Acropolis and Archaeological Site of Mystras

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Acropolis

   The rock itself is a surprise. The Acropolis rises about a hundred and fifty metres above Athens, a limestone outcrop with steep sides and a flat top, and for most of ancient history it was the city's fortress and shrine. The buildings you see today, the Parthenon, the Propylaia gateway, the little temple of Athena Nike and the Erechtheion with its stone maidens, were mostly built in the second half of the fifth century BC under Pericles, with the sculptor Phidias overseeing the work. The Parthenon was finished in 432 BC.

   Read the complete Acropolis write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Acropolis is where the day begins. Next is Sanctuary of Asklepios at Epidaurus.

2. 2. Sanctuary of Asklepios at Epidaurus

   Drop a coin in the centre of the orchestra at Epidaurus and people sitting in the top row, fifty-odd rows above, will hear it. The theatre of the sanctuary of Asklepios, built in the fourth century BC, is famous for its acoustics and its almost perfect state of preservation, and it still hosts performances of ancient drama during the summer festival. But the theatre was only part of the sanctuary. Epidaurus was the most famous healing centre of the ancient Greek world, where the sick came to sleep in the sacred buildings and hope that the god Asklepios would visit them in a dream with a cure.

   Read the complete Sanctuary of Asklepios at Epidaurus write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Sanctuary of Asklepios at Epidaurus comes up about 138 km into the recorded legs. Next is Archaeological Site of Mystras.

3. 3. Archaeological Site of Mystras

   Mystras is a whole Byzantine city draped down a steep hillside, a few kilometres west of modern Sparta, at the foot of the Taygetos mountains. It began in 1249, when William II of Villehardouin, a Frankish prince ruling the Peloponnese after the Fourth Crusade, built a castle on the summit. Within a few years the Byzantines had taken it back, and Mystras grew into the capital of the Despotate of the Morea, a centre of learning and art in the last centuries of the empire. The philosopher Gemistos Plethon taught here, and in 1449 Constantine XI Palaiologos, the last Byzantine emperor, was crowned here before leaving for Constantinople, where he died when the city fell in 1453.

   Read the complete Archaeological Site of Mystras write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 291 km into the recorded legs you reach Archaeological Site of Mystras. Next is back through Sanctuary of Asklepios at Epidaurus.

4. 4. back through Sanctuary of Asklepios at Epidaurus

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Sanctuary of Asklepios at Epidaurus write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Sanctuary of Asklepios at Epidaurus, late in the day. Next is Acropolis.

5. 5. Acropolis

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Acropolis write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Back at Acropolis. That is the ride.