There are many Byzantine churches to enjoy in Thessaloniki - indeed here is the richest collection
anywhere in Greece .
We have time to see just two.
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| agia sophia |
We first make our way to Agia Sophia, reminiscent of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul
on which indeed it is based, with its 9th and 10th century mosaics, and one of
15 UNESCO World Heritage sites in the city. Here we are treated to the
beginning of a Greek Orthodox wedding! We were taking plenty of photos between
us and no one seemed to mind - but we were surely being disrespectful?
The seats in the church are extremely uncomfortable - but
then worshipers are not meant to sit in them for any length of time.
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| wedding at Agia Sophia |
We have lunch all together in a local restaurant - and very good it is too - but they
really cannot cope with us all descending on them at once - and there are
problems with paying afterwards. But hey go with the flow - there is no Greek word
for deadline apparently.
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| Agia sophia |
From Agia Sophia we go to St Demetrius Basilica (church) or Agios Dimitrios, the site of Demetrius' martyrdom, and the largest church
in Greece, with a very rich religious history and fine mosaics. The crypt of Agios Dimitrios, where according to Christian tradition Dimitrios died in AD 303, is
probably the oldest surviving part of the church, and some mosaics dating from
the early 7th century can be seen here. This church gives us an idea of what
Basilica A would have looked like at Philippi .
By contrast with our previous experiences in Georgia and
South East Turkey on previous pilgrimages, females do not generally wear headdress in
church. This we are told is because during the Turkish occupation the Greek
Orthodox were made to cover their heads to identify them, and this current
practice is therefore a reaction to that!
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| Agios Dimitrios |
Some in church did have their heads covered though - Mara
said these would be perhaps Russian Orthodox, therefore they are showing
respect in their own way.
There is a rare mosaic of a dead Jesus Christ - a symbolic of
hopelessness.
How do I feel in here? We listen to the beginning of Paul's first letter to the Thessalonians, one of his earliest written letters, which he wrote to strengthen and encourage the young church here, and we see the relics of St Demetrius. The mosaics and icons are all very beautiful and there are lots of locals crossing themselves three
times in front of everything and kissing icons. In fact many people here make the sign of the cross three times every time they pass a church as a sign of respect. In spite of all of this I do
not find this a "thin" or very spiritual place at all.
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| Agios Dimitrios |
Perhaps I am in spiritual overload. We are all certainly very
weary and ready to check in to our hotel. There is a Greek man who clearly feels
as we do - slumped fast asleep in the church head lolled against a pillar. On
our way through the city to our hotel I see a group of students at a busy street
corner in a very small green space - cooking a BBQ and having a small party!!
And a dust cart working on a Sunday!
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| Agios Dimitrios |
So to the hotel to check in at 4pm for just one night - we
are all very glad to get to our rooms - but first we are warned by Andrew that
we must not expect the ambiance and quality of our accommodation in Kavala. He
was right! The Holiday Inn is very acceptable but certainly not up to the standards of that
chain elsewhere as I remember them from my business days - but hey we are in Greece and it has more than its fair share
of problems at the moment so let's not be too critical.
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| Agios Dimitrios - some of the wonderful mosaics |
And the hotel cannot
really compete head-on with the wonderful waterside setting of our hotel in
Kavala. This hotel has also clearly had its own difficulties. I read that not
so long ago it suffered from an influx of Libyan refugees. Those poor people -
there seems to be a family group "squatting" on the street corner
below my balcony with their few possessions in bags of all description. So much
suffering - and we quibble over the niggling defects in our hotel rooms.
Pray for refugees and the homeless everywhere - pray for
solutions to the great political and social problems that cause such
unhappiness and displacement in so many parts of the world.
And our greatest suffering at the moment beyond small gripes about the hotel is from information overload - so much to absorb, all
so interesting.
I for one am still finding it difficult to get into the
pilgrim mode; I still feel more of a tourist than a pilgrim, although the
chanting in the church at the Orthodox wedding (which we
"gate-crashed") touched a spiritual spot with some of us.
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| Agios Dimitrios wonderful mosaics |
We finish the evening as usual with Compline - Mark tells us that
Paul would have been influenced by the Stoics - and that Acts is not always a strictly
accurate historical record - although Luke is known for accuracy and detail - but in the end meaning is what counts. I was so tired after
Compline I tried to open my room door with my credit card instead of the bit of
plastic which served as a key!
Today we hear the news that the latest negotiations with Greece and the
EU have failed - this poor country - how will it end? And poor Georgia - the
destination of our wonderful pilgrimage in 2014 - have just declared a
national day of mourning over lives lost when the River Vere in Tbilisi burst
its banks on Saturday night and flooded large areas of the city, including the
city zoo.
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| carpets in Thessaloniki |
Many are homeless and animals, many dangerous, wander the streets. It
is surreal to see pictures of lions and tigers in the streets, a hippo looking
bemused, a bear clinging to the side of a building on an air conditioning unit!
So sad that many had to be shot. We pray for Georgia, Tbilisi and our lovely guide Maka who
accompanied us on that Georgian trip, and are so happy that she is OK - the wonders
of instant communication on Facebook.
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