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Friday 6th May 2011
Down the Attica peninsular today to Cape Sounion noted as the site of the ruins of the ancient Greek temple of Poseidon, the god of the sea in classical mythology.
The temple was constructed in approx. 440 BC, over the ruins of a temple dating from the Archaic Period. The remains are perched on the headland at a height of 60 metres and is surrounded on three sides by the sea.
According to legend, Cape Sounion is the spot where Aegeus, king of Athens, leapt to his death off the cliff, thus giving his name to the Aegean Sea. The story goes that Aegeus, anxiously looking out from Sounion, despaired when he saw a black sail on his son
Theseus 's ship, returning from Crete. This led him to believe that his son had been killed in his contest with the dreaded Minotaur. When actually ( easy mistake to make ) he had forgotten to raise a white sail.
The ruins bear the deeply engraved name of English Romantic poet Lord Byron which possibly dates from his first visit to Greece on his 'Grand Tour' of Europe we follow in his footsteps !
He mentions Sounion in his poem Isles of Greece:
Place me on Sunium's marbled steep,
Where nothing, save the waves and I,
May hear our mutual murmurs sweep...
Here we effectively turn the corner for home heading north and west from here over the coming months and still more fun to be had along the way.
In the afternoon we had a pleasant walk along the coast to a secluded cove where we could catch some solars and the boys could explore the rock pools.
Saturday 7th May 2011
North up the peninsular to Marathon and the site of the famous battle which gave the long distance race its name.
The Battle took place in 490 BC, during the first Persian invasion of Greece. It was fought between the citizens of Athens and a Persian force and was the culmination of the first attempt by Persia, under King Darius I, to subjugate Greece.
The Athenians, joined by a small force from Plataea, marched to Marathon, and succeeded in blocking the two exits from the plain of Marathon. Stalemate ensued for five days, before the Athenians decided to attack the Persians. Despite
the numerical advantage of the Persians ( of at least 3:1 ) the hoplites - greek citizen-soldiers primarily armed as spearmen fighting in a phalanx formation - proved devastatingly effective against the more lightly armed Persian infantry, routing the wings before turning in on the centre of the Persian line.
The defeat at Marathon marked the end of the first Persian invasion of Greece, and the Persian force retreated to Asia. The Battle was a watershed in the Greco-Persian wars, showing the Greeks that the Persians could be beaten and is often seen as a pivotal moment in European history.
After visiting the sit of the battle we made our way to the campsite and being located next to the beach we spent the afternoon there relaxing.
Sunday 8th May 2011
On the road to Corinth along the route of the Athens Classic Marathon.
The Battle of Marathon is perhaps now more famous as the inspiration for the Marathon race. Although historically inaccurate, the legend of a Greek messenger, Pheidippides, running to Athens with news of the victory became the inspiration for this athletic event, introduced at the 1896 Athens Olympics.
Today the Athens
Classic Marathon is an annual marathon road race normally held in early November. It is one of the most difficult major marathon races: the course is uphill from the 10 km mark to the 31 km mark – the toughest uphill climb of any major marathon. The course begins in the town of Marathon, where it passes the tomb of the Athenian soldiers, and it traces a path near the coast through Nea Makri. It ends at the Athens Panathinaiko Stadium a site for athletics competitions in ancient times and the finishing point for both the 1896 and 2004 Olympic marathons. ( Fancy this one Lisa ? ).
We experience something of a false start as soon after setting off we are diverted by police from the main route due to a political protest march - Greece is in financial difficulties and many of the measures proposed by the government to get it back on track are very unpopular.
We decide to visit the small museum at Marathon and have lunch before setting off again later. We were glad we did as the original Ionic capital, part of the trophy that was erected after the battle is kept
here along with some incredible statuary recovered from a nearby Egyption sanctuary from the 2nd century A.D. during the Roman period.
Back on the road the journey was uneventful arriving at our chosen site overlooking the Gulf of Corinth late afternoon.
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