Wildflowers and a Mighty Wind:
Nine days in the Peloponnese and Athens.
Nine days in the Peloponnese and Athens.
Our big, fat Greek finale / the journey home
On our last full day in Greece, we awoke (again!) to cloudy skies. After
enjoying our hearty breakfast, we proceeded immediately on foot to the
Acropolis. It’s only about a 15-minute walk to the entrance gate from the
Electra Palace front door. Our goal was simple: we wanted to visit the
Acropolis before it became completely covered in tour groups.
Our first impression of the Acropolis (and especially the Parthenon) was
that the scaffolding was more prominent than we had anticipated. We
were, of course fully aware of the long-term restoration efforts and had
read that work was in progress…but somehow this was more than we
expected. The beautiful and stately Erechtheion, with its famous "porch of
the caryatids," had no such scaffolding, so we had someone take our
annual Christmas card photo in front of it.
We suspected and found that the Acropolis museum is now officially
closed until the brand new one opens, which was a shame. But as the
skies were starting to show some blue, it was nice to be outdoors anyway.
And the views of the city from the Acropolis are even better than advertised,
so we were pleased to stick around and enjoy it.
Like our visit to the Roman Forum and Colisseum several years earlier,
the richness of history is so thick and so palpable in this place that you
almost have to brush it away from your face as you walk. In many ways, this
one spot is the wellspring of Western civilization. It’s hard not to be in awe.
This part of our visit was especially nice for Allie; she has been studying
Greco-Roman mythology in school, and Athena is her favorite goddess.
By now (11ish), the Acropolis was indeed covered in tour groups. They
were so thick around the entrance, we practically felt like fish swimming
upstream (or down, maybe) to get through.
We walked down the hill the same way we came up, pausing to have a
long look at the well-preserved Roman Theater of Herodotus and the not-
as-preserved-but-still-interesting ancient Greek Theater of Dionysus. As
we reached street level, a fleet of big, black Mercedes-Benz limos swept
past us. “Must be some big honchos,” said Chris as they passed. Only
after we arrived home in Chicago did we learn who it was: a delegation of
dignitaries there for the Olympic torch ceremony! If only we had stayed a
tad longer…
Back at street level, we found the nearby subway stop and took the Metro to
Omonia Square. FYI, the Athens Metro was easy enough to figure out,
clean, efficient, and inexpensive…everything you want a major city transit
system to be. Omonia Square was bustling with mid-morning traffic when
we emerged and made our way several blocks south to the chaotic Athens
Central Market. It was interesting and a cool photo-opportunity (as big-city
markets tend to be), but a little ickier than expected in the meat and
seafood stalls (sorry Allie). There was a great deal more fish and seafood
than other markets we’d been to (with the exception of Tokyo).
We then proceeded north to National Archaeological Museum, where we
spent about two hours--just enough to skim the surface. The highlights
there are numerous, and you should consult a guide book or online
resource before you go. Our favorite items included a host of relics from
sites we’d visited earlier, including Agamemnon’s mask, plus ancient
bronzes, the Thira/Santorini frescos, and expressive marbles of Pan and
Aphrodite. Allie recognized one statue from the cover of her English
textbook! Overall, it is one of the more impressive collections we've seen. It
isn't a huge museum, but there are many high points.
Afterward, we enjoyed a light lunch at an outdoor café/restaurant located on
the museum grounds. It wasn't cheap, but we couldn't beat the convenient
location or the enthusiastic service. Next, we walked to Victoria station and
took the Metro to the Thissio stop and walked a few hundred meters to
Kerameikos, the ancient cemetery--with a quick stop along the way to
watch the immigrants bundle up their knock-off wares and make a mad
dash away from the police.
Kerameikos is a fascinating place, and we spent a little over an hour there
hanging out among the 2000-years-old funerary monuments and some
languid box turtles who live there. By now, the skies were practically cloud
free and the air noticeably warmer.
We walked leisurely back toward our hotel through late lunch crowd
gathered at Monastiraki cafes. There was a tremendous throng of people
gathered there, making the area an absolute paradise for people-
watchers. We wandered south and went for drinks at a sidewalk table at
same restaurant where we had lunch the day before. We joined in the
people-watching and discussed our latest family adventure, which was
quickly receding into our rear-view mirror.
Dinner that night was at Taverna tou Psarra. We thoroughly enjoyed our
Final Greek Feast: tsatsiki, dolmades, sausages, fried zucchini, cheese
pie, lamb souvlaki (excellent), bottled water and a full liter of house white
(58 euro, total). The perfect way to wrap up our evening, and our trip as well.
