Greece & Italy Day 5: Octavian, Antony, Cleopatra, and Turkish Delight

“As soon as I send Artemas or Tychicus to you, do your best to come to me at Nicopolis, because I have decided to winter there.”

That verse (Titus 3:12, incidentally) was our sole Biblical justification for visiting the city of Nicopolis on the western coast of Greece. There were plenty of historical reasons for going though, and this time I took notes, so if you want the less detailed version, just watch this video I recorded.

Our first of the day was at the top of a hill overlooking the area. This was where Octavian set up camp overlooking the Ionian Sea and Ambracian Gulf, the site of the naval battle of Actium where he defeated Antony and Cleopatra in 61 B.C. Following his victory, he set up a monument to Apollo on that site, the remains of which we were there to see (we saw many other pieces at Nicopolis’ new museum later that day). To commemorate his victory (and perhaps for other strategic reasons), Octavian also established the city of Nicopolis and reinstated the Aktia Games.

Monument to Apollo overlooking Ionian Sea

The city of Nicopolis was formed by forcing the resident of 12 nearby villages to relocate there, as well as by getting Roman military veterans and supporters of Octavian to move there. The city was also financed in large part by Herod the Great, interestingly enough – he hated Antony and Cleopatra and had set a goal of helping to finance 20 Roman cities.

The city was encircled by a Roman wall, now largely gone as it was “recycled” for later building projects, including a Byzantine wall built in the 5th century A.D. Those walls encircled only 1/6 of what the previous walls had, but large sections remain and are an incredible site to behold.

Byzantine Walls of Nicopolis

Have I mentioned how big the Byzantine Wall is?

The Aktia Games were established in 29-27 B.C. and apparently lasted until the 3rd century A.D. They were equal in stature to the Olympic Games and attracted participants from all over the Roman empire. We saw the remains of several sites that had been used in the games, including a theatre that had seated 20,000; a 600-foot long (the standard length) stadium; and the Odeion, which functioned at times as both theatre and council house and could seat 1,000.

We just can't stay away from theatres

The city of Nicopolis flourished for a time, fell into decline, but then flourished as an important religious (Christian) center in the 5th and 6th centuries A.D. By this time, the Roman Empire had moved its capital east to Constantinople (330 A.D.) and had adopted Christianity as its official religion (381 A.D.). Nicopolis was strategically located between the East and West, which led to its renewed importance. From that time period we saw the remains of a Christian basilica, as well as a “palace” which is believed to have once served as a Roman praetorium and then later as a bishop’s mansion.

Every time I see the remains of basilicas I’m really struck by the fact that they were once actual churches with people in attendance. In this case, the basilica was overseen by a “great-hearted bishop” – or at least that’s how he described himself in the mosaic he had created in the floor of the basilica which remains to this day.

Following our site visit we returned to Preveza for lunch (more gyros – yum!) before heading toward Corinth. From Preveza, we took the underwater tunnel beneath the mouth of the Ambracian Gulf to reach Actium on the other side. We later crossed a huge suspension bridge across the mouth of the Corinthian Gulf to reach Peloponnese peninsula. If you’re not familiar with the Peloponnese it’s fascinating – just a narrow strip of land (an isthmus) connects it to the rest of Greece. The ancient Corinthians tried to create a canal so ships could pass through, but failing that they created a road that they could haul ships across. If Wikipedia is correct, a canal was created in 1893 so technically it’s now an island.

En route to Corinth we made a pit stop where I found and purchased some Turkish Delight, which they call Greek Delight here (double yum!).

We’re now staying at a beach hotel outside Corinth (it’s off-season, cold and rainy). We have a jam-packed day tomorrow and then late afternoon it will be off to Athens.

In addition to the sites we’ve seen, some of the best moments of the trip so far have been when we’ve been able to connect with other folks on our trip and hear their hearts and their passions. Definitely hoping that continues to happen!