The Peleponnese is the heart and soul of Greece

When most people think of holidays in Greece they think of the Greek islands.

The idea of all these islands, each different from the next, the whitewashed houses and beautiful beaches is an enticement to anyone. But lost in the commotion over Mykonos, Santorini, Rhodes and Corfu is the fact that some of the most beautiful and interesting places in Greece are not on the islands, but on the mainland in places like the Peloponnese.

The Peloponnese, or Peleponisos, or Peloponessos or however you want to spell it, is what many people think of as the real Greece. Beautiful beaches, majestic mountains, unparalleled natural beauty and a history as long as civilization. Name the first Capital of modern Greece. Give up? It wasn't Athens or Thessaloniki. It was Nafplio.

At the time, the Peloponnesse was all there was of Greece, after it was liberated from the Turks in 1821. It nearly went back to the Turks when the heroes of the revolution began fighting amongst themselves. But such is life in Greece.For many, the Peloponessos is the true Greece - and to them the narrow isthmus of Corinth is all that separates them from a world of Albanians, Vlachs, Bulgarians and Macedonians, who are all Greeks to us.

But the Peloponnese can be said to be the heart and soul of Greece, and though it has been left off the tourist map that was especially painted for North Americans, it is as good a place to visit as any ten islands combined.

From Mycenae, to Sparta, to Mistra, to the guns of Navarone, the Peloponessos has seen its share of history. This is where Paris stole Helen from King Menelaous and where Agamemnon set forth with his ships to Troy - only to be murdered in his bathtub by his wife when he returned. It is a land of rugged mountains, green valleys, the ancient games of Olympia, and a coastline with some of the best beaches in Greece.

There are seven Prefectures of the Peloponnese; Corinthia, Lakonia, Argolis, Arcadia, Messinia, Elia, and Achaia.

Used with permission from Matt Barrett's Greece Travel Guide