The images that Mesa Mani (Inner Mani) offers take us two to three hundred years back. The strong consistent identity of the area is based, on the one hand, on the fortress-like structure of the villages, and, on the other, on the vastness of the almost unchanged natural landscape.
This landscape is harsh like the fire
It clenches its burning stones in its chest
It clenches the light in its orphaned olives and its vines
It clenches its teeth!
This graphic description by Giannis Ritsos, the poet who wrote the famous poem Romiosioni, pierces through the heart of each visitor who crosses this part of the Peloponnese. The dry land with the sparse vegetation and the relentless sun, through the ages, has formed the Maniots (the people from Mani) that have tamed it building terraces, growing the absolute necessities, collecting water in the rocks’ pools, and taking advantage of any opportunity offered to them to stay alive. “And here come the Maniots! And they’re like their rocks: pointy and upright, and bare and untrodden, and solitary”, is how the poet Kostis Palamas described them in two lines.
History seems like the constant companion on our journey. As we walk around listed traditional villages like Areopolis, with the unique cobbled streets and the blooming gardens, we come across a statue of Petros Mavromichalis, known as Petrombey, in the middle of the square, reminding us of the rising of March 17, 1821.
Looking up to admire the famed towers of Mani in the lovely Vatheia village, as well as all around the peninsula, the wind’s whistling whispers stories of heroic deeds, conspiracies, and of dangerous power games between the Maniots, the Turks and the Venetians.
As far as piracy is concerned, from Oitylo and Limeni to Gerolimenas in the East, and from Porto Kagio to Gytheio in the West, there’s an abundance of stories for you to get your fill, in every corner of every port. There, you can also try the day’s catch from one of the fishermen’s boats that will have caught seabreams, red mullets, groupers, and black seabreams.
Go swimming in the crystal blue waters in beaches like Alipa, Chalikia, and Marathos. Enjoy the magic of a boat ride to the cave of Diros, one of the most beautiful caves in Greece. Try your hand at horseback riding on an organised tour among towers and narrow arched alleys in Haria, in an experience that will deeply connect you with the past.
Taste the unique local products, like honey, lalagia (traditional fried dough strips), syglino (traditional smoked pork), and seek out the exceptional cheeses produced in the villages from sheep and goats’ milk. In Pyrgos Dirou, go find the only potter in Mesa Mani, and see his unique, tasteful creations. If you tell him you heard about him and his work in this article, you’ll get a pleasant surprise.
At the marvellous Limeni, visit the impressive Mavromichalis mansion and take a canoe on the sun’s trail while it’s painting the sky red at dusk. Feel refreshed after a morning hike at Cape Tainaron (also known as Cape Matapan), the southernmost point in mainland Europe, and shout loudly so that Poseidon, who was worshiped here, hears you. The constant movement of the sea will reply.
