Delphi

Wednesday, May 8

Leaving Mystras, we spent the first part of the day diving north and then west along the Gulf of Corinth, which we crossed at Patras, bringing our week on the Peloponnese Peninsula to a close.  Once on the north side of the Gulf, we headed back east in order to reach Delphi, which looks down on the blue waters from the southern slopes of Mt. Parnassus. 

The UNESCO-listed archeological site and its adjacent museum are huge tourist draws, with busloads of visitors arriving all afternoon long.  Thought by the ancient Greeks to be the center of the world as well as the seat of the oracle who interpreted Apollo’s wishes, the mountain has been welcoming pilgrims for centuries.  The Oracle advised on matters of state, as well as those of everyday life, though her pronouncements were filtered through the priests in the Temple of Apollo, the centerpiece of the ancient complex, which was known as the Sanctuary of Apollo.  

The scale of the enormous temple is obvious from the several pillars that have been reassembled there.  The approach to the temple, now known as the Sacred Way, was lined with a series of treasuries, built to contain the tributes city states brought to honor Apollo.  The most spectacular of these is the Athenian Treasury, largely reconstructed in its prominent place.  One feature that has not required reconstruction is the Polygonal Wall, a retaining wall below the temple. The precise fit of stones of many shapes looks like a huge jigsaw puzzle; its construction, without mortar, has allowed it to remain standing in this very earthquake-prone area.

Traces of the more recent Roman Forum remain, as do other landmarks that span the eras that the sanctuary complex was active, from the 6^th century BC until the 4^th century AD when the Christian emperor shut down pagan sites.  We climbed up to the ancient theater and then to the stadium, were the Pythian Games (second only to the Olympics) were held every four years.  The views from above didn’t come easy, but they gave us a fine view of the site plan and the surrounding natural setting. 

After covering the archeological site from bottom to top and back to bottom, we visited the museum, where many of the treasures and artifacts unearthed at the site are now housed.  We also made a quick stop at the Temple of Athena, in a valley a short distance from the main site, before finding our hotel in the narrow streets of the small town of Delphi.  

We enjoyed tonight’s happy hour on our balcony, which has a panoramic view down the mountain and on to the waters of the Gulf, before walking to a nearby restaurant for dinner.  The fact that Google Maps predicted it would take 4 minutes to walk to the restaurant, but 23 minutes to drive there gives you some idea of how packed this tiny tourist town is!