Holding the torch as the spiritual home of the Olympic Games, Olympia has an enduring legacy, and its values echo around the world during humanity’s greatest sporting contest. We went ashore at Katakolon - a small port village on the Peloponnesian peninsula facing the Ionian Sea.
May 17th. Olympia & the Archaeological Museum
We then headed inland to the historic home of the Olympic Games. Located in the valley of the River Alfeios, Olympia is a archaeological site of immense ruins and enduring legacy. We visited the museum, and Olympia Stadium - where the ancient games were held in honour of the Greek god Zeus. As many as 45,000 spectators fitted into the mud seats, to witness the ultimate contest of athleticism. We saw the stand where judges would sit and the white blocks where runners would line up to compete.
We were in a coach with our favourite Greek guise, Helen, by 8am. And about hour later were being introduced to Olympia. We got there before the crowds, from the Celebrity ship Beyond arrived. We had heard a lot about the site and the Olympics en route. The Olympics of antiquity , approx. 800BC to 395 AD. We saw lots of ruins and the running stadium during 90 minutes .
The Olympic tradition continues today stronger than ever, and the Olympic flame of the modern games is ignited by the sun here, in the ruins of the Temple of Hera. It is then taken to spread the Olympic values across the globe. The Temple of Zeus, and the Statue of Zeus - one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World - also rose here in all of their glory. Hewn from limestone, the temple contained the 13-metre tall statue of Zeus, which was sculpted by Phidias - one of Ancient Greece's finest artists. Although the statue has been destroyed, you can walk the temple's ruins and see the guesthouse where the majestic wonder was sculpted.
The Archaeological Museum is part of the same complex. In fact thee is much more to see in the museum than in the site itself, which is mainly fallen over stones Among the wonderful excavated finds on display is the Head of Hera, the superb statue of Hermes by Praxiteles, ornaments from the Temple of Zeus and the helmet of Miltiades. We had an hour in the museum with Helen guiding us round.
click on a thumbnail to get a bigger photo
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Olympia Archeological Museum
Olympia's Archaeological Museum, which houses finds from the excavation of the sanctuary of Zeus, is one of the most important museums of Greece. The exhibition also contains great masterpieces from the long history of the Olympic Games' birthplace, and thousands of years of art. The exhibits are displayed in chronological and thematic order from Prehistoric down to Roman times.
Here you'll find the sculptures of the temple of Zeus, the most brilliant examples of the so-called severe style of Greek art: the metopes, which depict the labours of Heracles and the sculptures of the east and the west pediment representing the local myth of Pelops and Oinomaos and the battle between Centaurs and Lapiths respectively. We saw the sculpture of "Nike of Paionios" and one of the most famous statues in the history of art, the "Hermes" of Praxiteles, which is perhaps the only original, surviving statue of the renowned sculptor. The exhibition houses numerous bronze objects: figurines of humans and animals, cauldrons, tripods, griffins, sphinxes, and many different kinds of weapons, vessels, and exquisite examples of the toreutic art. Finally, the large collection of terracotta statues—like the complex of Zeus and Ganymede—is a highlight during any visit.
click on a thumbnail to get a bigger photo
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Then to the Magna Grecia Olive farm where we had a welcome drink of Ouzo and a tour before an adequate lunch with singing and dancing. There was a hard sell of their jewellery and other tack. It was mass tourism, and we were processed like their olives in an olive press. Everything was designed to move the maximum number of people through, serve them lunch, then get them into the shops. It was not as enjoyable as the olive tour we had 2 days ago
click on a thumbnail to get a bigger photo
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Afterwards a 40-minute return drive to the pier. We were back aboard before 2.30 and Chris had a swim and a siesta before a lazy afternoon on the back deck . A long evening as we could not get a table in the restaurant until 8.50
Silver Cloud from Jeddah to Dublin