Anyway, we headed immediately to the Acropolis, and our first stop there was at the small rocky crag next to it, known as "Mars Hill". We climbed up the small rocky steps and from there we could see the entire city below us, with the Agora and Plaka and Parthenon in clear sight. I'd say that our time on Mars Hill had to have been the best part of the day for me, since it is where Paul stood his ground before the "learned" Athenians in Acts 17. Dr. Edwards recounted the story of Paul, as he had been walking around in the Agora and began to discuss Christ, which led up to his encounter with the so-called academically "elite". It really struck me to think about the guts it must have taken to stand there with the Parthenon, a temple to pagan gods, in the background and stand up for what is true. It is really starting to hit home to me how awesome this trip is semester is going to be. Mars Hill really brought the story of Acts 17 to life, and I am sure the rest of our trips will be the same.
After some time to reflect on the location and the story behind it, we climbed back down from Mars Hill and headed up to the Acropolis. The structure is even more incredible than I imagined. The word "Acropolis" means "high city" and it is a fitting title as the ancient fortress/temple looks out on the whole of the city of Athens. The city buildings below are even limited as far as their maximum height so that the ancient monument can be seen from everywhere below. Originally built as a fortress, the Acropolis became a center for temples to various gods of ancient Greece in the 5th century BC. I was amazed on entering the complex at all of the marble used throughout the construction of the many temples and monuments on top. The stuff would cost a fortune back home, but since it was in ready supply in Greece, they built everything with it. The steps, columns, and buildings are all solid marble and are still in pretty good shape to this day. Inside, off to one end of the fortress, is the "Erectheion", which is the most sacred part of the entire Acropolis. On that spot is where a contest for the control of the city took place between the god Poseidon and goddess Athena. Poseidon struck the ground with his trident and water came from the rock, but Athena produced an olive tree instead. This symbol of peace is what won the contest and so the city became hers. The building's trademark is the row of 6 female figures, known as Caryatids, which stand in place of columns along the outer edge of the temple. Obviously, though, the most famous feature of the Acropolis is the Parthenon, which means "Virgin's Chamber" and is the highest point of the citadel. The temple is the largest of the Doric style ever built, and it is solid marble, except for its wooden roof (which of course no longer exists). The structure, dedicated to Athena, was finished in 438 BC, and is largely intact, despite years of war and wear. It was built to hold a giant gold and ivory statue of the goddess, and was never fully open to the public. The outside of the temple is lined with massive fluted columns, which support the large triangular friezes and roof above. Interestingly, the columns along the sides are not actually vertical, as it appears, but rather they angle inward at the top, and would meet eventually in a huge pyramid if they could be extended far enough. Also, they were built with a slight bulge in the middle, which is actually larger around than the bottom. This counters the natural effect of optical illusion and makes the colums appear to the casual observer to be in fact perfectly vertical. Above the columns along the edges are the remains of incredibly detailed friezes, which display scenes of battle and of the gods. Unfortunately, much of the temple was destroyed in an explosion that rocked the Parthenon in the 17th century battle between the Venetians and the Ottomans. One of the most interesting things to me was the fact that the Parthenon was originally painted vibrantly with blue ceilings and gold stars, and much of the columns and walls were allso brightly adourned. I always just assumed that the structure had always been the bland white it is today. While much of the structure lies in ruin at the foot of the building, work is being done to restore the temple. The scaffolding surrounding the temple detracts a little from its magnificence, but hopefully the Parthenon will again be restored to its original glory. It is amazing to think of the collective willpower that must have gone into building the structure for the first time. All of those people, working together toward one goal--very neat.
After our visit to the Acropolis, we headed to a nearby restaurant, where we got our first taste of Greek meals. The food was brought to us in 4 courses and included bread with oil and vinegar, which will probably become one of my favorites. From the restaurant, we visited the Marathon Stadium, which will be used for the finish line in the 2004 Olympics for the same event for which it was created. The huge stadium is built entirely of marble and we are told it will hold 69,000 people. We walked around it a bit as the weather threatened to bring rain, and finally headed back to the bus, where I slept off some more of my lingering jet lag on the way back to Porto Rafti. All in all an amazing day--the Acropolis towering above the city was incredible, but the highlignt was definitely Mars Hill. To be able to walk where Paul did is an amazing thing, and I will never read the Bible the same way again after this semester and all of the experiences it promises to bring. The strength he had to stand up before the men of Athens can only have come from God, and it is very encouraging to realize that he, like us, was just a man trying to serve God. He was a stranger in the city, but he didn't let it stop him from preaching the truth to those who would listen, and as Acts 17 tells us, those who would not.