Crete to Sparta

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We took the overnight ferry from Hania to Piraeus to start our transit to Sparta. We started out badly with a lot of confusion over who was rooming with whom but eventually got it sorted out and were escorted to our 'staterooms' by one of the ferry staff. The rooms had four bunkbeds, two on each side, a wardrobe, a nighttable and a bathroom with a shower, very compact, very functional. The whole boat was a maze of corridors and stairs that didn't seem to have a lot of rhyme or reason to them. There was a pool but it was out of order, a disco, and a mini-market with quite a variety of items from food and drink to clothes and sourvenirs. The ferry also had two dining rooms with table service for the 'distinguished class' and a cafeteria style dining room for economy class. There was a lounge across the back with several tvs, all showing the soccer game and smoke everywhere, something we are really not used to in Canada. There was also a snack bar on the upper deck at the rear with gyros and other food and drinks with the hard white benches we have gotten used to on the other ferries. We had dinner in the cafeteria and it was typical institutional food but the strawberries were fresh and wonderful.

After an incredibly short ight with little sleep and a rude awakening to the announcement that we were docking 1/2 hour early at 0530, we caught our bus and headed for Sparta. Most of us slept until we reached the canal at Corinth where we had 'breakfast' in a truck stop; cheese pie, ham and cheese pie, spinach pie or a donut, not exactly what we are used to. The canal is like a canyon and there are no locks so it is no wonder that it is not used very much anymore. We then carried on to Mystras, near Sparta, and again most of us slept for the two hour transit. Mystras is a medieval city built on the side of a hill, incredibly steep with ruins and chapels everywhere! Some of the group went all the way up to the castle perched at the top of the hill but about half of us stopped at St Sophia. After looking at the chapel dedicated to the wives of the despots, we headed for the Pantanassa, a monastery and the only building that is still used (by nuns) today.

After looking at the church we went on to Sparta and checked in to our hotel. A few of us found the Maison Cafe around the corner from our hotel and stopped for lunch. The waiter spoke almost no English but we had a medium variety plate and drinks for less than 20 euro. The variety consisted of baked chicken, deep-fried breaded chicken, deep-fried ham and cheese rolls, delicious chicken wings, fries, tomatoes and cheese sticks. It was fabulous and so filling the three of us couldn't quite finish it. The menu is very limited but the food is good and really cheap.

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