Only a few hours left in Greece...it's a weird feeling. I'm quite bummed to have to leave, but I am hopeful that I will return to Europe--and to Greece--in the near future.
After taking the overnight ferry from Crete back to Piraeus, we got picked up by Knut in our rental gray Peugeot 207 around 6 am at the port. It was still quite dark out, and Erinn and I both had pretty restless nights so we were a bit tired. I only got maybe three hours of sleep.
We headed back through town to the guesthouse to drop off our luggage and grab Erinn's camera battery. The sky was only starting to get light, so it was nice to see Athens start to come to life as we headed on our three hour drive northwest to Delphi.
Our drive was quite pleasant, although I slept a bit on the way. I couldn't keep my eyes open...I woke up as pulled around the last few winding roads around Mt. Parnassos, the cliffside on which Delphi is located. The entire area is absolutely gorgeous, and it's a marvelous wonder to behold when you consider how they had to lug these huge stones up the cliffside to build the massive buildings.
We bought our tickets for 5 Euros--a combo ticket that also would let us into the archaeological museum (gotta love student prices!). The climb, according to our trusty Rick Steves's guidebook, would entail an ascent of 700 feet and would take about 90 minutes. Boy, he was totally right as we spent exactly 90 minutes, puffing and sweating as we hiked up the side of the mountain.
The breeze at the top felt great, though, as we overlooked the ruins of this ancient holy site. Delphi served as the home to the ancient oracle, with whom people from far and wide would travel to Delphi to consult on any number of issues. The major wonder at Delphi was the humongous Sanctuary of Apollo with its colossal columns looming high overhead.
As we traced our way up the rocky path, the views of the surrounding mountains and valleys as well as the Corinthian Gulf further in the distance were quite stunning. You could feel an almost spiritual aura to the site, which is little surprise since the Greeks decided over 2,000 years ago that the side of this mountain would serve such an important purpose.
Along the pathway up to the theater, the stadium, and the Sanctuary of Apollo, a small, cone-shaped stone sat on the corner next to the path. According to legend, this was what the Greeks considered to be "the center of the world." So, there you have it, I've been to the center of the world. : )
We made our way all the way to the top, past the theater and even further up to the stadium, where the Pythian Games were held every four years, just like the Olympic Games. These were just two of four Panhellenic Games that rotated every four years, and the ones in Delphi were in honor of the god Apollo. Like the theater, the stadium itself is still well-preserved. Quite impressive.
From there, we clambered down the steep drop to the museum to see some of the major pieces excavated from the site of Delphi itself. I was not too fond of the massive tourist groups that took up all the space in the museum, so I didn't bother to look closely at much. Some of the major pieces though, included the Sphinx of Naxos, some metopes of Hercules, and a model of ancient Delphi.
By far, my absolute favorite, though, was the grand finale of the museum--the bronze statue of a charioteer.
I had studied this since my sophomore year of high school, so again, I was naturally very excited to see it. It's nuts to think that you've learned about something as ancient as the charioteer in your art history books and lecture slides, etc., but to actually stand in front of it and see the fine detail...that is just something else.
By the time we left the museum, it was around 2 pm, and we were planning to head back by 3 pm so we could make it in time for Kristoffer's lecture at 7 pm. We were hungry though and decided to head into the town of Delphi for a quick lunch. We found a taverna that looked good and went for it. What a great decision!
Our table directly overlooked the entire valley, including views of the Corinthian Gulf. It was absolutely beautiful. The food was delicious too as I had a chef's salad (my favorite salad in Greece!), while Knut and Erinn each had the delicious lamb special. I had some of Erinn's, and it tasted amazing.
Once we finished, we headed back towards Athens, and again, I fell asleep on the ride...only to wake up once we were quite close to home. Knut dropped us off at the guesthouse before going to return the car. I had a blast traveling with him. After taking a shower and trying to pack though, I had to run as Kristoffer's lecture was starting soon.
I arrived at the Norwegian Institute, same place we had our final presentations, and was pleasantly surprised to see such a great turnout. I know Kristoffer was happy as well. After a fascinating lecture, during which I am thankful I did not fall asleep, we went out for some drinks. Taso and Knut also attended the lecture, so they joined us for drinks as well as Doros, who was kind enough to come since it was my last night in Athens. I really appreciated that.
We went to a small cafe near our guesthouse and had a few beers. Turns out, this place has one of Athens' largest selections of draft beer imported from all over Europe. We had a few beers and food, all while watching Olympiakos beat their opponent tonight 1-0. The player whose jersey I wore to last Saturday's game (number 35) was the only one who scored a goal. Niiice.
Around midnight, I returned to the guesthouse one last time, and now I'm writing my last blog entry in Europe. I leave for Munich in a few hours and, then after a three and a half hour layover there, I fly on to Toronto before returning to Seattle at 8 pm Pacific time. It's going to be a long trip...about 24 hours of traveling in all.
Speaking of which, I still need to finish packing and then head out to catch the X95 bus to the airport. I'm running on very little sleep so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'll stay awake long enough to get on the actual flight.
Greece has been an absolutely fantastic experience, and I feel extremely fortunate having had the opportunity to come study in Athens as well as travel around this beautiful country. The country and people here have treated me very well, and I am also glad to have expanded my network to now include a number of new Greek friends as well as a few Norwegians too. I look forward to more international opportunities in my future, and I can't wait to hit the road again. Well, after this next trip to the airport, that is...
Until next time,
Sam
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