Phlippi

We started off the morning in Thess. with another 'great' breakfast. Their breakfast spread is so odd here. Who eats deli meat for breakfast? There was lots and I mean lots of bread, like dinner rolls and French bread. Then there were different combinations of eggs and little meat things that looked like miniature hot dogs. Not really what I want to eat. I found some fresh fruit and drank some orange juice. We sat at a larger table with a bunch of LBCC people and then one couple from Kentucky, named Teresa and Eric. They talked a lot about life in Kentucky and the Kentucky Derby. Eric is an engineer so Dad enjoyed talking to him after breakfast. Rick came down to breakfast 'late' or was the last one. He's really not a morning person and despising the early morning wake up calls. We have to have wake up calls because there are no clocks in the room. We boarded the bus and drove about 1.5 hours to Philippi. When Paul came to Philippi he rode a boat to Neapolis. The boats he rode on were larger, commercial type boats that they just stuck people on. It wasn't a person only boat or cruise like we are on now sailing to Turkey. From Neapolis he would have walked to Philippi. In Paul's days, people could walk anywhere from 40-65 kilometers and would rarely ride an animal. Our guide said an animal is just like having another person in your traveling party. You have to feed the donkey, give it rest, water, and a place to sleep. So they would often just walk instead of riding an animal. Once we arrived in Philippi, Coastes bought out tickets. As we were waiting, I noticed a game of soccer going on with boys that were about 9-10 years old. I wanted to jump in the game and play with them. They seemed to be having fun, playing 'football' and I don't know if they are fully aware of how historic the place is where they live. We first saw remains of the ancient city with huge columns and even a few archways still stood. It's amazing to see the archways and how they were made. It seems the stones were precisely stuck together and gravity and force has kept them there. Upon walking further, we found the theatre. While the theatre was a typical theatre of this time period, the underground area was something I'd never seen before. One level below and to the front of the theatre was the staging area for the actors who performed in the plays of the theatre. There were many different 'rooms' and archways down there as well. What was really interesting was where Coastes said the animals were kept that were used in the performances. Coastes mentioned the movie, Gladiator, which I'll have to watch again, but he showed us where they were kept and how they were moved up a platform and practically 'sprung' into the stage area. We envisioned only lions, but they used also tigers that they would get from Africa. We got a group picture taken in the theatre and as we were forming on the ancient steps, a Korean group that we have seen before entered the theatre. They began singing a song and nearly every person had their hands raised to heaven. We obviously couldn't tell what the song was because of the language, but it sounded beautiful. When the finished, we all clapped for them and they were grateful for that. It was really neat to see another group of people, from another country, visiting the same sites and worshiping. The area we had see to this point, was just the theatre and some ruins around the theatre. I guess I thought that was about it, but then we continued to walk and came up to an opening where across a small road down below was a huge city of ruins! I remembered saying, "Wow!" There were very tall ruins and rows of columns that were outlining the ancient agora. I wasn't feeling the best during this part of the tour, so I know some details that Coastes shared with me weren't quite registering. I took lots of pictures and tried to focus on the details of their craftsmanship. All the buildings of Philippi were enclosed by a strong wall and the Via Egnatia passed through the city. Paul probably traveled on the Via Egnatia and if he did he would have entered the city of Philippi by means of the Neapolis Gate. The city's main buildings stood on either side of the Via Egnatia. To the north was a theatre, from the time of Phillip II. On the southern side were the remains of a Roman market, which housed the workshops, warehouses, public speakers, fountains, a library and two small temples. Paul's purpose in visiting Philippi was to share the gospel and many think his first concern would have been contacting the Jews living there. However, there might not have been many Jews living in Philippi because there is no remains that have been found of a Jewish synagogue. We were able to see the 'traditional' site that many believe is the place where Paul and Silas were held in jail. I say traditional because there are many that believe that isn't the correct location. I asked Coastes what he believes and he thinks the jail cell is yet to be discovered next to the administrative offices. I guess during that time the jails were normally kept next to the General's quarters. Makes sense. In Acts 16:16 we read about how Paul and Silas were thrown in to jail. One key part that is missing in the translations between Greek and NIV was in verse 17. A girl was good at predicting futures and followed Paul and Silas around shouting to others that they have 'the' way to be saved. Coastes asked us what was wrong with that. We did think anything. But actually the exact word in the Greek Bible say, 'a' way to be saved. This is why Paul became so troubled with her later and commanded the spirit to come out of her. When this happened, she was no longer able to tell fortunes and the owners of the girl became mad and thus had Paul and Silas thrown in jail. Bob in our group asked a good question about looking for evidence of the earthquake that got Paul and Silas out of jail that night. Coastes said that won't work because the miracle in the earthquake was not that there was an earthquake - they occur often in this area, but the timing of the earthquake. After seeing the jail, we saw a piece of a pediment (which I had no idea what that word even meant). It's an architectual term, so Dad knew what it