"This morning we'll drive east across the Argolis Peninsula to Epidavros, one of the most renowned of Greece's ancient sites." Epidavros may be renowned, but for some reason it didn't capture my attention. It wasn't Patti's fault. (That's Patti below left, demonstrating the theater's legendary acoustics.) It could hardly be that I had overdosed on ruins on this trip, as we really hadn't seen that many. Maybe, over the years, I have overdosed on Greek and Roman theaters, and Epidavros didn't displace Orange, in France, as my favorite.
Aside from the theater, the ruins here were rather ruinous, and while I would have loved to see the labyrinth, it lay hidden under a building. I did buy a postcard, as I had promised my physical therapist (a marvelous man who had restored full range of motion to my broken wrist) one from Epidavros and one from the Asclepion on Kos, the two most important healing sites in Ancient Greece.
"After visiting the 3rd-century theatre and sanctuary, we'll take a quick 15-minute ferry hop to the idyllic, pine-tree covered island of Spetses." No room for the big purple bus on the little ferry boats we took over to Spetses. No room on the island, either. So we said a sad farewell to Spiros, after the obligatory photo-op with David and the bus.
Fortunately, none of us seemed to be given to seasickness, as the ride in the little boats, holding eight or nine people, and throwing big wakes, was rougher than I would have expected. But it was also short.
Spetses has been replaced by Hydra for the 2007 version of this tour. I'm all in favor of that, and not because the ferry to Hydra will probably be larger and more comfortable. Reading the feedback posted on Rick Steves' web site, I had noticed that hardly anyone had a good word to say for Spetses.
Perhaps Spetses would have looked better if we'd visited at the beginning of the tour. After Dimitsana, Kardamyli, Gerolimenas, Monemvasia and Nafplio, it seemed pedestrian. Unfortunately, it wasn't literally pedestrian, being infested with noisy motorbikes. Some visitors ride the bikes out to quieter parts of the island, but even though I'd become accustomed to riding pillion on motos in Asia, I'd never driven one, and I wasn't about to risk another hospital visit.
Our hotel, the Roumani, had a perfect location, just up from the harbor and surrounded by cafes. And after I discovered that the bed lights and safe in the room didn't work, we were moved to a room with a better bathroom and a sea view. Although the sea remained a beautiful blue, the best part of Spetses may have been the bar that several of us headed for after dinner. The owner's taste ran to the 60s, and plenty of golden oldies made a fun backdrop to the conversation. We may even have danced a little.
"You'll have the day free..." Although the itinerary listed no activities for this day, David arranged for us to tour the Bouboulina Museum, former home of Laskarina Bouboulina, a female hero of the War of Independence. Our guide, a descendent, gave us a lively talk about the house and the history.
Having decided that I had seen enough of Spetses on day 11, I bought tickets from an office near the hotel, and caught an afternoon ferry over to Hydra. That boat, headed towards Athens, carried few passengers: going back to Spetses, a much bigger catamaran overflowed with Athenians, laden with kids and luggage, eager to spend Easter on an island.
It took just one look for me to fall for Hydra, everybody's image of a Greek island. Small and rocky, with the main town clustered round a compact U-shaped harbor, and a path leading around a headland above the sea, it invited exploration.
Even better, after the ferry had disappeared into the haze, the loudest sounds came from the customers in the waterfront cafes. Transport here meant horses, or donkeys, or your own feet. I set off up the path, finding stairs to a swimming beach just round the corner. The water hadn't reached swimming temperature so early in the season, so I stayed on the path, past an abundance of flowers, a cluster of houses, and a few tavernas.
After a cappuccino at the Sunset View cafe, I reluctantly caught the ferry back to Spetses. We had another group dinner scheduled that evening at Taverna Lazaros, and I wanted to try their goat in lemon sauce. The goat was tough, but the skordalia, tzatziki and Greek salad made up for it (do you notice a pattern in Greek meals?).
After another visit to the bar, three of us visited one of the local churches, where preparations for Easter (this was Thursday) were underway. Women were tying sprays of artificial white roses to the bier that would be carried in procession through the streets the next evening.
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