| Submitted by: Gopal VenkatUnited States |
| Submission Date: 10 February 2005 |
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One can also obtain a good view of the Agora (Ancient Market) from the Acropolis as well. I spent around 2 hours at the Acropolis before departing around 6:30 PM, which happened to be the time the Acropolis closes. The wind at the top of the Acropolis (similar to the Temple of Poseidon at Sounion) can be fierce. Avoid wearing a hat unless you don't mind losing it.
I tried to get a bus back to Syndagma Square from the Acropolis but gave up after 15 minutes and started walking. Within 15 minutes, I was near the Plaka and another 10-minute walk bought me to Syndagma Square. I had a club Sandwich and a Giant Coke for dinner that cost me 1500 Drs (US$ 5). Always eat away from tourist areas especially if you are on a budget tour. After dinner, I tried taking a bus back to the hotel and finally wound up walking back to the hotel (20 Minutes). I guess bus services on Sundays are infrequent.
I wrote my diary before turning in. We do an Athens city visit (as par of my tour) tomorrow morning before leaving Athens for Kalambaka around noon.
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I woke up early and had breakfast and was ready by 8 AM. We departed from the hotel around 8:30 AM. Since this was the first full day of the tour, the bus carried its full complement of passengers (around 40). We stopped first at the Olympic Stadium for a Photo shoot before continuing to the Presidential Palace. This Olympic stadium was used when Greece hosted the Olympics earlier. A new stadium is being built for the 2004 Olympics. At the Presidential palace we stopped to view the presidential guard. Though their dress is quite unique this is a tame affair when compared to the changing of guards at Buckingham Palace, London.
We headed to the Acropolis from the Presidential Palace. Along the way the local guide (Francesca again) pointed out the various places of interest. The most interesting for me was the house occupied by Heinrich Schliemann (the excavator of Troy) which currently houses the Numismatic Museum. On reaching the Acropolis, Francesca gave a 30-minute lecture on the ruins before giving us an hour to explore the ruins on our own. It was a good thing I visited the ruins on my own, yesterday afternoon.
Today the crowd was maddening at the Acropolis. Just about every tour operator had bought their tour group here and it was a shouting match with each guide using their vocal prowess to explain the ruins to their group. I did manage to get some decent photos of places I had missed out last evening. I will however have to make a separate visit to see the Theatre of Dionysus.
We departed from the Acropolis around Noon and started the 6-hour ride to Kalambaka on the National Highway. After an hour or so we stopped for Lunch where I had a sweet pie and a soda for Lunch. I met some members of the group. Since we had not had a formal introductory meeting, we had to go about introducing ourselves. We set off after Lunch and took a second break after 1-˝ hours. A Haagen-Dazs Ice cream bar set me back 1000 Drs (US$ 3). I just realized that I have spent more money in the last 4 days, than I did during my 15-day tour of Turkey. I got to watch my spending habits.
We stopped at a place called Thermopylae to view a monument containing a carving of king Leonides. We continued further on and stopped at a place called Artesiano to view Stork nests built on top of a clock tower. The storks have been coming to this place for a long time and build their nests on the roofs of houses and other buildings. A nice example where nature co-exists with development and tourism. We reached Kalambaka a little after 6 PM. We were to stay at the Edelweiss Hotel (Phone: 23966) in Kalambaka. After checking in, I took a quick shower to wash the sand and dust. It does get quite dusty here in Greece.
We headed to a restaurant adjoining the hotel for dinner. Being a vegetarian, I had a pretty decent dinner. Cosmos includes Breakfast and Dinner on all Full tour days as part of the tour. After dinner I chatted with a British Couple who seemed to be as interested in Archaeology and history as I was. The British Museum apparently has an excellent collection of ancient Greek Artifacts as well. I will have to visit the British Museum, after I get back to London at the end of this tour.
I headed to a local Internet café (500 Drs. for 30 minutes) and tried to check my mail. It turned out to be a waste of money as the connection was too slow. For a tourist town like this, a lot of young locals can be found in the streets even after 10 PM. This could be because the Schools are closed in Greece. I have to catch up on some local activity one of these evenings. Maybe find myself a Grecian Beauty! (Man can dream, can't he?)
I got back to the hotel and wrote my diary before turning in. We visit the Monasteries at Meteora tomorrow.
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We departed for Meteora around 9 AM. Our first stop was a photo shoot of the Monastery of Saint Nicholas (Agia Nikoloau). From this spot, one also gets an excellent view of the town of Kastraki. There are some huge rocks here and we spotted some climbers on one of these. From here we proceeded to Barlaam (or Varlaam) from one can get a good picture of the Great Meteoron (The Great Meteoron is closed on Tuesdays). Each of the other Monasteries / Nunneries are closed on a day of the week. Depending on the day you visit, you will be taken to the monastery / nunnery that is open. We climbed the 150 + steps to visit the Monastery at Barlaam. The church at the Monastery contains a lot of frescoes some of which are quite gruesome. No Photos of any kind are permitted inside the church, but photography is allowed elsewhere in the Monastery.
