Leonidion, "Dionysus's Garden

“What is most beloved to man, but his country”. Aristides (540-468 BC)

Leonidion a small south eastern coastal town of the Peloponnesus is situated between the cities of Argos and Sparta. In antiquity Leonidion was known as Prasiai, it was regarded as ‘Dionysus’s Garden’ due to the fertile lands. After a three hour drive and 210 kilometers along the narrow and winding Athens to Leonidion road, passing through many towns and villages along the way, you reach the prefect of Arcadia. Kynouria, one of four regions of Arcadia is regarded as an area of where the first inhabitants of the Peloponnesus were found. The Kynourians as the Arcadians were regarded as the ‘Aborigines’ of the Peloponnesus and Greece.

When you reach Kynouria you are welcomed by the fresh smell of cypress and pine trees on the mountainous terrains of Menalon and Parnon and the sky blue waters of the Argoliko Gulf, the doorway to the Aegean Sea. You actually feel as you have entered a world where Gods and heroes once walked and played. Reaching Leonidion, ‘Kaour Ekanete’ are the Tsakonian words on a sign that greet each visitor. Tsakonian, an Ancient Greek language, is a Doric dialect and was mainly spoken by the Ancient Greek Doric Tribe. On the streets you can still hear the Ancient Greek dialect spoken by the elders of today.

Looking towards the west, you can see the natural formed semi-circle of red-rock plateau of Mount Parnon surrounding the wonderful agricultural fields and many flourishing olive trees and green-houses growing various vegetables and mostly the famous Tsakonian aubergine/eggplant are cultivated. From the road, towards the east, you can see the pristine calm and clear waters of Leonidion beach; where many locals and tourists flock to relieve themselves from the excessive summer heat. During the winter period many come to fish.

The marina welcomes many sailing craft from around the world. Every second year the port of Leonidion hosts Navy Week. During this time there are swimming competitions, windsurfing competitions and other cultural events and a naval ship is on display for the public. If you are a thrill-seeker there are jet-skis available for hire or you can paraglide or even water –ski. If you are the less risqué type there are beach-volleyball, beach football and racket-ball.

Driving west you drive into the town where you encounter town squares or the ‘plateia’ as the locals call them. There are various busts of heroes like Captain Mihalis Georgakis and Emmanuel Dounias who fought valiantly against the Ottomans in 1821 to liberate Greece. There is a bust of Kostas Ouranis; a famous poet from Leonidion who wrote many poems about love and relationships. You encounter on the way many small shops, tavernas and other amenities like taxi and bus services. There is OTE, Greece’s major telephone company, where you can recharge your mobile credits, the National Bank of Greece, to cash in your travelers cheques or you could use the number of Automatic Teller Machines available to withdraw cash. There are some wonderful cake stores which sell the famous Tsakonia aubergine/eggplant sweet. Available are the local police, fire-brigade and health centre.

All the 17th and 18th century buildings are made from solid stone, are whitewashed with red terra-cotta roof tiles and all the window panes are painted in bright pastel colors. Each house has large stone fencing and lovely handcrafted wooden entrance doors. A fine example is the heritage listed Mansion of Tsikalioti. It was built around the 17th century and is now a museum.

The largest event on the Greek Orthodox Christian calendar is Easter or ‘Pasha’which normally takes place in the months of April or May. Easter in Leonidion is very special. There are five churches and on Good Friday each church participates in the Good Friday Processions. Each church decorates their ‘Epitaphio’ with beautiful spring flowers. On Easter Saturday each church has prepared many ‘aerostata’ or paper hot air balloons. They are lit up when the priests chant ‘Christ Has Risen’. Many hundreds of ‘aerostata’ fly high up into the clear night sky making it seem there are many ‘glow flies’ flying everywhere. At the same time a large 'Judas' is set alight creating a large bon-fire. In most cases many ‘aerostata’ have reached as far as Spetses. Easter Sunday the Municipality has free entertainment and free lunch. The aroma from all the succulent lambs roasted on the spit really makes your mouth water. To wash down all the wonderful marinated lamb you can drink the fine homemade wines.

