Athens
November 24-25, 2021
We flew into Athens at night. This preoccupied me because we weren't familiar with the city. Out of a move of slight desperation I booked a taxi through a taxi service the night before. As we landed there were taxi's all over the place. It makes sense because Athens International Airport is at least 1 hour away from the Acropolis and I assume that is where I assume most tourist stay. Then again Athens is near a beach, so I'm probably wrong.
We stayed at the Athenaeum Grand Hotel which is located about a 20 minute walk from the Acropolis. The hotel was next to a strip club which surprised Michelle. She jokenly said to me you have other ideas? I laughed. The customer service at the hotel was first class. We were greeted at the door and they brought our bags in. The receptionst was so nice. They even upgraded our room to a delux.
The next day I woke up early in the morning and wanted to go for a run. My goal was to jog to the Acroplis and back. I figured it would be easy, but it wasn't. First I had to cross many streets and it was morning rush hour. There were no crosswalks on some of the streets and I almost got runed over. The drivers here are aggressive and pedestrians do not have the right of way. I got to the Acropolis and took a picture, but my gps crapped out and i didn't get an accurate reading.
When I got back to the hotel, Michelle was ready. We checked out of the hotel but kept our bags at the hotel. Again, the service was great.
Our Acroplis tour was at 11:30. I purchased it a month before from the Get Your Guide website. We would soon see if it was reputable. Michelle and I started walking towards the Acropolis without any incidnet. The morning rush was over and we methodically made our way there. The meeting place was at a yogurt bar, there I checked in, we were placed in a group of 20 people. After introductions, we walked towards the Acropolis.
To get into the Acropolis was 10 euro each (but was included in our tour). Our tour guide was an Archaeologist from Greece named Vicky. I though wow, we are fortunate. I'm going to be honest, this tour was worth the 50 euro per person. This lady not only knew her stuff I notice she knew how to make these ruins come alive. If you think about it the structure is still in tak and amazing as it looks, it still is ruins and if we did this tour by ourselves, there would be no real meaning behind it.
The first attraction was the Theater of Dionysus. This is where first drama performance took place. I remember reading a history book in high school that the first Greek Tragedy was performed here. Vicky was saying that people would perform to win an award. When the rains would come, the people of Athens would take a break and walk up to the
We then went to the Temple of Asclepius. I can't remember too much of the story, but Asclepius was a doctor who healed. Zeus did not want humans to immortal like gods killed Asclepius with a lightening bolt. Asclepius was known to own a staff with a serpent around it. Today it is the logo of the American Medical Association.
The next stop was the concert hall known as the Herodes Atticus Concert Hall. Vickey said famous people like Frank Sinatra and Sting performed there also other European singers. The concert hall opens in the summer where they hold concerts.
After the concert hall, we walked straight up to the Propylaea. This is the entrance to the Parthenon. The steps on the Propylaea is made of marble and the columns made of limestone.
The Parthenon is a magnificent structure, it has struggled to stay up throughout the years. However, restoration efforts have kept it standing. This structure was built around 450 BC. If you think about it that is 2500 years ago.
The view at the top is world class and you can see all of Greece.
The Temple of Athena is supposed to me the most sacred in the area. The coolest thing is the Olive Tree at the front of the temple. This is the spot where Athena planted her olive tree. She planted this olive tree as a gift to the Greeks to provide food and peace. The original tree is long gone, but they planted 70 years ago.
to be continued...