Selfie in Delphi

Now, I have never really taken a selfie before, but I thought that it was appropriate:

Surprise!  We're in Delphi!

This quiet little hamlet is a three-hour drive from Athens, and while it boasts the same type of  impressive ancient architecture, it is a world away from the city.  It is high up in the mountains, quiet except for the birds, and perhaps four streets big.  Since we are here in the off-season, the town is operating at half-occupancy; most of the businesses and hotels are locked up.  To me, that's a pity since the weather today was perfect, but I'm always happy to avoid the crowds.  Why Delphi, you might ask?  Well, why not?  Delphi may seem off the beaten path, but it was actually a major destination several millenia ago.  The Oracle at Delphi was consulted by the heads of every major neighboring empire before major decisions were made, especially those concerning war.  For example, the Athenians credit the oracle with their eventual victory against the Persians.  The Oracle told them that Athens would be saved by "a wooden wall", which they interpreted as a naval fleet, and eventually that tactic helped them win.  Because of these regular consultations, many states had their own "treasuries" where all of their offerings to the Oracle were stored.  These often included very lavish gifts of precious metals and objects.  One nation offered a life-sized bull made of steel plates with gold adornment (now in the museum).  

It was also the site of the Pythian games, one of the four main sporting sites (another was the Olympic games; the Pythian was the second-largest after the Olympic games) that the games rotated through - hence why the Olympic games were only every 4 years.  The Pythian games actually started as a singing competition and only had sports added later.  After becoming a mostly-sporting event, the singing became an important part of the opening and closing of the games, which is how things stand today.  But back to our day in Delphi...

Around 10 am, we hopped off our bus, got our bearings, and walked down the street to the Delphi museum and archaeological site.  Since most groups go to the site and then the museum, we decided to see things in reverse.  The museum isn't large, but it is very well done.  Most of the significant carvings left at the site have been moved to the museum for safekeeping, and they lay them out logically and with great explanations.  These artifacts start with those from the 7th century BC and run through AD 52.  A few of our favorites:

The mother of these two twins, legend has it, had to get to the Heraean games, but the oxen to pull her cart were not yet back from the fields.  The twins, both of whom had won Olympic glory at past games, harnessed themselves to the cart and pulled their moter 5 kilometers.  At the end, the mother blessed them and prayed that they might get what a man desired most.  They fell into a deep sleep and never awoke.

This sphinx of Naxos was a gift from the people of Naxos.  It stood at the top of a giant column in front of the temple of the Oracle.  The Oracle was so pleased with the statue that the people of Naxos always got to cut the line when they came.

This is part of a much larger wall panel, but I like that it depicts such a realistic interaction (except for that head turn - ouch).  Here, Gods sit on either side of a battle scene, representing the sides that they took in the Trojan war.  The Gods sort of egg each other on and discuss the battle.  I think they look sort of like gossiping children at school.

After finishing up at the museum, we went to the archaeological site.  While I can't imagine hauling building material up here, it does boast incredible views.  And, to be fair, they did use a lot of locally quarried rock and then covered it with a marble dust paste.  

The Oracle's temple was quite large and must have been magnificent.  Very little remains standing, but just the stories paint a vivid picture.

Written recollections describe how those seeking advice would bathe in the Kastalia stream, sacrifice an offering, walk up the Sacred Way, wait their turn, provide another offering, and then be led back to see the Oracle.  Priests would present the question to the Oracle, who would foam at the mouth and mutter a response.  Priests translated this into a vague, short statement, which the person could then carry back to their land.  Given how much people went through to see the Oracle, I'm grateful that I get some sound motherly advice for free whenever I call home.

Further down the road from the main site are a few others: we stopped to see the stream where pilgrims bathed, the rubble that was once the gymnasium, and finally the ancient Temple of Athena.

As you can see, the ruins of several buildings sit on this site.  They represent multiple temples as well as treasuries holding offerings.  The building shown is the most complete, the most interesting, and least understood.  But isn't it beautiful?

Since we still had some time before our bus back, we wandered Delphi's small streets, appreciating the Greek small-town feel.  We had gotten a restaurant recommendation from a friend, so we stopped for an indulgent lunch at Vakchos Taverna, savoring moussaka, rabbit with onions, local olive oil, and fresh bread.  Oh, and I was certainly savoring the view.

Spotted: Close encounter with the feline kind.  It seems that stray cats are more common than we ever imagined.  A dozen or more swarmed the tables at the archaeological museum cafe.  When they realized that we were the only tourists with food, they attacked.  Josh had a cat claw-deep in his shirt until it lept onto the table and peered into our (recently emptied) lunch bag.

Spotted #2: Remember that serpent column from Istanbul?  Well, if you have a REALLY good memory, you'll remember that it was stolen from Delphi.  You can see it in the scale model that artists built of the temple, and there are small replicas in the town square.

It's almost impossible to see in this picture, but it's the vertical gray blur about 1.5 cm to the right of the main buliding in the photo on my screen.  As a reminder, it looked sort of like this:

 (but the heads and cauldron were lost).  We have come full circle!