During the Spring holidays, 80 boys and 8 teachers went to Greece for the 9th Classics extravaganza. We flew to Athens and stayed there for three nights. We looked around Athens on the first day, and saw the Parthenon on the Acropolis and several temples, as well as the archaeological museum, with its fascinating statues and gold from Mycenae. Sadly the museum shut early, which meant the seniors didn’t get to see it. Score 1 to the Juniors!

Aegina - Temple of Aphaia

On day 2, we went to the island of Aegina by ferry. By the time we arrived, the sky was blue, and it was warm. Firstly we visited the impressive temple of Aphaia. Then we went down to the small port of Agia Marina, where we ate our lunches and played football on the beach.

Athens - Athena's Olive Tree on Akropolis

On day 3, we got up very early for a long journey across the Peleponnese. On the way we stopped for a short while to see the Corinth Canal. Then to Epidaurus where there was a huge theatre. We were treated to Mr Cowburn reciting a few extracts from Shakespeare, greatly appreciated by tourists of all nationalities, but not by the Greek man with the whistle! Then on to Mycenae, where we saw the Lion Gate, and the ‘Cyclopean’ walls of the ancient city. Also there was a long, pitch black, water tunnel that went to nowhere, but was fun to go down. The day ended in Pylos, a small fishing village.

Delphi - the Stadion

The next morning we were off to Newcastle, or rather a medieval fort, called Neocastro, with excellent views over the island of Sphacteria. Then we went to see the knee-high remains of Nestor’s palace, and his 4000 year old bath.

Epidaurus Theatre

Our next site was Olympia, where we held our own races on the original Olympic running track, which was 190 metres long. Well done to Tobi Akin-Taylor and Ollie Brookes who won the RGS Olympic Games. From there we drove on to Delphi, crossing the amazing Rio-Antirio road bridge across the Gulf of Corinth.

Running at the Olympia Stadion

On our last day, we walked around the ancient and atmospheric site of Delphi, which was on the side of a mountain. We had planned to have another race at the race track here too, but sadly it was cordoned off, due to falling rocks. In the museum we saw the famous Charioteer sculpture. In the afternoon, we had time to buy our souvenirs and an ice cream, before returning to the hotel to pack for home.

Lion Gate - Mycenae

 It was a very exciting and interesting trip, and we would like to thank all the teachers who came with us and helped to make it a memorable experience.

 By Andrew Smith, 9W