Apples and Olympia

by Ciara O'Siorain (Ireland)

A leap into the unknown Greece

Apples and Olympia Sometimes it is at our weakest that we come out on top. As a classicist (and a total antiquities nerd), a tour of Greece seemed like it would be the trip of a lifetime. However, after five days of travelling on the road in a big group with very little privacy or space to oneself, it became something of a nightmare. I felt stressed out, claustrophobic and overwhelmed. However, I put on a brave face and prepared myself for the long day ahead at the Sanctuary of Zeus at Olympia. Stepping off of the bus into the baking sun, what stretched before me was an ancient and sacred land. The atmosphere of reverence and sanctity was almost palpable. We walked among the ruins of great temples, stray dogs guiding us as though they were tour guides themselves. They were the unofficial guardians of Zeus, we were told, here to keep the old ruins protected and to bring peace to those who visited them. One stayed close by me the entire way through the tour, looking up at me with beautiful brown eyes each time we stopped to observe a further part of the sanctuary. The sweet creature brought much peace to me as I took in the beauty of the ruined temples and the colossal size of the collapsed columns. At last, we reached the site of the Ancient Olympic Games. It was then proposed that our group should race! Feeling pretty blue, I tried my best to opt out however I was quickly whipped up to the starting line and we took our positions. On your marks, get set, GO! I raced forward. My leather sandals slapped the hot, dry sand as I ran, my linen dress billowing out behind me. I felt a rush of adrenaline and complete freedom, running in the open air on the same ground as those incredible ancient athletes who had come here to race thousands of years before me. I reached the finish line just behind two others. Third place! I felt an energy rushing through me that felt so powerful. When we had all finished over the line, we were gathered for the award ceremony. We cheered together for all who had raced that day and all those who had raced there before us. The winners were presented with apples - the original prize for runners in the Olympic Games. I clutched my apple close to my chest and felt an immense sensation of pure joy wash over my body as I gazed down at the wide, sandy track before me. Looking up into the sky that night from my hotel balcony, I considered how many ancient victors had stared up at these same stars themselves after they had won the Olympic Games. I wondered how they felt as they stretched out their legs on the grassy banks of the track - had they felt the same reverence and peace that I had felt when I first entered the temple? Had they experienced the same rush of adrenaline? That incredible joy that I had experienced? As I stared up at the clear night sky, the warm breeze softly blowing my hair away from my shoulders, I felt strangely at ease, as though I was finally home - a sensation of comfort I had been sorely missing for the duration of the trip. It was then that I truly appreciated my own leap into the unknown. Despite the hardships and the struggles of travelling together, I felt incredibly lucky to have shared such an astonishing experience with other like-minded classicists, to have shared in a profound appreciation of the past. It was my first time travelling on my own and what felt originally daunting became, from that moment onwards, the most rewarding and breathtakingly beautiful adventure I have ever undertaken. Olympia gave me a true sense of freedom and confidence within myself, but also, a sense of community and belonging which I had never experienced before. Sometimes, it is at our weakest that we come out on top.