GREECE & TURKEY TOUR EXPERIENCES

Day 3 – Monday, October 6: Kavala, Philippi, Amphipolis, Thessaloniki

Today was our first full day here in Greece. The weather was overcast, with spotty light showers in there morning. A steadier light rain fell while at Philippi, but the rain stopped towards the end of the day. High temps were in the low 60s. We left the hotel shortly at 7:45 a.m. following a great breakfast. We read from portions of Philippians 1 through 4 as we headed north and east for the day.

Kavala/Neopolis

We drove north and east on one of Greece’s very nice highways. Following a brief restroom stop, and continued north to Neopolis in Paul’s day (Kavala today). Paul sailed into this port following his Macedonian vision at Troas (Acts 16). We all walked in the Via Egnatia, and ancient road that Paul would have used between Nepalis and Philippi. Today, only the Byzantine (and later Turkish-Ottoman) aqueduct and fortress can been seen archaeologically. Outside a Greek Orthodox Church a modern monument is erected honoring Paul’s journey here. We also saw the tall-standing aqueduct before landing back on the bus.

Philippi

We drove about 10 miles to the site of Philippi. First, we visited the Zygaktes River located outside the city. It was somewhere along here 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 fortune teller. She may have been one who gave oracles at Delphi (we will visit this site in two days).

We drove a short distance to the archaeological site of Philippi. Following a tasty lunch we visited the ruins of the city connected with Paul. We saw the theater, the Late Roman basilicas, the forum (marketplace), and the Praetorium – Bouleuteriun (judgement hall, the most likely place of Paul and Silas’ imprisonment). We read from Acts 16 about God’s miraculous intervention on behalf of Paul and Silas. The jailor placed his faith in Christ that night too. The so-called “traditional “ prison of Paul is a later 2nd century structure and used as a cistern. This was another example of the difference Paul made for the kingdom of God! He was bold in sharing his faith.

Amphipolis

Leaving Philippi, we began our drive back to Thessaloniki. On the way we stopped at Amphipolis. The city was established in the 4th century BC and was visited (or at least past) by Paul (Acts 17). We saw the famous lion statue here from the 4th century BC.

Downtown Thessaloniki

From continued our drive back to Thessaloniki. Before we arrived back at the hotel, we drove to the Roman Forum (Agora, marketplace) in the heart of the city. This was the marketplace mentioned in Acts 17 where Paul was. The text mentions a man named Jason who helped Paul and Silas. The text also mentioned the “city officials” (in Greek, Politarchs, as found on an inscription discovered here from the 2nd century AD). We also remembered certain believers mentioned by name (Aristarchus and Secundus) who were from this city (Acts 20:4, Romans 16). They served as later companion travelers with Paul. About one block away we made a brief stop to the Church of St. Demetrius. This was an ancient church dedicated after Demetrius, a martyr who died in 303 AD. Today this well-used Greek Orthodox Church is a landmark in the city.

We returned to our hotel nearby for dinner and a good night’s rest. We leave Thessaloniki tomorrow morning.

Day 4 – Tuesday, October 7: Thessaloniki, Berea, Vergina, Meteora, Kalambaka

Today was our second full day. We enjoyed another great breakfast before we checked out of our hotel and loaded our bus at 7:30. We were welcomed by another cool morning before it warmed up into the 60s. The skies were partly cloudy, with a few breaks of sun in the afternoon. We read from 1 Thessalonians 1 as we left the hotel at 7:45.

Thessaloniki

We started the morning by driving along the shoreline of the city and to the the White Tower, a 15th century structure (although previously built during the earlier Byzantine Period). This structure was used as a prison during there Ottoman/Turkish period. We also saw an impressive statue of Alexander the Great is also in this area of the coastline of the city. From here, we drove up the hill to see the ancient Late Roman fortress walls at the Acropolis of the city. The view of the city was incredible, the second largest city in Greece today (1.2 million). We read from 1 Thessalonians 2 and 4 (about the return of Jesus as King) as well as portions of 2 Thessalonians 3.

Berea

Driving about 50 minutes south across the agricultural plain from Thessaloniki, we came to Berea. It is called Verea in Greek. While there is no archaeology here to see dating to the time of Paul, we read the Acts 17 passage in front of a small modern monument constructed in the heart of this city. We recalled about how the believers here searched the Scriptures diligently. Sopater, a believer from the city of Berea (as well as Aristarchus and Secundus from nearby Thessalonica) was a new believer who eventually became traveling companion with Paul as well towards the end of his third missionary journey (see Acts 20:4 again). God transformed and called others to join Paul in ministry!

