Sunday, August 17, 2008

On The Way To Mt. Athos Via Thessaloniki



Day 7: I spent to morning in the air on the way to Thessaloniki, which is where I needed to be, to catch a bus to Ouranoupolis, which is the gateway to Mt. Athos. Thessaloniki turned out to be quite the surprise, as I didn't expect it to be such a beautiful city. Of course, the city is thousands of years old and it borders a sea, of which I don't know the name of. The city is laid out beautifully with landscaped plazas, all lined with outdoor cafes and fountains and oftentimes bordered by magnificent, ancient churches which are literally everywhere in this city. The ancient boardwalk along the sea also stretches for miles. I did a walking tour of the city center and entered into at least eight churches, all of which contained ancient decor of golden hanging chandeliers, awe inspiring icons, huge painted murals and ceramic mosaics with pain staking details. I have never seen such a city as this, which has so many churches both huge and small, yet all containing priceless religious treasures. It was also interesting to learn that the city is 98% Christian Orthodox. After spending a day here, from noon on Friday to noon on Saturday, I then boarded the bus for Ouranopoulis. The bus ride was uneventful and took about 3 1/2 hours on mostly winding, mountainous roads. The ancient village of Ouranoupolis is situated in a very remote area of Greece, bordering the steep, rugged, rocky and forested isthmus of the Mt. Athos region which surrounded on three sidea by virgin seashores. (Check out the link in the title line to learn more about Mt. Athos). Upon finding a room rented out by an elderly widow, I enjoyed dinner on the beach at one of the numerous outdoor cafes and then went for a swim in the crystal clear, turquoised shaded sea with all my clothes on, which was a great way to clean them without requiring a washer. The night ended early, after a bit of sightseeing around the village.

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