Susan and I spent an extra night in Athens after our painting workshop so we could visit Delphi. 

Wednesday, 30 August – Delphi

We learned at breakfast that Jenny would not be joining us for our private tour of Delphi. She accidently scheduled her flight a day too early. Fortunately, she discovered this before we got into the van. 

Delphi is a couple hour drive from Athens. Much of the scenery reminded me of California, our rolling coastal hills, farmland, and windmills. We were surprised to have WiFi in the van, so we were able to catch up on news along the way. We first visited the Delphi Museum where we saw many artifacts, including friezes better preserved than at the Acropolis and small goddesses from Crete. 

From there it’s a short walk to the archeological site with the ruins of various monuments including the location of the oracle who was consulted for major decisions. The oracle’s answers, given by priestesses in a trance beneath the floor, were often ambiguous parables. We walked up to the long, narrow stadium used for sporting events and music festivals. It’s almost a mile to the top and felt longer in the heat. 

Our driver took us to the nearby town of Delphi where we split a delicious bream and salad for lunch. We made two stops on our way back. The first was so I could take a picture of the Temple of Athena. Susan was too tired to get out of the car, and I only walked down far enough to get an overview. Secondly, we took a short walk through the town of Arachova, perched on a hillside not far from a ski area where we both bought pillow cover souvenirs. We encountered commute traffic on our way into Athens, and got to our hotel around 17:00, We showered, washed clothes in the sink, and walked to a nearby restaurant for dinner. Unlike on Tinos, the vegetables were perfectly cooked.