DAY 1 SALONICCO- Thessaloniki

 

Arrival in Salonicco (Thessaloniki) small walking orientation tour of the city. Dinner and overnight at hotel.

 

DAY 2 SALONICCO / FILIPPI / AMFIPOLI ED APOLLONIA

 

Breakfast in Hotel. Visit of the Archeologic Museum of Salonicco, one of the most interesting museums of Europe. We can see there the treasure of Philip II(the father of Alexander the Great) tomb. At the end departure to Filippi. This arheolgical area is the origial site of the ancient Crenides and takes it’s name from the King Philip II of Macedonia which made the city big and fortified on 356 AD. This is not a very publicized site, but there we can visit the Via Egnatia (The Via Egnatia was a major Roman highway that ran though Philippi, Amphipolis and Apollonia towards Thessalonica), the theatre, the site were St. Paul was prisoned when he arrived there and baptized Saint Lidia, the first European Christian. Very close we can see the site of this baptism, where The St Lidia Baptistery has been built. The we will visit Kavala, founded on the IV century and called Neapolis (new city). Lunch in restaurant. In the afternoon, visit of Amfipoli and Apollonia, ancient capital city of the Calcidic peninsula. Return to the hotel, dinner and overnight.

 

DAY 3 VERGHINA / KALAMBAKA

 

Breakfast at the hotel and departure for the Meteora region. First stop at Veria, the ancient Berea, where you can admire the “Step of Saint Paul”, the place were St Paul used to preach. Then we go to nearby Vergina, one of the most important archaeological sites in northern Greece. It is named after a legendary queen who committed suicide in Aliakmone river so that it would not fall into the hands of the Turks. The village became famous in the fall of 1977 with the discovery of the tomb of Philip II, which has proven, beyond doubt, that the first ancient capital of Macedonia is to identify precisely in Vergina. Visit the archaeological site where the tombs of Philip II and Alexander III, father and son respectively of Alexander the Great were found. Visit the museum where the gold of the Macedonian royal dynasty is kept. Lunch in a restaurant at Vergina. At the end of the visits we will reach Kalambaka. Accommodation, dinner and overnight at Kalambaka.

 

DAY 4 LE METEORE / ITEA

 

Breakfast at the hotel. We are in the Meteora region. A place suspended “between heaven and earth,” just as the meaning of the word in Greek; it’s beauty is due to the presence of numerous monasteries built at the peak of the natural rock towers. Visit of the Orthodox Monasteries perhaps the most famous in the world. Visit St. Stephen (Agios Stefano) Orthodox monastery of nuns and Varlaam, named after the Monaco Varlaam, considered the first founder of the Monastery. Lunch. Continue to Itea. Hotel accommodation, dinner and overnight.

 

DAY 5 DELPHI/ATHEN

 

Breakfast at the hotel. Departure for Delphi. Known site for oracle prophecies of Apollo (god of the sun and music), who spoke to mortals through his priestess Pythia. Go up the Via Sacra to admire the theatre and the Temple of Apollo, next to which was what was believed to be the navel of the world. Lunch at a restaurant during the excursion and continuing to visit the Monastery of Hosios Loukas (St. Luke), located in a special landscape value area on the slopes of Mount Helicon. The most closely guarded treasure is the tomb of its founder, St. Loukas, around which we can admire the remarkable Byzantine Mosaics. Arrival in Athens, hotel accommodation. Dinner and overnight.

 

DAY 6 ATHEN

 

Breakfast at the hotel. In the morning, we will go up to the Aeropago hill, were St. Paul pronounced his famous sermon (act 17:15-34). We will visit the Acropolis the architectural masterpieces of the golden age of Athens: the Propylaea, the Temple of Athena Nike, the Erechtheion and finally, the harmony between matter and spirit and most famous monument: the Parthenon. Lunch. In the afternoon, we will have a walk in the old city, the Plaka, and we will visit the small Byzantine Church of Ermou and the Metropolitan Cathedral of Athens. Return to hotel, dinner and overnight.

 

DAY 7 CORINTH AND MICENE

 

Breakfast at the hotel. We will enjoy a DAY excursion in Argolis with visits to Corinth where St. Paul lived for two years, the site of Mycenae, the legendary kingdom of Atreus and his son Agamemnon, sung by Homer in his epics. It is the most important and rich center of the sumptuous late Bronze Age in Greece. Epidaurus, for the sanctuary dedicated to Asclepius and theater, which is still used today to accommodate theatrical performances. Lunch at the restaurant and return to Athens for dinner and overnight at the hotel.

 

DAY 8 DEPARTURE

 

Breakfast in hotel, time at a glance until the time for the transfer to the airport for the departure