Living in Greece allows those interested in heritage sites unlimited amounts of opportunities to explore, especially if you have a friend with a car. Deciding to spend a beautiful sunny day on the road, several classmates and I made our own pilgrimage to the sacred site of Delphi. Traveling from Elefsina where the remains of the sanctified site of Eleusis still stands, we recreated a modern day procession to the place known in ancient times to be the center of the world. While driving through the mostly vacant, hilly terrain of Attica we suddenly saw jutting mountains with plunging valleys spring up around us as we entered the Greek state of Fokis. Arriving around the winding mountain roads towards the site, my jaw dropped. Those ancient Greeks sure knew how to pick their religious sites. The natural landscape alone gave the place a sense of holiness.
The moment the car was parked and we began our ascent to the site, the heritage management part of my brain kicked in. Our Greek friend who had driven us had asked if she would have to pay to get in. Knowing full well that you have to pay to get into a majority of the sites in Greece, this made me think that Greek citizens would be more likely to visit heritage sites in their own country if there were free or discounted admissions for them. Luckily, entrance is free for everyone the first Sunday of every month during the low season, which came as a pleasant surprise for us! But even when entrance is free, there are still some non-financial costs that remain, such as time and effort. Since we had not arrived until 2pm after our three hour journey, we were told that the site and the museum would be shutting down at 3pm. Although this is the advertised closing time, it startled me and my group since now we would have to rush our visit. And the site is huge. And uphill.
I tried to take in as much as I could, my eyes scanning every slab of marble and informational plaque at rapid speeds. We heard a whistle blow and a gentleman told us that the site would be closing and we needed to leave…it was only 2:15! This came as a disappointment, since the last admission advertised on the Greek Ministry of Culture and Sports website is at 2:30pm. Defiantly, we continued our upwards journey to at least see the amphitheater and its awe-inspiring view. It allows you to take in the whole of the site, which was bittersweet considering we were unable to see it in its entirety. On our way back down the Sacred Way, we saw a group of tourists all huddled around the omphalos (marble “navel” of the goddess Gaia). Not only were they leaning over the protective barricades, they were vigorously rubbing the stone while also attempting to push it off its plinth! While the management at Delphi is very professional in many aspects, it is not as “hands on” when it comes to close supervision. But this is understandable when it comes to a site so large.
Despite our haste, Delphi was a remarkable place to visit. It is a site so beautiful and so steeped in ancient history that it is a privilege to even quickly stop by. What I came away with after this visit was that the site might benefit from a S.W.O.T. analysis, assessing and addressing the potential Threats/Weaknesses to create more Opportunities for its visitors and to reinforce its existing Strengths. I will surely be back to complete my tour and encourage heritage enthusiasts and anyone else interested to embark on the incredible journey to sacred Delphi.

Brittany Wade is the editor of the Initiative for Heritage Conservancy blog and  student of the MA in Heritage Management 2013. Having studied Classics in her undergraduate, Brittany is interested in applying her knowledge of history  in the field of archaeology. Her interests are mainly in Prehistoric Minoan and Hellenic history.