CAPE SOUNION - TEMPLE OF POSEIDON
Standing some 60m/200 feet above the sea at the edge of a cliff on Cape Sounion, is one of the most breathtaking and deeply moving sites in all of Greece. And Greece has many of them. The temple is an hour's drive from central Athens and both the site itself and the route leading to it are worth every minute of the drive. The road runs along the Saronic coast and from the window of your car or bus you can enjoy the endless and brilliant blue sea. If you are traveling by car make sure you stop for a breath of sea-scented air and a walk on the beach. You will also find many coffee shops, fresh fish tavernas and ouzeri along the way.
The promontory of Sounion is the southernmost tip of Attica. Here, on the windswept bluff rising above the Aegean Sea, stands the temple of Poseidon, one of the most impressive classical monuments to have survived to the present day. It was built shortly after the middle of the 5th century B.C. during the same period that saw the beginning of work on the great monuments on the Athenian acropolis.
Although, it is today in ruins it still dominates the surrounding countryside from its site on the highest point of the region. Quite close by there is also the sanctuary of the goddess Athena. Sounion receives today countless visitors from every part of the world. There are now two roads linking Sounion with Athens, which means that the trip can be made swiftly and in comfort, and that it is possible to take a different route on the return journey and thus see two entirely different facets of the Attic countryside.