Vergina

About 20 minutes away is Vergina. We first e joyed a very Greek lunch at a classic restaurant before we walked to the archaeological ruins of the royal tombs of Macedonians. Discovered in 1977, these tombs were quite impressive! While there are actually four tombs to see here, the tombs of Philip II (the father of Alexander the Great) and Alexander IV (or the “Prince,” perhaps the son of Alexander II) are amazingly well preserved even after more than 2,300 years! These two tombs were found intact. In the museum we also saw many of the items found in these tombs, including many incredible gold pieces, armory and weaponry of Philip II, among other personal items.

Meteora/Kalambaka

Following our visit of there royal tombs, we continued our scenic drive south to Kalambaka. This is the heart of the country of Greece. We traversed up and over the Pindos mountain range. At about 5 p.m., we arrived to the area of Meteora. Six Greek monasteries are still active here (of a total of 24), the earliest dating back to the early 1,300’s. We entered the monastery of St. Stephen’s. Aliki and Sofia took us into the chapel area. Monks (and Sisters) for 100s of years have dedicated their lives in carefully building these with such precision. To see this “perched” monastery was stunning. Upon leaving the one called St. Stephen’s, we drove to another panoramic view of the these monasteries and the city of Kalambaka far below. After checking in to our hotel, we enjoyed a great buffet dinner once again (with a very nice chocolate soufflé) and a free evening!

Day 5 – Wednesday, October 8: Thermopylae, Delphi, Athens

Day 6 – Thursday: October 9: Corinth, Mycenae, Cenchreae, Athens

Today we traveled to the Peloponnese of Greece. We left the hotel at 7:30 again following breakfast. The weather was perfect, with partly sunny skies, and temps around 70. We read portions of 1 Corinthians 4 and 2 Corinthians 5 as we left the hotel.

Corinthian Canal

We drove south from the hotel to the Peloponnese of Greece. Our first stop was at the famous Corinthian Canel. It was built over a 11 year span (1882-1893) and is 3.8 miles long, 75-85 feet wide (the width varies at each ends), 280 feet deep, with the water level around 26 feet. It is really a quite incredible engineering feat! We saw a few boats sail through also!

Ancient Corinth

We then traveled another 15 minutes to the ancient site of ancient Corinth. We first walked down to the area of the theater where we saw the important Erastus Inscription (he donated his own money for the public works, see Romans 16:23). Erastus is also mentioned in Acts 20 and 2 Timothy 4.

At the archaeological site, we began in the small museum. Here, we saw an image of the Menorah and many clay sculptures of the body parts represented (dedicated to Asclepius, also see 1 Corinthians 12). Among the ruins we saw the Temple of Apollo (one of 14 total pagan temples), the forum (agora in Greek), and the bema (or judgement seat) where Paul shared his defense/testimony before Gallio (see Acts 18). Paul was here for a year and a half during his 2nd mission journey. From here he wrote letters to the Thessalonica church in the north. During his brief stay here at the end of his 3rd mission journey, we wrote Romans. It was delivered by Phoebe (Romans 16).

After lunch in the public square of Corinth (many had gyros!), Before leaving the area of Corinth, we drove up to the Acropolis for a peak of the Temple of Aphrodite and a spectacular view of the plain of Corinth 1800 feet below. The massive walls and gates date primarily from between the the time of the Crusaders, Ottomans, and Venetians. However, the lower coarses of wall go back to the Greek and Roman periods. Many made the climb to an incredible viewpoint of the plain and port of Corinth below.

Day 7 – Friday, October 10: Athens, Embark on 3-Night Cruise, Island of Mykonos

This morning we enjoyed a late departure (9:45). This allowed us to enjoy a relaxing breakfast. Tasos and Sarah (our Greek agents with us for the 3 day cruise) gave us tags for our bags for the cruise boat. We loaded the bus for the drive to the Laurion port of Athens (not the usual port of Piraeus). The drive to the port took a little over an hour.

Following the standard procedures of boarding the ship, the ship pulled out of the port in the early afternoon. We enjoyed the standard life-jacket drill and lunch on the ship. The rest of the afternoon was a leisurely one as we sailed about 66 miles to our first Greek island, Mykonos. The deep blue waters of the Aegean was beautiful! Today’s weather also made it perfect, with full sun once again and highs in the 70s.

Mykonos

We arrive at the island of Mykonos about 6:00 p.m. We disembarked the ship around 6:25. We then took shuttle buses to the old harbor. We then strolled through the maze of walkways and white-washed buildings before arriving at the famous windmill area. We enjoyed the waterfront (called Little Venus) lined with shops and cafes. The sunset was incredible as well!After time walking around on our own, we returned to the ship on our own for a late dinner. While we sleep tonight we will travel to Kusadasi on the western coastline of Turkey.

