Advertisement
Published: October 6th 2016
Another early start. Overnight we have reached the port of Katakalon, Greece, but our destination is Olympia.
On the bus with our local guide Greg. It's a 40-minute drive to Olympia, and he provides the historical background to what we are about to see. The ancient Olympic Games started in Olympia around the 8th century B.C. and ran more or less continuously every four years for 1200 years. The games were ultimately banned by the Christian Byzantine empire and the buildings destroyed. The entire site was lost to history, completely covered by silt and vegetation until excavations started in the late 19th century. And in 1896, the Olympic Games were reborn with a more modern aesthetic. Every since, the Olympic torch is ignited here on the ancient site of Olympia, then transported to Athens, and finally carried with great respect to wherever in the world the games are being held.
We enter ancient Olympia by crossing a bridge over the Kladeos River, which has shifted course several times over the centuries and which is largely responsible for burying the Olympic site. By the way, only athletes, trainers and priests (all male) were allowed to enter the site. Women were
only permitted as spectators in the stadium.
The first structure we see is the Gymnasium, where athletes trained and warmed up prior to events. It is only partially excavated and is still in ruins.
To the left is the Philippeion, an unusual round and very elegant building started by Phillip II and completed by his son, Alexander the Great. It has three columns crowned by a section of the lintel that was found intact.
A little further ahead on a raised platform stand the remains of the Temple of Zeus, the centrepiece of the entire complex. A huge rectangular building with 6 x 13 outside columns, reminiscent of the Parthenon, it housed one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, the 12.4 metres high Statue of Zeus, created by the most famous sculptor of the time, Pheidias. It was constructed of ivory and gold overlaying a wooden core. It took Pheidias 10 years to complete and required a special workshop on site. When the games were abolished in the 4th c. B.C., the statue was transported to Constantinople, and later completely destroyed in a fire. Only one of the original columns has been fully reconstructed.
The Phlippeion
Olympia, GreeceNearby is the older and smaller Temple of Hera, where three columns are standing. In front of it is the Altar of Hera. This is where the Olympic flame is created every four years with the help of a parabolic mirror and the sun. Further east is the Nymphaion, a semi-circular structure designed as the terminus of an aqueduct that solved Olympia's long-standing fresh-water problem.
Continuing east, we finally come to the pathway leading to the stadium. Alongside on our left once stood the Zanes, bronze statues of Zeus paid for by competitors caught cheating, a final reminder to the athletes to stay "clean." Then we enter the tunnel through which the athletes accessed the Olympic stadium. The roof of the tunnel is long gone, but the final archway has been put in place, so it is easy to imagine how competitors felt as they rushed out into the stadium to the roar of the crowd.
The stadium itself is simply a low flat area, with sloping grassy embankments on each side where spectators would sit and watch. At its zenith, the audience could number more than 40,000, an enormous gathering for that time in history. A marble
starting block for races spans the field in front of us. A rope would have been strung taut across in front of the competitors, to be whipped away at the last instant to ensure a fair start. Several of us crouch down and assume our marks, imagining what it was like some 2500 years ago.
We retrace our steps, back across the river, and then head uphill to the Olympic Archeological Museum. It holds many of the discoveries made on the ancient site. The first hall highlights two long series of exquisite statues, known as "pediments," that once decorated the two long sides of the Temple of Zeus. One shows the preparations and running of a chariot race and the other a battle between the Greeks and the Centaurs. The remaining fragments of these two grand epics have been carefully pieced back together on wire scaffolding. Very impressive.
Other noteworthy exhibits at the museum include the Nike of Olympia, which originally stood in one corner of the Temple of Zeus (Nike, of course, is the Greek god of victory and running shoes); and Hermes of Praxiteles, considered one of the masterpieces of Ancient Greece.
There is a
second museum in the same building, the Museum of the History of the Olympic Games of Antiquity. It painstakingly catalogues the history of the ancient games, including what events were contested year by year and which city states participated.
We then have some free time to stroll around modern town of Olympia. It's small and overwhelmingly focused on the tourist trade. Endless shops offering plastic versions of temples and statues, punctuated by bars and restaurants. I notice a bank machine and mange to coax some Euros out of it, as we are running short.
It is now 1:30. A short bus ride takes us to lunch. We enjoy an excellent buffet with copious amounts of home-made wine. The two outstanding dishes, in my estimation, are dolmas os soured cabbage served in a cream sauce, and moussaka with eggplant and spiced meat.
Back on the bus for a return to the ship. The homes and small towns slipping by our windows all subscribe to the same colour scheme: terracotta roofs with white or creamy yellow walls and occasionally a pastel blue highlight. Greg mentioned earlier that every home grows much of its own food and makes its own
olive oil and wine.
We're very happy to be back home after yet another physically demanding day. Our supper guests tonight are two Ozzie couples and a couple from Idaho, and we all get on very well. We later attend an evening show featuring pianist Naki Ataman, who, accompanied by bass and drums, performs an hour-long medley of tunes from several dozen different countries around the world. Canada, you'll be interested to know, is represented by "Music Box Dancer" and "You Needed Me."
Advertisement
Tot: 0.138s; Tpl: 0.012s; cc: 17; qc: 60; dbt: 0.0915s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb
