Olympia and Nauplion

Olympia & Nauplion

Monday, Oct. 15^th, we awoke to threatening weather – but it was the day for our tour, so armed with umbrella and slickers off we drove to the site of ancient Olympia to meet Maria Loukaridou, our official guide.  She had been recommended by the fabulous guide we had used in Delphi. Private tours truly let you understand all those fallen pieces of marble and stone, and make what might otherwise be a very dull walk, an exciting adventure in the past. We walked from one end of the sanctuary to the other learning about the original purposes of the Olympic contests, the history of the site, and the philosophy of the Greeks – one which I have always loved.  The gods’ only purpose was to reflect different aspects of man. They weren’t to be feared, they were to be respected, and the image of the gods was always that of a human – each with faults and characteristics that one came to recognize.

 

As the thunder of Zeus rolled across the skies and the winds picked up we hastily beat a retreat to the newly built archaeological museum where we admired many remains from the site and my all-time favorite - the absolutely stunning statue of Hermes by Praxitiles – a perfect statue in all ways. The skin fairly ripples across his body; his face depending on which side you stand looks either sad or happy; he appears to be in motion and you can almost imagine him able to step off the plinth and approach you. 

 

Of course, as our tour of the museum ended, so did the rain. Perfect timing. We walked back amidst the puddles and the ruins, and examined the tourist mecca of Main Street Olympia where, when we had arrived, we had to be careful not to run over tourists, and by the time we left we could have bowled a ball down the middle of the street without hitting a single storekeeper. Olympia is a difficult site to get to, be it by land or by sea, so tour buses and cruise ships come in in waves.  One of the shop keepers with whom I spoke called them ‘packaged products’.  He was dismissive because they don’t hang around and truly spend money, they just mosey from one end to the other, and get on their buses and leave.

 

I confess that for us the site of Olympia doesn’t impress as does Delphi or the Acropolis. The vistas are missing, the majesty is missing.  It is a functional site meant for worship, sporting challenges, and attempts at peace and harmony on a periodic basis; but we came away cold.   We had a bit of a contretemps with one of the guards on the site when I took out Jinn, our traveling frog from the Peacham Library.  I had innocently placed him on a column to take a picture.  A very officious young lady came up and said I must put the frog away, and delete the picture from my camera because I was not being respectful of the site. Our Greek guide tried to talk sense into the guard, but she knew her rules, and by gum, I was not to show that frog anywhere in Olympia.  So with great show of buttons and clicks, I pretended to remove the picture, and put Jinn away.  Obviously he came out again later on, and the pictures were saved, but we were more careful and he missed being part of some of the finer aspects of Olympia.

 

We bid our bit of classical Greece adieu, and headed back to the Bacchus Hotel for dinner and sleep.

 

Tuesday morning, awaking to overcast skies we decided to take a less breath-taking, flatter road to Nauplion. It was a bit more circuitous, and required us to visit some very small villages at the outset where road signage was distinctly lacking, but ultimately we hit the National Road in Kalo Nero, just north of Kyparissia, and sped to our destination in what was definitely a shorter time.  We arrived in sunny warm weather at the AETOMA HOTEL greeted, with hugs and kisses, by its lovely owner, Panaiyioti and her son Akis.  We had stayed here five years ago when she was just starting the hotel, and since then she’s been consistently Number One on TripAdvisor, so we were delighted to see each other again.

 

Having established our ‘beach head’, we headed to the cafes which line the harbor for a beer and a chance to relax and enjoy the view: staring at boats, water and the little Venetian castle that sits inside the harbor.  The town is pretty empty, it being fall, and not a week-end, but there is a sense that things are going well for the merchants and there are just enough cruise ships and tourists to keep things moving along.  Having been here now about ten times, I feel no need to rush around to visit the sites, but am rather enjoying a simple stroll through the streets, poking in and out of shops, stopping for a coffee Frappe, or just staring at water.  We did splurge on dinner at SAVOURAS a fabulous fish restaurant along the water. It is the same one Bob and I have been to in the past, and Jessie and I were here in June.  The head waiter, who has a striking resemblance to Steve Jobs, pretended that he remembered Jessica who had asked for fish where both eyeballs and tail were removed…and even if he didn’t remember, he treated us with care since we were distinctly return customers.  With three lovely stray black cats as companions, and recipients of little snacks from our table, we ate a beautifully grilled dorade fish, a salad and a bottle of Greek white wine while in the background all Greek eyes were peeled on the large TV screen which showed the Slovak/Greek soccer game.  It was that or the news, and I think the Greeks must be tiring of the incessant drumbeat of disaster and financial ruin which taints all the newscasts.

 

Wednesday was to be our last day in Nauplion since we had a dinner date with Alexis Phyl in Athens on Thursday evening. But Greece has planned a nationwide strike for Thursday with all doctors, taxi drivers, shop keepers, kiosk owners and public and private sector businesses stopping all work. We had planned a route that would avoid most of down-town traffic… but why do it at all?  So we extended our stay in Nauplion, sent apologies to Alexis, and here on Thursday as Greece grinds to a halt for 24 hours, we will continue to enjoy the seaside, even if the shops remain closed in solidarity with all Greeks who fear cuts in their pensions.

 

This whole thing is nuts. It’s like they just don’t get it!  Their country is in the midst of a recession or depression, they are the laughing stock of the Euro, they have almost no successful industries remaining at this point as international companies like Coca Cola and CarreFour Grocery leave their Greek headquarters; and most shipping companies, frustrated with striking employees, move elsewhere. And yet, the Greeks keep whining about the rules and strictures being thrown at them by the EU.  For too long, Greece has lived on a system  which consists of bribery, graft and governments who are always beholden to their financiers. But now all their sins have come home to roost.  They loved getting into the Eurozone, and all its benefits, they just weren’t so clear on the rules and requirements of being a healthy member of the EU.  The squabbling is endless and when you speak with most Greeks they think it will take at least three generations to get things in order, and possibly even a dictatorship.  But through it all, they strike, thereby proving that they just don’t ‘get it’. Grrrrrr.