Greece - The Cradle of Democracy
Trip Start
May 01, 2007
1
16
45
Trip End
Apr 29, 2008
Athens,
Greece
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
We took a ferry over to Patras from Venice, where we stayed the night, then took a train over to Athens. Along the way, we met two nice American girls (Taylor and Julia) who we travelled with the whole time. We arrived in Athens just as the worst heat wave they've had in 110 years was winding down. It was ridiculously hot there that first day. Thankfully we were able to get a hostel that had air conditioning, making our stay far more comfortable. That afternoon after checking in, we visited a private museum with a massive collection of early Greek art, sculpture and jewellery, that also had collections from the Byzantine era, right up to the turn of the 20th century.
Day two was really full - we got an early start and did the quintessential Athens tourism trek: up the Acropolis.
01 The Parthenon
The Acropolis is a large hill with a commanding view of the whole city, at the top of which were built massive monuments to various gods, all in marble. The area was completely mobbed by tourists, and for good reason - it was easily a rival to the Colosseum in Rome. There unfortunately are massive restoration projects going on everywhere on the Acropolis. It was a bit disappointing, however all that scaffolding has apparently been a fixture up there for many years, and we were glad to see that the Greek government is working hard to preserve those wonders for future generations to enjoy. Thankfully all the work being done didn't detract much at all from the beauty of the site. Our pass included four other ancient sites around town, and a couple museums, which we took the rest of the day to enjoy. Terri's favourite part of the trip was going to the "Poet Sandalmaker", a guy who, like the name implies, makes sandals and writes poetry. For a surprisingly low sum, he'll make anyone a custom pair of sandals fitted just to their feet. He's got a master's degree in art from an American University, so his shop is stuffed with all his artwork as well.Our last full day in Athens was a bit of an easy one - we took in the National Archeology museum which had some really amazing pieces in it, like a larger-than-life and perfectly preserved bronze statue of either Zeus or Poseidon (no one is really sure) and the supposed death mask of Agamemnon. There was an incredible collection of sculpture there, as well as implements from every day ancient Greek life. The rest of the day, Terri and I enjoyed a nice local meal (sit down for once, we figured we could go over budget one day) and took in the sights just wandering around down town, while the girls wandered off with Julia's grandparents for dinner. That night, we decided we would take the ferry again from Patras the next day, back to Venice and connect to Florence by train.
Sunday morning before the train we travelled over to the Parliament Buildings to watch the changing of the guard ceremony - a military parade with a brass band. The guards wore very ornate uniforms, complete with pom poms on their shoes, and white pleated skirts. It was quite a site to behold.
We'd return to Greece in a heartbeat - it is the sort of place where we could easily spend 3 weeks - touring around the ancient sites and lounging on the beach. Another time, hopefully not too far in the future.
Next stop: Florence.
