Live by the Sun - Love by the Moon: DAY 24

April 12 -Temples, Temples, and More Temples!

As we travel in Greece, we have come across various ancient Temples in most all of the cities. These temples were structures built to house deity statues within Greek sanctuaries in ancient Greek religion.. The temple interiors did not serve as meeting places, since the sacrifices and rituals dedicated to the respective deity took place outside them. Temples were frequently used to store offerings. They are the most important and most widespread building type in Greek architecture.

Old Temple of Athena was an Archaic located on the Acropolis of Athens. Until its destruction by the Persians in 480 BC, it was a special shrine. It was located at the centre of the Acropolis plateau, probably on the remains of a Mycenaean palace.

The Temple of Olympian Zeus, the largest of the ancient temples of Athens, and one of the largest in the ancient world,stands on a low elevation in the ground to the southeast of the Acropolis. Construction began in the 6th century BC hoping to build the greatest temple in the ancient world, but it was not completed until the reign of the Roman Emperor Hadrian in the 2nd century AD some 638 years after the project had begun. During the Roman periods it was renowned as the largest temple in Greece and housed one of the largest cult statues in the ancient world. The temple's glory was short-lived, as it fell into disuse after being pillaged in a barbarian invasion in the 3rd century AD. It was probably never repaired and was reduced to ruins thereafter. In the centuries after the fall of the Roman Empire, the temple was extensively quarried for building materials to supply building projects elsewhere in the city. Despite this, substantial remains remain visible today and it continues to be a major tourist attraction.

Modern vs. Ancient

Oh....to be a Goddess of the Temple!

One of the pillars lay on the ground - so intricate!

Ancient Agora of Classical Athens is the best-known example of an ancient Greek agora, located to the northwest of the Acropolis and on the west by the hill known as the Market Hill.

Even the Ancient Greeks did LOVE mosaics

Common to build a modern subway or highway over the ancient ruins

The Temple of Poseidon, the god of the sea in classical mythology, is located at Cape Sounion in Attica. The remains are perched on the headland, surrounded on three sides by the sea. The ruins bear the deeply engraved name of English Romantic poet Lord Byron (1788–1824). The site has the most beautiful sunset over the Aegean sea and is very popular among tourists. Look further down in the post to see more of the amazing sunset!

We had to pack our backpacks around all day as we moved from Athens onto our next stop down the historical region of southern Greece known as the Attica peninsula, which projects into the Aegean Sea.

My big pack on my back and my day pack on my front - 25 lbs. total.

Before we arrived at Saronida, we used our Acropolis pass to tour the archaeological museum. We enjoyed the relics found in the crypts and other ancient treasures. The sculpted figures made out of marble were incredible!

This guy was one of the few that were smiling!

We enjoyed lunch on the plaza near the Acropolis. We had the famous kabobs (a version of the Greek fast food). It was very tasty!

We strolled around the market place and found lots of good sales, but our budget is very tight, so we mostly just look!

This is a calf on a rotissieree with cowbells ringing as it goes around

This lady made the coolest art of dancers or instrumentalists made from a kind of paper mache

After a couple of hours by bus, we arrived at the home of Constantine, our next host. I've never received such a big hug when we met him and his dog. (forgot her name). He spoke very good English as he used to be a pilot in Texas for about 6 months. He built his house and it was gorgeous! We wish we could have had more than one night with this wonderful guy!

Our VERY nice bed - our VERY own in our own room!

It was two stories with beautiful white cabinets and white tile.

Workin' on my blog!

Oila...a Greek Salad in 5 minutes!

He lived close to Cape Sounion, where the Temple of Poseidon is located, so he agreed to take us there and to do a type of photo shoot. According to legend, Cape Sounion is the spot where Aegeus, king of Athens, leapt to his death off the cliff, thus giving his name to the Aegean Sea. The story goes that Aegeus, anxiously looking out from Sounion, despaired when he saw a black sail on his son Thesus's ship, returning from Crete. This led him to believe that his son had been killed in his contest with the dreaded Minotaur, a monster that was half man and half bull. The Minotaur was confined by its owner, King Minos of Crete, in a specially designed labyrinth. Every year, the Athenians were forced to send 7 men and 7 women to Minos as a tribute.These youths were placed in the labyrinth to be devoured by the Minotaur. Theseus had volunteered to go with the third tribute and attempt to slay the beast. He had agreed with his father that if he survived the contest, he would hoist a white sail. In fact, Theseus had overcome and slain the Minotaur, but tragically had simply forgotten about the white sail.