With heavy hearts and full stomachs, we went back and packed.
The journey home
Our return flight departed at the lovely hour of 6am, and to make matters
worse, this was the first day of European daylight savings (spring forward!).
We had to get up at 2:15am to begin getting ready. That Star Alliance Gold
card came in handy at the Athens airport, saving us from a line of about
100 people at the Lufthansa check-in counter and helping us secure the
bulkhead seats for the approximately three-hour flight. We landed in
Frankfurt right on time and found the airport to be in its usual hectic state—
with lots of construction thrown in for good measure. Marisa set a personal
record by receiving a full-body pat-down by airport security three times in
one morning (once in Athens, twice in Frankfurt), while Chris and Allie got
the hands’ off treatment all three times. Allie says she’s “just cool like that.”
Our United flight to Chicago left right on time. We again had the bulkhead
seats with excellent leg room, but this time next to a very cute but restless
lap child who cried early and often. Other passengers, unfortunately,
decided our space made a good cross-over point, and the woman behind
Marisa repeatedly pulled her hair while grabbing the seat back (some
favorite passenger behaviors, not!). Decent movies again (Juno, No
Country for Old Men and Elizabeth: the Golden Age) and marginal food.
Despite our early start, we got little sleep. We landed 45 minutes early in
Chicago after one of the smoothest trans-oceanic crossings we've ever
experienced...only to find the “turbulence” was in the O’Hare immigration
and customs hall. At least six international flights all arrived at the same
time, making for some of the longest lines we've seen there in awhile.
Next: Hotel reviews, air, driving and other logistics
See all of our Greece photos
our travels
home
contact us
On our last full day in Greece, we awoke (again!) to cloudy skies. After
enjoying our hearty breakfast, we proceeded immediately on foot to the
Acropolis. It’s only about a 15-minute walk to the entrance gate from the
Electra Palace front door. Our goal was simple: we wanted to visit the
Acropolis before it became completely covered in tour groups.
Our first impression of the Acropolis (and especially the Parthenon) was
that the scaffolding was more prominent than we had anticipated. We
were, of course fully aware of the long-term restoration efforts and had
read that work was in progress…but somehow this was more than we
expected. The beautiful and stately Erechtheion, with its famous "porch of
the caryatids," had no such scaffolding, so we had someone take our
annual Christmas card photo in front of it.
We suspected and found that the Acropolis museum is now officially
closed until the brand new one opens, which was a shame. But as the
skies were starting to show some blue, it was nice to be outdoors anyway.
And the views of the city from the Acropolis are even better than advertised,
so we were pleased to stick around and enjoy it.
Like our visit to the Roman Forum and Colisseum several years earlier,
the richness of history is so thick and so palpable in this place that you
almost have to brush it away from your face as you walk. In many ways, this
one spot is the wellspring of Western civilization. It’s hard not to be in awe.
This part of our visit was especially nice for Allie; she has been studying
Greco-Roman mythology in school, and Athena is her favorite goddess.
By now (11ish), the Acropolis was indeed covered in tour groups. They
were so thick around the entrance, we practically felt like fish swimming
upstream (or down, maybe) to get through.
We walked down the hill the same way we came up, pausing to have a
long look at the well-preserved Roman Theater of Herodotus and the not-
as-preserved-but-still-interesting ancient Greek Theater of Dionysus. As
we reached street level, a fleet of big, black Mercedes-Benz limos swept
past us. “Must be some big honchos,” said Chris as they passed. Only
after we arrived home in Chicago did we learn who it was: a delegation of
dignitaries there for the Olympic torch ceremony! If only we had stayed a
tad longer…
Back at street level, we found the nearby subway stop and took the Metro to
Omonia Square. FYI, the Athens Metro was easy enough to figure out,
clean, efficient, and inexpensive…everything you want a major city transit
system to be. Omonia Square was bustling with mid-morning traffic when
we emerged and made our way several blocks south to the chaotic Athens
Central Market. It was interesting and a cool photo-opportunity (as big-city
markets tend to be), but a little ickier than expected in the meat and
seafood stalls (sorry Allie). There was a great deal more fish and seafood
than other markets we’d been to (with the exception of Tokyo).
