Day three of the trip to Greece: Corinth Canal, Ancient Theatre, and the town of Nafplio
The timing of this trip was perfectly arranged by the two tour guides, usually setting off at nine o'clock. It was not rushed at all, and the service along the way was very considerate. The history, culture, geography, and local customs of the attractions were all introduced. We were not just eating and shopping, but on a cultural journey. These are all my casual records, those interested can find more information on Baidu
Today at nine o'clock we went to the Peloponnese peninsula southwest of Athens, a 1.5-hour drive to the Corinth Canal as the first stop. This is a man-made canal that connects the Aegean Sea and the Ionian Sea. The canal is 79 meters deep from the bridge to the river surface, and is narrower at the bottom and wider at the top, 20 meters and 24 meters respectively. Originally, you could take a boat tour here, but now there has been a collapse, so you can only take some photos from the bridge.
It is said that there is an entrance to hell nearby where the daughter of the earth goddess Demeter, Persephone, was abducted by Hades, the god of the underworld. Later, Zeus asked Hades to let her return to the human world, because when the earth goddess was sad, everything stopped growing. Hades gave the girl some grape seeds to eat, and she had to return to the underworld for three months, returning from here. When she went back, it was winter in the human world. When she returned to the human world, spring came, so Persephone is known as the goddess of spring.
The next stop is the Museum of the Temple of Asclepius, the god of medicine, where some surgical tools and statues are displayed.
The attraction coming out of the museum: The Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus. If you clap your hands in the center of the theater, you can feel a very obvious echo. The group members all tried it, and it was really amazing. It's hard to imagine that 2500 years ago, the Greeks had such scientific design ideas that still amaze us today. This theater is still in use, with performances every year.
Lunch: Pasta, salad, pork chops are delicious, the portion was too big to finish, fruits are abundant: apples, oranges, pomegranates, kiwis.
The next stop is the town of Nafplio at three o'clock. It faces the Aegean Sea, and there is a castle 🏰 in the sea, which is said to have been a prison, and now it looks very mysterious floating alone in the sea.
Nafplio is very quiet, with the ease and cleanliness of a European town. You can stroll around the streets at will, tasting ice cream and looking at handicrafts in some small shops.
It takes 2.5 hours to return to Athens.
The water of the Aegean Sea is too clear, and there are no fish in clear water. Local fishermen can only go deep-sea fishing, and they must be frozen immediately. At the same time, parasites will also be frozen to death. If the fish has parasites, it is fresh.
Athenians do not use open flames at home, they use induction cookers. So locals often go to restaurants to eat, grilled fish, grilled meat, etc. It is said that they do not eat crabs.
On the way back to Athens, we passed the ancient city of Mycenae, there is a small tip between two mountains, but we didn't see it 😂
In the evening, we stayed at the Intercontinental Hotel again. Originally, we wanted to enjoy the breakfast here again the next morning, but the itinerary for the fourth day was to take an early ferry to Santorini, so everyone had to pack some food to take with them 😳