Carl is certain he could just see Mt Athos, on the Akti peninsula in the distance
Beautiful nature, birds and flowers and of course the Gods!
We took a 20 minute hike up the mountain. but be warned! And in fact, in many places along the drive up the mountain there are numerous rock fall.
We are sure that with the next shake this one will come tumbling down, it is only held up by two small rocks! Definitely walked quickly passed that one.
Have checked the names of the twelve gods. Different sources have different gods but these are the ones we found: Zeus, Hera, Poseidon,Dementer, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Ares, Aphrodite, Herphaestus, Hermes and Hestia or Dionysus. 
The monestry of Dionysus, about 13 th century was damaged by earthquakes and finally destroyed by the Germans in WWII.
At the foot of the mountain and situated 5 km from the sea, lies the Macedonian city of Dion, dedicated to Zeus and the twelve gods. It is estimated that the city flourished between 5th century BC and the 5 th century AD.
We heard there was wine for sale from the local vineyards in a place called Rafshina. We thought it was a good idea to stock up on the Macedonian wine. The drive took us through the district Piera which is the centre for wine growing. 
We have read up about the gods and found out that archaeological excavations revealed findings from settlements dating back to the Iron Age. These first settlers on the foot of Mt Olympus created the legends that would later give rise to the Twelve Greek Gods.
The 12 gods live in ravines " the mysterious folds of Olympus" according to Homer. They have their palaces there.Pantheon is their meeting place. Their discussions are overheard by the God of all gods, Zeus, sitting on his imposing throne (stefani). From there he unleashes his thunderbolts to show his "godly wrath"
They all have Roman names as well. Then ther are some Other gods for example, Hades, Hercules, Eros and about 30 minor resident gods of Mt Olympus.
On our way up to the top we heard some cowbells klonking. Carl the curious went to explore and found a gang of mules guarded by a viscous dog. At least the barking was frightening. We guess the mules are for transporting wine and other supplies up to the four refuges.
The ancient inhabitants of Dion built a sanctuary devoted to Aphrodite as goddess of the foothills of Olympus, and Artemis the goddess of childbirth.
Artemis was succeeded by the Egyptian goddess, Isis. Alexander the Great held her in highest esteem and he greatly honoured her by personally designating the location of her sanctuary.
The Isis festival took place every spring and autumn. Only initiated pilgrims could enter the sanctuary where they spent the night waiting for the great goddess to visit their dreams and listen to their prayers.
Dion flourished during the Hellenistic and imperial times. After the 4 th century AD it declined with the forced leaving of the inhabitants due to numerous earthquakes.
The sanctuary of Isis.
Sanctuary of Zeus
Worshipped together with Zeus were the Muses, who had been born on the slopes of Mt Olympus. To honour them the annual celebration, the Olympia of Dion was held. Dion was visited frequently by the Macedonian Kings. They came to sacrifice to Zeus Olympios for the ceremonial purification of their army, to take oaths of alliance before the gods, and to celebrate with the army and the people.
About 100 oxen were sacrificed in honour of Zeus before Alexander the Great set out for increasing his empire. My own reflection is that it was a proper offering to ensure a successful campaign and enough meat to have a giant braai (barbecue) for the soldiers.
Beautiful landscape. And we bought a case of a very good white wine. A change from the daily Malamatina, "the key to a healthy life".
All in all this has been a fantastic eventful day. We have been exposed to so much history the past few weeks, from Iron Age settlements, the Macedonians, the Persians, the battles at Galopoli, the WW II, it takes time to absorb all the information and to put it into some kind of perspective. A good reason to sit over a bottle of Retsina late into the night reasoning about The Meaning Of Life! Starting to think that the meaning of life is that there is no meaning, well my change our minds tomorrow!
Carl thinks there is no other meaning but to enjoy!
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