Glorious Greece

May Mei

Aegean Sea

Santorini

Library of Celsus

Sunset at Istanbul

Hagia Sophia

Dome of Hagia Sophia

Blue Mosque

Little Church

Little Venice

Parthenon

After travelling in Greece for two weeks, I have come to realize how true that statement is. I not only learned about its rich history, its cultures, the Greek mythology, which to me is fascinating but also the beauty of its islands. I don't remember how much we learned about Greece in our high school days (or in college) or if we studied it at all, but this is one country that I have always wanted to visit. Although most of the time I was sound asleep during the bus tour, but whatever I took in was enough to fascinate me - it was like listening to some fairy tales.

After arriving at Athens from Toronto in the early afternoon, we had a chance to browse around the neighborhood where our hotel Titania is located before we headed to a rooftop restaurant at the Athens Gate Hotel, from there we could see the magnificent Acropolis. We had a nice Greek dinner with unlimited local wine while we watched the sun set behind the Acropolis and stayed until it was illuminated with lights. What a nice introduction to Greece, and if that stunning sight is any indication of things to come, I knew I would have a good trip.

On the first day of our land tour, we visited the monasteries of Meteora near the small town called Kalambaka. They were built on top of some huge pinnacles of smooth rock with cheese-like holes in it some 300 m above, during the 14^th to 16^th centuries. How they managed to build those beautiful castle-like monasteries without the modern machinery is beyond me. Among the 6 surviving monasteries, one of them is where the James Bond movie “For your Eyes only” was filmed. The roads leading to the top of those rocks are not only very narrow, there are no guard rails. Although they have two lanes, but it is impossible to have two buses going side by side at the same time. In that case, one has to pull over to let the other pass first, imagine if the driver just miscalculate couple inches - a very scary thought!

Our next stop was Delphi, home of the renowned Oracle. We visited the museum there as well as the archaeology sites. Delphi was the religious center of classical Greece. The Treasury of Athenians somehow survived (although partially), and the Lesbians Wall (forgot why it was so named) is the only structure that is fully preserved, yet most of the other buildings including the Temple of Apollo were gone except for a few columns. Half way up the hill is the theatre, built during the 4^th century BC, still in pretty good shape, the acoustic sound supposed to be unbelievably good, but we didn’t have a chance to test it. Beyond that, on top of the hill is the stadium, I asked our guide why in the world did they build the stadium on top of the mountain, she said it was the only place where they could find a flat surface large enough for the stadium. Very interesting!

  Temple of Apollo

Olympia was our next destination. Since I am very interested in sports, especially the Olympics, this place was very exciting to me. Olympia gained its fame as a sanctuary of Zeus and Hera, but the site also contains other shrines, gymnasiums and the stadium of which the Olympic Games were founded. We were told the stories of how the games were originated and why it is held every four years (it has couple different versions) and we also learned how they sometimes cheated when they lit the Olympic torches by putting kerosene inside them. The Temples of Zeus and Hera all but a few columns were gone, however the track is still there. A few of us took a walk down there, some even ran a lap, just to feel and to imagine what it was like to be in that track.

Our overnight stay was in a seaport called Patras, one of the largest port in Greece. Our hotel, Porto Rio sits on the beach front of the Ionian Sea. We took a walk after dinner along the beach. That part of town is full of bars, restaurants, and dancing halls stand side by side and all lit up at night, it is like a different world, a far cry from the other two small towns that we spent the previous two nights at. It definitely has a very active nightlife.

The city of Mycenae was the main center of the Mycenaean world. It gave its name to a period and a civilization that evolved throughout the entire Greek world between the 16^th and 12^th century BC. We went inside one of the beehive tomb; it amazingly is still in perfect condition. It has a separate room for treasures although the treasures were all looted when the tomb was discovered. I was in awe of that structure, the fact that it is still in such good shape after all these years is something to be learned consider nowadays with all the modern technologies, a lot of the buildings couldn’t even be able to survive against a heavy storm. The famous Lion Gate, which was the main entrance to the Acropolis of Mycenae still stands although the Acropolis was pretty much destroyed, however, its site offered us a magnificent view to the Aegean Sea and the valley down below.

The ancient theater of Epidaurus, which was built in the late 4^th century BC has a seating capacity of 15,000 and is the best preserved of any edifice of this kind. Its acoustics are supposedly superb. We went up to the top row of the theatre, (110 steps to be exact) looking all the way down, thinking how magnificent this structure is, no wonder it still is being used nowadays.

