During Spring Break 2008, I had the joyous pleasure of traveling with 35 teenagers and several teachers from Coral Springs High School. We traveled with the Explorica group, lead by our tour guide, Granville Lee-Warner. Granville,a handsome, young man with an exemplary voice, cheered and charmed us throughout our journey. Moreover,he has Greek and British parentage, which made touring through Greece very informative and meaningful. He taught us how to say,"please,hello,goodbye, thank you, and good morning" in Greek...something I think is very important when you are visiting another country. As an orator, Granville created fascinating scenarios from his vast knowledge of the classics. Our students remember Romulus and Remus,the Sirens,Apollo, Athena,the Rennaissance...all of this, so much more interesting when you look out the window and know you are amidst the setting of these wonderful myths. Granville would exclaim, "Create your own myth!" which to me is an invitation to,"Live! Live! Live!", as Auntie Mame would say. Anything you asked Granville became an intriguing response ,as he is a compelling story-teller. This provocative, scholarly, story-teller led us through several Italian cities, Delphi and Athens, Greece.

In the 90's, I sponsored seven trips to Europe with students from Coral Springs High School and after my Spring 2001 trip, I decided to cease leading European trips. Shayna Gershman, sweetly approached me and declared, "Miss Arena, you are our AP Art History teacher and you really should come with us to Italy and Greece". Without hesitation, I responded, "Shayna,I gave up student trips. Sorry!" Then, I started to seriously deliberate. At the time Shayna spoke to me, I could refer to the Louvre, the National Gallery of London, the Prado, the Musee D'Orsay and a litany of other museums throughout Europe. However, I had never seen the classic art and architecture, such as the Pantheon, Parthenon, Colosseum, Delphi, Forum, and Renaissance Florence. So, Ciao and yeia! I decided to ride that time machine right back to the days of classic antiquity. "Et tu,Brute?" Doric columns. Gorgeous David in Florence. The Oracle at Delphi. Above all, the Oracle spoke to me and I believe to all of us.

Delphi was the acme of this trip for me and many others. Nora Okonski, a senior, mentioned that she experienced more spirituality out in the open space among the ancient ruins, then she did at the crowded, materialistic, Vatican. Lauren Culp, also a senior, preferred the clean air and majestic hills to the "rush of Rome". I still see Lisa Bell sitting meditatively upon a substantial, marble stone with her eyes closed assuming a very beautiful, serene expression.

We took an overnight ferry from Bari, Italy and disembarked in Patra, Greece where a bus took us to Delphi. The ride was a visual delight of mountains, cliffs, fields dotted with multi-colored flowers, lakes, goats, sheep, accompanied by shepherds, and antiquated, picturesque villages. There were times that I thought I was in the Swiss Alps, and times that I felt like singing,"You take the high road and I"ll take the low road...bonnie, bonnie, Scotland". After an hour's drive we reached the town of Delphi, which sits at the edge of a cliff, in the valley of Phosis. We arrived at the Hotel Stadion, which is centrally located and actually within walking distance from the archaeological site. The lobby was a cozy room with comfortable chairs, a large TV, and a fireplace. Coming from south Florida, we were excited to see the fireplace and made that apparent to the owner. Much to our delight when we returned after dinner, the fire was burning and this was indeed a thrill for people who live in a climate that registers 80-95 degrees for about 90% of the time and subsequently, provides no opportunity to sit before a warm scenic fireplace. The average rate for a double is about $74 (47 Euro) year-round. In general, Greece was not too expensive considering our $ is absolutely pathetic right now in most western European countries. The Hotel Stadion had a warm, friendly, snug environment. I wondered if this was a foreshadowing of our trip to the home of the Oracle the next day. My anticipation was confirmed.

