We woke on our tenth day at Monemvasia with low expectations. We knew nothing about the area and our view from the balcony offered a very nondescript harbor town and a causeway leading to a smaller island with steep rocky cliffs.

We set forth to see what we could see by traversing the causeway and beginning the walk up the road leading to the Town of Molaoi on the far side of the island. Before getting far, Jennifer noticed a small sign off to the side of the road that appeared to be a marker of some kind. We walked over to investigate and to our surprise it was a trailhead for a path that leads you to the upper or lower entrances to the town. So rather than slug along the asphalt road we chose this option. We were rewarded with fantastic views without a single other person along the path.

After 20 minutes or so the town’s medieval walled entrance was dead ahead!

Once you have found your way inside the walls you will see there is a town of around 5000 people and further up on the plateau the remnants of the medieval fortress.

After exploring a section of the fortress we descended into the town and were amazed to find this hidden gem. The town offers several quaint restaurants, a few shops, hotels, and of course residences.

We completed our visit with a nice lunch before returning to the harbor by the path previously described.

The rest of our day was spent getting a workout in at the onboard gym, dinner, an excellent show by accomplished violinist Doug Cameron, and visiting with new friends.