Corinth Canal

On our way to the cruise ship, we stopped at the Corinth Canal, which links the Aegean and the Ionian Seas. The canal was completed in 1893, it was built by the same architect that built the Suez Canal, very impressive indeed.

After this last stop at the Corinth Canal, we headed back to Athens, to board the cruise ship Olympic Countess from the seaport Piraeus, thus began our 7 days cruise to the Greek Islands and Turkey.

What can I say about the Greek Islands - they are everything I expected them to be, each island is a little different than the others and each has its own charm. My favorite island however is Santorini, many regard it as the most spectacular of all Greek islands. It is a picture perfect island, just like what you see in the postcards. Almost all the houses there are painted in white and some with blue tops perched high on top of this volcanic island, its beauty is just breathtaking. At the southern end of this island, a prehistoric settlement was excavated in 1967 - some believe it to be the site of the “lost continent” of Atlantis. I only wish that we could stay in this island a little longer.

Crete is Greece’s largest island, but I guess we didn’t get to see the best part of it. It was the center of the Minoan culture; Europe’s first advanced civilization. Nowadays it has become one of the most visited island in Greece and we were told that it has a very busy and exciting nightlife.

The Knights of the Order of St. John was established in the island of Rhodes in 1309 AD. A wall was built surrounding the whole medieval castle or should I say the whole town. I have never been to a castle before, but the Palace of the Grand Masters in this medieval town was enough to impress me - it was very elegantly decorated, very airy and spacious. I was especially impressed with the floor in each room, which was made up with mosaic into different patterns. Although this old town has turned into the shoppers’ haven now, it still keeps its charm. On the other part of the island, the lovely little town of Lindos that sheltered under an immense acropolis and framed by a lovely bay and beaches is as beautiful as it can be. Just by itself, is well worth the trip.

Patmos is a very small island, but its importance lies in the fact that St. John wrote the Book of Revelations in a cave in this island. An 11^th century fortress-monastery sits on top of the island's commanding hill, which provides a magnificent view.

Kusadasi is a coastal town in Turkey. We had a chance to visit Ephesus, a town about half an hour away by coach from Kusadasi, built almost entirely of marble around 10 century BC and was once the most important city in the Western Minor (now Turkey). Because of its location, it was the world trade center of its time. I was intrigued with this town, not only because it is the best preserved among all the ruins that we have seen, but also because it was a city that we have studied in the Bible. There is the magnificent Library of Celsus, the Trajan Fountain, the baths and the imposing amphitheater with perfect acoustics, which sits 25,000 persons and is still in use to this date. We also saw the advertisement on one of the streets for the brothel, very cleverly carved out on the ground, and the latrines, which is very interesting, to say the least.

Alec Li at amphitheater

We arrived at Istanbul on the same day the big earthquake hit Turkey. I guess the people on the cruise ship didn’t want to alarm us, so we were only told that an earthquake with a 6.8 magnitude hit the town Izmit, which is about 100 km southeast of Istanbul (we only found out the magnitude of it a few days later). But since Istanbul was not affected, therefore, the itinerary of our tour of the city on the next day would go on as planned, however that evening’s dinner would changed from the basement restaurant of the Hilton hotel to an open-air garden restaurant. The dinner was good but the entertainment was fantastic especially when our dear classmate Chan Tai Sheen was invited out to do the belly dancing with the dancer. It was hilarious! I have to say though that he was a good sport and I am sure he enjoyed that experience as much as we enjoyed his belly dancing.

Istanbul is the only city in the world to have played capital to consecutive Christian and Islamic empires and is the only city in the world that is situated in two continents – Asia and Europe. On the European side sits the Old Town, that’s where all the historic sites are located, across the Golden Horn, an inlet of the Sea of Bosporous is the commercial district. Separated by the Bosporous is the residential area, which is on the Asian side. We visited the largest mosque in Istanbul, Suleymaniye Mosque, which is very imposing as well as the famous Blue Mosque, which was named for its luminous blue tiles of its interior. These two mosques are very spectacular; their whole interior walls are covered with beautiful tiles and since it has no furniture, only carpet to cover the whole floor that makes them looked very spacious, peaceful and serene. The Aya Sofya is a 6^th century Byzantine church converted to a mosque in 1453. For nearly a thousand years, it was the largest enclosed space in the world and has since been converted to a museum. The Topkapi Palace is a 15^th century palace with courtyards and gardens. It now is a museum rich with jewels such as the Topkapi Dagger and the 86 carat Spoon Maker’s diamond plus numerous other treasures. Although its kitchen boasts to have one of the largest collection of china, however the quality of them is something to be desired. One cannot be in Istanbul without going to its famed Grand Bazaar, we were told that it is the world’s largest covered market. This massive complex shelters over 4000 shops and is a wonderful, manic place to wander.

