GREECE

We spent 9 wonderful days in Greece with the students. We visited so many places and covered a lot of territory. Thessaloniki to Athens is an 8-hour drive. Fortunately, we broke up the travel with overnight stops in Kalambaka and Delphi.

June 4, 2023 Sunday  Up early, bus to Tel Aviv, flew to Thessaloniki. Had lunch at a fun outdoor restaurant, very Greek, dancing and music. Went out walking on the waterfront.  Thessalonians!   Beautiful Aristotle Plaza.

June 5, 2023  Monday  We had our Thessaloniki tour on the bus with Gabriela the guide.  She’s from Germany but has lived in Greece for 35 years.  Visited the Hagios Demetrios Church, the Hagia Sophia, arch and Rotunda of Galerius, and city fortress on the hill above.  After lunch at the same place (seafood today, with sardines and calamari!), we went to the Museum of Byzantine Culture, which was excellent.  Had gelato with Eric Huntsman and Mauro Properzi, then enjoyed boat cruise on the harbor on a pseudo-pirate ship.  Fun, but loud.  

Beautiful market displays

City Fortress Wall

Rotunda of Galerius

Holy Church of St. Demetrius

Thessaloniki shoreline

June 6, 2023 Tuesday   First stop was the Baptistry of Lydia, a beautiful Greek orthodox church and a stream running nearby where traditionally Lydia was baptized the first woman Christian in Europe. So green and lush, grass, flowers, fruit trees! Mauro invited Deanne to give part of the devotional there, and she talked about faithful women, did a very nice job.  Then on to the ancient site of Philippi, which is a large Roman site, with temples, forum, mosaics, a traditional prison of Paul, etc.  Wildflowers were still out and we had an excellent experience there, thanks to Gabriela. We drove to the beautiful port town of Kavala (Neapolis anciently), where Paul probably landed to go to Philippi.  Jim walked up to the fortress with a lot of the students and took in the views, also saw the well-preserved Kameres aqueduct.  

Holy Baptistery of St. Lydia of Philippi

Ancient theater of Philippi with Rachel Buckner

June 7, 2023 Wednesday     More travel in the footsteps of Paul.  First a stop at the Altar to Paul at Berea where David Seely and Mauro Properzi gave devotionals.  Then to the royal tomb at Vergina, the first capital of the kingdom of Macedonia, relatively recently discovered and full of treasures, unbelievable gold, tools, weapons, tombstones, etc.  Drove on to Kalambaka, with a stop at the overlook above Meteora to get psyched! Greek dancing in the ballroom of the hotel in the evening.

David Seely

Mauro Properzi

Greek dancing!

June 8, 2023 Thursday  Had a wonderful tour of two monasteries at Meteora, with these 16^th-century buildings suspended in the air!    

A long way down!

Drove to our hotel at the Amalia Hotel in Delphi.

June 9, 2023  Friday   A full morning exploring the ruins of Delphi. We also saw the museum which is world-class.  Then on to Thermopylae.

Tholos of Athena

Spartan Memorial

Lunch at Aggelo’s, a family-run Greek restaurant. Lunches are always leisurely two-hour affairs.

Eric Huntsman teaching

Arachova

with siblings Jane and Mason Muir

A long drive to Athens, where we checked into the Divani Palace Acropolis Hotel, which is very close to the Acropolis, the Plaka, etc.  A nice hotel, with a large double-suite, two bathrooms, adequate electrical outlets, and Wifi!!

June 10, 2023  Saturday  Up for a drive along the coast. First to the Corinth Canal, then to ancient Corinth, with the Temple of Apollo and devotional on the Forum where Paul preached for 18 months. Next to Nemea, to see the stadium and watch the students (guys and girls) running Olympic races like crazy—some fast runners!  Then to the Temple to Zeus, where we could actually walk on the temple grounds.  We had lunch at the Agamemnon restaurant, lamb shanks!  Then Mycenae, where we saw both the Treasury of Atreus (a big tomb) and walked up to the Mycenae ruins to see the Lion Gate and to the top.  3000 years old!  Still there!  Back to Athens for dinner.

Corinth Canal

Archaeological Museum at Corinth

Treasury of Atreus (a big tomb)

Ancient stadium of Nemea

Lion Gate, Mycenae

June 11, 2023  Sunday  We had church in a hotel conference room,  then to the National Archaeological Museum, which is huge and a treasure trove of the most beautiful art pieces, sculpture, bronzes, etc.  You name it.  We had lunch with Eric Huntsman and Seelys and a bunch of students at the Plaka (center of shops and restaurants). Greek salad and gyros.  Gelato at Django.  

Temple of Zeus

Tomb of Agamemnon

David and Jo Ann Seely

Wandered the Plaka, Deanne did a little shopping.  Jim stopped in an Evangelical/Presbyterian church and saw a pipe organ, but it was locked.  Jim almost got to play an organ in Athens...

Then to the new Acropolis Museum, which was fantastic, with so many original carvings and sculptures that were on the Acropolis, Parthenon, Nike Temple, etc., but now in this museum next door for safe-keeping and protection from the elements.  

Don't know who they are, but they looked happy!

June 12, 2023  Monday  We walked with Gabriela to the Acropolis.  So mobbed! But no surprise.  It's full of cranes and scaffolding and restoration work—and tourists in tank-tops.  Still, a wonder to behold. Then to Mars Hill adjacent to the Acropolis, where Eric Huntsman led a devotional and we sang.  Finished our “footsteps of Paul.”  Pretty amazing to contemplate that Paul was probably on that very spot.  For lunch we got our gyro and salad and fries, and then gelato. 

Saying goodbye to Gabriela

Mars Hill

We left the hotel at 6:30 p.m. and drove out near the airport for another big dinner (Greek salad, bread, meat, fries, yogurt, etc.).  It’s good, but it’s gotten repetitive.  Flight took off a little after midnight (!), arrived Tel Aviv at 2 a.m., then bus to the Center, didn’t get to bed until 4:30 a.m.

The students leave next Monday for Jordan and Petra! Never a dull moment. We will not be going with them this time. We hit our one year mark on June 23!