We then proceeded north to National Archaeological Museum, where we
spent about two hours--just enough to skim the surface. The highlights
there are numerous, and you should consult a guide book or online
resource before you go. Our favorite items included a host of relics from
sites we’d visited earlier, including Agamemnon’s mask, plus ancient
bronzes, the Thira/Santorini frescos, and expressive marbles of Pan and
Aphrodite. Allie recognized one statue from the cover of her English
textbook! Overall, it is one of the more impressive collections we've seen. It
isn't a huge museum, but there are many high points.
Afterward, we enjoyed a light lunch at an outdoor café/restaurant located on
the museum grounds. It wasn't cheap, but we couldn't beat the convenient
location or the enthusiastic service. Next, we walked to Victoria station and
took the Metro to the Thissio stop and walked a few hundred meters to
Kerameikos, the ancient cemetery--with a quick stop along the way to
watch the immigrants bundle up their knock-off wares and make a mad
dash away from the police.
Kerameikos is a fascinating place, and we spent a little over an hour there
hanging out among the 2000-years-old funerary monuments and some
languid box turtles who live there. By now, the skies were practically cloud
free and the air noticeably warmer.
We walked leisurely back toward our hotel through late lunch crowd
gathered at Monastiraki cafes. There was a tremendous throng of people
gathered there, making the area an absolute paradise for people-
watchers. We wandered south and went for drinks at a sidewalk table at
same restaurant where we had lunch the day before. We joined in the
people-watching and discussed our latest family adventure, which was
quickly receding into our rear-view mirror.
Dinner that night was at Taverna tou Psarra. We thoroughly enjoyed our
Final Greek Feast: tsatsiki, dolmades, sausages, fried zucchini, cheese
pie, lamb souvlaki (excellent), bottled water and a full liter of house white
(58 euro, total). The perfect way to wrap up our evening, and our trip as well.
With heavy hearts and full stomachs, we went back and packed.
The journey home
Our return flight departed at the lovely hour of 6am, and to make matters
worse, this was the first day of European daylight savings (spring forward!).
We had to get up at 2:15am to begin getting ready. That Star Alliance Gold
card came in handy at the Athens airport, saving us from a line of about
100 people at the Lufthansa check-in counter and helping us secure the
bulkhead seats for the approximately three-hour flight. We landed in
Frankfurt right on time and found the airport to be in its usual hectic state—
with lots of construction thrown in for good measure. Marisa set a personal
record by receiving a full-body pat-down by airport security three times in
one morning (once in Athens, twice in Frankfurt), while Chris and Allie got
the hands’ off treatment all three times. Allie says she’s “just cool like that.”
Our United flight to Chicago left right on time. We again had the bulkhead
seats with excellent leg room, but this time next to a very cute but restless
lap child who cried early and often. Other passengers, unfortunately,
decided our space made a good cross-over point, and the woman behind
Marisa repeatedly pulled her hair while grabbing the seat back (some
favorite passenger behaviors, not!). Decent movies again (Juno, No
Country for Old Men and Elizabeth: the Golden Age) and marginal food.
Despite our early start, we got little sleep. We landed 45 minutes early in
Chicago after one of the smoothest trans-oceanic crossings we've ever
experienced...only to find the “turbulence” was in the O’Hare immigration
and customs hall. At least six international flights all arrived at the same
time, making for some of the longest lines we've seen there in awhile.
Next: Hotel reviews, air, driving and other logistics
See all of our Greece photos
our travels
home
contact us
Erechtheion on the Acropolis (the only building not
under scaffolding)
under scaffolding)
View of the Plaka and Temple of Olympian Zeus
from the Acropolis
from the Acropolis
Frescoes from Thera: National Archaeological
Museum
Museum
Kerameikos: Athens' ancient cemetery
Sandals for sale, Monastiraki
Greece home
The voyage to Nafplio
Mycenae: Bronze Age equinox
To the theater! Epidaurus
Madness? This is Sparti! (and Mystras)
Greek Independence Day on the Mani
Monemvasia: a one-way trip to the past
Athens is calling
A rainy day in Athens
Our big, fat Greek finale / the journey home
Hotel reviews, air, driving, and other logistics
Logistics con't, and some final thoughts
The voyage to Nafplio
Mycenae: Bronze Age equinox
To the theater! Epidaurus
Madness? This is Sparti! (and Mystras)
Greek Independence Day on the Mani
Monemvasia: a one-way trip to the past
Athens is calling
A rainy day in Athens
Our big, fat Greek finale / the journey home
Hotel reviews, air, driving, and other logistics
Logistics con't, and some final thoughts
Athens Central Market
Resident of the Plaka: it was chased up here by a
dog
dog
