Central Greece - Greece - page 363

Thiva, the birthplace of Hercules and Dionysos, was a powerful city state in 400 BC dur-
ing Greece's golden age, occupying a strategic position between northern Greece and the
Peloponnese. The tragic fate of its royal dynasty, centred on the myth of Oedipus, ri-
valled that of ancient Mycenae.
After the Trojan War in the 12th century BC, Thiva became the dominant city of the
Boeotia region. Thiva's glorious run ended in 335 BC, however, when it was sacked by
Alexander the Great for siding with the Persians.
Although present-day Thiva has few vestiges of its past glory - except for a wonderful
archaeological museum which has been inexplicably closed for the last few years -
Greek history diehards might head here for posterity; the centre is a pleasant enough
place to wander around for an hour or so.
Getting There & Away
Buses operate to Athens (€8, 1½ hours, hourly) from Thiva's central bus station (
22620 27512; KTEL Thiva) , 500m south of Plateia Agios Kalotinis. Trains from Thiva sta-
tion ( 22620 27531; www.trainose.gr ) , 500m north of the museum, depart for Athens (nor-
mal/express/intercity €5/9/10.30, 75/70/60 minutes, 10 daily) and Thessaloniki (normal/
express/intercity €16.70/25/33, 4/5/5.5 hours, one daily).
TOP OF CHAPTER
DelphiΔελφοί
POP 1020
If the ancient Greeks hadn't chosen Delphi (from delphis, womb) as their navel of the
Earth and built the Sanctuary of Apollo here, someone else would have thought of a good
reason to make this eagle's-nest town a tourist attraction. Its location on a precipitous
cliff edge is spectacular and, despite its overt commercialism and the constant passage of
tour buses through the modern village, it still has a special feel. Delphi is 178km northw-
est of Athens and is the base for exploring one of Greece's major tourist sites.