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Mon, 17 Sep 2007 03:06:53 -0700

Santorini Island....What a beauty!!

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Mon, 17 Sep 2007 02:57:06 -0700

Santorini - Oia!!

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Wed, 05 Sep 2007 10:15:54 -0700

Acropolis of Athens!

Named for Athena, Goddess of Wisdom and patron of the city, Athens' cultural achievements are said to have laid the foundations for western civilization. It is one of the first societies to establish democracy and is the birthplace and home to many great historical figures such as Socrates, Plato, Euripides, Aeschylus, and Sophocles, just to name a few. Many buildings from antiquity still stand in Athens today as testimony to the enduring quality of this city.

Athens is located in southeastern Greece on the Attic Plain. It is surrounded by mountains on three sides. Athens' port, Piraeus, is located on the Saronic Gulf (an inlet of the Aegean Sea) approximately 8 km to the southwest. The Acropolis is the location of the most important, ancient religious site, the Parthenon (Temple of Athena the Virgin). The commercial and social center of Athens, the Agora, is located about 400m north of the Acropolis. To the south of the Acropolis are the Theater of Dionysus, and to the west, the Areopagus (council chamber).Athene

The Acropolis of Athens has been continually inhabited since Neolithic times. Like other Bronze Age citadels, the Acropolis was fortified around 1400 B.C.

The city of Athens itself, was founded in the 9th century B.C. and the surrounding area, including Piraeus, was incorporated into what became the city-state of Athens.

Athens was, at first, ruled by a monarchy, then it became an aristocracy, controlled by the Areopagus (council of elders), and eventually evolved into a democratic state in the 5th century B.C. under the leadership of Cleisthenes.

Come and experience the grandeur that is Athens!

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Wed, 05 Sep 2007 10:15:18 -0700

Athena

Athena (uthē'nu) [key], or Pallas Athena (păl'us) [key], in Greek religion and mythology, one of the most important Olympian deities. According to myth, after Zeus seduced Metis he learned that any son she bore would overthrow him, so he swallowed her alive. Later Hephaestus split Zeus' skull with an ax, and out sprang Athena, fully armed. Athena was a deity of diverse functions and attributes. Her most conspicuous role was perhaps that of a goddess of war, the female counterpart of Ares. However, she was also a goddess of peace, noted for her compassion and generosity. Like Minerva, with whom the Romans identified her, she was a patron of the arts and crafts, especially spinning and weaving. In later times she was important as a goddess of wisdom. Athena was also a guardian of cities, notably Athens, where the Parthenon was erected as her temple. In a contest with Poseidon concerning dominion over Attica, Athena made an olive tree grow on the Acropolis while Poseidon caused a saltwater stream to gush from the Acropolis. The other Olympians, asked to judge the contest, decided in favor of Athena. Her statue, the Palladium, was supposed to protect the city that possessed it. It was said that because she accidentally killed Pallas she set the name Pallas before her own. Although a virgin goddess, she was concerned with fertility, and at Athens and Elis her worship was notably maternal. Athena is represented in art as a stately figure, armored, and wielding the aegis. Her most important festival was the Panathenaea,. which was celebrated annually at Athens. It included athletic and musical contests, poetic recitations, and sacrifices. At the end of the festivities a grand procession carried a richly embroidered peplos to the Acropolis as a present to Athena.

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Wed, 05 Sep 2007 10:13:46 -0700

Moonrise,Cape of Sounion,Temple of Poseidon,Greece!

cording to legend, the name Athens is derived from the ancient goddess Athena (the Romans knew her as Minerva). Athena fought Poseidon, God of the Sea, for the honour of being patron of the city by producing an article that would most benefit Athens. She produced an olive branch (symbolising peace and wealth) and Poseidon produced a horse (then a symbol of war). The gods decided that Athena, goddess of wisdom, was the winner.

Athens was founded over 3,000 years ago as a 'City State'. This was a self-governing city, supporting itself on the countryside around it. The rock of the Acropolis was initially a stronghold where the citizens could defend themselves from invaders, and later a sacred place, where temples to the Gods and Goddesses were built. The Goddess Athena was the particular favourite of the Athenians - they named their city after her. The city moved to the bottom of the hill, leaving the top for the temples.

The Athenians came up with the idea of democracy, where the citizens of the city decided its future by voting. Any citizen could speak at the parliament, although there was nothing to stop others from heckling him off the stage. Any citizen could be kicked out of the city, even the ruler, if enough people voted against him in a secret ballot. Athens also became a centre of learning, and philosophers took time off from the day to day toil to consider the concepts of good and evil, how the world worked and the meaning of beauty. Playwrights laid down the principles of modern theatre, while sculptors produced beautiful statues. Because of this enlightenment, Athens is considered to be the birthplace of the Western World. It wasn�t quite as fair and above board as it sounds, however. Only men could be citizens, and slavery was common, so only a privileged few got to vote.

