Greece Tours Guide explore greece, all the times

GREEK CITIES AND GREEK ISLANDS
ABOUT ARACHOVA
The main attraction and destination here on Parnassos is, of course, Delphi. As you approach it from Arachova, you will see the twin peaks, the Phaedriades (Shining Rocks) that hover over the site. There was some settlement here by at least 1400 BC, and Minoan remains of this period have been found. Some Greek myths claimed that, many centuries before the Classical Age of Greece, the site was sacred to the goddess Ge (Gaea), usually regarded as Mother Earth. Her son, Python, a serpent, guarded a cave here, and adjacent to this was an oracle where a priestess, known as the Pythia, delivered the wise words inspired by Gaea. At some point - at least by 800 BC - a cult that worshipped Apollo was introduced here; in some myths, Apollo killed the serpent - suggesting the replacement of the older matriarchal religion by the male-based Olympian religion. In any case, the site soon became known as the Sanctuary of Pythian Apollo, and visits to the oracle became a major goal of individuals from all over Greece and the eastern Mediterranean (much like a pilgrimage today to Mecca or the Vatican). Around the same time, the Amphictyonic League, a confederation of neighboring cities in southern Greece, was founded to administer the sanctuary. Meanwhile, Greeks held the Pythian Games here, one of the four such pan Hellenic festivals (of which the Olympics is the best known) combinations of athletic contests and artistic performances that were originally held every eight years but in 582 BC changed to every four years.
Delphi and its oracle remained at the center of Greek life for many centuries so important that it often provoked wars among Greek city-states to see who would control it. After the Romans took over Greece early in the 2nd century, the emperors showed more interest in plundering the site of its many riches than maintaining the oracle. And about AD 385, Theodosius, the emperor who banished all pre Christian practices in the empire, officially abolished the oracle: when the Pythia issued her last prophecy, the temples lalon idor (speaking water) was extinguished forever. Over the centuries the buildings fell into disrepair, and isolated as the site was, it was all but forgotten until it was rediscovered in 1676 by an Englishman and Frenchman traveling through the region. More than a century later, in 1812, the famous British poet Lord Byron visited the site and described it as a landscape full of religious terror. Intermittent excavating began in 1840, but it was 1891 before the King of Greece assigned to the French the right to commence formal excavations, revealing over the years the site that now amazes visitors from all over the world.

General Information:
Arachova: The Chic Mainland Village
There is no denying that the Greek islands have emerged in recent years as the image and destination of popular tourism, and there is equally no denying the appeal of these islands. But the Greeks themselves, from time immemorial, have also been drawn to the mountains that dominate so much of their land. Every schoolchild knows that the Greeks located the home of their gods on Mt. Olympos, the highest peak in Greece. Fewer modern visitors are aware that the second highest peak in Greece is located on Mt. Parnassos and that this mountain was regarded by the ancient Greeks as a home of Dionysos and his female followers, the Maenads (in their ecstatic abandon, the Maenads were the antithesis of the orderly Olympian gods). The Roman poets later made Parnassos the home of the Muses, but it was on the rocky slopes of Mt. Parnassos that far back in time certain Greeks in awe of the dramatic peaks and springs and caves and the reputed exhalations from a chasm on the site established the world-famous oracle of Delphi.

Delphi and the various sites around Arachova
In ancient times Delphi eventually became so influential in Greeks affairs that they regarded it as the center of the earth, signified by the navel stone (omphalos) found here. Today, Delphi is one of the most spectacular and resonant archaeological locales in the world, and a visit to the site provides a fascinating encounter with a side of ancient Greece different from the Classical image of white-columned temples. Complementing this will be a visit to the medieval Monastery of Osios Loukas Christian rather than pagan, a retreat for individuals as opposed to a gathering place for crowds, but expressive of the same sense of awe inspired by this mountainous environment. Moreover, by using the mountain town of Arachova as a base, you have the opportunity to experience the authentic life of Greek towns and villages, freed from the overlay of mass tourism, especially on weekdays. And finally, after descending from the mountains you can round out this phase of your time in Greece by making your way to the Peloponnese along the Gulf of Corinth.

Leisure in Arachova
Arachova is a lively mountain town with a permanent population of some 3,500 people. Until the second half of the 20th century it was known only to the relatively small numbers of people who made the journey up Parnassos to visit Delphi. Although there are a few remains of the prehistoric settlements and Classical town in the area, those provide nothing of interest for the average visitor. In dramatic contrast, it is the mountainous setting that will immediately attract your attention the terraced slopes supporting gray-stone houses with their red tiled roofs, the streams of water often running along the village, or the narrow streets that may remind you of times past. And, of course, your eyes will be caught by the colorful rugs and embroideries that the local people make, but the best part comes when you try the various tavernas and restaurants in or around Arachova. It is then that you will be inevitably impressed by the local wines, cheese, meat delicacies or honey that accompany the local cuisine.

