ROAD TO PHINEKA. 139 



pendent upon our guides and the natives, whose 

 ideas of hours are not the most correct ; nor will 

 a reference to the map wholly remedy the want, 

 owing to the mountainous nature of the country. 

 Having examined every spot deserving of atten- 

 tion in the neighbourhood of Myra, we early pre- 

 pared to start for Phineka by the same route 

 which Sir C. Fellows describes as so tedious 

 and difficult. Thus cautioned by him and also 

 by the Greek priest of the long and fatiguing 

 day's journey before us, we divided the baggage 

 in proportion to the strength of our animals, 

 whose powers of endurance were about to be tried 

 by a journey of eleven hours across a difficult 

 mountain pass upwards of 4000 feet high. The 

 weather, being cool and dry, favoured us, but in 

 the rainy season it is impossible to accomplish 

 the entire distance without relays of horses. 

 The easiest and shortest way would be for a 

 traveller to take a boat from Andraki to Phi- 

 neka, sending his horses across the mountain free 

 of baggage. There is neither village nor habi- 

 tation on the greater part of the route, and 

 nothing of interest to attract or repay a traveller 

 for undertaking the journey. In the summer, 

 too, there is no water: but at this season we 



