The castle

 Today was the day. We decided to be up early before the sun got too high in the sky. We bought a large bottle of water and headed for the steps. The stone path leads directly up the sheer rock by a series of convoluted stairways, the guide books state that there are 999 steps from the road at sea level up to the castle gateway. We decided to count them and I counted 987. There were however a further 102 within the castle itself to reach the highest point.  The sun was low in the sky so we were shaded by the bulk of the hill for the majority of the climb. As we gained height the views over Nafplio and the Agoric gulf got better and better. We took our time and slowly soldiered on. In all fairness it wasn’t as bad as we thought it was going to be. Crispy loved it and led the way all the way to the top. I think we must be fitter now than when we started this journey. Every day has seen us walking, hiking, cycling or swimming. We both feel tremendous and better than we have in a long time. The climb took us just 30 minutes without rushing or getting out of breath. At the top we paid the entrance fee of 8 euros and entered the castle. It is in excellent condition and could easily be made habitable again. It’s very young as castles go being only around 300 years old. Although it has seen action it was never involved in heavy fighting so never really sustained any damage. Inside the main bastion of the castle there was a small chapel. Crispy once again performed her candle lighting ritual.  Adjacent to the chapel are prison cells as the castle was used as a prison for the last part of its working life. It was very interesting but as the day wore steadily on it was getting very hot. The castle interior afforded some shade but Crispy was soon again overheating and becoming fractious. We enjoyed the views for a considerable period of time before commencing our descent back down the stone stairway. We got changed at our lodgings into our swimwear and set off on the one mile coast path to the beach. It was becoming obvious Crispy needed cooling off.

Nowhere in the places we have visited have we had to pay for sun beds. Not that we usually do but the beaches here are mostly scrub or pebble. A thin beach towel isn’t much protection or cushioning unless your on soft sand, It works that if you buy a drink from the adjacent bar (of course at inflated prices) then you can use the sun beds as long as you like. as it was our last beach day before heading inland I allowed Crispy this small comfort. I had secreted our fluid stash in the backpack so we got to use the beds for the full afternoon for the price of a Coke Zero. Bargain!

The day run it’s course and we made our way back to the lodgings.

Tomorrow we catch the bus to Athens and we are quite excited to be going there. The ride should only be two hours and then a short subway journey should see us close to our next accommodation in the Plaka district directly beneath the Parthanon. This should be our last bus ride as Athens is the last stop of our trip.

We have three nights in the capital which affords us two full days to see the sights and get to know the city a little.

We have loved Nfplio. It is a beautiful, small city full of old charm and our host here has been amazingly friendly and helpful. I think this is definitely a place we will return to in the future.

Bare and Crispy , below the castle, Nfplio, Peloponnese, Greece.