August 28, 2024, after an extremely long travel day where we were delayed in Atlanta for 6 hours by airplane mechanical issues ultimately causing deboarding and reboarding a different plane, we landed in Athens, Greece, just in time to have some dinner and get these dragging bodies into bed. The adventures start tomorrow!
August 29, 2024: Athens, Greece, Day 1. Warning: super geekdom ahead! 😁
Some of my favorite studies at university a million years ago was Ancient Mythology and the books of Homer, The Iliad and The Odyssey. Today we were able to set out and visit some of the ancient archeological treasures associated with the time. Captions below each photo.
Corinth Canal, tidal waterway across the Isthmus of Corinth in Greece, joining the Gulf of Corinth in the northwest with the Saronic Gulf in the southeast. The isthmus was first crossed by boats in 600 BCE when Periander built a ship railway, small boats being carried on wheeled cradles running in grooves. This system may have been used until the 9th century. Work on the canal began in 1882, and it opened in 1893. The canal has brought great economic benefits to the ports of Posithonía at its northwest end and Isthmía at its southeast end. A highway crossing the canal connects Athens and the Peloponnese.
The ancient open Theatre of Epidaurus dates back to the 4th century BC and is located in the lush hills of the Peloponnese, just a 30-minute drive from the Saronic Gulf. As one of the many UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Greece, it is undeniably unique for a multitude of reasons. It is argued that the Theatre of Epidaurus is the grandest and best-preserved in all of Greece. This vast theatre, which seats up to 13,000 spectators, is situated within the archeological site of the Sanctuary of Asclepius, which is dedicated to the ancient Greek god of medicine.The area was a healing ground, a place for physical and spiritual tranquility that perfectly aligns with the landscape that surrounds Epidaurus. As you climb to the top tier of the theatre to test the unrivaled auditory system, you will look out to the horizon onto a view that will take your breath away.
NOTE: yes, I climbed all the way to the top for this photo. Al is below in the arena. He yelled up to me to ask if I could hear him and I could! The acoustics are stellar.
Closeup of the entrance. The scale of this is massive. One wonders how humans placed the lintel stone over the entrance.
Interior of the tomb. When found and excavated, the side room was found with a huge store of gold buried. This led to the belief that it was the burial tomb of the kings of the time.
The Lion Gate is the popular modern name for the main entrance of the Bronze Age citadel of Mycenae in Southern Greece. It was erected during the thirteenth century BC, around 1250 BC, in the northwestern side of the acropolis. In modern times, it was named after the relief sculpture of two lions or lionesses in a heraldic pose that stands above the entrance.
Closeup of the Lion Gate. Notice the heads are missing. It’s believed the heads were pilfered at some point during raids.
The citadel of Mycenae, with its strategic position for the control of the Argolid Plain, is the kingdom of the mythical Agamemnon and the most important and richest palatial centre of the Late Bronze Age in Greece. Its name was given to one of the greatest civilizations of Greek prehistory, the Mycenaean civilization, while the myths related to its history, its rulers and their family members (such as Klytaimnestra, Ifigeneia, Elektra, Orestes) have inspired poets, writers and artists over many centuries, from the ancient to the contemporary times. Significant stages in monumental architecture are still visible in the property, such as the massive defensive walls, the corbelled tholos tombs and the Lions Gate.
Gathered for dinner, then off to bed as another full day of touring at Delphi tomorrow.
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