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Wed, 05 Sep 2007 09:59:14 -0700

Olympia ,Greece

Olympia (Greece), site of the ancient Olympic Games, which were celebrated every four years by the Greeks. Olympia was situated in a valley in Elis, in western Pelop�nnisos (Peloponnesus), through which runs the Alpheus River. It was not a town, but only a sanctuary with buildings associated with games and the worship of the gods. Olympia was a national shrine of the Greeks and contained many treasures of Greek art, such as temples, monuments, altars, theaters, statues, and votive offerings of brass and marble. The Altis, or sacred precinct, enclosed a level space about 200 m (about 660 ft) long by nearly 177 m (nearly 580 ft) broad. In this were the chief centers of religious worship, the votive buildings, and buildings associated with the administration of the games.

The most celebrated temple was the Temple of Zeus, dedicated to the father of the gods. In this temple was a statue of Zeus made of ivory and gold, the masterpiece of the Athenian sculptor Phidias Seven Wonders of the World. Next to the Temple of Zeus ranked the Heraeum, dedicated to Hera, the wife of Zeus. In this temple, probably the oldest Doric building known, stood the table on which were placed the garlands prepared for the victors in the games. The votive buildings included a row of 12 treasure houses and the Philippeum, a circular Ionic building dedicated by Philip II, king of Macedonia, to himself.

Outside the Altis, to the east, were the Stadium and the Hippodrome, where the contests took place; on the west were the Palaestra, or wrestling school, and the Gymnasium, where all competitors were obliged to train for at least one month. The French began excavations here in 1829. German explorations of 1875-81 threw much light upon the plans of the buildings; they were resumed in 1936, 1952, and 1960-61. Many valuable objects were discovered, the most important of which was a statue of Hermes, the messenger of the gods, by Praxiteles.

Temple of Zeus in the background

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Wed, 05 Sep 2007 09:47:47 -0700

Delphi,Greece

Mt. Parnassus

Delphi, town of ancient Greece, site of a celebrated oracle of the god Apollo, situated on the slope of Mount Parnassus, in Phocis (now Fok�s Department), about 9.5 km (about 6 mi) inland from the Gulf of Corinth. Considered by the ancient Greeks to be the center of the earth, Delphi was once the site of an oracle of the earth goddess Gaea. According to mythology, Apollo defeated the monstrous serpent Python, which guarded Gaea, and expelled her from the sanctuary, which he then shared with the god Dionysus. The Delphic priests developed an elaborate ritual, centered on a chief priestess called Pythia. Her utterances were regarded as the words of Apollo, and the oracle was consulted by private citizens and public officials alike. The Sacred Way to the temple was lined with structures housing rich offerings given by Greek cities.

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Wed, 05 Sep 2007 09:45:39 -0700

olive groves in the valley

The town of Delphi was at first a dependency of the Phocian city of Crisa. Phocis later joined the Amphictyonic League, which was formed to protect the temple to Apollo and which sponsored the Pythian Games near Delphi. When Phocis levied tribute on pilgrims to the oracle, the league destroyed Crisa in the first of the Sacred Wars (about 595-586 BC). In 480 BC a Persian raid on Delphi failed because of an earthquake, attributed to Apollo. In the second Sacred War (about 448 BC), Athens helped Phocis regain control of Delphi, which it had lost in the first war.

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Wed, 05 Sep 2007 09:45:05 -0700

The lower Delphi ruins

The Phocians were defeated in 346 BC by King Philip II of Macedonia in the third Sacred War. By the end of the century the Aetolian League controlled Delphi. The wealth of the town made it a frequent target for attack, including a raid by Gauls in 279 BC. After the Roman conquest of Greece, and especially after the spread of Christianity, Delphi declined. Much of its art and treasure was confiscated by the Romans, notably by the Emperor Nero. The oracle, however, continued until AD 390.

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Wed, 05 Sep 2007 09:44:26 -0700

Delphi ruins where the athletes were trained

The site of the town was eventually occupied by the village of Kastr�. In 1891 Kastr� was relocated and renamed Dh�rfis (Delphi), and in 1892 excavation of the site began. Discoveries include temples, the Great Altar, the stadium and theater, the ancient town wall, and the treasury building, the walls of which are inscribed with famous musically notated hymns to Apollo. The site contains more than 4000 inscriptions, valued for modern knowledge of ancient Greece.