Grand Bazzar

Our last stop on the cruise before we headed back to Athens is the island of Myconos, the most expensive and heavily visited of all Greek islands. It is said to have the most sophisticated nightlife and is the undisputed gay capital of Greece. This town is full of chic boutiques and charming little houses with brightly painted balconies. Gina and Steve Cheng treated several of us to an outdoor restaurant at the Little Venice, while sipping the Mythos (Greek beer), and enjoying the delicious grilled seafood, we watched the sun set. It was heaven!

After cruising the islands for a week, we headed back to Athens, the Capitol of Greece for another three days. Its most famous highlight of course is the stunning Acropolis, which means the top of the city. It dates from the 5^th century BC and is situated on a rocky hill 156 m above sea level. The most remarkable monument there of course is the Parthenon (means “virgins’ chamber”), a temple for the goddess Athena, we learned how she competed against Poseidon and won, hence the city was named Athina, or Athens after her. To the north of the Parthenon stands the Erechtheion, here in symbolic reconciliation, Athena and Poseidon were both worshipped. The most famous part of this temple is the roof of its south porch, which is supported by 6 Caryatids (maidens), who take the place of columns.

The Temple of Poseidon (god of the seas) at Cape Sounion, which is about 70 km south of Athens is one of the most imposing spots in Greece. Built in the 5^th century BC, 60 m above the sea level at the edge of a cliff. The temple is Doric in style, it preserves 15 of its 34 columns, and the view from the temple takes in several of the Greek islands. Quite a few of us also took a dip in the Aegean Sea while we were there before having dinner at the beach front hotel and watched the magnificent sunset over the sea.

The ancient sites are only the most obvious of Athens’ attractions. There is the Parliament building, the National Garden, The Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers, the changing of the guards, the Lycavittos Hill, which is the highest point in Athens, not to mention their excellent National Archaeology Museum which houses the largest collection of ancient Greek arts.

During our city tour, we also visited the Olympic Stadium built in 1896 out of marble for the first modern Olympics. It is still in excellent shape, but the track is no longer in use because the lanes are too narrow for competition. The Greeks were quite upset (and still are) that they lost the bid to host the centennial Olympics to Atlanta, but getting the 2004 one should sort of make up for it.

And yes, Plaka, which is Athens oldest and most picturesque neighborhood with stone-paved, narrow streets, now it has become a tourist attraction with hundreds of shops and restaurants, whether you go there during the day or at night, it always is full of people, a very exciting place. Gina, Steve and I went there on our last night in Athens, we had a terrific seafood dinner, I don’t know if Gina had too much Ouzo, Steve had too much Santorini wine or I had too much Metaxa, we got lost on our way back to the hotel. That was quite an adventure, at times, it was even scary, we had to ask I don’t know how many times before we finally found our way back. (We could have taken the taxi, but that would take all the fun out of it.)

Greece is a big country; it has so much history and so many historical sites to see - every time you turn, there are ruins. It really is hard to visit all the places in a mere two weeks. However, in the course of these two weeks, I have learned a lot about this country, not just what’s in the Greek salad and what kind of meat they put in the Gyro. I used to argue with a friend who came from Greece about the importance of our countries in the world history, after this visit, I can say it’s a draw. Each country has its own place in the world, and in a way we are very much alike yet very different in a lot of other aspects.

I am glad I went on this trip, even though the weather was extremely hot - between 100° to 110° F everyday, the hottest in 20 years. Greece does not have some of the modern facilities like we do in the US (or Canada), but that’s the beauty of travelling - not just to see the sights, but to learn about its cultures, and to see how other people live. I appreciate my adopted country a little more each time after an oversea trip, and this time is no exception.

Speaking only for myself, I had a fantastic time!