|
|
Day
17
(October 22, 2011) Athens: Acropolis and Plaka
Before
The whole day is going to be spent on visiting Athens. The
first place would be Archaeological Museum, which visit I missed when
being here in 2007. Then we will drive to Acropolis, passing by Temple
of Olympic Zeus too.
The spots marked at Athens map are:
0- Chic Hotel
1- Acropolis
2- Archaeological Museum
3- Temple of Olympian Zeus
4- Parliament
|
After
Today I’m going to show Athens to my parents in 2
hours. Eva will join us at lunch time.
After breakfast we leave the hotel around 9:30 to
take the underground from Omonia to Akropolis stations. This last one
is a place to visit by itself as it looks like a hall of an
archaeological museum. We’re not going to visit the real one today
.
The idea is going to the Temple of Olympic Zeus
first and buying the multi-site ticket there by 12€. We do that indeed
after passing besides Arch of Hadrian, still outside, and accessing to
the area. There are just a few of the original columns, but they’re as
magnificent as per imagine the stunning size that temple had in times
of yore.
Another highlight of this place is the fantastic
views of Acropolis, which seems to watch the whole city from the top of
its pedestal.
 
We walk back our way from the metro station for taking the
avenue which is going to drive us to the Acropolis, but the stores on
it become a big obstacle as my mother must go into all of them and
check everything.
We take ice creams while waiting for her as
temperature is appropriate for it. It’s not as hot as in summer, but
sun is doing its job on a clear sky like this.
While walking along the avenue, following a path
between trees we meet the entrance to Odeon of Herodes Atticus. When I
first came to Athens in 2007, I only could see this magnificent theater
from above, at Acropolis entrance. We walk in front of it and then take
the way up to that entrance to Acropolis I mentioned where we get those
known views
.
 
Once in the complex, after using the ticket we already
purchased on the first temple, we follow the stairs up to the top of
Acropolis, where Parthenon, in its eternal restoration works, and
Erechtheum, with its famous caryatids, are waiting for us.
 
 
In our way out of Acropolis, I avoid the path to ancient
Agora to go directly to Plaka where we must meet my wife, just in
Monastiraki Square. The streets are picturesque, steep and narrow, and
we take pleasure in them as we’re on time.
 
Once all together, we take our time on souvenirs stores around
Roman Agora and Hadrian’s library. They’re sealing replicas of any kind
of classic Greek sculptures and statues.
In the meantime Eva was waiting for us, she got some advice about where
going to lunch. I remember there are a lot of restaurants on this area
but it seems that, just by taking some streets apart of the touristic
places, we can lunch better and cheaper. So we follow an alley which
drives us to a little square where we choose one of the tables of a
restaurant for lunching. The place’s name is Oraia Penteli.
The woman there speaks Spanish and we all four order Mousaka. I’ve
convinced my parents and wife when talking about how crazy I was about
recalling the place of eating authentic Greek Mousaka, which taste I
still remember from my previous visit
.
When we all taste the contents of the big plate we’ve been served we are all grateful of such a big portion. Delicious!
While waiting for desserts, a child with a small guitar comes to sing a
song which lyrics we cannot understand, but it must be so sad that
touches us and makes him earn his donation.
We walk
to Sytagma Square for helping to our digestion. We go throughout Ermou
Street between fancy shops and street food. This street is full of life
 and the walk is very gentle.
While we’re approaching to Parliament building, in front of which is
performed a curious change of guard every hour o’clock, we notice
something unusual on the entrance of the luxury hotels of that zone:
the white marbled stairs are damaged on some areas. Some of them look
as if the marble was taken off by the bites of a big monster, and
others look completely nude of marble. Then come to mind the tv images
from news about the protests in Athens because of the social cutbacks.
Those images were from this spot and the stones demonstrators threw to police came from somewhere. Wow!
We go across the street to get the Unknown Soldier tomb and the two
sentry boxes with the guards. We’re in a quarter to 18:00, we mustn’t
wait for long. There a plenty of doves in this place too.
When we get the time, by the street appears the officer with the two
replacement guards (they’re called Evzones) and while they’re
performing their march with their typical feet moves which don’t seem
to belong to military men, the laughs are heart from spectators, but
because of another reason. From the beginning of the ceremony, two dogs
were playing in the street and around the guards, without distracting
them, but giving the sensation something could happen. And just when it
seemed they were leaving to play somewhere else, one of them come back
just for taking the flowers from the Unknown Soldier tomb and run away
with them. Are these for its girlfriend?.
 
On picture at left the dog can be seen in the middle of the
ceremony. Eva and I were already seen this guard change, but what we
don’t think they did that time is, once the change is over, keep the
guards standing in front of their booths, motionless, and the officer
who managed the ceremony shout to the tourists it’s time for photos
with them with two rules: one by one and don't touching them.
Well, as we’re tourists indeed, we take the invitation and get the pictures as souvenir.
A little of walk more and we get the hotel, where we’re going to rest
until tomorrow. We need to wake up early for last time in this
incredible travel which is about to finish
.
|
|
|
|
