Mani by bus

Landscapes, seascapes and architecture of the Inner Mani seen from a bus. The Mani Peninsula (Μάνη in Greek), also long known as Maina or Maïna, is the central peninsula of the three which extend southwards from the Peloponnese in southern Greece. To the east is the Laconian Gulf, to the west the Messenian Gulf. The peninsula forms a continuation of the Taygetos mountain range, the western spine of the Peloponnese. The terrain is mountainous and inaccessible. The name "Mani" is thought to have originally meant dry or treeless. Until recent years many Mani villages could be reached only by sea. Today a narrow and winding road extends down the west coast from Kalamata to Areopoli, then south to Akrotainaro (the pointy cape which is the most southward soil of continental Greece and continental Europe) before it turns north until Gytheio. Neolithic remains have been found in many caves along the Mani coasts. Homer refers to a number of towns in the Mani region, and some artifacts from the Mycenaean period have been found. The area was occupied by the Dorians in about 1200 BC and became a dependency of Sparta.

Diros cave 1	Diros cave 2	Gytheio	Kythira	Mani	Olympia
Myrtos beach 1	Myrtos beach 2