These Monasteries were built on these precipitous cliffs so that the monks and nuns could escape persecution during the various invasions. The earliest of these monasteries was built around the 12th century A.D. One can get a great view of nearby Agia Rousianou from Barlaam. After spending an hour at Barlaam, we set of for Agia Stefanou (St. Stephen). Restoration work on a large scale was being carried out here. There are frescoes in the church here as well and no photography is permitted inside the church. This is a Nunnery and the nuns here have a small garden and some were tending to it during our visit.
The dress code during the visits to these monasteries and nunneries is quite simple. There are no shorts allowed and ladies must cover their shoulders. The Monasteries do provide long skirts for women. (No, the men are not allowed inside by wearing these skirts over their shorts) Young girls / boys (up to 7 years of age) are usually exempted from this rule.
Enroute to St. Stephen we had a photo stop at the Agia Trias (Holy Trinity). The only access to this monastery is through a steep climb from the town of Kalambaka. There is a cable car available for transporting supplies to the monastery and to transport the elderly head of the monastery. This is the monastery where part of the James Bond film 'For your Eyes Only' was filmed. All of these monasteries belong to the Greek Orthodox Church.
After spending around 45 minutes at St. Stephen, we drove back to Kalambaka for Lunch. Since I could not get anything decent to eat (being a Vegetarian) I settled for an Ice cream and a Soda. I exchanged some money in Kalambaka before we set off for Delphi. I slept during most of the ride to Delphi. The Uphill drive to reach Delphi is quite spectacular. Delphi is a small tourist town with 1-˝ streets. After dinner at a local restaurant we returned to the hotel around 9:30 PM. I spent some time writing my diary before turning in.
We visit the ruins at Delphi tomorrow.
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We departed from the Hotel around 8 AM and reached the ruins in less than 10 minutes. A local guide was arranged by Cosmos to take us around the ruins at Delphi. Since my guidebook had suggested a minimum of 3 hours to explore the ruins and since I had to get back to the bus by 10:45 AM, I skipped the lecture by the guide and set out to explore the ruins on my own. We were the first group at the ruins and by breaking away from my group, I almost had the ruins to myself. The most important sites within the ruins are the Temple of Apollo, the theatre and the Stadium. The Stadium here is not as spectacular as the one in Aphrodisias, Turkey. The theatre and the Stadium are quite well preserved. The Temple of Apollo had 6 or 7 of the original columns that are still standing. In size, it is not as grand a structure as the Parthenon.
The setting is what makes Delphi unique. The entire place is set in a mountainside and if you are at the ruins as early as we were, one can hear nature's sounds quite clearly. The Stadium area is particularly serene. This could probably be because it requires a steep climb to reach the stadium people may skip it. As I heading down to the main area after my visit the stadium, I came across the members of my group who had attended the 'lecture' by the guide. I am glad I did what I did, since the others would not have enough time to see the entire site properly. From the ruins I headed to the Museum.
The Museum has a separate entrance fee of 1200 Drs that is not included in the Cosmos Optional tour cost. The Museum is quite small (about 12 halls) containing artifacts from the ruins at Delphi. Most of these artifacts date from the 6th to the 1st century B.C. It takes an hour to view the artifacts in the Museum properly.
The ruins of the Temple of Athena, Delphi
I think I wasted my money by paying Cosmos 4000 Drs. for the Optional tour to Delphi. The entrance fee to the ruins is 1200 Drs. and the ruin is a 10-minute walk from the city center where we were staying. You will save 2800 Drs., especially if you are not the type that spends time listening to the lectures given by the local guides. Following the visit to Delphi we were also taken to the Tholos and the Temple of Athena both of which are located a mile down the road from the main ruins. Both the Tholos and the Temple of Athena are impressive structures.
We set off from Delphi around 11:30 AM and headed towards Olympia. We stopped for lunch at a restaurant in Clovino beach (from where one can get great views of the gulf of Corinth) before continuing on to Antirrio. We boarded a ferry at Antirrio to cross the Gulf of Corinth and reached Patras on the Peloponnese (Island of Pelops).
From the talk Sally gives during our drives, it appears that the Turks committed quite a few atrocities on the Greeks during their occupation. Attila (my Guide in Turkey) blamed the Greeks for everything. Though I lean more towards sally's version of the story, I guess I will have to read an account of the long-standing Turkish / Greek conflict by a neutral entity. Their mutual dislike is quite bad. I will readily admit that I have made broad generalizations based on my travels in both the countries during the past 4 weeks.
We visited a Greek Orthodox Church in Patras before heading towards Olympia. We reached Olympia around 5 PM. This is a small town like Delphi that is geared towards tourists. |
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