Monemvasia

Monemvasia (a name with the stress put on any of the three last vowels), known to the Franks as Malvazia, is a small historic town in the eastern Peloponnese, in the province of Epidaurus Limiras in the Prefecture of Laconia. It is mostly famous for its medieval fortress, on the homonymous Monemvasia Rock, which is literally a small island connected with a bridge to a formed neck of 400 meters length with the current coast and opposite the town on the Laconian coast. The rescued buildings and structures in the castle city include defensive structures of the outer castle and several small Byzantine churches.

Its name is a compound word, derived from the two Greek words Moni (moni=monastery) and emvasis (emvasis=getting in). Many of the streets are narrow and suitable only for pedestrians. The bay of Old Monemvasia is in the north. The nickname of Monemvasia is "Gibraltar of the East" because it is, in diminution, identical to the rock of Gibraltar.

It has been inhabited since the ancient times but was founded as Monemvasia in the 6th century AD., when it housed the inhabitants of ancient Sparta and became a significant fortress in the area.

Today the visitor will see a castle town with a unique atmosphere. A romantic setting with a breathtaking view of a place forgotten by time. It is totally worth the journey you will have to make in order to visit it.