Pausanias: The First Travel Blogger
Around 150 AD, a Greek writer from Asia Minor set out on a systematic journey through Greece. The result was the Periegesis Hellados — ten books, of which the entire eighth volume was dedicated to Arcadia.
Pausanias did not write for a general audience. He wrote for travellers who had time and wanted to understand what they were seeing. He described the route from city to city, what could be found along the way, what was worth stopping for. If he were alive today, he would have a podcast and 400,000 followers.
In Arcadia, he followed routes that correspond today to the sections of the Menalon Trail. His description of Gortyna — the ancient city on the banks of the Lousios — is so detailed that archaeologists used it as a guide during excavations.
Nine Arcadian Cities
Pausanias walked through and recorded nine Arcadian cities that today lie along or near the trail network:
Mantineia: The great city of eastern Arcadia, with its impressive elliptical agora. Pausanias was struck by its walls.
Tegea: Rival and partner of Sparta. Today one of the most significant archaeological parks in the Peloponnese.
Orchomenos: The city that gave its name to Mount Mainalo. Fragments of an ancient theatre still stand.
Gortyna: The city that impressed Pausanias most, built on the banks of the Lousios. This is where the famous circular temple of Asclepius once stood.
Alexander the Great at Gortyna (335 BC)
A few centuries before Pausanias, another visitor passed through Gortyna — though he did not come as a traveller.
In 335 BC, Alexander — before he became "Great" — was in the Peloponnese to assert his authority following the death of Philip. Arcadia, which had resisted, was on his list. The young king passed through Gortyna on his way south. There is no inscription, no monument. Only the landscape — unchanged since then.
Connected Trails
Menalon Trail Section 1: Vytina–Elati, following the route of Pausanias.
Pan Trail: Arcadian landscape, connecting ancient cities of Arcadia.
Sources
inarcadia.gr — Pausanias Route