Finding Greek Gods in Delphi

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Greek Gods should not be so hard to find, I mean afterall I'm in Athens, the ancient cultural center of the Roman Empire and the very place where ancient Greek religion, and the whole mythology surrounding Greek Gods was invented. I'm not being picky either, at least not really, the only quota I have for my own personal Greek God (which I will just go ahead and assume also applies to my friends at home currently awaiting Greek Gods) is tall, nice physique, good hair, good teeth, and well good hygiene is a plus (although it is Europe so I can't exactly expect it).

Anyways. Day 2 in Greece and the search continues. Today, I'd branch out and extend my search to Delphi. ln Greek mythology, Delphi was the site of the Delphic oracle, the most important oracle in the classical Greek world, and a major site for the worship of the god Apollo after he slew the Python, a deity who lived there and protected the navel of the Earth. This site remained sacred to the Greeks and their empire for many years and the ruins and artifacts that still stand on this site today are from as far back as 550-580 BC. Talk about ancient...

So our travels to Delphi, to see both the famous site and to continue my search for a gorgeous Greek God, began very, VERY early this morning. I'm talking 5am early, not my finest hour. But despite the early hour, I was awake and eager to see all that Delphi had to offer. After all this is the one place my European and other well traveled friends and classmates told me I had to see. We ate breakfast, caught the bus and the subway to Syntagma Square before the sun had even risen yet. I did enjoy seeing "real Athenians" since this was a time in the morning when lots of people were getting up and ready for work. It was a view of the city I hadn't seen yet, it was also a great time for Greek God scoping. Apparently all the cute guys in Athens ride motorcycles, and they do this very early in the morning. Who needs coffee when you've got a gorgeous Greek on a moped to wake you up....

Okay moving on. We caught our tour bus at the central square in Athens. It was a luxury bus, the kind with plush, cushy seats and really high up so you can really see everything going on on the streets below you. Perfect for Greek God scoping, unfortunatley big cushy seats at 8am are good for something else too...sleeping. So I spent most of my 3 hour bus ride from Athens to Delphi passed out, waking up occasionally for some scenic views not much unlike those in my home state of Missouri, farms and cows, it was easy to forget I was in Greece at all.

When we actually arrived in Delphi, however, it was hard to forget. Delphi is situated in these gorgeous red rock mountains. The scenery alone was worth the 3 hour drive, although actually seeing the architecture made it absolutley worthwile. Our tourguide talked our way up the mountain and through each and every ruin. It was hard to listen as I was so engaged in absorbing the scenery. The higher up the mountain we climbed the more and more interesting the ruins got. What started looking like a pile of old rocks, soon turned into a sypository, a theater and even the site of the oracle itself. Whats breathtaking is the fact that this site has been around since hundreds of years Before Christ, giving a whole new meaning to the word "old". The final treck up the hill was optional, but most definetley the most breathtaking of all. Seeing the site from above gave it a whole new perspective. This was the same effect that I got when I climbed Macchu Piccu 4 years ago. Its phenomenal piece by piece but absolutley spellbinding when you see the site from above. Its the best and only way to put all the pieces together and truly appreciate the site for all its worth. From above I could actually feel Delphi, feel the Ancient Greeks coming together to watch plays of Appolo slaying the serpent and taking the sacred path up to the oracle asking it to bring health and happiness to themselves and their families.

After taking in Delphi from above, we walked back down, a tretcherous walk, with slippery steps tedious hills. At the bottom we waited with our tour group, and petting the small cats and kittens that often roamed around at the bottom of the site. Something I couldn't imagine doing at any famous site in the States. Our next stop was the Delphi Museum, a small collection of artifacts taken and preserved from the site of Delphi. Like the site itself the artifacts were thousands of years old, many preserved in their original states. If you wanna see Greek Gods in Greece, this Delphi museum is the place to go. The place is crawling with them, literally. Of course, you'll have to deal with the fact that these Greek Gods are of the stone variety, and pretty ancient too, so they're not much for dinner conversation. However if its a rock hard body you're looking for, look no further. The art excavated from Delphi really is gorgeous. Stone carvings and statues of Hercules and Apollo (and a number of other non-God, but still quite beautiful Greek men) overwhelm the museum and put my history loving senses on overdrive. My only wish is that the tour guide would have shut up and just let me take in the history myself instead of explaining every single statue to me, saying nothing more insightful than the plaque next to the statue I could have read myself.

Finally, after what seemed like hours inside the museum, we headed back to the bus to the site we were supposed to eat lunch. This eating at 2 o clock things that the Greeks are so fond of, is not my favorite part of the country or the culture, but the food is generally so good that I've learned to deal with it. Lunch today was no exception. They served us bread, salad and a chicken and pasta meal that was pretty good as well (although I had trouble determining if it was really authentic Greek or not). After our meal we hopped back on the bus for another 3 hours of Greek God Searching/sleeping (once again mostly sleeping)

Well rested from our bus ride, we got dropped off back at Syntagma square around 6:30 pm. Not yet hungry, we head for home, although I must note, Syntagma Square after dark: Full of eligible Greek God. Of several varieties too...skinny ones, skater boys, punk rockers, Justin Beiber look alikes, muscle heads. Keep in mind though, these Gods travel in packs, although that could be a good thing considering I have to bring home like 10 of them. I'll definetley be learning some more Greek (I've yet to master the way to say "Please come home with me to meet my friend" in Greek without sounding like a total creeper) and heading back to Syntagma Square at night though, that I can promise you.

Our adventure was not yet complete though, as we headed back out to find some dinner around 8. After one attempt to find a Tavern that I'm still convinced never really existed, we decided to try our luck and rough it through the Peristeri streets one last time. The street is packed with boutiques, cafes, bakeries, grocery stores, and auto repair shops, but restaurants seems to be the one thing it's lacking. However after 9 blocks or so we finally found what we thought was a Greek, Mexican restaurant. What it was however, was the best Greek food I've ever had in my entire life. The challenge, however, was a menu entirely in Greek (including the whole completley indecipherable Greek Alphabet which no matter how hard I try I can't even begin to figure out) and a waiter with very little english. This is what travelling is all about though, doing as the locals do and eating where the locals eat. My family all ordered beefsteak with fries and I ordered what I thought was chicken on a stick. What I got however was 2 chicken pitas with charbroiled chicken, amazing Greek mystery sauce, lettuce, tomatoes and yes, hard to believe it but french fries. It was to die for, seriously. It also helped that as we left there were a couple of Greek Gods at the table outside eating dinner. We even stopped in the bakery for dessert. Perfect, absolutley perfect. I know I loved Istanbul, but I think I'm starting to love Greece, almost as much. Now if only I could lock down those Greek Gods....but as the Greeks say δεν βρέθηκαν αποτελέσματα. Παρακαλώ δοκιμάστε πάλι.- There's always tomorrow!

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[Andy Wilson]

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