Delphi is one of the UNESCO World Heritage sites. That evening we walked around the small town center, a charming village highlighted by shops, tea rooms, an intenet cafe, taverns and restaurants. There is an abundance of jewelry stores with unique styles and replicas of Greek art and sculptured Greek philosophers. Sean Marino, a senior who takes a Great Books course from AP Language & Great Books Instructor, Virginia Walz, deliberated for 30 minutes about which philosopher to buy his teacher who introduced him to metaphysics, epistemology, ideology, aesthetics and a host of philosophers. I think Socrates won in his final, methodical, logical, selection. The small restaurants line the main road and a street that runs parallel. On the main street, almost every eating/drinking venue has a panoramic view. This town is modern although the present little town was established in 1892. The streets are narrow and feature a school, a lyceum, a church and a square. On the east side of the village and north side of the main road is the ancient archaeological complex.

At 8:30pm, we had dinner consisting of chicken kabob and baklava. After dinner some of us continued to walk, since the cool mountain air was a refreshing change from our hot, humid, climate and disco leader Lisa Bell escorted some of the group to a discotheque named Sparta. The disco was downstairs in the cellar. You had to go down around 20 steep steps. The walls were all painted black and had flourescent lights that made white glow. Lisa later reported,"LOUD!... cant talk, but hey who talks in a disco!!!!" About 250 kids squashed together on a dance floor. Music selection was pretty broad... new age and techno... and even the Village People with YMCA which brought back some fun memories for Lisa. In our country most night clubs are for the age 21+ group so this experience, thanks to Lisa, was extremely exciting.

We were all excited about seeing the home of the Oracle and had no idea how meaningful that excursion would be for all of us.

The next morning we proceeded to the sacred, site, the sanctuary of Apollo. Before we reached the site, Granville lead us to an area where he told us the legend of Python. Then, he showed us the sacred waters. It is believed that everyone who visited Delphi, for religious purposes, was required to purify in the Castalian Spring. In the spirit of this compelling story, we did not hesitate to dip our hands in them. Literally, going overboard as I am prone to do, I self-baptized, just because I felt so touched by the environs. Vibrant-colored yellow, red, and purple flowers were everywhere. I had wet hands, wet hair, wet face, and unintentionally, wet sneakers. The wind carried a red poppy to me. 'Twas like an omen! I was hoping the wind was Zephyr. I tried not to get too carried away with this mystical, ancient site, but noticed that I wasn't the only one with wet hands and a curious face precluding the actual entrance to the site.

We entered the ancient site climbing stairs, [as a matter of fact climbing stairs was a major undertaking on this entire trip], and went to the first level, entering an agora, where a Delphi guide, a woman from Delphi, continued Granville's brilliant narratives. Among my favorite stories was the fact that the god Apollo spoke through a priestess or pythia who was over the age of 50. Wow! Chalk one up for the Red Hat Society, a group which began as a result of a few women deciding to greet middle age with humor and a young attitude. These young-at-heart middle-aged women meet for tea wearing red hats and purple dresses. This group is qualified to go to Delphi and seek the words of Apollo. The presence of Doric and Ionic, columns, altars, the remains of a theatre, and a multitude of rocks dotted the path that was called the SACRED WAY.

While our Delphi tour guide spoke, we listened intently and carefully, under a clear blue sky with a gentle, mild, wind blowing through the sacred grounds that we stood upon. Smiling, peaceful, participants in this ancient world of wonder and comfort, greeted this day and embraced this unique, extraordinary, mystical, experience. When our Delphic woman finished talking, we separated into groups and pursued our own paths. Some headed for the hills, climbing to reach the pinnacle which featured the 2,500 year old theatre which seats 5,000 people. Many went to their favorite sections and took pictures. I tried to hug as many rocks as possible because I have always "had a thing" for rocks. They outlast flowers, animals, and people and wherever I go, I hug the rocks. Crazy? Maybe, but I am having fun exploring other cultures and have even more fun when I explore them with the people with whom I work. Our work is about learning, thinking, feeling, and building a reservoir of good thoughts and memories about the plethora of diverse, cultures of this planet.

I departed from Delphi with a treasure in my heart. We participated in the home of Apollo, the Oracle of Delphi, and felt refreshed and awakened to a new tenderness and awareness. Go to Delphi and enliven your soul.