Leaving the island

After breakfast we packed our stuff and continued the journey. After coming over the bridge from Lefkada, there was another small bridge under construction. Instead of having some temporary bridge, there was a ferry, which was serving as a bridge. Very clever!

The landscape along the road

The uninhabited land and the hills are covered by numerous forests and bushes. This makes the landscape look surprisingly green.

Greece is one of the sunniest countries in Europe and is generally very dry. This is good for tourism, but not for agriculture. Classic arable or livestock farms, like the one in the picture below, are rare. The poor cows don't get to see much of the green grass...

On the way to the Peloponnese we saw many greenhouses. The sunny climate makes it possible to grow vegetables in the greenhouses during the colder months of the year.

Entrance to the Peloponnese peninsula

The Peloponnese is connected to northern Greece by a beautiful bridge. Patra is the first major city on the peninsula.

Arrival in Olympia

Olympia is a small town near the archeological site where the Olympic Games were held in ancient Greece. It consists mainly of the main street and some side streets as well as the archeological area with remains of the ancient city and museums dedicated to it.

The Ancient Olympia

Olympic games were held in ancient Olympia in Greece. The astonishing fact is, that the ancient olympic games were held every four years from 776 BC to about 393 AD, which is 1169 years!

They were a religious festival that honored Zeus, and the name Olympics was derived from Mount Olympus, home of the Greek gods. In the early centuries of the ancient Olympics, the contests took place on one day, but the Games were later spread over four days, followed by a fifth devoted to the closing-ceremony presentation of prizes and a banquet for the champions.

The stadium

The stadium was able to host incredible 45000 people! Just a small number of sits were available for referees and noblemen. Women were not allowed to attend.