Day 8 – Saturday, October 11: Kusadasi (Ephesus) & Patmos

Following sailing through the night to Kusadasi (on the western coastline of Turkey), today was another perfect weather day, with bright sunny day,  blue skies and highs in the low 70s. It was a day of connecting to Paul’s ministry once again (at Ephesus), but also John’s ministry as he authored Revelation (from Patmos). The day started early, with a 6:45 a.m departure from the ship following breakfast. We read from Revelation 2 and sang our song (“Oh, the sun’s coming up…”) before we disembarked from the ship.

Kusadasi, Turkey

Here at Kusadasi (it means “bird island” in Turkish) is where we met our bus and local guide (Isa – he will be guiding us for the extension as well). Located on the western coastline of Turkey, this port city is a vacation and retirement locations for many Brits and Europeans. From here we drove directly to Ephesus.

Ephesus

We arrived in Ephesus at about 7:45 a.m. This was a massive port city back in the days of Paul. Today the water’s edge is about 4 miles away! Paul spent about three years here during his 3rd mission journey.

Starting from the upper part of the city and walking on the ancient 2nd century BC stone pavement (used by Paul later) towards the port, we past by a vast number of archaeological ruins. This included the odeon (small theater), statues, pillars, arches, inscriptions, public latrenes, and the Celsus Library (which dates to the early 2nd century AD). Sitting together in the agora, we read portions of Acts 19 about the dramatic event that took place in the grand theater. It held about 20,000 people! People gathered in the theater “confused” and “not knowing why they were there” because they anticipated being treated to food and wine, as was the custom). For us, unfortunately, the theater was closed for renovations, we read the rest of Acts 19 from a distance but still in view of the theater (note: photos from within the theater were taken on a previous trip).

Upon leaving the site, we drove to the Temple of Artemis (Diana) that once stood here. All that remains is one pillar (of a total of 127 in this massive temple). Indeed Paul was challenged in sharing the kingdom message here at Ephesus.

On the way back to the ship we made a stop at a local rug shop/store (it’s an unavoidable part of the excursion deal required by the cruise line). It was very interesting, however, to learn how Turkish rugs are made, whether from cotton, wool, or silk. Shortly after noon we re-boarded the ship and enjoyed lunch and some free time. It was fun being on the deck as the islands past by.

Patmos

As we set sail out of Kusadasi for the southwest, we past by the narrowest opening, with the coastline of Turkey on our left and the Greek island of Samos on our right (Acts 20:15). Paul stopped here on this mountainous island at the end of his 3rd mission journey en route back to Jerusalem.

Later in the afternoon we gathered on the top deck as we approached the island of Patmos. This island is another one of the picturesque Greek islands. While imprisoned on this island, the Apostle John wrote the Book of Revelation from here (either in AD 90 during Emperor Domition or as Dr. John suggests, prior to AD 70 prior to the destruction of the Temple). To get to the island, we had to use tender boats, which is fun and beautiful in itself!

Upon arriving on the island, we enjoyed some free time. Some took a taxi up to the Grotto of the Apocalypse (a very traditional stop where John supposedly was imprisoned and received his vision) to the area of a Greek Orthodox monastery. It is called St. John’s and it has been active for a little over 900 years! Most in the group explored the hiking trail that ascended up towards the Grotto. The view from here is spectacular! We read portions of Revelation 4 & 5, and 22 and spent a brief time of reflection and worship (“Worthy is the Lamb”).

This visit to Patmos reminded us that Revelation is a victory book written by John who was exiled here, that honors Christ. We celebrated the promise of Christ’s redemption and victory over evil, His Second Coming, His exaltation as King of kings and Lord of lords, and the establishment of a new heaven and earth!

Down at the water’s edge we explored the shops and cafes at our leisure on our own before we took the tender boats back to the ship for dinner. During the night hours while we sleep we sail to the island of Crete.

Crete

Once we disembarked the ship, we met our two local guides and boarded our buses. The excursion here on the island of Crete first took to the Knossos excavations. Here we saw the archaeological discoveries of the Minoan civilization. They were probably one of the forerunners of the Philistines. Most suggest Caphtor (in Jeremiah 47:4, Amos 9:7) is the ancient island of Crete, while they were called the Sea Peoples by the Egyptian Pharoah, Ramses III in the late 13th-12th century BC. As for the Minoans, this people group dates back to about 2,000 BC (about the time of Abraham).

Day 10 – Monday, October 13: Athens, Mars Hill, Acropolis, the Plaka, Free Time