Because Arachova is now frequented year round by visitors to Delphi during the extended tourist season and by (mostly Greek) skiers during the winter it is undeniably a prosperous town with more than its share of restaurants and hotels to make the visitor comfortable. The principal ski center where the lifts to the ski slopes begin is actually at Fterolakas, some 16 miles (26 km) further up the mountain. But even if you do not have the opportunity to ski here, you will enjoy the experience of walking around Arachova, taking in the sights and sounds and activities of a vibrant Greek community. The main street is lined with shops selling the textiles and handicrafts for which this town has long been renowned and which you can certainly admire even if you are not in the mood to purchase anything. When you have had your fill of these shops, you can ascend the stairs to the upper town and observe the more domestic life of Greek mountain villagers and visit the fine old Church of Agios Georgios (St. George), or settle in one of any number of cafes for a refreshing drink. All in all, there is something very special about relaxing in Arachova: taking in its clear air and its mountainous terrain, you can feel that you are experiencing the natural realm of Greece that inspired those ancients to locate their gods here!

Monastery of Osios Loukas
The other major historical destination of visitors who have come to Arachova is the Monastery of Osios Loukas (Blessed Loukas, but often referred to in writings as St. Loukas), some 16 miles (26 Km) southeast of Arachova. This monastic complex is regarded as one of the most impressive in all of Greece both because of its natural setting and its artistic workmanship. This Luke is not the Biblical Evangelist but a local Christian hermit monk who died here in AD 953. The smaller church on the site, the Theotokos, is evidently on the site of a church built here before Loukas died. But the larger church, the Catholicon, was erected in 1011 - 1048 and although considerably enlarged and renovated over the centuries, it remains a most impressive work of medieval ecclesiastical architecture. In particular the mosaics and the frescoes speak to even those not familiar with such works. Although there are only a few monks here now, more like caretakers, Osios Loukas still exudes a sense of spirituality, and people of all faiths and from all over the world have felt that a visit to the monastery of Osios Loukas is a moving and rewarding experience.

En Route to the Gulf of Corinth
Osios Loukas is situated on the edge of Mt. Helikon, unlike Arachova and Delphi, which are on the slopes of Mt. Parnassos, but all three sit above the Gulf of Corinth. If you descend from the mountain to make your way to the Peloponnese, the large lower half of the Greek mainland to which it is now joined by two bridges, you will pass through three towns along that gulf. The first is Itea (so named from the Greek for willows, ities, once prominent in this locale), which sits at the head of its own small gulf off the Gulf of Corinth. In recent years Itea has become something of a resort town and its harbor activity is further enlivened by the cruise ships that dock here so that passengers can make the excursion to Delphi. There is nothing in Itea to engage those of you en route to the Peloponnese; you can comfortably proceed on down to the southern shore of the Gulf of Itea to Galaxidi. This is a far more interesting town, for in the 19th Century it was a thriving port, home of prosperous Greek shipbuilders, sea captains, and merchants who built fine houses here. These have been restored in recent decades and along with a Maritime Museum and numerous churches, they give Galaxidi a sense of being in a place with a history.

Proceeding on along the northern coast of the Gulf of Corinth, the next town of any consequence is Nafpaktos, and this definitely has a place in history. During the Middle Ages, it was known in the West by an Italian name, Lepanto, and it was here in 1571 that the Turks outfitted their fleet preparatory to taking on ships from various cities in Italy and Spain. Led by Don Juan of Austria, this armada was Christian Europe's all out effort to stop the Muslim intrusion into Western Europe, and the Muslim fleet although aided
by ships sent by Muslim leaders in Algeria and Egypt to aid the Turkish ships was soundly defeated. In fact, it was in this battle that a young Spaniard, Miguel Cervantes, lost the use of his left hand, but that did not stop him from writing one of the most admired novels of all time, Don Quixote! Aside from this role in naval battle history, Nafpaktos boasts a fine Venetian castle, a mosque, and a handsome plateia, or town square.

If Peloponnese is your goal, and you are possibly on your way to visiting Olympia, Mycenae, Epidavros, or Nafplion, you will proceed on another 5 miles (9 km) to Antirion, where the Gulf of Corinth comes to its narrowest point. Long a port for the ferries that plied back and forth between here and Rion on the northern coast of the Peloponnese, this is now where you will move up on to the spectacular new 1.8 mile bridge across the gulf. Designed by a consortium of Greek, Canadian, and American engineers, paid for by both Greek government and private funds, the bridge opened in 2004 in time for the Olympic Games. Just as the canal at the eastern end of the Gulf of Corinth fulfilled an age-old desire to bypass the long route around the Peloponnese, this bridge fulfills the dream of joining the western mainland to the Peloponnese. And passing over it is a fitting end to this stage of your time in Greece.