Smooth Road Trip Drive from Vergina to Larissa, Greece
We did the tour of Archaeological site of Aigai, modern name – Vergina, in 2 hours. The tour of Royal tombs didn’t take much time. Although we wanted to linger on there was not much to do except browse through the souvenir shop and drive around the place a bit.
There were no other noteworthy buildings around. The place looks deserted, probably the little shops around came up because of the world heritage site recognition which has increased the tourist traffic there. Aigai, one more UNESCO site of Greece done!
Souvenir shop at Vergina, Greece
I halted for a while here taking pictures of the houses in Vergina knowing I will never return to this city. It was a ‘goosebumps moment’ for me when this present merged with visions I had from the history lessons in school.
Some moments I even doubted if this was true or a dream! Although my wish to see Alexander the Great’s resting place remained unfulfilled, I was happy to visit his land. It was a strange feeling to imagine him gallop all the way from here to India.
Story of Alexander and his favorite horse Bucephalus
I remembered yet another story – that of Alexander and his favorite horse Bucephalus.
Bucephalus was Alexander the Great’s horse and is reputed to be the most famous horse in history. Philoneicus of Thessaly brought Bucephalus to Macedonia and presented to King Phillip II (Alexander’s father) in 346 BCE.
With a price tag almost three times the norm beautiful black horse stood taller than the normal Macedonian steed of those times. But it was too wild and unmanageable, rearing up against anyone who came near him. Disappointed Phillip ordered him led away.
Watching the spectacle before him Alexander rose, calling them spineless. Alexander repeated his challenge and said he would pay for the horse if he, Alexander, were unable to tame him.
Alexander approached the horse (he would name Bucephalus) calmly. He had realized something the others had not — the horse was afraid of its own shadow. Turning Bucephalus towards Sun so that his shadow was behind him and then slowing taking the reins in his hand, the young Alexander mounted him.
According to Plutarch, as Alexander returned to the arena with Bucephalus and dismounted, King Phillip said, “O my son look thee out a kingdom equal to and worthy of thyself, for Macedonia is too little for thee.”
Historians claim this taming of the wild Bucephalus was a turning point in the young prince’s life. This demonstrated his confidence and determination for his conquest of Asia.
Interested in story of a brave horse? Read this: Chetak, Brave Horse of Maharana Pratap
Road Trip Vergina to Larissa
We found that the road to Larissa from Vergina was a pleasant one to drive. Not congested till we almost approached Larissa. Beautiful scenery and easy to drive roads was such a refreshing contrast to the roads we have faced in Bangalore. Read this: Battle with Cattle in Bangalore Roads.
To drive around in Greece we needed 2 important documents: International Driving Permit and Valid Driving Licence for India.
For snow covered roads it is advisable to have snow chains/tyres. We were lucky that at the peak of winters (December 27) these roads didn’t have any trace of snow. Weather Gods were kind to us!
We planned the night halt at Larissa. The whole stretch of road trip Vergina to Larissa – 137 km, we covered it in 2 hours without any halt. A small stretch from Katerini to Neoi Poroi was along the coast of Aegean Sea.
The sea seemed so close and we wanted to halt and soak our feet on the beach. Sadly we had to hurry to reach Larissa before it got completely dark.
Sun had long departed after showering its golden rays by the time we reached Larissa. Larissa is not such a big city that you can get lost in; not too much crowd, yet lot of people around. Evening times are the best to be in any city, one gets to experience the life of the place. Larissa does have some historical sites. Unfortunately it was too dark.
Check out: A Night in Larissa Greece
The picture is of a building in Larissa. I was fascinated by the unique shape of the building.
Route map followed for Road trip Vergina to Larissa Greece
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Wow….. Hope you had lot of fun!!
That really was a unique building.
JM, IL-U.S.A.
Beautiful skies and landscapes.
Photo of the car in which you drove is missing 🙂
Amazing….Awesome photos, Thanks for your post.
Very beautiful landscape and interesting captures on sky watching! I too liked the architecture of the building from wide to narrow… wow! the maps shows u were traveled almost close to shore.
Very beautiful landscape and interesting captures on sky watching! I too liked the architecture of the building from wide to narrow.
images # 3 and 5 are my favourites. Well done for including a map!
The scenery is very beautiful and the building quaint!
That building reminded me of "the old woman who lived in a shoe". Can you see that! Probably just me! Great sky shots
wow keep the pictures coming 🙂
Beautiful landscapes…!
Interesting building!
Great pics 🙂
Amazing! I love the structure of that building, it is quite unique. Thank you for sharing and enjoy a wonderful weekend.
Wonderful scenery!
You had a lovely trip, gorgeous photos!
Glorious skies, beautiful countryside and superb captures as always, Indrani!!
What lovely countryside. Shots #2 & 3 are my favorites. Also that was an interesting building.
Oh my, what a wondeful place, thanks for sharing it all with us.
Gorgeous and golden!
Amazing scenes Indrani!!Beautiful pictures of the landscapes!I know you enjoyed Greece!!See you soon back!
Dimi…
Lovely photos! You seem to have enjoyed Greece a lot. 🙂
Very beautiful pictures you shared.
Greece is very beautiful in places where you went I see.
My one friend has a house also in Greece as well as a condo in Canada.
She spends summer till October there. She is a hairdresser so her daughter takes over her business.
The beaches are so nice and yes countryside.
beautiful landscapes! what a neat building! thanks for linking, indrani! i appreciate it!
I like the pictures of the landscapes 🙂
Have a beautiful day
【ツ】Knipsa
Indrani, wonderful series from your trip to Greece! The countryside is beautiful and the sky shots are pretty.. Have a happy day!
The countryside is lovely and you got some great pictures. Very interesting building–I agree!