Day 3 – Tuesday, October 4: Thessaloniki, Amphipolis, Kavala/Neopolis, Philippi
Today was our first full day here in Greece. The weather was perfect, with a cool start in the morning (50s), and partly sunny skies and afternoon highs in the mid 70s. We left the hotel at 8 a.m. after a great breakfast. We read from 1 Thessalonians 3 as we headed to downtown Thessaloniki.
Thessaloniki
Our first stop in Thessaloniki was to the Roman Forum (marketplace) in the heart of the city. This was the marketplace mentioned in Acts 17 where Paul was. A one block away is the Church of St Demetrius. This was an ancient church dedicated after Demetrius, a martyr who died in 450 AD. Some of the early structures can be seen below the level of this modern Greek Orthodox Church today. From here we drove to the Acropolis for a great view of the city and harbor below. We read from I Thessalonians 4 (about the hope of Christ’s Second Coming). We also remembered certain believers mentioned by name (Aristarchus and Secundus) who were from this city (Acts 20, Romans 16). They served as later companion travelers with Paul.
Amphipolis / Kavala-Neopolis
The drive north along the Aegean Sea to Kavala (or ancient Neopolis) was very scenic. We made a brief stop to see the lion statue of Amphipolis. The city was established in the 4th century BC and was visited by Paul (Acts 16). Driving further north and following a panoramic of the city of Kavala, we descended down to the harbor of the city. Paul sailed into this port following his Macedonian vision at Troas (Acts 16).Today, only the Late Roman aqueduct and the Byzantine fortress can been seen. Outside a Greek Orthodox Church a modern monument is erected honoring Paul’s journey here. We also saw the Late Roman aqueduct nearby.
“Today was our first full day here in Greece. We literally walked in the footsteps of Paul at Philippi and Neopolis. Paul sailed into this port town and then was later imprisoned at Philippi (Acts 16). What a great start to there trip!”
Philippi
About a 20 minute drove took us to Philippi. First, we visited the river outside the city. It was somewhere along this river where Lydia (from Thyatira) heard and received the kingdom message of Christ from Paul and Silas (Acts 16). She and her household also received Christ and were baptized. Paul also confronted a pythia, or future teller. She may have been one who gave oracles at Delphi. Following lunch, we finally visited the archaeological site itself. Here we saw the theater, the Late Roman basilicas, the forum (marketplace), and the Praetorium (judgement hall, the most likely place of Paul and Silas’ imprisonment). At the traditional 2nd century AD location for the prison we read from Acts 16 about God’s miraculous intervention on behalf of Paul and Silas. Also, the jailor placed his faith in Christ that night.
To close the day, we drove about 1.5 hours south back to our hotel in Thessaloniki. We enjoyed dinner together followed by a free evening and what we hope will be a good night’s rest to catch up on jet lag.
Day 4 – Wednesday, October 5: Thessalonica, Berea, Vergina, Meteora, Kalambaka
