ROMANIA / 25TH – 29TH OCTOBER 2013

GREECE

The thermal springs of Thermopyles are situated near Lamia and within a distance of 15 klms. Thermopyles is a well-known place from ancient times because there was a narrow passage about 12m wide between the sea and mountain Knimis leading from north to south Greece.

The legendary battle of Thermopyles was fought there between Leonidas and his soldiers and the Persians in 480 B.C.

THERMOPYLES

According to the ancient Greek mythology, Goddess Athena asked from God Hephaestus to create these thermal springs in order Hercules to have a bath, rest and restore his strength after his labors.

The myth refers that Deianeira, Hercules’ wife, found out that Hercules returning home after one of his labor, brought with him Iole with whom he had fallen in love and she was jealous. So she used the love potion given to her by Centaur Nessos to gain Hercules’ love again. She decided to send him a cloak soaked into the potion with his friend Lichas.

But the cloak was poisonous. Centaur Nessos, who wanted to revenge Hercules, had put it into Learnean Hydra’s poison and had given it to Deianeira without her knowledge. When Hercules put on the cloak it stuck into his body and started burning his flesh suffering from terrible pain. So Hercules dived into the spring to relieve his pain and burning flesh.

Since then the spring gives off an unpleasant odour that comes from the poison. In fact it is the smell of sulphur and other substances that are included in the spring water.

The temperature of the water is 400 C. It is good for rheumatism, gynaecological, neurological and skin diseases.