Greece Trip, Thurs. 7/21/16

We spent most of the day on a bus between Delphi and Athens. On our way down Mt. Parnassus, where Delphi is located, we stopped at a ski resort, the one closest to Athens, for a summertime photo-stop.

View of Mt. Parnassus in Greece

Don and I enjoy a summertime photo-stop at a ski-resort on Mt. Parnassus in Greece

After we arrived in Athens we had a couple of hours for lunch and free time. Don and I returned to the Acropolis Museum. Our earlier visit seemed too short, plus we knew it was air-conditioned.We took some time along the way to admire the street art/graffiti.

Street Art or Graffiti in Athens near the Acropolis Museum

The late afternoon and evening was spent on yet another bus tour along an area near Athens known as the "Greek Cote d'Azur" for its clear and colorful waters. It's popular with swimmers and divers. There we visited the archaeological site of Cape Sounion with its Temple of Poseidon.

Temple of Poseidon at Sounion

Don takes pictures of the beautiful views near the Temple of Poseidon at Sounion

In the evening, most of our tour group rested and dined at our hotel, but a few of us rode by taxi and funicular train up Mt. Lycabettus to a beautiful restaurant called Orizontes (Horizons in English). The mountain is so tall the views were spectacular. We had the odd experience of actually looking down at the Acropolis and the Parthenon. The reason this higher mountain never became Athens' citadel was due to a lack of water. The restaurant was a little pricey, and we returned to the hotel after midnight and very tired, but the food was great, the service excellent, and the view itself made the whole experience well worth our time and money.

I am organizing a tour of Italy in July of 2018.

A daytime view looking down at Athens' Acropolis and the Parthenon

A breathtaking night view of the city of Athens from Mt. Lycabettus

Greece Trip, Sunday, 7/17/16

Today others in our group took a free day in Athens, but our group signed up for an optional excursion, a day cruise to three Greek islands just off the coast: Hydra, the smallest and furthest away, Poros, a medium-sized island, and Aegina, the largest and closest to the city. All three are popular tourist destinations. Athenians often travel to them for getaway weekends.

The water and scenery were beautiful on our way to the islands. Here is an example.

Scenery on our day-cruise near Athens. The water really is this beautiful blue.

Hydra, the first island, was charming. No automobiles are allowed, so people travel on foot or on donkeys.

Two friends ride donkeys on Hydra

It was fun to sit in the shade and watch vacationers swim in the crystal-clear, blue water below.

Swimmers enjoy the water off the Greek island of Hydra

Poros, the medium-sized island, had more opportunities for shopping than Hydra and hotel-rooms close to the waterfront. I think Poros is where Don stopped for ice cream, which he seemed to enjoy.

Don enjoys ice cream while I sip on fresh-squeezed orange juice. Delicious!

Aegina is famous for pistachios, but Don and I didn't get to see the main island. We paid for a trip by speedboat to a smaller island and private beach which had a little bar and restaurant and secluded cove for swimming. The water was perfect. The boat trip was fun, especially on the way back when the wind picked up. Our return to the main ship was an adventure in itself.

Our secluded cove near Aegina

We all agreed this excursion was just what we needed to cool off, rest and relax after our sweltering day yesterday on Athens' Acropolis.

Greece, July 16, 2016, First Full Day

Today Joanna led us via public transportation to several neighborhoods at the center of Athens. There we enjoyed some free time to shop or visit various cafes. Above us loomed the Acropolis, an old Greek word for the highest habitable point of a city, where the temples and treasures were kept. It was walled and fortified in case of siege. On our walk to the Acropolis we saw the old Roman agora or forum with a structure dedicated to the Winds, which in Greco-Roman times were gods.

Roman building in Athens dedicated with relief sculptures of the Winds

We also watched the ceremony for the changing of the guards in front of Athens' Parliament-building. Athens has been invaded and occupied by a variety of other countries over the centuries, and this ceremony and the soldiers' traditional uniforms are Bavarian. Their kilt-like garment has four hundred folds, we were told, to represent the years of Turkish rule under the Ottomans. The guards' moves and uniforms were similar in some respects to those of a folk-dance we saw later in the day at Greek "Culture Night."

