Delphi, Greece

 The next stop after Athens was Delphi, Greece.

We didn't actually spend the night there, just the afternoon,

but I am so thankful that we spent time there at all.

It is the site of the infamous 

mythological Greek oracle

and the Pythian games, 

the precursor to the modern Olympic games.

Delphi is nicknamed "the navel of the earth"

because it was the center of the ancient world.

All the ancient Greeks made pilgrimages to Delphi 

 to consult the oracle or to attend the Pythian games

or to participate in the many other competitions and celebrations 

that occurred in Delphi during the times.

We really enjoyed our visit to Delphi.

There, we visited an ancient Greek museum and the ruins within the city.

Beautiful Delphi

Antinous, Hadrian's lover
in classical contrapposto stance

Chariot Racer

Classical Greek sculptures 

 

Jonathan playing with the Whisperer
{The Whisper is the big box hanging from our necks and the earphone in our ears --
the guide speaks into the microphone and the whole group can hear.
Nothing screams tourist more, right? But it helped SO much}

We got it working!!
Jonathan, not our tour guide, telling me about the vast beauty of Delphi.
I think we were having a little too much fun with the simple pleasure of
having the microphone in our possession.
 I wonder who else heard us in their earphone!?!

Do these really need captions? 

 Alex and Jonathan took to the stage like fish in water.

Clearly, they are naturals!

In the 4th c Delphi theater

Teachers being rebels --
you see that chain in front of the seats?
Oh yeah, we climbed over it!

At the top of the theater in Delphi

Al at the top of the theater at Delphi

Heading to the stadium!!

Alex showing off his guns in front of the stadium.
This thing could seat 6,500 spectators.
It was mostly used for field events like shot put and discus.

A dad on our trip, George, getting ready to take off in a sprint
to the other end of the stadium!

Jonathan and Alex in front of the stadium

Al and me in front of the 5th c stadium

Sitting in an ancient aqueduct in Delphi

Ionic Column

Penny, our FABULOUS tour guide.
See, she is the rightful possessor of the Whisper microphone ;)

Ruins of the Temple of Apollo
This is where the oracle did her business

This picture is not from Delphi but I don't know what city we were in.
After leaving Delphi, we had to travel 6 hours to catch a night ferry to Italy.
We were originally supposed to catch the ferry in Patras,
Greece but the harbor shut down
in protest to the government.
So, we had to travel a long ways north.
Meanwhile, we enjoyed the scenic drive through the countryside of Greece.
It was truly breathtaking.
These pictures were taken during a rest stop in some city in Greece.