Saturday 6 June 2009

Athens

Our much anticipated Europe 2009 backpacking trip began in Athens, where we flew in on the 3rd of June. Our plane was late and the bus we took from the airport terminated about 3kms earlier than it should have so we had a long walk to find our hostel with all our luggage. We were off to a great start.

In Athens we stayed at a hostel called 'Athens Backpackers' run by a friendly bunch of Aussies in Acropoli, walking distance to the Acropolis & in the heart of the Plaka district - full of shops, restaurants and cafes. By the time we checked in it was about 10pm and we headed out to get a bite to eat. We both realised that it was our anniversary on our way to Athens andd decided to have a sit down dinner.

The hostel receptionist recommended a restaurant nearby called 'God's Restaurant'. I'm not sure who the cook was at the God's restaurant by the food was not that great. On our way back to the hostel, we stopped for Gelato(this is not the watery version you get back in Oz, its proper homemade ice cream). The girl at the Gelato shop let us taste a new flavour which was tequila, chilli & chocolate. It was way too alcoholic for our liking so we ended up buying the Creme Brulee flavour.

While the hostel was clean and the beds were comfy we didnt get much sleep thanks to the mosquitos. The next morning we headed up to the rooftop for breakfast with staggering views of the Acropolis almost touching distance from us. After breakfast we signed up for the daily walking tour of Athens run by the hostel. Our guide was a 23 year old crazy chatterbox Greek girl called Paula. We headed off the in direction of the Acropolis with the sun already high and the temperature in the early 30s. Some of the sights visited in the walking tour included Herod's Odean, Athens First Court (a rock on a hilltop used by Greek elders to preside over criminal matters), Ancient Agora (old marketplace where Socrates used to come to challenge people's views on social and moral questions), Temple of Olympian Zeus, Hadrian's Arc, National Garden, Parliament (watched the changing of the guards at the tomb of the unknown soldier), Olympic stadium (home of the modern Olympics, which is normally not open to the public but we managed to go inside because of some ceremony).The rest of the day we spend sleeping and eating and walking around Plaka.

The next day we made plans to visit Sounio, a 1.5 bus ride that takes you to the Temple of Posoiden & great beaches. Unfortunately as it was a national holiday the buses were irregular and we gave up the idea after wasting a couple of hours waiting. On national holidays all sights and museums entry is free so we decided to make use of this and head to the National Archeological Museum. First we had lunch in Mynastirakas, 2 gyros(open kebab sandwich consisting of pork/lamb/chicken + salad, chips, taziki on pita bread) at a place recommended by lonely planet. We came to love gyros in Athens as it was quick, convenient, cheap and tasty. Lunch was again followed by Ge‏lato.

The archeological museum was well worth the visit, though so much so since we didnt have to pay to get in. They had some great sculpture and egyptian sections. After taking a well earned rest back at the hostel we decide to visit the Acropolis at sunset. This turned out to be a great decision because there were no queues as per normal and we got to the top very quickly. The Parthenon was an impressive sight and it was fun trying to imagine what the whole site you have been like in its hay day. Its so sad that so much of the beautiful sights around Athens are no longer in tact mainly due to war and people's stupidity. If I could go back in time I would have liked to have seen the Temple of Zeus as it was meant to be; not the 12 columns its reduced to now. The 25 foot seated Zues with human size nymph in his hand would have been a spine tingling sight.

After the Acropolis closed at 8pm we headed to the rock right next to the Acropolis to survey Athens from above (also known as the First Court) and watch the sunset. The sunsets in Greece are fabulous due to the excessive pollution and fog levels. All in all it was a great day.

Our third and last day in Athens we spent shopping in Mynastirakas and meandering about town till our 5:30pm ferry to Santorini. Most peope who have been to Athens dont describe in very pleasant terms. While its not the prettiest city I've been to I had a great time there. Plaka was a nice area to be in although very touristy and all the main historic sights are very close by. The city is seeping with history and the Greeks were friendly & hospitable. The Metro was quick and convenient and who doesnt love gyros & gelato? One thing I could not stand there was the excessive smoking. People smoked everywhere indoors and out & some at ticket booths and other enclosed spaces. Mothers, teenagers, old folks.. everybody smoked. It's quite ridiculous.

The other thing I noticed was that the Greeks are crazy drivers. Although not as bad as Sri Lankans they still dont pay attention to any road rules. A lot of them use motorbikes especially women who dont seem to mind big chunky bikes to go about town.

All in all I think that if you are going to visit Greece Athens is well worth a visit.

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