Mystras
Magnificent, spectacular a glorious place, Mystras (5 Km north-west of Sparti) is one of the most exciting cities in Peloponnese. Standing still in time, the dead city lies on the slope of the sheer, strange hill with the fortress at its top. The whole of Mystras is an open-air museum. A reminder of glorious era of power and culture. Its fortifications and churches, its palaces and mansions, its roads and fountains, charm thousands of visitors daily and offers them valuable insights in the evolution and culture of the Byzantines. For two centuries Mistras was at the forefront of developments and had a brilliant history full of glory, splendour and political, social and cultural contributions. Its story begins in the mid-13th century when the Franks were dominant in the Peloponnese.
Sparta
Sparta, is a city in Laconia, Greece. It lies at the site of ancient Sparta. Until modern times, the site of ancient Sparta was occupied by a town of a few thousand people who lived among the ruins, in the shadow of Mystras, a more important medieval Greek settlement. The Palaiologos family (the last Byzantine Greek imperial dynasty) also lived in Mystras. In 1834, after the Greek War of Independence, King Otto of Greece decreed the town should be expanded into a city. In the center of the city is the Archaeological Museum and in the North West end is the Tomb of Leonidas, also known as Leonidaion and there is a tavern in front of the temple named Leonidas. The city’s cathedral is at the south west end. North of the modern city start the ruins of the ancient Sparta. The Museum of the Olive and Greek Olive Oil in the South West end highlights the culture of the olive and the technology of olive production.
