As we last checked our cars and equipment, we were in Meteora, but increasingly lousy weather with colder temperatures forced us to move a little bit. Since we wanted to see the Ionian Sea – coastline we headed west. Initially, we planned to drive on to Corfu but due to the weather forecast we decided to move a little bit more to the south, and we did not regret it.
The drive itself was pretty uneventful but an excellent opportunity to chat with Melanie, my new adventurous co-driver as well as checking on Filie, the new Van-life puppy. Since the way was quite a long one and we did not leave first thing in the morning we had quite a struggle to reach the beach in time. As most of the time, we arrived after sunset, which made finding a stop entirely more difficult but in a pure Van-life tradition we pulled off what is known as a masterpiece by now. A perfect beach, perfect parking and not much company, just the occasional passing car, and not much more.
The Blue Island beach bar was already abandoned, and we had a beach for the four (well, six – if the puppies count) alone. Walking onto the beach, a cool breeze in your face, the noise of the waves and nothing else to distract you from the moment it was a perfect last minute spot. Even the fact that I had still a little bit of a cold could not prevent the joy of my companions from sweeping over and completing my moment.
After another healthy breakfast we checked where we wanted to go next and little did we know, we unintentionally slept directly next to Nicopolis.
Nicopolis Theater and Arena
So first thing in the discussion was my sister speaking up that there is some kind of Theater and an arena right nearby. Already in the area, we checked our maps and made the short drive of about 5 minutes towards the site.
As we arrived at the Theater of Nicopolis, we saw a lot of workers securing the site and archeologists digging at the Theater, which is, at least in my books, one of the most impressive ones I’ve seen so far.
Unfortunately, we could not enter the site, and signs suggested to wear helmets when entering the place. We went around the vast building and took some pictures of the area. It was constructed and re-constructed five times, and you can clearly see the different layers of building material and techniques used to enlarge the place.
The Stadium was pretty much untouched, and there was not much to look at other than the entrance and a field with grass behind it. Well, in shape of a stadium, but you would need a lot of imagination to “see through” the grass.
Having checked that site, we wanted to move on south along the coastline. Little did we know that there was far more stuff to discover just another 5 minutes from there.
Well, duuuh, you genius! Such a large Theater most likely comes with a city…
Oh, shut up, will ya?!
Nicopolis city wall and city center
As we drove the street south, we passed a stone wall, an old one, to be precise. At this point, most of you will think, well, that’s apparently an indicator for something to see. To my defense, I’d have to add that a random stone wall next to the road is a quite common thing here in Greece and I’ve been around a while so it did not catch my attention at first. But this one was different. It was quite huge. As we drove alongside the wall with many towers, we started thinking about stopping and taking a stroll. And right there in front of us was a little parking spot in front of what seemed to be the main gate of some kind.
So out of the car, it was and taking a look at the impressive fortification. The city walls were an early Christian-design and build to protect about 180.000 square meters of land. Only a small fraction compared to the earlier Roman city and fortifications of the same area, which was six times larger than that. The decision was taken after Barbaric invasions in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th centuries A.D.
As if this was not enough, there was the old city center literally a three-minute walk away. Other than the Theater, Stadium, and fortifications there was a small entrance fee for the site and with it came a ticket to the museum which was an additional short drive from the site.
Walking through ancient ruins with artwork, so detailed and impressive that it would cost a fortune to build it even nowadays is quite a thing. Just imagine a luxurious old city center with bathrooms, an Attica overlooking most of the city and the walls and now comes the mindblowing part.
Everything, I mean literally everything in this place had underfloor heating. How many of you can state that from your current living arrangement? Exactly! Imagine the cost of such a system back in the days. Not just with having to push a button but having people making the right size of fires in the right places 24/7. Well, that was apparently the place of someone with an almost infinite amount of coins. Or slaves. Or both.
The Museum
After the site, we apparently went to the Museum since we already had the tickets. Not the biggest one I have to say but due to the significance of the city and its strategical value it is definitely worth a visit.
I will not spoil the tour for those of you who want to, primarily because there’s too much to write. So for the official story, I’ll stick to the “Not wanting to spoil – argument.” Just deal with it, really…
After the Museum we made the way further south to a small place north of Mitikas were we spend the night.
Even when the weather is not that great, Greece has so much to do and see. It still amazes me what things you can find just by driving through the country and stopping at specific points of interest. The journey far from over, this is at least, the end of the article.
EU - Adventure 