Pylos – Methoni – Koroni Tour
METHONI-KORONI: Between two Venetian castles.
The two Messinian castle towns “complement” each other, making it an ideal choice for an excursion. They are only half an hour apart and have always had a common course. Their castles flourished in the first Venetian occupation, while the Middle Ages were important stations for merchant ships that traveled from East to West, but also for the pilgrims of the Holy Land.
METHONI
At the end of the Peloponnese, somewhere at the Messinian Gulf, is Methoni. A small town with wonderful Venetian castles, beautiful sandy beaches and many interesting sights. One of its best known places is its famous castle. Also known for its unique sunset with the view of the sun being lost behind the castle. It is a spectacle of rare beauty that is worth walking around on its paved road. In the city of Methoni, the low stone houses give it a special and distinctive color.
KORONI
We will continue with the picturesque Koroni At first glance, the visitor faces the Venetian Castle and the port of the city that extends to the foot of the settlement. The harbor, almost always, is “decorated” with sailboats and fishing boats that supply the taverns of the settlement with fresh fish and seafood. You can walk along the picturesque whitewashed alleys of the city where you can find old two-storey mansions built according to the medieval ‘rhythm’. The next destination is the famous Venetian Castle of Koroni, which dominates over the centuries. It seems as if it is sailing in the sea, in harmony with the settlement that touches its walls. As soon as one reaches the castle, he notices that the entire Messinian bay spreads before the eyes of the amazed visitor.
THE PALACE OF NESTORS
At a distance of 14 km from Pylos, the palace of the famous king of Pylos, Nestor, came to light in the last century. It is the best preserved Mycenaean palace that has survived all over Greece. The palace was built in the 13th century BC by King Nestor, who is often mentioned by Homer, having an important place in Homeric epics. Nestor led Pylos to the Trojan War with 90 ships and was presented by Homer as a wise old man whose opinion was always respected by the Achaeans.
The palace complex will impress you. It consists of four main buildings, which in turn are divided into a large number of apartments, 105 in number, according to calculations. Your admiration will be expressed in front of the colorful frescoes that adorn the interior, while you will feel awe about the fact that the palace was never surrounded by a protective wall, since its location was sufficient to provide it with the appropriate protection. The most important apartment is of course the so-called “throne room”, with its circular hob, while in the area around the palace were excavated vaulted tombs, one of which was attributed to King Nestor. The numerous archaeological finds from the area of Nestor’s palace are kept today at the Archaeological Museum of Chora
The palace seems completely destroyed by a fire in the 12th century BC, but it has managed to preserve a plethora of ceramic plaques that provide us with important information about the economic, social and religious life during the Mycenaean
