Greece

A window to another city.

From the Temple of Olympian Zeus situated on the lower grounds, I saw a very low-standing structure of the temple, which coincidentally formed a lovely archaeological frame to the Parthenon, perched high on the Acropolis. Two famous archaeological sites in one frame!

Athens, Greece (17 May 2008)

Divine light...

This is the Temple of Poseidon against the setting sun. I had to use a little of the temple's pillars to block out a little of the backlight that was seeping through the clouds so that the temple would not be a silhouette.

Cape Sounion, Greece (17 May 2008)

A place where Arias are sung...

When I was a little girl, the 1989 British Airways ad made a huge impression on me with the song 'Aria' by Yanni. Ever since I watched on TV Yanni's performance of 'Aria' in the Odean of Herodes Atticus in the Acropolis, I have always associated the song to this place. Still gives me the shivers whenever I listen to this song. And ALWAYS, I will think of this place. The acoustics in this ancient stone theatre can be summed up in one word "Fabulous"!

Athens, Greece (18 May 2008)

I half thought that I had stumbled upon a construction site with the many scaffoldings and machinery surrounding the buildings of the Acropolis!

This is Acropolis as viewed from Filopappos Hill, Athens, Greece (18 May 2008)

Climbing 2 hills in a day was really tiring especially on such a hot day but to get two perspectives of the Acropolis, sweating it out was worth it. =D

Imagine if this is in your basement!

These are the ruins of Hadrian's Library in Athens, Greece (18 May 2008). See the huge difference in the ground level between the ancient times and modern era. It would not be surprising if beneath every building in the city of Athens, there are such great treasures!

Zebra (without strips) Crossing!

These donkeys sure knew how to stop the traffic as they made their way to work in the early morning in, Fira, Santorini, Greece (19 May 2008).

Let sleeping dogs lie...

Sleeping dog at an entrance to a pub in Fira, Santorini, Greece (19 May 2008) with a view of the volcanic island of Nea Kameni.

The expensive drinks in the cafe are worth every single cent for a view like this in Oia, Santorini, Greece (21 May 2008).

Eco-friendly toilet bowl!

How waste in the toilet bowl can be turned into flowers! See how fertile the flowers are compared to the ones beside it. No prizes for guessing what goes into this. =D

Oia, Santorini, Greece (21 May 2008)

Sailing on dry land!

Good news to the old boats... there is life after sailing! =) Great way to recycle old stuff.

Oia, Santorini, Greece (21 May 2008)

Here comes the bride... and groom! =D

Santorini is a famous spot for weddings, and apparently it is famous among animals too. See those donkeys in their  full wedding attire waiting outside the church with their "solemniser"! =P Just kidding! =D

Oia, Santorini, Greece (21 May 2008)

All White and Blue!

Was doing some last-minute sightseeing (not shopping!) around my hotel before my transport arrived, and suddenly I spotted this blue-domed church, overlooking the caldera of Santorini. Could not ask for a better last memory of Santorini than this.

Fira, Santorini, Greece (22 May 2008)

Sail away...

Blue-domed church, overlooking the caldera of Santorini.

Fira, Santorini, Greece (22 May 2008)

Blow wind blow!

Windmills at the party island of Mykonos, Greece (22 May 2008)

Bridge over calm waters...

This pretty Byzantine stone bridge in Edessa, Greece (23 May 2008) is part of an ancient road, Via Egnatia, constructed by the Romans. Prior to visiting this bridge, I had no idea how it looked like. I found it in a housing estate. =D

Mt Olympus, home to the God of Gods, Zeus!

Litochoro, Greece (24 May 2008) is the gateway to Mt Olympus, home of Zeus.

City walls...

Kastro (castle) at Thessaloniki, Greece (25 May 2008). You can see a faint outline of the snow-capped Mount Olympus across the bay of water.

No ordinary canal...

1) Thanks to this canal, Peloponnese became an island.
2) There are no locks to transport the boat to the other side. Instead the method of making this canal, as I see it, was just brute-force digging/blasting, so locks were not necessary! Look at the depth of land that they had to dig/blast in order to make this happened... I can only say that they were really determined!

Corinth Canal, Corinth, Greece (27 May 2008)

Empty front row seat to the isolated Fortress of Bourtzi...

Napflio was the first capital of Greece.

Napflio, Greece (27 May 2008)

The Domino Effect...

Fallen columns from the Temple of Zeus in Ancient Olympia, birthplace of the Olympic Games, Greece (28 May 2008)

Tumbling blocks!

Each of this is carved out of solid stone. Unless you are Hercules, otherwise no way you would be able to even move it a millimetre, not to say lift it up. Apparently Hercules is not just a legend else how were these structures built? =D Coincidentally, Hercules is the son of Zeus, the King of Gods, and this temple was built in the name of Zeus! =P

Fallen columns from the Temple of Zeus in Ancient Olympia, birthplace of the Olympic Games, Greece (28 May 2008)

Consulting the Oracle...

Tholos at Temple of Athena, Delphi, Greece (29 May 2008)

The Big Rocks of Metéora, Greece (30 May 2008)

Amazing how the many monasteries here were built on the peaks of such pinnacles! How the monks and nuns scaled these rocks to reach the top, how they built the monasteries... truly awe-inspiring.