My excitement at finally reaching Athens, and getting to see the Parthenon in person, was temporarily overlaid by more mundane concerns - like reaching my hotel, and finding some coffee. However, I had plenty of help. I was carrying not only the booklet on Greece sent by the Rick Steves' tour divas, but a chunk torn (with some difficulty) out of Lonely Planet, and notes from Matt Barrett's excellent web site.
I followed the crowd off the train and underground to the Larissa metro station, then traveled two stops on the red line to Omonoia, and one on the green line to Monastiraki. Had I been heading for the tour hotel (too expensive for an extra-night single, I thought) I could just have stayed on the red line. Athens' metro system, revamped and extended for the 2004 Olympics, was a joy, even when crowded - clean, quick and easy to use. My hotel, the Cecil, was just up Athinas street from the Monastiraki stop. And when I squeezed on to my tiny balcony alongside the air-conditioning unit, I could see the Parthenon between the big letters of the hotel sign.
I didn't find out about the view until later, as I wasn't allowed to check in until 12:30. Meanwhile, I people-watched over cappuccino and a sausage roll at a nearby stall, noticing that the one couple wearing shorts drew stares. I had arrived early in Athens - the tour would start the next day - because we would return to Athens during Orthodox Easter, when museums would be closed, and Athens has some excellent museums in addition to the must-see Archaeological Museum included on the tour.
I started with the Museum of Cycladic Art where I fell in love with the amazingly modern-looking, minimalist, marble goddesses. (I think they're goddesses, the museum web site calls them "figurines".) I had hard time leaving, but I wanted to check out the Benaki. While the Benaki provided a good overview, and included two beautiful, reconstructed rooms from the Ottoman period, I preferred the specialist museums. (The gold diadem on the right is like those in the Benaki, but I took the photo at Pella.)
I rested up with more coffee and people watching in Syntagma Square, with the posh Hotel Bretagne on one side, and the parliament building (built in the 1800s as a palace) on the other, before taking my first look at the pedestrian tourist enclave known as the Plaka. I ate dinner in the Plaka, not, as I had intended, at a taverna, but at the recommendable Eat at Miltons. I had grown a little tired of taverna fare in Northern Greece, and found the sleek wood and glass tables and more varied menu at Miltons irresistible.
Next day I added two more museums. I enjoyed the costumes and embroidery at the Folk Art Museum, but found the reminders of the holocaust at the otherwise interesting Jewish Museum depressing, although when visiting Jewish museums I'm always humbled to realize how little I really know about Judaism.
"As we sample some tasty Greek specialties, your guide will outline the exciting days ahead." I had schlepped my pack over to the tour hotel, the Acropolis Select, in the morning. Now, I checked in and cleaned up ready for the scheduled 6:00 p.m. group meeting. I was careful to spread out over only half the space, as I was traveling solo and expected to share the room, but by 6:00 p.m. no roommate had shown up. In fact, she never did show up, and we never did find out why.
It had been nearly seven years since I had traveled with a group the size of the one I was joining, and as a bona fide introvert, I felt a little nervous as I headed downstairs for the first get-together. Nibbles and drinks during the meeting helped some, but dinner at a nearby taverna helped more. The appetizers, assorted dips (beans, eggplant, cheese and yummy tzatziki) were good, and the conversation better. After dinner I joined Bruce and Mia for a stroll through the Plaka, talking about the time they had spent in India and Nepal.
I enjoyed my suddenly single room at the Acropolis Select, although I kept expecting the missing roommate to appear. The Acropolis Select was clearly a step up from the Cecil, with bigger rooms, a large lobby and more extensive breakfast buffet, but I still felt the Cecil offered good value for a single.
"Our morning begins with an orientation to Athens and a hike up to the historic Acropolis and Agora." Originally we were scheduled to visit the Acropolis and Agora the morning of day two, and the Archaeological Museum in the afternoon, but our local guide, the energetic and well-informed Fani, was tied up with cruise ship passengers in the morning. With the museum moved to day three, we gathered in the hotel lobby at noon, eager to get started (that's Bill and Becky below left, ready to go), before heading out - and up. The Acropolis towers over Athens, a fitting site for the gods, and I was glad of my hiking boots and stick as we climbed the slick marble steps.
I had admired the Parthenon from below from several angles, but somehow, up close, it lost its magic for me. Perhaps there were too many people around, perhaps it was the ongoing repairs, perhaps up close I saw too clearly the damage caused when the Turkish arsenal exploded in 1687. Even knowing I was looking at reproductions, I found the elegant caryatids supporting the Erechtheion's porch more evocative. The Parthenon from below, though, retained its magic. Distance did lend enchantment, and the views down from the Acropolis were as good as the views up.
We lost another tour member on day two. David (not our tour guide) had visited the Acropolis before the tour started, and fallen on the slippery marble. Visiting the hospital while we visited the Acropolis, he learned that he had broken his leg, and he had to go home. It seemed the Greek gods had required a sacrifice, but this time it wasn't me - could the libation I had poured at Dodoni actually have made a difference?
I still hadn't fully switched to group mode, and after our brief visit to the Agora (it was closing), I took off alone. I stopped off for an afternoon cappuccino at what would become my favorite Plaka hangout, the Kydatheneon. Can you tell that I'm a coffee addict? Unfortunately, Greece is not the best place for coffee, the locals mostly drink a vile-looking mixture of Nescafe, milk, sugar and ice. For the low-down on Greek coffee, and the best places in Athens to drink it, Matt Barrett's detailed discussion is hard to beat, that's where I found the recommendation for the Kydatheneon. The coffee was quite good, and I enjoyed the very comfortable, shaded, chairs outside.
But my real goal for the rest of the day was sunset at the Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion. To get there I caught a bus, along with quite a lot of other people (most of them got off along the way). The ride took rather longer than I had expected, but I found plenty to look at - once we cleared the city we followed the coastline, with a few detours through villages. I had asked the young man sitting next me on the train into Athens for his number one sight in Athens, and had been surprised when he said beaches. Looking at them from the bus, I was unconvinced.
The sunset, however, did not disappoint - that's it up at the top of the page. The temple, built in 444 B.C.E., had lost its roof, but the columns had survived fairly well, and the architects had given the god a great view out to sea. The view of the temple from the water, which told Athenian sailors they were almost home, must have been even more impressive.
I have borderline hypoglycemia, and the lunchtime sandwich I had eaten in the Agora had worn off. Luckily the restaurant below the temple proved better than I expected, and a big glass of real orange juice and a pile of excellent fried shrimp arrived just in time. There's really nothing to do at Cape Sounion after dark, and I made sure to catch the last bus back to Athens. Just as well, as it left precisely on time. I finished the day in a taverna in the Plaka, with a fire taking the chill off the evening air.
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