Osios David

So, as I was saying (sorry, I guess you have to read these posts from bottom to top), the sign pointed in the same direction as Vlatades, and that was only about 10 feet away. So, we figured Osios David had to be close (it's a small 5th century church). So we started walking in that direction, and walking, and walking. The streets in this part of the city are very narrow and winding, and houses just seem to appear in every nook and cranny. You can even see houses built into parts of the ancient walls (see top photo). I read that the reason for this was because, during the 1922 population exchange with Turkey, Greece was flooded with repatriated Christians, and the government decided to funnel many of them into this part of the city. The second photo is of a really neat, tiny house squeezed into this area.


So we're walking all over looking for what the tour books all say is a major attraction of historical Thessaloniki. But we can't find it anywhere. Well, after stopping to check a map a couple times, we finally stumbled on it. It is basically hidden in the midst of a bunch of modern houses and apartment complexes. You could be standing 20 feet from it and not see it. Of course, it was about 5 PM when we arrived, so it was closed (to open again from 6-8 PM, or so the travel books said). So anyway, we figured we should get a couple pictures from the gates. ( ;

Now at least we know where it is for the next time we come! And the lesson from all this is: Don't trust Greek road signs! There's one in downtown Thessaloniki with just a right arrow that says "Baths of Thermi." It's right next to other signs for nearby attractions, so we asked around about the Baths of Thermi. It turns out they're 40 miles away!