Greece is a magical place, where history is alive and permeates the people and the culture, even as both are vividly alive and very much in the present. At Knossos, the only ghosts are those of men, but at Delphi, the ancients are everywhere, attending to your visit and your life. It isn’t uncommon to meet modern women called by names that pay homage to their long history: Sophia, Persephone or Athena. Men answer to classical names too: Zeus, Panos - even Adonis and Paris!
In classical and modern times, the Greeks (they call themselves ‘Ellenes, their country ‘Ellas - we put an ‘h’ sound in front of both, hence Hellas, Hellenes, Hellenic) identified themselves primarily as from a particular extended family (oikos), a group of oikoi (demos) or a city-state (polis). But to the rest of the world, the Greeks were bound by an intangible bond that the Greeks called philotimo - literally, a love of ‘us’ or an intense loyalty that transcended local loyalties and provided a common community abroad. Thus, the Greek communities in the ancient world and today provided connections and community all over the world. In the USA, we’d recognize it as networking! The Greeks have since been one of the most successful merchant communities, at home and abroad.
Rome here does not refer to the city as much as the entire period and civilization. The city was built on the Seven Hills, and came to represent the glory and the decadence of Western culture. Under the Petrine Doctrine, Rome became the center of Western Christianity and the seat of the Holy See. Today it is a vibrant city, alive with history, modernity, noise, people and culture. Explore its past, present and future by following the links here, and finding your own!
