Kalimera, my friends,
(good morning)
SANCTUARY OF ATHENA AT DELPHI
Because of the areas long association with Gaiya, Athena was worshipped at Delphi along with Apollo.
I had an epiphany while reading a t-shirt in Plakka and saw
the word, kalimera, and it’s meaning. We had been walking through Plakka and
the vendors would say, kalimera, but I would hear calamari, which means
octopus. I would shake my head and think I needed my ears cleaned. So, now I
know one more word in Greek.
Early in the morning we headed from Athens, first
destination on our road trip was Delphi, second the monastery in Meteora,
Greece. Final stop for the day would be Igoumenitsa.
Delphi, hairpin turns and unimaginable scenery. I am not a fan of hairpin turns and drivers
playing bumper cars behind you. This picturesque location is set high in the
mountains. Ohei (no), these are the mountains we in the northwest know as the
Rockies or even the Cascades, but they are incredibly steep and treacherous. It
is hard to believe that people in the ancient times were able to construct
temples and build a life in this rugged terrain. In Athens which was comparably
flat, I often wondered how they constructed the temples, how the materials for
the these were carted from place to place.
TEMPLE OF APOLLO
This structure was the center piece of the entire sanctuary. It was dedicated to the god who ruled the hillside and it housed the oracle who spoke in his name. This was the third and largest temple built on this site. It was funded by Phillip of Macedon and dedicated in the time of Alexander the Great.
Delphi, besides Olympia, Nemea and Corinth held athletic
games. At the top of the mountain there was a stadium, theater seating as well
as judges seating.
Everywhere we have been this trip, excavation seems to be an
ongoing process with an archeologist/anthropologist watching. At Olympia they
removed dirt in huge bucketfulls and in Delphi they had small brushes and
seemed to be sorting through what hadn’t been removed.
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