Today our bus headed north. During the ride,  Angelos told us about the history of Sparta. Our first stop was near Sparta in Mystras, which was the Byzantine Empire’s cultural and intellectual capital, and as such, was the home of many philosophers and artists. Some of the artists’ frescoes still survive.  Mystras also  has some of the best surviving Byzantine churches in Greece. We met our local tour guide at the lower town, which contains the remains of a cathedral dedicated to St. Demetrios, and churches dedicated to Sts. Theodore and Hodegetria. There is also a convent of Pantanassa, in which a few elderly nuns still live. In the upper town, there is the Palace of the Despots, some of which was built by Crusaders.

Our visit to Mystras was followed by a delicious lunch in Sparta that included tzatziki and other dips, a salad, and moussaka, with a custard dessert. Our next stop was at a winery where we had tastes. Then we arrived at Nafplio, where we would spend two night. Our hotel was fascinating, because each room was decorated differently. Some of the rooms had stone interiors, making them resemble caves. Our room, as well as several others, was up five flights of steps.

After an orientation walk, there was a group dinner. We were seated with two solo travelers, one from Minnesota and the other from Illinois. One of then had been on eleven Rick Steves Tours. For dinner, Nick went local, ordering octopus, while I went Italian, ordering pasta Bolognese.

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