Some of my favorite memories from Greece were in Epidavros.

In all our travels, we have that singular opportunity to dive into the history of a whole other world and behold its ancient ruins and are gifted with a taste of its magic, but some places are more magical than others.

This is Epidavros.

The image above is why we always rent a car when we travel so that we can go at our own pace and explore some of the farthest reaches available to us.

With this freedom, we were able to arrive just as the Ancient Theater of Epidavros was opening – so before any tour buses or hoards of people arrived. We could wander through this amazing ancient site all by ourselves and top it off with the sunrise pouring over the mountains like a spotlight on an opening scene of a show about to start.

I can not stress enough the value of sitting in a site like this all by yourself (or with your favorite person) and being able to really take it all in without distraction.

Not only did we get to meditate on the sunrise, but we also caught a little show 🙂 While we were approaching this ancient theater, two local pups took it upon themselves to be our tour guides. 

Then as if they had rehearsed it, they both scampered to the middle of the theater and started playing. I love to tell this story! That time in Epidavros when two puppies put on a play for us in ancient Greece – further proving our eternal point that dogs always make everything better 😀 

Honestly, I can learn everything about a place – who built it and why, the history of it all, but what’s most fulfilling and makes me love travel are memories just like this.

Following the excellent Greek puppy-play, we climbed the stone steps to the very top where I heard a cat meowing down at the bottom of the theater – thanks to the mastery of ancient Greek acoustics. 

This little cat meowed, and out of sheer common courtesy, I meowed right back. The cat, who heard me, then made her way allll the way up to those ancient stone steps and into my lap for pets. 

There is no shortage of well-kept stray cats and dogs throughout Greece – everywhere! – and I have to say, they really do add to the magic of it all. 

If you have the chance to head to Greece, just remember to do as the Greeks do – take it slow and savor every moment!

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From one of our favorite travel guides, Rick Steves:

“Epidavros’ theater is the finest and best-preserved of all of Greece’s ancient theaters — and that’s saying something in a country with 132 of them. 

For a truly stunning theater experience, a trip to Epidavros is a must. Located in the northeast part of the Peloponnesian Peninsula, Epidavros is near Nafplio — my vote for the most charming town in Greece and a good home base for exploring these ruins. In 400 BC Epidavros’ sprawling complex of hospitals and sick wards was the most famous healing center in the Greek world. It was a place of miraculous cures, where the sick came to be treated by doctor-priests doing the work of Asklepios, the Greek god of medicine.

The highlight of Epidavros is its fine theater, which provided entertainment for those who made the pilgrimage here. Given its size (it seated up to 15,000) and obvious lack of modern amplification, the acoustics needed to be perfect. They were…and still are. Sitting in the most distant seat as your travel partner stands on stage, you can practically hear the retsina rumbling in her stomach.” 

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We hope you enjoyed our travels! Spin us a tale of all your own favorite travel spots in the comments below and check out more tales of romance and adventure.