Greece is Great!
Jan Migenda
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In 2016, I did a guided tour through Greece with a group of Irish students! From Athens to Sparta and more ... enjoy lots of history!
Blog Posts
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Delphi: The Temple of Apollon
Delphi not only had the famous oracle I wrote about in my last post, but also a sacred site with many temples. I will now introduce them to you: The Hall of the Athenians was built after the wars against the Persians to store the spoils of war inside. It was built like...
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Mycenae Museum
Mycenae Museum The museum of Mycene contained lots of gold, as it was a centre of power and wealth: Swords, cups, jewelry and the famous mask of Agamemnon (a replica? ). Interesting to see clay figurines with movable joints, like modern theatre puppets! These women...
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Tiryns
Still on the Peloponnes, we found a forgotten centre of Mycenean culture: Tiryns! A ring fortress on a hill, the thick walls show the former importance of the place: It was larger than the Acropolis of Athens! At the very top lies a sacred place with a small path...
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Mycenae - Home of Agamemnon and Nestor from Homer's "Iliad"
Mycene was an archaic centre of power and wealth flourishing from 1600 to 1100 BC. It was allegedly founded by the hero and demigod Perseus who killed the Medusa, and Agamemnon who waged war against Troy (see Homer's "Iliad") was king here. The thick walls and small...
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Nafplio
Continuing our trip through the Peloponnes, we also saw Nafplio (Navplion), a small town which was more important only in Byzantine times and in 1825 when the first Greek Parlament convened there. Near the coast, I could take one of my best photos ever from the entire...
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Olympia Museum
Besides the temples and the famous stadium, Olympia also has a museum which we saw (of course). These small horse figures made from clay, bronze or iron were votive gifts to make the preferred party win. Over all the years, many of them were accumulated. Here, another...
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Olympia 2
The areal of Olympia is actually quite big: The gymnasion, palestra and many temples cover much space. You see the remains of the columns ... what's missing is also the roof and the paint. The most famous temple in Olympia, the Temple of Zeus, hosted a statue of Zeus...
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Olympia
We left the sacred site of Delphi for Olympia, not without seeing something less sacred in town: These condoms with 3D imprints of original ancient erotic scenes found on ceramics. A great souvenir ... with something similar, I won the "best/worst souvenir contest" our...
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Delphi Museum 2: Marble and Music!
The second part of the museum contained lots of marble in the form of inscriptions and statues. Check it out! This inscription is written in Latin, but it's not classical Latin. It's from the Hellenistic Period or Late Antiquity as the dedicator's name L. Aimilius is...
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Delphi Museum 1
The Archeological Museum in Delphi offers some mixed findings from the site. Be curious and explore! Here, votive weapons and bronze infantry helmets in the Corinthian style are to be found in the section about warfare. Someone took this photo of me (with bad posture)...
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Delphi: Theatre and Stadium
Finally, Delphi was not only a religious, but also a cultural centre! Read and marvel! The theatre of Delphi was home to the first Pythic Games which consisted in singing along to a kithara. They were held every eight, later every four years. Think of it as an ancient...
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Olympia Museum 2: Highlights
This is the second part of the Archeological Museum of Olympia! A rare find enriches the collection: The helmet of Miltiades! (It is signed hence we know it is this one.) Miltiades was a famous well-educated general who played a crucial role in beating the Persians at...
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Delphi: The Centre of the World and the Oracle
Delphi was considered to be the centre of the world in Ancient Greece. How come? This oval stone (unfortunately a bit broken over time) is the Omphalos, the navel of the world (or at least a copy of it). According to legend, it fell down from the sky as a meteor after...
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Delphi: Introduction
Delphi - a famous place. It even has a programming language named after it (we learned to use it in school). After a short trip by bus, we arrived in the small village nearby, made our way past overpriced souvenir shops (40€ for a SD card for a camera!) and came to...
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Boeotia
Time to take a break from the cloister as the weather was really nice. The final view from the restaurant in the sunset showed us some hills, trees and the sea in the distance ... meanwhile, we had a Greek salad (of course)! Look at this lovely sunset over Mount...
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Curiosities at Hosios Loukas
This is the last post from the monastery, I promise! There were just some curiosities that I think you would need to see: Sometimes it's the little things that you normally overlook walking by: This platoon of ants carrying a large breadcrumb seems insignificant next...
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Osios Loukas Monastery - The Crypt
If you go downstairs, you will see the richly decorated crypt of the monastery: With its wide vault and floral as well as geometrical motives, it is surely an inspiring place, even if it may be a bit dark. This is the gravestone (taphos) of the holy man Loukas, though...
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Inside Osios Loukas Monastery
Entering the monastery through the main entrance, you see the main nave flooded with light: Up high, you see the figure of Christ surrounded by angels and Biblical scenes in the corners, all in golden mosaics. A smaller nave behind the main one is plain, with only...
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Osios Loukas Monastery
One of the major monasteries in Greece (also a UNESCO world heritage site) is the Osios Loukas monastery near Delphi in Boeotia. It was founded in the 10th century by the monk Lukas of Steiris, also called Thaumaturgos (Doer of Wonders), as he lived an ascetic life from...
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Gla - Mycenean Mountain Fort
Driving into Boeotia, a more rural region of Greece with maybe Thebes as a well-known city, we visited the mountain fort Gla. Passing modern buildings on our way, we had to get on top of the mountain to enter the fortified position. The thick and high walls were...
