We spent today on an excursion touring Ancient Corinth. During the hour-long bus ride, our tour guide gave us an overview of the history of Greece as well as some context for the sites we were going to visit. Our guide is a member of our host church, First Evangelical, and as a Christian she was able to give us a unique tour, connecting what we saw with the book of Acts and Paul's letters to the Romans and Corinthians.
Before we even really arrived in Corinth, we stopped at the Corinth canal, a passageway that allows boats a shortcut so they don't have to go around the Peloponese peninsula.
 |
The Corinth canal
|
Our first stop once we arrived in Corinth was a site called the Acrocorinth. This is a hill that overlooks the entire city, creating a defensive position for ancient kingdoms, and a great view for us. Situated on top of the hill was a Medieval "castle" made up of walls and a few buildings where the Greeks, Ottomans, and Franks defended themselves from attacking armies. The view from the top was spectacular, giving us a panorama of the Corinthian countryside and the ocean. This was definitely a highlight.
 |
| Standing on the highest wall of the Acrocorinth, built by the Franks |
After doing some hiking around the castle ruins, we took a break for some wonderful traditional Greek food and then continued on our tour.
We spent the afternoon touring the archaeological site where the Corinthian agora (city center) used to be. We saw remains of the Greek (then later Roman) theatres, public baths, marketplaces, and temples. We even got to stand on part on an original Roman road! Our tour guide used biblical references to connect what we were seeing with what we know from the Bible, which gave us all a deeper understanding of Paul's letters. We ended the tour standing on a site mentioned in Acts 18 where Paul stood on trial. It was amazing to think that we were standing right where he stood as he did his ministry in Corinth.
 |
| At the Temple of Apollo in Corinth |
We ended our day with another delicious meal at the church, some debrief time and a relaxed evening exploring Athens. All in all, a great day.
Comments
Post a Comment