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| Temple of Apollo at Delphi |
After breakfast at the hotel, we had to meet with a tour company. We had booked a bus ride and guided tour of Delphi. The tour bus picked us up in front of our hotel, then after a few more stops, we headed out of the city.
The bus ride out of the city was boring. For quite a while it was just highway driving through a city. Eventually it changed to suburbs then to small villages and farms, but there was always civilization within view. After an hour and a half, we stopped at a small shop for a bathroom break and to buy drinks or snacks. I think we got something, but it was all pre-packaged snacks.
Once we were back on the bus, the landscape quickly changed as we began driving into the hills and up a canyon. There was plenty of farming going on, but fewer houses and even fewer towns. The towns we did see were built following the contours of the land rather than flattening out large areas like we tend to do in the US.
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| Towns on the hillsides as we begin the climb |
The road got even narrower as we climbed up the side of the canyon. This made the bus take up the whole road any time we went around a tight corner, so we had to go very slow. At one point the bus had to back up several hundred feet when we met another bus coming down.
After two and a half hours we arrived at Delphi. There was not enough parking space for the bus, so the driver let us off at the entrance. We waited while everyone got off the bus, then our tour guide gathered us all up. I don’t remember her name, but she was in her 40s and had a Greek accent but was very understandable. She gave each of us a small radio receiver with in-ear speakers. We hung the lanyard around our necks and stuck the buds in our ears. We all looked soooo cool! This allowed our guide to talk in a normal voice rather than screaming at us. I didn’t get any group pictures, but it seems like we numbered in the 30s. The bus hadn’t been full.
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| Our Tour Guide |
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| A treasury building and me wearing the tour radio |
She gave us the history of the Temple to Apollo and the Oracle of Delphi. The area is known to have geothermal fissures, and one of the fissures surfaced here in the ruins. When someone had a question, they would make the pilgrimage to Delphi. Petitioners had to bring offerings with them to be sacrificed. After the sacrifice, they would present their question or problem to the Oracle who would then enter a small chamber within the temple. A fissure in the chamber floor released vapors which would intoxicate the Oracle, after which she would commune with the priests and issue her advice.
The Oracle's answers were famously vague, such as when she told King Croesus that if he attacked Persia, he would destroy a great empire. It turned out to be his own. Historians also think the oracle was genuinely intoxicated from the toxic gases she was breathing.
The whole complex was well uphill from the parking lot. The pathway up the hill was lined with small buildings including an Athenian Treasury. As we walked up the hill, our guide told us stories of some of the buildings and how the site evolved over time. I wish I could remember them because they were interesting and added a lot to the visit.
At the top were the foundations of the Temple of Apollo. Only the foundations and a few pillars remain. She told us that Roman Emperors looted many of the Statues from Delphi. Much of the marble was used to construct nearby towns and churches. We weren’t allowed onto the foundations so she couldn’t show us the passage leading down to the oracle's chamber.
Continuing up the hill from the temple we came to a large amphitheater. I wondered what sort of performances were held here, did they re-enact the Trojan war? Were they modern plays for the era? Each time I see one of these theatres I wonder about that.
Our guide told us that above the theater was a large stadium for sporting events. The stadium was currently closed because of the time of year. There used to be a gymnasium nearby for training athletes. The views from this high up were beautiful. We could see out across the valley to other small towns and ruins. It was very picturesque and I could see why you would want to perform epic plays in the theatre with that view as your backdrop.
Once she was done with her tour, our guide let us wander the ruins by ourselves. But she warned us to be at the bottom of the hill at a certain time. We would be going into the Delphi museum and if we missed her, we’d have to sit outside until she had finished the museum tour with the rest of the group.
Mike and I wandered around taking pictures and reading plaques, but mostly we just admired the views. It was a gorgeous day, a bit warm but not too bad, and the deep blue skies combined with the occasional fluffy clouds were magical.
We made it to the bottom in time to meet our guide. She led us over to the museum. I think you must pay to tour Delphi and the Museum, but it was included with our tour.
Inside the museum we got another somewhat abbreviated tour. She would take us to specific pieces and tell us about them, then on to the next room and another piece or two. At one point we were moving between rooms when a guard closed a door for some reason. We were in the group cut off and we could hear our guide wondering where the rest of the group was, but we couldn’t see her and of course we couldn’t talk back to her. Finally, the guard re-opened the door and we went in. She scolded us for wandering off like we were delinquents.
Looking at the pictures I took, I’m realizing that I have a thing about museums. My brain says, “there are better pictures of this stuff online, so why take a picture” and so I just don’t seem to take pictures in museums. But when I’m writing these blogs, I wish I had pictures to represent the hours I’ve spent. Maybe the next museum I visit I’ll try to take more pictures.
When we finished the museum, it was after 2:00. We had paid for a meal with our tour, so we got on the bus and drove on to and through the town of Delphi. We stopped at a small restaurant where all those that bought the meal got off the bus. I think the rest went into town to shop and if they wanted, buy something to eat.
My memory is vague about what we ate other than I really enjoyed it. But what was especially enjoyable was the married couple we shared our table with. They were from Nepal. The husband was a wealthy businessman in Kathmandu. They routinely go on trips like this each year. They shared some of their experiences in places like Africa and the Amazon. Mike could match him story for story when it came to business travel. They were fascinating to talk to.
After the meal, we re-boarded the bus and started back toward Athens. We hadn't gone far when the bus stopped just past the main Delphi complex. On the other side of the road from the Delphi complex was the Gymnasium of Delphi, a temple to Athena, and a treasury. Nothing was standing except a few pillars. There were blocks and pillar stones lined up in rows around the site. It looked like everything was there and just waiting to be reassembled. I decided not to walk down to it because my knee was already killing me. I didn’t want to embarrass myself if I couldn’t climb back up. There was also a great view back towards the town of Delphi.
We re-boarded the bus and continued the 2-hour journey home. We stopped at a highway service area halfway back. It had a gas station, a couple fast food options, a convenience store, and a few souvenir shops. There was a long line into the bathroom that I waited through, then got something to snack on for the remaining trip back to Athens.
Overall, I really enjoyed the bus, tour, and meal. Renting a car and doing it all ourselves would have taken much more energy, especially trying to park at the site and in towns. There would have been a lot more walking and probably taken much more time.
We took an hour to relax back at the hotel, then decided to go look for dinner. We should have gone back to that great spot in Psiri — instead, we asked the concierge to point us to a good authentic gyro shop. It wasn’t far from the hotel, and it wasn’t bad, but it was just so bland.
There was lamb meat layered on a rotating vertical spit that the chef sliced pieces off and stacked them onto a pita to make a sandwich. I was expecting well spiced meat and some tangy tzatziki sauce and fresh vegetables. What I got was bland meat, with a bland yogurt and very mushy tomatoes.
A bland gyro was only a slight let-down after a whole day of beautiful views and ancient wonders.
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