After a lovely slow start I made my way to Molyvos again but this time to see the castle. Before I headed up to the top of the village I stopped in to buy a yoga mat at a beautiful little shop I found the other day. I have been exercising each morning on a foam mat but it slips around & I need something a bit more padded so I have bought a travel mat & will leave it here for next time!!
Dropping the mat back to the car I made my way very slowly up the hill, meandering this way & that to reach the top. Molyvos is so pretty, the views are amazing across the Aegean & lots of the yards have pots full of blooming spring colours. The wisteria is still in full flower & there is honeysuckle & jasmine creeping up walls & trees. The hillside alleyways are dotted with citrus trees, vines & olive trees with the odd pine thrown in for good measure.
Many of the buildings are empty & somewhat derelict. There’s a lovely contrast between the old buildings which are neglected & the houses which are occupied, with their washing hanging out, flowers blooming & shutters thrown open. I could hear voices, televisions, radios & babies crying in some houses & then mounting a twisty set of steps I was in silent alleyways with only cats for company.
I’ve seen a few Datura plants in gardens & today came across this one which is growing over a wall outside someone’s house. This is a plant that can get you high but as little as 15g of it’s seeds can be fatal! I believe it’s banned in Australia & I haven’t seen it growing anywhere for years, but here…eh!!
Eventually I reached The Fortress of Methymna/ΤΟ ΦΡΟΥΡΙΟ ΤΗΣ ΜΗΘΥΜΝΑΣ. I stopped in at the cafe & had my obligatory Greek coffee to keep me going! What a view from the top & not just me enjoying it today, lots of Turks here on holiday this week so there is more of a summer vibe happening now, for a little while at least.
The castle was built on top of an existing ancient acropolis, in the 5th century. Two of the existing towers belong to the original pre Medieval structure! Ancient Methymna secured control of the north passage of the island & is a traditional type of Medieval settlement which developed vertically, surrounded by steep rocks. The village underneath the castle was organised to follow the contour of the steep rocks which act as a means of defence.
From the ramparts of the castle you can see for miles & it would take a very stealthy marauder to invade successfully. Until the late 5th century castles were built to be secure depending on the terrain, the fortification of the walls & the bravery of troops, but from the mid 10th century onwards more planning was involved. Castles became more sophisticated with a larger keeps built on the most precipitous side of the terrain, more defensive towers & more effective weaponry such as catapults, battering rams & crossbows.
This is one of three arrow slits in a tower overlooking the very steep side of the castle under which the village is located. Archers inside the castle were protected from return fire as it is too high to reach with an arrow from below. Check out these crenellations! Imagine pouring boiling liquid onto the enemy down below or throwing stones from that height, invader’s would be sitting ducks.
There are three gates to penetrate before reaching the central part of the castle where the water & barracks were located. The first is a gate now, which leads to the bottom surrounds of the fortification, the second is at the bottom of a passageway with steps leading to a flat rampart, perhaps where a fire might have been lit to warn others that the castle had been breached? I’m making that up but it sounds possible & sensible since that’s how mobile communication worked back in the dark ages, light a fire, make smoke & ring the bells as loud as possible!
The third gate is wooden but reinforced with metal, it’s bloody impressive & would have offered some protection back in the day. It sits snuggly in the stone, not leaving much room for marauders to penetrate the inner keep.
There are 27 castles on Lesvos, most of which are situated near the sea & all of which worked in collaboration to protect the island. Each fortress functioned self-sufficiently but also in compliment with the next & the next & so on. The network on Lesvos was organised gradually from the 6th century onwards mainly to confront attacks & control maritime trade routes. Between the main fortresses, the island was dotted with observation posts, Vigles, towers that were essential for monitoring every movement.
How amazing that these structures still exist & are so well preserved. I chatted with some workers I met at the bottom of the rock on which the fortress is built who are drilling holes into the rock to reinforce it with concrete & steel rods. There is scaffolding up one side of the rock & the work they are doing is very precarious as they have to bring in all the materials on a little eight wheeler & the walkways are really steep, stepped & not suitable for vehicles at all. Here’s Alex who stopped for a chat on his way back down after ferrying a tray full of big rocks up to the car park for dumping.
He told me that if you live in the village you either park up the top next to the castle or the bottom near the cemetery. If you live in the middle of the village you have to walk to your house as there is only access by foot or scooter. You would have to shop everyday & lord knows how they get new furniture or white goods in & out. In fact, I did see two burly men hefting an ice cream freezer up the hill today to put in one of the restaurants. They looked hot, knackred & over it!
Back to the castle. I include this photo so you can get a sense of how expansive the keep is. There are what looks like pens for animals, big grassed areas, trees, flat topped towers in the corners & a well.
After walking the perimeter & taking a billion pics I sat in the shade of a tree & contemplated what it must have been like living in a place like this. I suppose not dissimilar to how Daniel & the other monks still live today, but much more difficult? It must have been pretty miserable in winter, cold, wet, windy & exposed. I imagined what it might have been like if the village had been attacked & all the people living there were brought into the keep for safe keeping (huh is that where the expression comes from?!). The sounds of invasion, the smell of all the unwashed people mixed with the animal scents, the fear of being under siege until supplies were depleted. Puts my cushy life right into perspective!
Leaving the castle I wound my way back slowly down into the village, stopping in at the church, just below the castle. It was locked but in the outer room I came across an ornate piece of furniture (can’t find out online what it’s called) where you light a candle as an offering. I can’t remember who was telling me but now the churches are using smoke extractors to get rid of some of the smoke from candles & incense as it’s been found to be harmful. Maybe they should think about what all the cigarette smoke is doing to them too!?!
I dropped into the library to say hi to Elena & she suggested I go to Martin’s for dolmades & tzatziki for lunch, where she would join me later. Martin’s is purported to be the best place to eat in Mithymna, if trip advisor reviews are to be believed! It’s the spot below the coffee shop where I ate baklava earlier in the week & the views are magnificent. I got there during a lull & bagged a table for two abutting the wall which overlooks the sea. Dolmades, fava & bread were consumed & I enjoyed them thoroughly. After an hour or so Elena arrived with Melanie, a Dutch lady who is married to a Greek & has lived on Lesvos for 27 years.
She & her husband own the souvlaki shop at the bottom of the hill & are open for business all year, serving the local community in the quieter winter months. She stayed for a glass of vino & a nibble before leaving to open the shop. Here we are enjoying our time together 🩵
It was lovely to meet another local & I feel like I am, in a very small way, joining in with a family of non-natives who blew in & never blew out again! I am meeting Elena for a drink tomorrow afternoon & Melanie asked if I wanted to go to yoga on Sunday. I also sent a message to the local nail salon, who the girl serving at Martin’s put me on to & I have Alex’s number so will meet him in Petra next week sometime. It feels great to be making so many connections, there’s definitely something about Greece that makes it easy to forge new friendships.
There were some mad people swimming in the ocean today, too chilly for me, but the sight of them made me determined to dip a toe in soon. I won’t have a car next week so a walk on Petra beach is definitely in order.
I dropped Elena off at the church at 6.30pm where she goes each evening to do/sing/participate in Liturgy. She asked me if I wanted to join her but I politely declined. As I walked away I could hear chanting from inside & I can appreciate how it would be peaceful & offer comfort to those who believe.
Here is the final pic to close this rather long blog tonight!! The end of a very enjoyable day, looking back across the countryside to Molyvos in the background, fortress dominating this ancient settlement. A village of beauty, peace, flowers, lovely people, great coffee, stunning views & new friends 🥰
