Athens: The Beginning

J:  Any trip to Greece begins at the Acropolis.  Lines to buy a $15 ticket.  Lines to give the gate keeper the ticket (they nixed the $6 juice slushee cup, but you can enter with bottled water).  We started by taking the trail that circles the mountain, past piles of marble and theaters still used for summer concerts.  I was surprised at the number of caves, once temples to this god and that.  Finally after about an hour, we made the climb up the stairs to the hill-top with the remnants of Athen's Glory.  I was struck by the destruction: Christians, Turks, Brits all share the blame.  It made me recall the Buddha statues in Afghanistan that were destroyed a few years ago by the Taliban.  Such ignorance and stupidity in the name of religion.

J: Arriving in Athens the day before was one of those forgettable travel incidences.  Traffic was heavy.  We asked to be left at a specific subway station (where our British landlord was to meet us).  I guess that taxi driver got impatient at the delays, and dropped us off one station before the one we sought, about a mile from our goal.  It took a while to figure out that we were not where we wanted to be.  I left G with the luggage to walk down the street looking for information. Since we hadn't taken Greek 101, all signs looked like parts of sororities and fraternities...Delta was the easy letter! When they say "It's all Greek to me," they mean it!


G:  While he was gone, I smiled at any approaching man who I thought might be British.  Had some interesting reactions and was chuckling to myself by the time Jon returned...


J:    Then we simply lugged the bags down the stairs, took the metro to the next station and met Judith, the landlord's babysitter who was waiting for us with Sofia in a stroller (another of her charges).  My guitar was the give away when the escalator brought us up to street level.....

G:  We walked 5 blocks or so to our little apartment for the next three nights--in a neighborhood just a few Metro stops from the center of the city where all the action is.  Our home was comfortable yet sparse.  As some of the places we have rented online before, photos have a way of romanticizing the truth.  The apartment was in the basement with two windows (with metal louvered shutters at street level).

In a way, I was miffed that the British owner didn't meet us, although he actually never said he would...He is a cellist  with a chamber symphony and together with his father, have written a book (it was on the shelf in the apartment) about their life on the island of Naxos, where his father, a former BBC correspondent,  decided to retire and build a home.  Christopher, the son and our landlord, spends summers on Naxos (which I read in the book) which is why, I gathered, he was a no-show.

During the nights, we heard scooters & cycles park or  start up in front of the windows and lots of conversation....thank goodness it was Greek--we didn't want to know!   They seemed virtually in the apartment with us!  But we had  steady hot water, good pressure in the shower, a fridge and coffee maker and a microwave with two burners  attached to the top a first)....More pluses than minuses in other words!  And much less than a hotel!

We had a reasonably good time in Athens during the days, although we never went out at night, preferring to have a large late afternoon meal to tide us over until breakfast.  The local cafes serve something called a "FRAPPE" in the summer-- instant NESCAFE blended with milk and ice---where this came from I'd like to know!  But everyone drinks them through  straws all day long--we saw taxi drivers and delivery men with them in their trucks--and  old men and young people too--all drinking this concoction--one was enough for me!!!!!  Better are FREDDOS, cold espresso on ice with milk.

On a positive note, two museums were outstanding:  Acropolis (modern and new) & Benaki (private).  Both were a treasure trove of beautiful large and small items...  The obvious contrast came upon leaving the museums when we came face to face with modern day Athens...no pride in upkeep of properties, cars, or people and  lots of litter.  

 I keep thinking I  will have the dream in which I haven't studied for the Art History test....and won't  know the Minoan pottery from the Ionic!  Or the Doric columns vs. Corinthian! The dream hasn't happened yet, but it is coming!

G:  This quick lunch we shared consisted of a cafeteria tray covered with paper and the food served on top: "sticks" (their term) of grilled chicken and pork, sweet red onions, RIPE tomatoes, pita bread plus a Greek salad with toasted bread on the bottom, then feta, cherry tomatoes,  cukes, onions and olives  covered with olive oil.  By the time the oil made its way to soggify (my term) the toast, it created one of the best Greek salads we've ever had! We were sure there will be many more salads  to come! Fast food was never so good!