almost embarrassing that we had been in Greece for so long and hadn't seen anything of the country. So, once again, it was time to say goodbye and get our "Beluga whale" ready. Specifically, that means: loading the trunk in the advanced Tetris method, emptying the bladder, disposing of the big business, storing everything in the cabinets that is not bolted down, ensuring proper cargo safety with two emergency paramedics on board. Then, placing the child seats, providing each person with a bottle of water within reach, some nuts and a banana for snacks depending on the length of the journey, and of course the box with music or an audiobook. The departure checks are now done by Leonie, which means checking all the windows and pressing all the buttons. Set the navigation, rock-paper-scissors, who's driving?! And off we go... Further south!!!

Our first stop: Kalamata. A city in southern Greece, not far from the fortress of Methoni, which was really impressive. There we had one of the most beautiful experiences that we like to look back on. The weather was very stormy and the sea rough. Thanks to other vacationers, we got the tip on how to get into the fortress, even though the official tourist office was closed. So we slipped through the "back entrance," which was actually a hole in the wall that we would never have found on our own. When we reached the castle, we suddenly felt like we were in the heart of Scotland (we had never been there, but that's how it must be...). A beautiful landscape, interspersed with small hills, old walls and towers, and covered with lush green meadows. The weather offered every facet from heavy rain showers to bright sunshine during the two hours we explored the fortress until we reached the southernmost lighthouse. The sea was so wild that we didn't make it to the lighthouse over the bridge. In between, we found shelter in a small church where the children lit candles in memory of our dog Moritz and the cat Kala.

After Methoni, we headed to the middle finger of the Greek peninsula, to the so-called Mani. There we wanted to visit a stalactite cave and finally see real stalagmites and stalactites, as they were mentioned in several children's books and audiobooks. The drive through Mani was picturesque. Below us, the blue sea, opposite it, the other side of the Peleponnesus. To the left, the mountains, along which we wound our way on a small road with our whale. Numerous small watchtowers made of beautiful light-colored stone blocks and even prettier small houses lined the way. Ohhh, how poetic I sound... That's enough poetry for today.

Arriving at the beach near the stalactite cave, we were amazed. Before us lay a turquoise bay with shining white round stones the size of a fist or larger, which looked like dinosaur eggs. Thanks to the surf, there was a great sound, which I can't really describe. With each wave, the dino eggs were lifted up and rolled back down. It sounded amazing... We immediately took the opportunity to paint some of the white stones with acrylic markers and hide them for future campers. Through a small footpath, we reached the entrance of the stalactite cave, which could only be explored underground with a small wooden boat. Our boat ride turned into a little adventure as our captain had brought a rather strong guy and his companion on board. In my mind, it looked something like this; The four of us as a family huddled at the front of the boat, hovering a bit above the water thanks to the overweight in the rear. Behind us, the "rock in the surf" took a seat and already tipped the boat halfway to capsizing when getting on board. Now the rule was just not to make any hasty movements while the captain had hardly a chance to maneuver all of us with his "stick" through the caves. During sharp turns, when he had to use his hands to push us around a rock, the small boat wobbled dangerously and everyone laughed about the emerging concern of capsizing and suffocating in front of the children... No one wanted to take that risk, as there were all sorts of power cables lying in the water like long snakes, which did not necessarily convey safety according to our German sensibilities... Well, here I sit and write, so I can say that we made it safely to the end and came out quite "flashed" but healthy and full of life. After the great experience, we happily went to bed after a beloved campfire with new acquaintances.

As quiet as one night can be, the next one can be turbulent. Our destination for the next stop was the lighthouse at the southernmost point of Greece. Since we arrived in the late afternoon, we had to postpone the short hike over the footpath to the next day. What we had not anticipated was that the night would be so stormy that we had to change our location after midnight to find some shelter. After about an hour of searching in complete darkness and far away from civilization, we finally found a rock wall that we positioned ourselves in front of in the hope that no rocks would come crashing down. With a queasy feeling and completely exhausted, we fell into a restless sleep. The next morning, not even two meters behind us, was the feared pile of rocks, which, thanks to a diligent guardian angel, didn't cause us any harm!!! What luck!!!

The hike the next day, we had to cut short due to exhaustion, and Felix learned an important lesson for life. Sometimes it takes more strength to turn around before reaching the "summit" than to recklessly go to the extreme and perhaps risk one's health... We never reached the lighthouse.

After a day trip to the port town of Gythio, we drove to the nearby beach where an old shipwreck awaited us. It had something mystical about it, to see this huge rusty monster lying motionless in the surf. Unfortunately, the weather was still too stormy to explore the wreck from the inside. After half a day, our friends from the Elea Beach also arrived, and we quickly decided to drive together to a nearby campsite. Much to the delight of young and old.

So we explored the Peloponnese step by step. It was followed by a visit to the Olive Museum, which was essential for me in the land of olives. The museum was really cute, and there was a lot to discover and learn for the children too.

Since Greece surprisingly has many caves, we were able to fulfill Felix's wish and explore another stalactite cave on foot. The tour this time was just for us in the low season, with a funny English-speaking guide who showed the children various figures and animals carved from the many formations. After enough old stones and caves, we carried on...

Contrary to my expectations before the trip, I did not expect the winter in southern Europe to be so uncomfortable. We repeatedly heard from travelers that they had occasionally stayed in an apartment or a small holiday home. So we decided to rent an apartment in one of our favorite places in the Peloponnese, Nafplio. We quickly moved out of the camper only to realize that we missed our beds and the unfamiliar noises in a multi-family house with a radiology practice on the ground floor were quite stressful. However, we were able to take a bath every day, wash all our things, and even received visitors. So, we made the best of it, only to learn that moving out of the motorhome was not worth it and that we feel simply too comfortable in our Beluga.

Shortly thereafter, Felix's seventh birthday came. We wanted to celebrate it in an amusement park in Athens because we were currently traveling without any other children around us. As a special outing, it was also a complete success. Cold, but as it is known, there is no such thing as bad weather. One part of the amusement park was even specially designed for children and only they could enter. There were "roller coasters" that were so small that adults were not allowed to ride them because we would simply have gotten stuck in the small vehicles. After an exciting day, we crawled into the motorhome in the evening, freezing but happy. We didn't really like Athens itself, so we were glad to finally roll onto the ferry in the end, which safely took us to the Asian continent overnight.

Our conclusion about Greece: A country with great coastlines, many old stones, and interesting history. We found the Greeks to be friendly but reserved. For us, it is the land of olives and the best olive oil. We will be back. After all, the Greek North is still on the list!

But now, on to new shores.

Turkey, here we come...