For the video of the day, click on the link below:
Mycenae and Nafplio from Sarah Rossey on Vimeo.
For a taste of what traveling with Tim is like, check out this video:
Greece Recap Talking Heads from Sarah Rossey on Vimeo.
After relentless heckling about the pace of our trip and the early hour at which we had to hit the road (7:30? 8:00? Is that early? What wimps!), Sarah and I finally decided to show mercy and allow a “sleep in” morning. We set a meeting time of 10:00 am in the hotel foyer. Breakfast was on our own, so the group spread out between street vendors selling pastries, Syntagma Square for espresso and croissants, or the harbor area for omelets and coffee.
At 10:00, we loaded up the vans and headed for Mycenae. The weather was perfect (60’s with clear skies and light winds). First stop: the Treasury of Atreus. A beehive tomb from the 14th century b.c. The construction and acoustics were astounding. (We calculated—yes, some of our group whipped out their smart phones and did the math on this—that the lintel stone alone weight around 500 tons.)
Then on to Mycenae proper. Grave Circle B with its shaft graves and somber setting outside the walls of the city. The tombs of Clytemnestra (unfaithful wife and murderer of Agamemnon) and her lover and fellow conspirator Aegisthus. Through the majestic Lion’s Gate. Past Grave Circle A (where Heinrich Schliemann discovered the “mask of Agamemnon” and most of the treasures of Mycenae housed at the National Archaeological Museum). Up the acropolis to the palace area, the Megaron 
(throne room), and a temple at the summit. We saw the shops and huts of ordinary citizens and the deep cistern from which the city drew water in times of siege.
Back down the hill to the Museum. Many of the significant treasures of Mycenae are in Athens rather than here. But there are some particularly interesting artifacts housed in the Mycenae museum: great examples of Linear B—one of the earliest forms of writing … a map of the Mediterranean and ancient Europe, showing the extent of Greek trade 1500 years before Christ … a display of ancient weaponry and tools. A great little museum, even if—at this point in our trip—people were a little museumed-out.
When we had our fill of the incredible view we piled in the vans and drove to the 
Corinthian Canal. What an incredible sight! Although Sarah was disappointed that the bungee jump company had not yet opened for the tourists, we got to watch a cruise ship pass through while we walked up and down the bridge over the canal.
Back to Nafplio for a last, wistful afternoon. We ate lunch together and then spread out to shop, nap, stroll, and otherwise revel in our final day in Greece. Jewelry was purchased (really, Beverly, more jewelry?!), gelato was eaten (really, Kevin, again with the gelato?!), and yet more photos were snapped. We gathered at 9:00 pm and trooped off to eat our “last supper” in Greece. The Taverna Basileia. Stuffed vine leaves and stewed rabbit. Swordfish souvlaki and tzatziki. Village sausage and moussaka. Ahh, what a feast. We ate and talked and laughed and reminisced until 
11:00 p.m. and then went in search of Nafplio’s best gelato.
Back to the hotel to shower, pack, and check out. Most of the group had an early morning flight (5:00.!), so no sleep this evening. We hit the road about 12:30. Ed did his usual superb job of driving, navigating the crazy Greek roads (not to mention the crazy Greek drivers!) and keeping up with me. We got to the Athens’ airport about 3:00, checked everyone in, and said our final goodbyes. What a great trip. What wonderful memories!
Sarah and I sat with Beverly for an hour or so (she had a later flight). Then we headed out in one of the rental vans to see Sounion—a site I’d never visited in all my trips to Greece. It was pitch dark of course (5:00 a.m.!). Roads were under major construction. We wound our way through sleepy villages and over one-lane bridges 
for almost an hour until we came to the Temple of Poseidon, glowing in the night from the spotlights that highlighted its majestic beauty. We took a few photos before Sarah went to grab a little sleep in the van. I stayed up, snapping photos as the sun rose over the Aegean, capturing the Temple as the sun warmed the white marble into golden glow.
The group was safely on the plane, Sarah and I had a couple of days to ourselves in Athens, and it was time to relax and enjoy being in Greece with no responsibilities or duties. Ahhhhhhhh!
