Greece Travel Tips and Guide

Marriage was regarded as an auspicious relationship in the ancient Greek society. Marriage was very important to carry family chain. In the Greek culture, every respectable woman became a wife if she could. In marriage, there was hardly room for choice. Destiny played an important role in solemnizing marriage. Woman had no alternate than marriage. The sacred wedding rituals were interwoven by the various ceremonies. These ceremonies had ritual meaning and overlapping rites.

There is great evidence for these formalities, both literary and artistic, which helps to provide a complete account of Greek customs. Offerings, dedications and sacrifices were made by the bride and the groom. Marriage consisted of a private contract where woman was transferred to her husband. Marriage consisted of transfer and transformation. Transformation means actually giving the responsibility of the woman. Many things pointed towards her transformation like cutting of hair and offering them to virgin deities. Presenting the hair locks to the goddess often signifies the attainment of womanhood.

Greek society stresses upon the marriage of a girl at the age of fourteen. Boys are found eligible at the age of thirty after they have served military force. Girls are obliged to marry where their father wants. Various types of rituals are followed in the marriage ceremony. Both the bride and groom take bath in the holy spring. On the wedding day, girl is dressed in the traditional attire. She is taken in veil to the banquet hall. She is accompanied by her friends and relatives. Groom attires in the best outfit reaches the bride's home with a procession of friends, relatives and family members. Drums are played and crackers are burst to ward away evil spirit spirits. Music and dance plays a major role in the festivities. Bride and the groom wear a crown or garland to mark the occasion.

The actual transfer of the bride from father to groom takes place at night after the bridal banquet. After the great feast the procession in a chariot takes place from the home of the bride to the home of the groom. Bride stands in the cart as her husband mounts it in preparation for their journey. Families follow the chariot by foot bearing gifts. Bride’s mother carries the torch in the journey at night to light the way. Bride eats an apple as a part of the incorporation rites which demonstrates her new union with her husband. Fruits and nuts are showered on the couple which acts as agents of fertility and prosperity.

One day the after the marriage, an outdoor procession of people is held. It is called the Epaulia. It is an outdoor procession of people who brings gifts. Gifts generally include vases filled with greenery, baskets, pots, furniture, jewelry and combs. Athenian marriage is relationship between a man and a woman who had the primary goal of producing children and maintaining the identity of the social and political community. In ancient Sparta, the ceremony was very simple. After a tussle, to prove his superior strength, the groom would toss his bride over his shoulder and carried her off.

Slaves in the ancient Greek culture cannot marry because marriage was considered only for the privileged class. Any children which were born from their masters were disposed off because the slaves have no right to rear children

From his youth Alexander was tutored by an elderly Plato in the ways of people and the wisdom of the ages. As a youth Plato had listened at the feet of Socrates. Alexander learned to look at all aspects of a situation. This is reflected when his father, King Phillip of Macedonia, and his followers all failed to mount and ride a mighty horse brought to sell to Phillip as a sales opportunity to own the most powerful horse in the land. Alexander was the last to try, after pleading with his father, who was afraid the horse would hurt the boy.

Alexander may be the first on record of the fabled horse whisperers. Alexander turned Bucephalus around as he had noticed the horse was afraid of his own shadow, which he no longer saw, facing the other way now. After a period of Alexander relating to Bucephalus, whispering and stroking the huge beast, then mounting him and riding around pleasantly, Bucephalus was purchased for Alexander. King Philip exclaimed that Alexander should look for a kingdom larger than Macedonia as it was not large enough to hold him.

As history shows this was a prophetic statement. Yet Alexander was more than a brilliant tactician and fierce warrior who could inspire confidence in his men, he held loyalty for service on a high level of understanding. When his beloved horse Bucephalus died in India years later, Alexander mourned as if he had lost a blood brother, and had a town built in his beloved steeds memory. To beging with however, Alexander was always the best at everything. In the private school reserved for princes of Greece, where Plato taught. The school was built specially by King Philip in the place of Platos birth.

So this was a chance to later impress and pursuade all Greece if he could dominate these boys, and he did. Alexanders school mates were the other princes of Greece and nearby kingdoms. As they all grew and took power over their own kingdoms, they were easily convinced by Alexander to join in what all else seemed to think was an impossible dream: to attack and conquer Persia. All else in history had been the reverse. Mighty Persia controlled vast portions of the near and middle east. They controlled all of Turkey which had them always it seemed at the Gates to Greece, Athens and Sparta in particular.

Always the attacks with superior forces came from Persia whether by land or sea. Persia was determined and the Greeks and Macedonians were in a state of constant siege. When the time came Alexander had his men ferried across into Persian territory on the west coast of present day Turkey. His ten thousand Greek and Macedonian soldiers faced the army of Persia. King Darius was at the back of them, and they faced off against each other.

The Greeks turned their columns of sixteen foot poles sharpened to a tip which then created massacre, slaughter, Persian soldiers fleeing, as did King Darius when he saw and realized that these were ten thousand warriors of a class he had never before seen.

It seemed an impossibility than ten thousand could defeat one hundred thousand Persian soldiers. But with the innovation of his front line weapon Alexander had the men equipped with a sixteen foot sharpened pole, which they attacked first. The Persians, equipped only with bows, arrows and short swords, parted like the sea in front of this new force The Greeks were skewering Persians soldiers before they had a chance to use their swords, their arrows did little harm as the Greeks moved into a wedge shape and attacked directly into the midst of the Persians.

Darius tried to escape but was killed by his own men who fell to their knees in homage to Alexander and his men. Alexander ordered gentle treatment of the women and fair discipline only when need for the soldiers. All Persia soon became his and he burned the old capital Persepolis. Wishing to place a permanent imprint into modern day Turkey and Iran, Alexander married Roxanne, a beautiful daughter of the defeated King Darius, and had ten thousand of his men also take a Persian bride. Today in old Persia there are apparently quite a few lads named Alexander, with blue eyes, in what had been Persia.