Inomaos Olympia

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 held those first games in 776 BC. The time span boggles the mind. <br><br> But first there was the tacking of crowds. I tried to get up and out as soon as possible to arrive at opening time, but it wasn&#8217;t going to happen. There was coffee, and Brian&#8217;s hair, and internet, and breakfast. By the time we made out way to the site, the parking lot was full of busses. Great ...

... wet and cold and not having any fun. I can&#8217;t see the scenery I so want to, and we have no desire to go to any sights in the rain. What&#8217;s going on?<br><br>Upon reaching the campground I couldn&#8217;t take anymore. It had only been 2 hours cycling in the rain, but the rain wasn&#8217;t letting up. Here we were in Olympia and I couldn&#8217;t see it! I didn&#8217;t know what to do ...

... My front range sprocket&#8217;s rivets are coming loose and Brian has no way of repairing them since they&#8217;re rivets and not bolts. He would have to replace the whole arrangement (which of course I have not let him to). Also, my grip shifts are cracked and ready to fully bust. Of course now, considering where we are, he&#8217;ll not be able to get the parts readily. So ...

Our last stop on our very relaxing and food-stocked cruise ship was the historic city of Olympia. For the few who don't know, Olympia is the city which hosted the first Olympic games. We took a train to Olympia from our port for 2.50 Euro each round trip. Much better than the $70 per person that the ship was trying to get out of everyone. We arrived at the site and spent about two hours visiting mainly the archaeological ruins of Olympia. Among the ...

... have imagined and more! We continued on to The Peloponnese where we have been making our way around beginning and ending in Athens, which we loved! It is my favorite big city that we have visited. (Delhi, Cairo and Istanbul being the others so far.) Our time has been split between touring ancient ruins and hanging out on the beaches along the Mediteranean Coast. Sometimes both are in the same place which is all ...

... people live there. It has a light-orange Greek Orthodox church, a beautiful basketball court beneath tall gray ash trees, and an old wooden-table cafe where men gather wearing suits. Tourists, orange- and lemon- and olive-farmers, weekend residents, and retired people stay there. If you ignore the loud and dangerous traffic passing through, the litter beside roads, and the natives who don't like outsiders, it's a nice place. JUSTIN: DOES IT GET COLD AT NIGHT? Modern ...

... last couple of Km from where I camped to the major town in the area, Sparta. This is a place famous for its elite warrior class, the Spartiates. From the 9C to 4C B.C they were the landowners and holders of government posts. The approach to the town which is nestled in a valley was breathtakingly beautiful. I couldn`t dream a more beautiful landscape - maybe it has ...

... started lighting it at the altar in front of Hera's temple. The games were held late in the summer, after harvest and when the seas were calm. Participating athletes had to come down to Elis a month early in order to train and be watched by judges to make sure they weren't cheating (Cheating athletes had to commission a statue of Zeus to be put in front of the stadium which their name and their cities' name inscribed on it. It was really disgraceful, and only 16 ...