was. Coastes asked for what this piece of stone way. Dad first guessed it was a sign dial, but that was incorrect. it was actually a shield and a spear, so that meant it belonged to the offices of the Army - the generals. Cool! By the way, the pediment is the triangular top part of the roof facing the courtyard. Learn something new everyday! In Acts 16:13, it mentions Paul and Silas going to the river side to pray. Once they were there, they met a lady named Lydia. Coastes said she was probably from Asia and we don't know her real name. She was probably from the 'Lydia' region of Asia and thus had the name Lydia. She held the gospel message and believed. Paul baptized her in the river they were sitting next to. This rive is now referred to as "Little Jordan" because Lydia was the first person to be baptized on the European contitent. There is a small area erected to mark the site and perform baptisms. It was very peaceful there and I enjoyed city in the structure and listening to Coastes' stories. Lydia's job was to sell purple cloth from the city of Thyatira. Coastes explained that the cloth was made purple from sea shells and he passed around an example. I bought a little jar in the gift shop that I figured was for collecting water from the river. So I filled my little jar with water and screwed the lid on tight. I wish I had water from the Jordan River, but I don't. So I now have water from the Little Jordan. We then went into the church that was built there to honor the commitment that Lydia made and eventually her whole family. The church was beautiful and very symmetrical. it was really cold inside, probably because of the marble structure. It was quite refreshing. The church inside wasn't a normal church with pews and an alter. It was a 'in the round' church. We gathered around the octoganal shaped area and listened to Rick share some scripture written in Phillipians about how God is faithful to finish the good work he has started in us. Then Diane had us sing the song that goes with that scripture. We sounded pretty good in the church. After the tour, we had lunch in the courtyard area. This area seemed to be a place where locals would come to play in the park and have lunch as well. It was nice to see so many children around. We ate lunch with Duane and Linda from Colorado Springs. Dad had visited with Duane the day before on the bus and really liked him. Linda is a school teacher and now counselor a high school, so I have things in common with her. They are really nice people. They asked a lot about our family and Dad went talked most of the time. For lunch we got to choose from a 'live menu' as I called it. They just came around with a tray of food and you picked what you wanted. Then they prepared it and brought it to the table. I had a burger with no bun - it didn't come with one and french fries. It was decent. I also ordered a Coke, but no ice. They don't know the luxuries in life they are missing out on! Actually I never considered ice a luxury before. After lunch we boarded the bus for the ride back to Thessaloniki. Before heading directing for our hotel we stopped at an overview to see Neaopolis and get some great pictures from up above. Then we made another off the road stop at Amphilpolis and saw a HUGE lion statue that is along the Via Egnatia. In Acts 17:1, it says, "They traveled by way of Amphipolis and Apollonia and came to Thessalonica." It is believed that this statue dates to 2 century BC so Paul would have walked by this statue! The statue is near a cemetary but no one knows for certain who it was erected for. Some believe it was for a general of Alexander the Great, but not for sure. I was really impressed with the size of the state and the completeness of it. It's been there for along time and it's still all together! I just imagined Paul walking along the road and seeing this statue. I wonder what he must of thought of it, if it was normal to see things like that all the time. We got back to Thessaloniki relatively early tonight. It was around 5:30. Dinner was to be served at 7 o'clock, but I am growing very tired of the food. I convinced Dad to venture out into the streets of Thessaloniki in search of American food - or as American as I can get. Dad said, "What do you feel like eating." I answered honestly saying, "Chili's, Taco Bell or PIzza Hut." So we asked the front desk if they knew any Mexican or Italian restaurants. He knew of a little Italian restaurant real close but didn't know the name. He spent some time trying to figure that out. While we were waiting Ken called and wanted to FaceTime. It was perfect that I just happened to be in the lobby with wifi and the call came through. So then I was able to talk to Ken in the lobby for about 20 minutes. It was so great to see him. It was in the morning there and he was sitting in his office. I told him all about the places we'd seen that day and about the lion statue. He googled it and found it after only one try. He showed me the picture via the phone and I said that's the one! Then he was able to read about what I was seeing. Then Dad and I ventured out to find the restaurant. We took a few wrong turns and soon had no idea where it was. Dad went into another hotel and got much better directions and a better map. Then we found it exactly! The Italian restaurant was actually an Italian Wine Bar. We were interested in the wine, but the food. There was only one lady working there (it was a very small place, only held about 20-30 people). She read the entire menu to us and explained what everything was. She was so friendly and made the experience so much better. I had a panini and a little pizza to share with Dad. Dad got to a salad. All the food was really good. It was so nice to actually have a meal that was edible and enjoyable. Oh how I miss enjoying my food and knowing what exactly it is. Then we went back to the hotel. I went to the Mezzanine floor to blog and listen to the Fan. Dad went across the street to the biker bar - yep my dad - with others from our group. I think it was just Don, Echo, Michelle and Marv were there. They all enjoy wine and Dad went for the company. Although I did hear they got a free round of Ouzo shots. Time for bed, wake-up early in the morning.