A Long Day

After we finished our Day 2 blog we went back to the hotel, had a nap, and got ready to head out for a later dinner.  We walked back to the Plaka and found a nice little restaurant and had some really good lamb and orzo dish...I can't remember the name, but it was good!  Of course dinner would not be complete without some ice cream, so I indulged :)  Lindsay and I have an agreement - she gets wine with dinner, and I get dessert...I guess one of us will put on a few more pounds than the other!

We then went for a short stroll to the base of the Acropolis and took a few pictures. They have large lights illuminating it from the base, so it is just beautiful.

The next day we woke up around 6:30 and rented our car, after lugging our suitcases back to around Hadrian's Arch (about 20 minutes from the hotel) and hit the road.  We took the winding road (the REALLY winding road!) to Delphi, and after settling our stomachs for a while, we enjoyed the museum and strolling the site, (we are VERY glad we weren't sitting on a tour bus for this drive).

Delphi was essentially dedicated to Apollo, so the main feature at the time, about 2500 year ago, would have been Apollo's temple.  There is not much remaining now, but you can see the view is amazing, as it overlooks a large valley filled with olive and Cyprus trees.

We also walked to the very top of the site and saw the stadium that was built for Pythian and Panhellenic Games, also around the same period.  You used to be able to walk out on the track and even place your feet in the ancient starting blocks, but those were roped off.  On the way down we stopped and grabbed a photo overlooking the entire site and the valley...very beautiful.

From Delphi we drove another 3 hours to Kalambaka, the city site of Meteora.  The drive was so gross with winding roads and going up and down hills that both of us had to take gravol.  Thankfully we arrived safely, and we were able to relax, go get some dinner, and head to bed early.

Day 2 - Thanks Rick Steves!

While we were atop the Acropolis yesterday we encountered 2 couples walking around listening to their iPod, playing an audio tour by travel expert, Rick Steves.  They raved about how great the tour was, and how informational it was, so, although a little jealous we didn't have him to guide us through the Acropolis, we licked our wounds and downloaded the City Tour and Ancient Agora Tour for today.

The City Tour started us at the Syntygma Square, where the Greek Constitution was formed and where the Greek Parliament exists.  This is also the location of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, which is guarded by the two soldiers shown standing under the roof of the little huts in the image below.

The tour then took through Ermou Road, an absolute fantastic pedestrian walkway/shopping corridor, that has a very rich history of shopping, debauchery, and political protests and assassinations.  From here, we walked through the Plaka and down to Hadrian's Arch, and the Temple of Olympian Zeus.  We walked around here for a bit, saw the ruins, and made our way to the Panathenaic Stadium, which is both an ancient ruin restored, as well as the track that saw the 2004 Olympic Archery Shoot and Marathon finish (not both at the same time, mind you ;)  The photo below shows Lindsay, sitting listening to Rick Steves, with the Temple of Olympian Zeus in the backdrop.

The next photo was taken purely for Heather Boyko and Courtney Almendros, with whom Lindsay traveled Europe with 11 years ago.  "These are pineapple trees!" Lindsay informed me; she is not a credible source of Greek Botany.

After Hadrian's Arch and the "pineapple trees" we followed the tour along through winding roads, narrow corridors, and steep walkways to the suburb of Anafiotika.

Anafiotika is a time warp from the old days and people of Anafi, who moved to Athens and tried to maintain and keep their Cycladic traditions and lifestyles alive.  Today it is still inhabited by many of the descendants of the original Anafians, but is also being bought up by many rich Athenians who want to experience an island getaway in the heart of Athens.

The tour eventually took us to one of the Plaka centres and restaurants, where we ate our modest lunch (18 euro for both of us) and enjoyed the cool of the shade and the high-powered fans that also spray a watery mist, to act as a crude outdoor air conditioner.

After lunch we powered through the final tour we had of Rick Steves on the Ancient Agora.  Time was against us, as it closed at 3pm, but thankfully we made it through 90% of it before closing.  Lindsay is standing here, below, in the long corridor of the Stoa of Attalos.  It is a modern reconstruction of an ancient building, where people gathered to discuss politics and philosophy.  The Ancient Agora was wandered by many great minds in such a short period of time: Socrates, his pupil Plato, and his pupil Aristotle.

From here we went back into the Plaka and found ourselves sitting in an Internet hub updating our blog, looking at photos, and cooling off.  We plan on heading back to the hotel, cooling off a bit more, possibly showering and changing before we head out for a later dinner and stroll through the Plaka and the, before going to bed around 9 or 10.  Tomorrow we are renting a car and travelling up to Delphi and Meteora, so we'll see how the driving goes...Athens is nuts!

Our First 24ish Hours in Athens

Our plane landed on Friday, around 10:30am, and after a quick 30 minute taxi ride to the city centre (35 euro) and our hotel, we settled in to our hotel and prepared for the day. Our hotel isn't bad; it is about what you would expect for a budget double-twin bedroom with it's own bathroom and AC.  One of the perks is actually that I have my own bed...and somehow, even in a tiny twin, I have more room there than in our queen bed at home ;)

We didn't stay in room too long, however, as we didn't want the jet lag to set in, so we left for lunch.  We were on our way to find a Sim card for our phone and found a tiny restaurant nearby, so stopped for some food.  As you can see, the portions were quite big, and neither of us finished our food, but it was good! (and I still don't have diarrhea).

We then grabbed a Sim card for the phone, took the "Athens Happy Train" for a quick tour around the city and up to the Acropolis.  The 12 euro for the train was not money well spent, as it wasn't that great.  There are many other tour buses available, and I'm sure any of the others would have been better.

At the Acropolis we paid the 12 euro each for our Acropolis pass, which also allowed us to enter many of the other sites in Athens.  The Acropolis is really quite cool.  There are some great stories and signage explaining not only what the ruins are/were, but also some of the back story of the goddess Athena and the god Poseidon, and their epic battle for the city of Athens...needless to say, the myth says Athena won (hence "Athens") and there are many tributes and monuments dedicated to her Deity.  The picture at the top of this post is from the top of Acropolis, some 400ft above sea level.

We finished walking the Acropolis, and Mars Hill (where Paul preached to the Greeks, above the Ancient Agora) and walked back down the grand hill to the base of the South Side of the Acropolis.  We walked down one of the streets towards the Plaka, and stopped in at the Acropolis Museum, a new museum built just in 2009.  It is a beautiful museum, costing 135 million euro to build.  It sits atop many ancient ruins, and has glass floors throughout so you can see the ancient streets below you.  The museum reflects the same shape of the Parthenon, and is even adorned with many of the ruins from it, having been cast, brought down, and re-imported from the British Museum.  It was about 7pm when we finished at the museum, so that meant time for dinner.

We walked down into the Plaka, the North-Eastern side of the Acropolis, found a great little cafe...which we believe Rick Steves has sat in many times during his Athens videos...from here, we wandered around the Plaka a little bit more, before heading back to our room, around 9pm.  We spent the next couple hours planning the next week, booking a flight, and reserving a car rental.

A great first day, jam packed with memories!