Athens for Tourists

Long broad promenade at the bottom of the Acropolis

A puppet show on the promenade

Just walking the ancient promenade at the bottom of the hill, better known as the Acropolis, with hundreds of locals and tourists on a breezy evening before sundown is almost making you feel like an Athenian.

Marble sidewalks everywhere

A foodie paradise - maybe

At the end of the mile long walk you will find a cluster of terraces, so you can plop down in a chair and watch the other people walk by. A Greek "grainy" coffee with an ouzo on the side is the reward for the walk.

Monastriki meat market

Monastriki produce market

Meat coolers in a hot city

Abundance

More meat stalls inside the market

Traffic gridlock

 

The acropolis viewed from cafe terrace

First ancient mall in BC Athens

 

Very small church/chapel downtown

That first day we decided to get educated on the history of this town, that claims to be the birthplace of democracy, by visiting the ultra modern Acropolis Museum.

Excavations below museum

Museum copies of acropolis ruins

We are not very good in doing museums, but this turned out to be a several hour visit in which we learned so much about this city's history, that we decided after seeing all the ruins of the acropolis in miniature detail with history details, that climbing the hill in 90 plus degrees was not necessary

Acclimatized tour with full text explanations

anymore. We found other ruins throughout the city in the days that followed.

Ancient city entrance

Greek reconstruction efforts at the Acropolis with German Euros underway

We now are like 90 plus percent of Athenians who have never climbed the sacred hill of gods, because you have to pay to see ruins, which citizens have all around them, even in their backyard and under their homes.

Sit on the muse Museum terrace: enjoy the excavations beneath

The metro brought us an encounter with a history professor, who eventually sold me his book for 20 euro, in which he explains why Greece is the beginning and the nucleus of the European community, and that he invented the word Euro.

Cool Terrace in the park

Tourists invited to buy in the Plaka

 

The self aggrandizing short senior explained that my name "Erik" was a mountain in Sicily, where I lived as a giant and where I valiantly battled Hercules, who of course beat me and changed me into a mountain. I will spare you all the other great characteristics and traits that go with my name, reason why after being buttered up 20 euro exchanged hands.

View from the hill of wolves

After the wise decision not to climb the Acropolis, we decided that the funicular bringing us to an even higher hill in the center of Athens, Lykavittos or "hill of wolves" with the best panorama views in town, seemed an even better promontory, since in the receding light, a glass of prosecco on the terrace there would be right up our alley.

Photo thru the terrace glass wall drinking prosecco

Bad decision it turned out to be, because to get to the funicular we had to traipse up stairs higher than the acropolis.

Stairs seemingly forever to funicular

Stairs stairs and more stairs

 

The next visitor to Athens is advised to take a cab to the entrance of a suffocating ride up in an unventilated tunnel. But the view is magnificent.

30 plus people cramped in a capsule staring downwards

We rented a car and drove to Delphi to see the country side and visit the famous grotto, where wise women for generations oracled.

Delphi reception: a row of flags

Lunch at a Delphi terrace

The view down lunching in Delphi

Driving towards Delphi

Side road tributes to loved ones who passed away

They are everywhere

Are specific saints involved we wondered

 

Scientists now tell us those women, spouting life changing wisdoms, were sitting in a cave that fumed from deep down odors that were of a quality and strength that modern day pot cannot accomplish in Denver or Amsterdam.

Present day Delphi woman at work

The entry price and the requires hike up the mountain to a hole in the ground, brought us instead to a restaurant perched on a ledge in Delphi itself for lunch.

90 plus degrees F and these?

On the way back we visited the city of Chalkida, straddled on the mainland and on the island of Evia, where we watched "the crazy waters".

The crazy waters circling

Will the circle change direction?

 

As long as written history exists, people extoll about this worldwide unique phenomenon, that the several hundred feet wide water between island and mainland shifts direction from north to south and vice versa. With iced coffee seated on the water's edge we witnessed this phenomenon, that according to scientists most likely occurs under the pull of the moon bringing this unique nature event to life. Unfortunately we visited the dead zone time frame where the waters just circle and circle. The owners of the establishment handed us a pamphlet with the annual schedule of the daily water flow change, marking every week of the year including our week of circling waters.

We saw often many beehives

Returning to town we got lost in the suburbs of Athens finding that no one spoke any language we understood enough to give us directions. We lucked into finding our way after an hour or so.

When visiting Athens use the metro and get a handy Lonley Planet pocket guide -- oh yes, and walk in the shadow during the hot months.

I am looking forward to our world trip and I think you will have almost daily bulletins with pictures and little text, because we will be on the move every day.

So long and for all of you US and Canadian readers, if you need to reach us by phone during any future trip we take (because we will put our mobile phones in sleep mode - Sprint has a program for that, that saves us money) call our internet phone number 1-855-947-9000 and leave us a message. We will call you back from wherever we are at no cost to you and almost no cost to us.

 

 

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