Time Out

 One of the nice parts of being a senior missionary is the opportunity to have family come to visit.  Our daughter got a great ticket deal for her and her husband in January.  I wasn't sure what the weather would be like and it did turn cold that week and rained but it was all doable and the best part was the absence of big crowds.  

Safe Arrival! 20 hour flight. Crazy!

We got up early on a Tuesday after they arrived the evening before and drove to Meteora.  

 Μετέωρα, pronounced [meˈteora]) is a rock formation in the regional unit of Trikala, in Thessaly, Greece, hosting one of the largest and most precipitously built complexes of Eastern Orthodox monasteries, second in importance only to Mount Athos. The six (of an original twenty-four) monasteries are built on immense natural pillars and hill-like rounded boulders that dominate the local area. Between the 13th and 14th centuries, the twenty-four monasteries were established atop the rocks. Meteora is located near the town of Kalabaka at the northwestern edge of the Plain of Thessaly near the Pineios river and Pindus Mountains.^[4]

Meteora was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1988 because of the outstanding architecture and beauty of the complex, in addition to its religious and artistic significance.

The name means "lofty", "elevated", and is etymologically related to meteor.

Eating Lunch in Kalabaka

We made it to 4 monasteries that were open on Wednesday but the last one has lunch hours where it is closed and we were more than happy to find a nice Greek restaurant to eat at.  I got cod with a garlic sauce.  The cod was delicious.  It had Greek music playing and locals taking their time to visit and eat. 

The view from our hotel in Kalabaka at the base of Meteora

We went to one last Monastery before heading to Delphi.  This monastery was built by just putting a front on a cave that had 4 natural levels.  Long ago they accessed the monastery by climbing a rope ladder.  

Delphi Museum

  Delphi was an ancient sacred precinct and the seat of Pythia, the major oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient classical world. The ancient Greeks considered the centre of the world to be in Delphi, marked by the stone monument known as the Omphalos of Delphi (navel).

According to the Suda, Delphi took its name from the Delphyne, the she-serpent (drakaina) who lived there and was killed by the god Apollo (in other accounts the serpent was the male serpent (drakon) Python).^[5][6]

Delphi...the acoustics are amazing but it was roped off so we couldn't try them out. 

Delphi

The city of Delphi.  We ate at a wonderful restaurant that looked down on the layers of the village. 

We had goat, potato and mushroom soup, cod with greens, beef stew, and yummy bread.  

Acropolis Museum the next day

 After the museum, we ate gyros.  I included this picture because it shows you the meat they shave to put in the gyros.  

Stadium at Acropolis

The Acropolis of Athens  is an ancient citadel located on a rocky outcrop above the city of Athens, Greece, and contains the remains of several ancient buildings of great architectural and historical significance, the most famous being the Parthenon.  The term acropolis is generic and there are many other acropoleis in Greece.

While there is evidence that the hill was inhabited as early as the fourth millennium BC, it was Pericles (c. 495–429 BC) in the fifth century BC who coordinated the construction of the buildings whose present remains are the site's most important ones, including the Parthenon, the Propylaea, the Erechtheion and the Temple of Athena Nike.^[2][3] The Parthenon and the other buildings were seriously damaged during the 1687 siege by the Venetians during the Morean War when gunpowder being stored by the then Turkish rulers in the Parthenon was hit by a Venetian bombardment and exploded.

 One of my favorite things to watch is the changing of the guard which I wrote about earlier in a previous entry. 

Bakeries are around every corner in Athens and Greece.  We have tried many things and one of the favorite lunch item is spanakopita.  It is feta cheese with spinach in between phyllo.  The next day we ate at the pier while we waited for our ferry to Aegina Island. 

We took a ferry to the closest island to Athens which is Aegina. 

We found the yummyist cafeteria style place to eat at.  We had eggplant, the best bread, beans and carrots in a sauce, baked peppers and tomatoes that were delicious.  

Saying goodbye to Aegina

When we got back to Athens, we walked through the markets. Kalamata olives are the most popular olives and are grown in Greece.  

Davelis Cave

The name comes from the belief that an infamous 19th century brigand called Davelis used the cave as a hideout.  The story says that Davelis used the cave to hide his treasures.  During the Middle Ages, it was used by Orthodox Christian hermits and later a small church was built at the entrance of the cave.  The cave has been used as a shelter for civilians. Experiments took place in the cave or in the artificial tunnels around it.  

Looking down the route they took to move marble from the quarries to the Parthenon.  We said good-bye to Brooke and Whit and went home to take several naps.  I think I am now caught up.  

This bridge is made of marble that was used to transport Pentelic marble that we saw at the cave. Doukissis Plakentias is the biggest surviving stone bridge in Attica. Pentelic marble was thought to be of unparalleled quality.  Doukissis Plakentias just happens to be the name of our metro stop.  We walked to this bridge this morning in lovely 65 degree weather.  It is a 5 1/2 mile walk round trip and so interesting to look at the shops, cafes, schools, etc. 

We are grateful for the opportunity to see this beautiful country and experience the culture of warm and generous people.  They are very family oriented and we enjoy seeing parents walk their children to school and shopping, etc.  We are grateful for our family and the support they have been to us.  We look forward each week to our zoom calls.  We found out this week that a new couple has been called to serve here in Greece as Humanitarian, Welfare and Self Reliant missionaries.  We are excited to get everything in place for them so that the transition will go smoothly.  

"It's not what you are capable of.  It's what you are willing to do"  I don't know where that thought comes from but I have learned that I am lacking in many skills but that the work moves forward.  I love that we just have to try and God makes up the difference.  

Spiritual Muscles: Remembering Bryce

 

Bryce’s Journal Entries and Emails – Your Personal Spiritual Trainer

In this e-mail from February 2007, he was only out for five months at the time, he

talked about how Heavenly Father will test us. “I notice that Heavenly Father will

work you spiritually and mentally until you kind of just want to just give up. When

he gives you a break you grow. Just like when you go to the gym and lift, you lift

until your muscles give up, then you let them rest and they grow. Heavenly Father

is kind of like your personal spiritual trainer. He will only work you if you let him,

but if you let him He will work you hard.”

Πρωτοχρονιάτικα Κάλαντα

This is a Happy New Year song in Greece!