I have been traveling to this part of Greece since 1995 and since then, almost every year, I’ve been taking groups of people from all parts of the world, for teacher trainings, retreats or simply to share together a different kind of holiday in a pristine environment, with amazing beaches in total silence, calm and relax.
LOCATION
LIMIRA MARE HOTEL
The hotel is in Neapoli, a pretty harbour town just a few kilometres from the tip of Cape Maleas. Among the sights in the surrounding countryside and along the coast are the villages of Vatika, the ancient sunken city of Pavlopetri, the island of Elafonisos, the cave of Aghios Andreas at Kastania, the petrified forest and on the tip of the cape itself, a group of chapels and monastic dwellings that have given it the name of Little Mt. Athos.
Lying right on the coast, the LIMIRA MARE, with its elegant rooms and superior facilities, including a rare collection of old model ships and works of art, its spacious garden, offers a unique environment for getting acquainted with this interesting part of Greece and its hospitable people.
MORE INFORMATION https://www.limiramare.gr/hotel-neapolis-peloponnese.aspx
The Island of Elafonissos
Elafonissos belongs to the group of the Ionians Islands and it is just a few hundred meters from the main land. It used to be connected to the mainland Peloponnesus before a great earthquake in the year 375 a.C. separated from the rest of the continent. The island is now a protected natural reserve because of the rare resident fauna. Mediterranean seals, sea tortoises and rare species of lizards and frogs . Generally Elafonissos is not famous for the rare animals but for the famous beaches and crystalline sea water. The beaches are regarded as been amongst the most beautiful of all the Mediterranean basin and compared to the ones you can find at the Maldives. The inhabitants (around 700) mostly live in the main village where the port is situated, in the north part of the island.
http://caosvideo.it/v/elafonissos-la-versione-greca-delle-maldive-6395
PAVLOPETRI
Just off the coast of Elafonissos, in only a few meters of water, there is the famous submerged city of PAVLOPETRI.
The name Pavlopetri (“Paul’s and Peter’s”, or “Paul’s stone”) is the modern name for the islet and beach, apparently named for the two Christian saints that are celebrated together; the ancient name or names are unknown. Discovered in 1967 by Nicholas Flemming and mapped in 1968 by a team of archaeologists from Cambridge, Pavlopetri is located between the Pavlopetri islet across the Elafonisos village and the Pounta coast. The coast, the archeological site as well as the islet and the surrounding sea area are within the region of the Elafonisos Municipality, the old “OnouGnathos” peninsula (according to Pausanias). It is unique in having an almost complete town plan, including streets, buildings, and tombs. Originally, the ruins were dated to the Mycenaean period, 1600–1100 BC but later studies showed an older occupation date starting no later than 2800 BC, so it also includes early Bronze Age middle Minoan and transitional material.[ It is now believed that the town was submerged around 1000 BC by the first of three earthquakes that the area suffered. The area never re-emerged, so it was neither built-over nor disrupted by agriculture. Although eroded over the centuries, the town layout is as it was thousands of years ago.
The city of Pavlopetri is part of the underwater cultural heritage as defined by the
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kepaQu4uerg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8O8WR7fPUD4
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MONEMVASIA |
Within 40 minutes of driving you have the chance to go back in the Middle Ages. The castle of Monemvasia is a living past of history where since you pass the castle walls suddenly you travel back in time and find yourself in a city of Byzantine Empire. Its name comes from two Greek words meaning “single entrance” due to the narrow lane that leads to the castle. It is also known as “The Rock” or “The little Gibraltar”. Within the city, you can walk in the alleys and shops, café and restaurants and art galleries.
Leaving the castle and heading to the north, there is the village of Ierakas or Gerakas built during the Middle Ages in a natural harbor surrounded by rocky mountains that form the one and only Fiord in Greece.
Mystras, the ‘wonder of the Morea’, lies in the southeast of the Peloponnese. The town developed down the hillside from the fortress built in 1249 by the prince of Achaia, William II of Villehardouin, at the top of a 620 m high hill overlooking Sparta. The Franks surrendered the castle to the Byzantines in 1262, it was the centre of Byzantine power in southern Greece, first as the base of the military governor and from 1348 as the seat of the Despotate of Morea. Captured by the Turks in 1460, it was occupied thereafter by them and the Venetians. After 1834 the inhabitants of Mystras gradually started to move to the modern town of Sparta leaving only the breath-taking medieval ruins, standing in a beautiful landscape.
