Hotel Dimitsana Peloponnese

Just before 6am I awoke to the first sounds of thunder. After a beautiful day yesterday, and a clear night, this was not what I wanted to hear. Having planned to head out from Olympia, we were stuck while shower after shower drenched everything around. <br><br>A quick run into town revealed a hostel that only cost 1 Euro more than the campground (major rip off). The debate of what to do to avoid the rain began ...

... That&#8217;s where all the good stuff from the Altis is. All of the statues, the pots, the carvings, and various other artifacts and art. Seems as though tour busses are on a strict schedule and there&#8217;s not enough time to go to the museum. Consequently, we were the only ones, and were followed around by puppy-dog-like staff members who were bored. <br><br>Hard to believe that a ...

... a train to Athens and catch a plane home. But then what? Drop into a different pit of dispair longing for lost opportunities and dreams just out of reach? Oh why won&#8217;t the sun just shine a bit?<br><br>The rain lightened to a drizzle so we ventured out to see the sights. But they decided to close early so we couldn&#8217;t. Wanted to go to the store and buy some Ouzo to drown our sorrows ...

... proximity to the Karies villages and the high mountains occupied by rebellious Slavic peoples at the time of the Frankish occupations. The flat top was at least suggestive and we set to a closer examination of the site. All around the top there were hints of walls and a great deal of stone. Immediately below the top in many areas there were stone fields and we speculated that walls could have toppled. Plenty of roof tile was in evidence and on a short informal ...

... prosperous, was abandoned. The evidence suggests that, while the Mykenaians had a king, they worshipped mostly Goddesses. What struck me the most about the place is the true megalithic construction, megalithic meaning literally, "made of really big stones." I have a theory that there is a lost European/Middle Eastern art of construction using mammoth masonry. You see it in Greece; the ...

... archeological site to open. The site was very cool especially reading about the history of the games and the culture of the time. The surrounding landscape was once trees, yet all the hills were bare, the past summer horrible fires had spread across the country side near Olympus, and just scorched the land. Shortly there after I had to retrace my steps from this remote city in the middle of Greece and make it to Athens by night fall - my next adventure was to begin. .

... something hot about a man with a hairy chest in a toga... so I smiled, then Michael smiled, then Carol smiled...... off to a good start. For some reason Bob didn't get his picture taken... hmmmmmm. A fascinating day ensued. The ruins are amazing. It never ceases to amaze me just how advanced the "ancients" were. Water systems, streets, paving, gardens and Civilized surroundings. Ok, so they may have beheaded or killed you if you lost the chariot ...

... crenellations on the top. A Greek mans home IS his castle. Complete absence of traffic on the road and its twisting, climbing and decending path provide exellent cycling terrain. The weather is hot and I even had to dig out my sweat band for the more challenging climbs! On reaching the southern most tip I camped next to the temple of Poseidon, now a site of a ruined ...

... sculpture characteristic). The Olympian Games were very big for all of Greece, but they started as local games and just the foot race. The games were always after the harvest so that the average farmer could also attend. The city-state of Illes was responsible for organizing the games, 50 km away. We know so much because of Hippias who wrote the history of the sanctuary and the games. In 476 BC the "sacred truce" was ...