Delphi

Our last stop was a day trip to Delphi. Along the way, we passed this roadside shrine. These things are on literally every road we saw. According to our guidebook, Greece has the highest road fatality rate in Europe, a statistic I believe after seeing their cavalier attitude towards helmets, seatbelts, and road rules. Some of these shrines are in memory of people who died on the road, but others mark places where people avoided accidents. Many are simply places for travelers to pause and pray, and sites for shrines date back hundreds of years.

Ancient Greeks considered Delphi the center of the world. It was one of their most important sites. It is perched on a mountainside.

The Sanctuary of Apollo was the reason for Delphi's status. Here, the Oracle communicated with the god and could see into the past and future. The oracle was a woman who breathed vapors from a chamber under the temple that caused her to go into a trance and experience her visions.

Just down from the Sanctuary of Apollo is the very pretty Sanctuary of Athena, who was here less venerated than in Athens.

This sculpture marked the exact spot in Delphi that was considered the center of the world. Now it is in the on-site museum.

Sofia thinks my hair style has ancient roots. This picture is so blurry because we had to take it on the sly. Many museums in Greece have a strange "no posing" rule. Pictures, fine. Pictures with people in them, fine, as long as they have their back to you, that is. If someone were to turn around and look into the camera, a vigilant guard would shout, "No posing!" We had to be quick here, and still we heard it: "No posing!"

Phew, that's a lot to see in two weeks. After Delphi, I was beat. The trip was amazing, but I was ready to get home.