unknown attica

Attica abounds in secluded nooks and panoramic crannies that the tourists never get to see. Athenian Days is offering a set of tours this summer for small groups to the parts of Attica the mass operators never take you to. Unknown Attica: One-Day Tailor-Made Trips to Areas of Attica and Environs Off the Beaten Track is a package of four day-long programmes. We are sure that you will find something here that you will enjoy.

We travel north to the borders of Attica and Boeotia to visit the shrine and oracle of Amphiaraus, set in a secluded pine glade on the remote northeast coast of Attica. Amphiaraus was a hero who eventually mutated into a healing god and a highly successful local rival to the more widespread Asclepios. At the shrine patients would spend the night, in the hope of being visited by the god in their dreams. Hopefully, the god would offer advice and effect a cure. The shrine also housed an oracle. Among the excavated remains is a rare example of a clepsydra or water clock.

We then cross by ferry to Eretria. The modern town, a typical example of a slow-rhythmed small country town, is laid out over a sprawling ancient settlement. We visit the small, but attractive museum, which displays an impressive collection of grave finds from all periods, from the Swiss excavations at Eretria. We visit the striking 4^th century B.C. pebble mosaics, reminiscent of work at Philip’s capital of Pella in Macedonia. We look at well-preserved examples of Classical domestic architecture, which give an insight into living conditions in the ancient world. We then take a brief tour through the town, to visit various classical landmarks, including the Hellenistic baths.

After our visit to Eretria, we drive north to Chalcis, where the fleet of Agamemnon is supposed to have lain becalmed before the voyage to Troy. We drive through Chalcis, over the waters of the swiftly-flowing Evripus, before briefly visiting the Karababa fortress, a Turkish fort of 1686 built in anticipation of the subsequent Venetian invasion. We then return to Athens by way of the motorway.

2. Demeter, Divine Benefactor of Mankind and the Bulwarks of Athens: Eleusis and the Border Forts of Attica

We travel around the bay of Salamis from Athens to visit the impressive fortified sanctuary of Demeter at Eleusis. The Eleusinian Mysteries guaranteed the initiate some sort of eternal survival after death, in contrast to the normal run of ancient Greek belief. What was originally a minor cult became entangled with the fortunes of Athens at its peak as a city-state superpower. The Mysteries thus became one of the major cults of Greco-Roman antiquity and one of the numerous rivals to Christianity.

We then drive up into the range of mountains lying to the north, between Attica and Boeotia. Along this mountain chain was a string of impressive intercommunicating border forts, dating to 4^th century B.C. and after, designed to protect Attica and Athens from invaders from the north. We pass the isolated tower at Oenoe, before making an excursion to visit the still functioning monastery of Osios Loukas, notable for the wall paintings in its narthex.

We lunch at the idyllic spot of Porto Germeno, ancient Aegosthena, at the head of the Corinthian Gulf, before examining the mighty and enigmatic fort, standing today amid an olive grove. We then retrace our steps and turn north to visit the equally enigmatic, and massive, 4^th century fort of Eleutherai, guarding the pass down to Boeotia and Thebes on the far side of Parnes, before we return to Athens.

The leading athletic festivals of Greco-Roman world were the Olympic Games, the Pythian Games at Delphi, the Nemean Games at Nemea and the Isthmian Games at Isthmia. Isthmia and Nemea lie within easy reach of Athens and both offer a sharp insight into what ancient games and athletic life were about.

We drive along the motorway to Corinth, with its stunning views over the Saronic Gulf. We cross the Corinth canal and drive down to the south end of the Canal. Here, in a cafe overlooking this small but busy waterway, we take time to examine the role of sport in the life of the ancient Greeks, before heading on into the Peloponnese to the site of Nemea

We then head further into the Peloponnese to Nemea. Control of a prestigious set of games was something politically highly desirable. Thus the guardianship of the Nemean games oscillated between Argos and Cleonae, finally to end up in the hands of Argos. At the idyllic site of Nemea, we see the gymnasium bath, the guesthouses for visitors to the shrine and the temple itself, which is gradually being reconstructed. We then visit the museum.

We then return to Isthmia. Isthmia contained a sanctuary of Poseidon and the Isthmia games revolved around his temple. Isthmia belonged to the third superpower of the Greek world, Corinth, and was the scene of dramatic happenings. For example, Alexander was proclaimed leader of the Greeks, prior to his expedition against the Persians. Later, Nero proclaimed the freedom of the Greeks at Isthmia, with politically disastrous results.

We examine the site, including the temple of Poseidon, the starting gate of the stadium and a magnificent Roman bath. We then look at the museum, which contains inscriptions relating to ancient sporting superstars and also contains a display of extraordinary late Roman glass panels.

Conditions permitting, we then go for a dip in the sea at Kenchreai, where St Paul stepped ashore, before enjoying lunch at a taverna on the sea shore and returning to Athens.

4. The Courts of Artemis and the Mines of Hephaestus: The Sanctuary of Artemis at Brauron, the Ancient Mine Workings at Lavrio and the Temple of Poseidon at Sounion

When we think of the ancient Greeks, we think perhaps of philosophy and art. But the ancient Greek world had considerably more, good and bad, to it than that. This tour aims to give a flavour of all sides of life in Classical Greece.

The site of Brauron (modern Vravrona), about 25 k outside Athens, with its reconstructed portico, stream and overhanging eucalypts, is one of the most beautiful and least known of ancient sites in Attica. In ancient times, it was the site of the cult of Artemis. The cult site was attended by the ‘little bears’ of Artemis, young girls of the Athenian elite, who spent some time at the shrine, before they progressed to womanhood and marriage. The site museum contains remnants of this cult, including dedicatory plaques and charming statues of young girls, dedicated to Artemis.

After the visit to Brauron, we visit the site at Lavrio, on the southern tip of Attica. Next to one of the oldest theatres in Greece is an ancient industrial area and set of mine-workings. In stark contrast to idyllic Brauron, even today it gives a good picture of the other side of Greco-Roman civilization and what it meant to be a slave in Classical antiquity, as well as giving an idea of the nature of industry in the ancient world.

Conditions permitting, we then visit Agrileza, in the hills about Lavrio. At Agrileza was an ore washing complex, which processed the material from the nearby mines. Again, the remains give an insight into the workings of a preindustrial world that rested upon slaves.

Finally, we visit the temple of Poseidon at Sounion. Poseidon was the next most important deity for Athens after Athena herself. A fortress as well as a shrine, the temple is perched on the heights of cape Sounion. In modern times, Sounion’s ‘marbled steep’ was a magnet for 18^th and 19^th travellers, including Byron, who famously left his name as graffiti on the wall of the temple.