After Easter or Pasha, the Dormition of the Virgin Mary held on the 15th of August is the next biggest day on every Greek Orthodox Christian’s calendar. Many faithful Christians make the pilgrimage to the Monastery Panagia Elona, which is about 17 kilometers west from Leonidion. On the way to the Panagia Elona Monastery, the Dafnios River runs parallel to the road and on the red rocks above the road; wild and varied vegetation grow. In a bend on the road the red rock of Elona appears with the Monastery rooted on a projection of rock and nestled in a hollow about 700 meters above sea level. The rock looks like it has been sliced off the mountain.

The Monastery was built around the 1300s and when Constantinople fell to the Ottomans in 1453 around the same period, the icon of the Virgin Mary disappeared too. Legend has it that shepherds discovered the icon of the Virgin Mary on a steep, inaccessible site. It was supposedly found hanging from a post with a candle burning in front of it. At that exact point was where the Monastery was built and sits today. The silver-plated icon of the Virgin Mary made by St. Luke the Evangelist was recently stolen from the Monastery by foreigners. After a man-hunt the icon was found and returned to the Monastery and the perpetrators caught and jailed. While many worshippers from Laconia, Argos and from the islands of Hydra and Spetses make the pilgrimage to the Panagia Elona Monastery every year.

Annually the Municipality of Leonidion in conjunction with the Agricultural Association of Leonidion holds a festival to commemorate the Tsakonia aubergine/ eggplant. The festival held at the ancient port of Plaka, four kilometers away from Leonidion, was once a port of importance for the Kynourians and later for the Spartans; now attracts many local tourists and renowned chefs from Greece which reward the person with the most interesting and imaginative recipe/dish using the aubergine/eggplant. The festival attracts famous Greek singers that perform well into the evening followed by endless Greek dancing to ‘burn off’ the excess calories from indulging in the various culinary delights offered on the night. The event ends with a spectacular firework display. This event is normally held on the 23rd of August. At Plaka you can find reasonably priced rooms at Troumpas Apartments, Kamaria, Agroktima and Dionisos.

Other places of interest are the wonderful St. Nicholas Monastery of Sintzas in Leonidion perched high up in the red rock. ‘Sintzas’ meaning in the Tsakonian or Ancient Greek Doric dialect ‘fig tree’. About 150 metres away from the Monastery is a cave where many shells, pieces of pottery dating back to the Neolithic period and pieces of human bone were found. Stalactite and stalagmites were also found in the cave. Legend has it that when Dionysus was abandoned he was found by Ino. She nurtured him in the cave of ‘Sintzas’. The ‘fig tree’ actually acted as deterrent and covered the entrance to the cave where Dionysus was hiding whilst growing up. In the monastery one can also find the remains of a fossilized serpent which terrorized the fisherman of that time.

Four kilometers east of Leonidion one can visit the ancient sea port. In antiquity the city flourished and was regarded a major trading port. Unfortunately it was invaded by the Athenians and Argots and later by the Spartans; the city and port were totally destroyed. Nearby one can see the remains of the city walls of Prasiai. The port is surrounded by wonderful green vegetation and one can relax at the many tavernas sampling the fresh fish or sipping on frappe at café-bars available whilst overlooking the soothing crystal blue sea while the sun sets.

When I return back to my ancestral home town, I find ‘Dionysus’s Garden’ a wonderful place to stay and relax. It is a place where you can breathe the crisp, fresh air and swim in the crystal clear waters where Gods and Goddesses once used to swim. The time at Leonidion allows me to boost my energy levels and allows me to find my creativity. I believe that once you have visited Leonidion you will always want to return back to this quiet town locked up in so much history and tradition.

For more information you can visit the Municipality’s Official Web-page:
http://www.leonidio.gr/en/
Phillip Bekyros’s Web-page: http://users.otenet.gr/~apelon/
Or Dina Zarokostas’s Web-page:
http://members.shaw.ca/leonidio/leonidio/leonidio.htm