Delphi Greece

Viking Greece - Rome 

Jan 26, 2026

Delphi Greece

Today's tour was out to see the ancient Greek ruins at Delphi.  Delphi was the site of the Temple of Apollo and the Oracle.  It was a 2.5 hour bus ride from our hotel in Athens. So we were on the bus good and early.  We had been told that there was major rain storms in the forecast so bring rain gear and be prepared for some cold blustery weather. On the way out the bus encountered a bunch of driving rain and horrific wind, so everyone on the bus was moaning about how nasty it was going to be.  

We we arrived at Delhi the rain paused and the clouds parted to give us a little sun. It was pretty nice.  The tour guide had been telling us on the way out all about how the Tembple of Apollo worked and how the schedule of the Oracle worked.  The Temple was open for business 365 but you had to bring offerings to get in to plead your case to Apollo.. The oracle was only open for 6 months a year so there was a line up to see the Oracle however by bringing better offerings you could jump the cue to get in.  You could ask the Oracle anything but the trick was how to phrase your question. The Oracle's advise was always elusive and difficult to determine what was actually meant.  Sort of sounds like asking AI today.   

Delphi is located on the side of some very steep mountians and has a spectacular view down the valley.  The overall site is quite large and has a thousand large uneven steps, which being wet from the rain were quite slippery.  Most of the site has been excavated but there is still large sections which are excavated and a couple of sites were being excavated.

Apollo's Temple has only six columns still standing and most of the base is still there.  It is a little hard to imagine what this looked like at the height of it's glory with all the white marble and brightly painted facades. However in farness this site was built around 550 BC. 

After we toured the site we went into the museum where the tour guide lead us through all of the exhibits.  There were a lot of really beautiful pieces of art which had been recovered from the site.  It was very beautiful.  

We were certainly glad to be here in January when there were very few people visiting the site. There must have been parking for a thousand buses.  

By the time we stopped for lunch and drove back it was close to 6:00 pm.  Agnes and I were just beat and went across the street and got a take out spinach and cheese pie for supper. 

Missed the rain and saw Delphi without the crowds,  Perfect!

Terry