The southern part of mainland Greece, known as Morea, consists of the large Peloponnese Peninsula, now divided from the mainland by the Corinth Canal. The peninsula plays host to virtually every tourist that comes to Greece, because most of the country’s important and imposing ancient sites are found on its landmass, dominated by two mountain ranges, the Taygetos and Parnon. The peninsula is a playground too, for the Greeks themselves. Summer sees thousands of Athenians heading south at weekends to enjoy the seaside resorts and beaches of the Peninsula. Besides ancient ruins, the fertile coastal strip of the Peloponnese also serves as Greece’s market garden and centre for wine production. Many tourists enter Greece by sea from Italy and other Mediterranean ports through the Peloponnese port of Patras, the third largest town in Greece. The Olympic torch is ritually lit at Olympia by a high priestess, just as it was in ancient times, and carried across the continents of the world to the host country to mark the start of the Games.
Capital: Patra
Population: 500.000
Large cities: Patra, Kalamata, Tripoli, Korinthos, Pyrgos, Argos
