Athena and Zeus

I have a strange attraction to Greek and Roman history, so visiting the historical sites in Athens and Delphi felt like putting a visual to what I've already read.

A very quick history lesson: Greece hit it's peak of cultural influence from around 500 - 200 BC. Democracy flourished, philosophers like Socrates thrived, and Greek architecture / art was widely admired. The Greeks didn't have a huge empire like the Romans that followed them, mostly they were a loosely affiliated set of city states. The ancient Greeks left an oversized legacy of democratic freedom and cultural innovation that laid a foundation for many aspects of western culture today.

We devoured a few of the sites that are still standing today with the highlights being the Acropolis and Delphi. The Acropolis stands on a hilltop over-looking all of Athens housing the Parthenon and a handful of other monuments. Delphi is a 3 hour ride northwest of the city and is set among a beautiful backdrop of mountains. They certainly picked a stunning place for the Oracle. Legend has it Zeus sent two eagles from opposite ends of the earth and they met at Delphi, making it the center of the world.

Being at these incredible sites felt like a pilgrimage. Especially when you consider this really was the 'center of the world' culturally 2,500 years ago and the lasting impact it had.