Greece - Without the Silliness

Greece is quite amazing, but Tipsy is not the best at explaining its majesty. I admit, it would be easier for our readers if Tipsy had been able to make use of pictures, but alas, that is not to be. Instead, I will try and explain things in such a manner that will allow our friends and readers to look up the monuments in question, if they so desire.

The arch was Hadrian's arch, build during the reign of the Roman Emperor Hadrien, in approximately 131 AD. It originally separated the Ancient Greek section of the city from the Roman additions. The side facing the Greek city reads "this is Athens, the ancient city of Theseus," while the side facing the Roman expansion reads "this is the city of Hadrian, and not of Theseus." The picture we took was on the side facing the Roman part of the city. Hadrian is better known, perhaps, for the wall he put up in Britain, to block out the Scots.

Since Tipsy made this mistake several times, I feel I need to make this clear in a separate paragraph. The Romans conquered the Greeks in 146 BC, and put up many great structures of their own. Their influence can be found all over Greece - though in general, the locals look down upon their Roman roots, and do not count as an improvement their time of occupation. They tolerate the Romans, who were respectful of Greek culture, much more than the Turks.

The Gardens were the National Gardens. We also saw the Presidential Palace, which is nearby and sports a set of guards similar to those at the Parliament Building.

Miss Caitlin presented, very well, on the topic of the Festival of Dionysus and the plays of Euripides. She made her presentation in the Theater of Dionysus, where the Festival would actually take place. It is an amazing site, and Miss Caitlin counts herself privileged to present there. I cannot believe that that cow would not pay attention to such an important moment.

The other theater was the Roman Odeon, which was restored in the 1950's and has been used for concerts and plays occasionally since then.

Then, indeed, we were most unfairly shoved into a coatroom, and not allowed onto the Acropolis. Miss Caitlin enjoyed exploring it, but she said the museum was mostly closed. This is because the Greeks are building a new museum to house the Acropolis collection. In this new museum, they will leave room for the Elgin Marbles, in an attempt to show the British that they have facilities to display and maintain the important pieces from the Parthenon.

The "big slippery hill thing" was the Areopagus, where a council of elders would meet to make judgments in cases of murder and heresy. According to legend, Orestes was tried on this hill.

The Greek Agora was the center to Athenian life, though as Tipsy said, we did not explore it satisfactorily. The temple was the Hephestion, which also displayed the story of Theseus in its freezes.

We did indeed see that which is not likely to have been Socrates's Prison, but Tipsy left out an important stop. We went to the pnyx of Athens - this is where the Assemblies of Athens would take place. This open field was the birthplace of democracy. The only major feature of this field was the speaker's platform, where any male citizen could address his peers. It was a remarkable place, though it seems unexciting to the uneducated. The cemetery was Karamikos, and it was interesting to see that the figure of a pig and cow were found among the gifts to the dead there. Only as small part of the cemetery is excavated - a large portion of modern downtown Athens is built over it.

The museum was the National Archaeological Museum of Athens. Such pieces as the bronze of Zeus (or Poseidon, they are not really sure) are housed there. It was quite overwhelming, and Miss Caitlin made sure to see everything, paying the most attention to the most spectacular pieces.

The big temple was the Temple of Olympian Zeus, built by the Roman Emperor Hadrian. It is located near the arch. It is very big, but Miss Caitlin and I feel that it is spectacular because of its size, but it lacks the grace of the Greek buildings. The Roman Agora was indeed an enjoyable location, especially seeing all sides of the Tower of the Winds, which is located there. The Tower was all at once a weather vane, a water clock, and a sun dial. Its sides are decorated with personifications each of the winds.

Since Tipsy wrote, we have seen the temple to Apollo at Delphi, with all the other buildings that accompanied it. There was a stadium and a theater for the competitions held in Apollo's honor, as well as a gymnasium (located at a separate site) for the athlete's to train at in preparation for the games. Also located there were the treasuries of the various city states, which would house the city's gifts to Apollo, as well as display the glory of the city-state for the rest of the Greece to see. The tour guide, who is a friend of Miss Caitlin's Professors, was very good. She explained many things beyond what an average high school student should know, unlike the Acropolis tour guide we had. Miss Caitlin's camera lost power on site, so she does not have as many pictures as she would have liked.

Today, Miss Caitlin took us on a hike. We hiked up the mountainside behind the temple, getting a great view of the town below. Miss Caitlin also skinned her left knee on the trek down, but she is healing well. Tomorrow, we depart for ancient Corinth. On the way, we will stop at Hell. The group is looking forward to this.

We have not heard yet from Miss Adrien and Deirdre, though they should have left for China. Perhaps we will hear soon.

While in ancient Corinth, it is unlikely we will have internet access. We will write next from Santorini.