Greek guards in front of the Parliament

Next we were given a handout and sent inside the Acropolis Museum for a self-guided tour. The museum is beautifully designed and includes important original sculptures and artifacts from the Parthenon and elsewhere. The air conditioning also gave us a welcome if temporary respite from Athens' almost-unbearable summer heat and sun. Don and I watched a video about the Parthenon a couple of times and I used nearby models to explain what some of the architectural terms, like triglyphs, metope, and pediment, mean.

After our too-brief visit to the museum, our group made its way to the Acropolis itself. We entered through traditional gates called the Propylaea, which looks much like a Greek temple. Besides the Parthenon, we saw the Odeon, the Theater of Dionysus where Western drama was born, the Erechtheion, and, of course, the famous Parthenon. From the Parthenon we also spotted the remains of the Temple of Zeus. Unfortunately, there are only a few columns left of this once-impressive structure.

Don and I pose in front of the Parthenon in Athens, Greece

After a bus ride back to the hotel for a chance to freshen up, our group made its way to dinner and Greek Culture night, an amazing experience. The food, service, music, and dancing were all fantastic. Don and I were permitted to practice some West Coast Swing to Greek music before the show started, a big hit with the owners of the restaurant.

The point of the night was to grow a deeper respect and appreciation for Greek music and culture. The Greek spirit is expressed with shouts of "Opa!" and even the smashing of plates. We learned some steps of a couple of Greek dances. Don, who's made of tougher stuff than I am, danced more than I did. After the travel, the walking, and the heat of the day, I confess I was dozing over my plate, afraid I'd fall face-first into my food like a toddler. Nevertheless I managed to see and enjoy all the different styles of Greek dance, including the man who danced with a hoop with a shot-glass full of spirits, which he whirled and spun without spilling a drop; the dancers with candle, with fire, belly-dancers, and a wider variety of dances and music than I can describe. The climax of the evening came at around 11 PM with a smashing of plates on the stage and performers dancing around and through the smashed plates. Opa!

Greece, July 16 2016 Arrival

A Latin teacher, I traveled to Greece with a teacher-friend from Virginia Beach and her Latin students through EF Tours. Although EF focuses on educational student tours, and we're not students, my husband, Don, and I were allowed to accompany the group. We were warned we would need to keep up with a tour paced for a group of teenagers. We figured we easily would.

Ha! We found we could do it if we took every opportunity to rest in the shade and lots of naps. Also if we actually slept at night (I'm not sure the teens always did).

After adventures with connecting flights, we arrived in Athens at a new airport built for the 2004 Olympics. The old airport, which we passed on our way to our hotel, is now a camp for migrants or refugees who live in tattered tents and under blankets. Our tour director was a lovely Greek woman, a professor of English, named Joanna.

Joanna, our EF Tour Director

Joanna poses with her friend, Puff the "Friendly Dragon"

We found Greece very welcoming to tourists. Many Greeks speak some English, especially in Athens and in the more touristy parts of the country. Tourists bring euros, which Greece desperately needs. The country has not really recovered from the 2008 economic recession or more recent austerity measures imposed by the E.U. Joanna says recent world events and negative publicity about the shutting-down of Greek banks have adversely affected the flow of tourists to her country. This is doubly painful because tourism is a major portion of the Greek economy. It's a shame, she says, because Greece is a relatively crime-free and safe place for tourists, and the bank closures affected only Greeks who kept their money in Greek banks. Even in the height of the economic crisis, tourists had no trouble withdrawing money through ATMs, which can be found all over Greece.

Our biggest surprise was to learn that water, and especially potable water, is a scarce resource in Greece. Outside of Athens we needed to drink bottled water, which is relatively inexpensive, usually no more than a euro for a big bottle. Water served at the table in restaurants can be trusted, but nothing else. Even in Piraeus, Athens' ancient harbor area, we were told not to drink it. This was an unexpected additional expense to our trip, but we quickly got used to it.

Another surprise was all the graffiti and street art in Athens. Joanna reassured us it's no sign of criminal activity but of creative expression. Various colors are not due to gangs but usually in support of soccer teams.

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