Cape Maleas (Cavomalias)
It is the second southern point of mainland Greece and Europe after the Cape Tainaron. It used to feature one of the largest lighthouses in the Mediterranean basin. Recently, this lighthouse was renovated and returned to working order and described as historical and scheduled monument of modern history. Apart from the lighthouse, the whole peninsula is full of scattered Byzantine country churches, hence the agnomen of ‘little Mount Athos’.
The southest part of Cavomalias can be reached only on foot through many pathways that lead to the lighthouse and the country churches. Despite the difficulty of access, it is a sightseeing you can’t miss and the view of the endless sea will blow your mind.
YOGA CLASSES with Massimo Cantara
Massimo Lived and studied in England for more than ten years and speaks fluent English. He is a member of Three Treasures Yoga. Massimo is a registered yoga teacher with SYM (Shiatsu Yoga Mediterraneo) as well as a professional Shiatsu therapist and teacher. He is also a qualified kinesiologist and Cranial Sacral therapist. In 1999 he founded Holismos, a center for yoga and complementary therapies in Poggibonsi, Tuscany, Italy. He also teaches Anatomy, Physiology and bodywork for yoga Teacher Trainings. Massimo spent 12 years practicing Shorinji Kempo (2° Dan) but trained originally as a percussionist, playing for many years in various groups in the UK and in Italy. Massimo teaches a solid classical style of Hatha yoga, sprinkled with ideas and suggestions from his back ground in Traditional Chinese Medicine, Kinesiology and percussion.
FULL PROGRAM
DAY 1
Meeting point at Athens International airport for those wishing to travel together to the Malea peninsula. Here we can hire car and drive to the south. If you wish you can make your way down independently. We will arrive in the evening so we just do our check in and chill out for the night.
we have a taxi service (price on demande)
DAY 2
8,00 – 9,30. Yoga, meditation
9,30. breakfast, after breakfast free day to restore the energy
18,00. Yoga, meditation
20.00. Dinner on the beach tavernas
DAY 3
7,30 – 9,30. Yoga, meditation
9,30. Breakfast
10,30. Excursion to the medieval town of Monemvasia and the natural fiord of Geraka Limeni
20.00. Dinner on the local tavernas
DAY 4
7,30 – 9,30. Yoga, meditation and chanting
9,30. Breakfast
10,30. Excursion to the island of Elafonissos and the submerged city of Pavlopetri
20.00. Dinner on the local tavernas
DAY 5
7,30 – 9,30. Yoga, meditation
9,30. Breakfast
10,30. Excursion to the Kastania Caves. On the way back we will stop at the fossil forest
20.00. Dinner to the tavernas in Agios Nikolao
DAY 6
7,00 – 8,00. Yoga, meditation and chanting
8,00. Breakfast
9,00. Free Day chill out on the beach
DAY 7
7,30 – 9,30. Yoga, meditation
9,30. Breakfast
10.30 Exursion to Plytra, visit the submerged city and diner on the way in Arcagelos
DAY 8
Greetings and departure
COST share occupancy: 650€
Super Early birds before 1th of April 560€
Early birds before 10 of May 600€
COST single private room: 800€
Super Early birds before 1th of April 740€
Early birds before 10 of May 750€
Price includes: the hotel with full continental breakfast, yoga lessons, and guided excursions.
Not included in the price are: your plane ticket, the car hire the main meals ( food in Greece is quite cheap, you can have a full meal for 10/12 €, very good quality), the ferry to Elafonissos, the taxi service anche ticket Entrancy to the Caves.
Booking: to book your place send a mail or give us a call
Info@holismos.com – 0039 3470478001
To reserve your place you’ll need to pay 250€ deposit via bank transfer. This deposit will be 80% refundable before the 31th of May 2021 non-returnable after that date but can use the money for another of our retreat or holiday. Balance will be paid on arrival in Greece.
www.yogaholiday.it