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Published: April 7th 2009
Parthenon
From this angle you can see the scaffolding where restoration work is going onOn Friday we docked in Piraeus, Greece. Not a lot to discuss here until we hopped in a taxi to Athens. If crosswalks and stoplights are a suggestion in Sicily, in Piraeus they must be considered casual artwork. People glance at them but it doesn’t change how they go about their day. We once compared a taxi ride in Mexico to Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride at Disneyland. A taxi ride in Piraeus is more like a non-stop chase in the movie the French Connection. It appeared the taxi driver could not decide which lane he wanted to be in so he drove between lanes for a few miles - weaving must be an art. We’re not sure what the Greek word for Cabrone is (still not sure of the spelling) but he was using it. His hands were waving and it was crazy. He would do his best to point out the main sites in Athens like the Olympic stadium but we zoomed by so fast we hardly got a glimpse.
With the adrenaline-raising taxi ride out of the way, we encountered the Acropolis. WOW! We could end the blog right there but we won’t. There is nothing more impressive
Theatre of Dionysus Eleuthereus
The largest theatre in the complex. than standing at the bottom of the Acropolis and looking up to the Partheon. While the Partheon is truly impressive, the Acropolis is most impressive. As you look up at the structure, you can see that mortar was not used. The blocks were cut to such precision that they each butt up against each other perfectly. Why this does not come tumbling down is a mystery.
Once the amazement somewhat subsided about the engineering feat of the Acropolis, we took to the stairs to see the Partheon and many other structures in the area. You purchase a single ticket that has multiple perforated tabs that are used as tickets to get into the various sites. While traversing the stairs, there are vendors hawking their wares. It took away from the experience a little but they were only selling water and silly-putty type tomatoes you could squash that would take it’s shape once again. Hard to explain but funny to see. Also for sale were parasols, not umbrellas, to shade oneself from the sun.
Since most people took a tour, they were lagging behind us. We got to the Partheon before most of the crowds arrived. It was extremely
Parthenon
Another angle of the Parthenon impressive. They have been restoring the site over the years. They take pieces down the hill and create molds if necessary. You can see people at work carefully tending to the site. Be warned though - it is very rough terrain. There were a few times that we thought Jim was going to need a lift back down the hill because he twisted his ankle. How some of the folks made it through is unknown, especially the older folks that had a hard time walking on flat ground. There is a lot of granite used for the steps so we were very thankful it was not raining otherwise the footing would have been very slippery. The weather was around 70 degrees and it was supposed to be a high of 61 with 25 mph winds. Luckily we only had enough wind to cool us off. It was fantastic!
From there we walked the Agora which was the main marketplace and administrative center during from the 6th century BC through the 6th century AD. The area is mostly in ruins but there are information signs that provide a good deal of information in English. The main attraction is the Temple
The Erechtheum
These statues are replicas as the originals of Hephaestus which is considered the best preserved classical temple in Greece. From there we headed to the Dionysos and Odeon theaters. The Dionysos theater was under repairs and appears to be used today for special events. We were able to walk into the Odeon theater. It was very cool to see the carved marble stone seats for dignitaries in the front row.
Our next stop was Hadrian’s Arch but it required us to cross a very busy street. Knowing that red lights are merely for decoration we took our chances and waited for traffic to get backed up and weaved between four lanes of traffic hoping for the best. Once we made it across we took a few minutes for our heart rates to drop. The area with Hadrian’s Gate is very large and most of the original gate has fallen but the main attraction is the huge stone columns inside the gate of which there are only a few left standing. Our next stop was the Panathinion Stadium where the first Olympic games were held in 1896. We did not expect to see such a large stadium and to be in such good condition. The public is
Dogs of the Acropolis
This shows one of the lazy dogs that are around the Acropolis. They just lie on the ground not phased by the crowds. not allowed inside but we could easily see the complete stadium, again very impressive.
It was time for lunch so we headed to an area called the Plaka which is the older part of Athens, not as old as the Acropolis. The Plaka is known for shopping and restaurants offering traditional Greek food and dates back to the 5th century BC. Since both of us grew up in California we are accustomed to seeing something maybe 200 years old. The thought of being somewhere that has been inhabited for about 2,400 years is unbelievable. It was time for a beer, so we found a small restaurant in a back alley and ordered a Gyro, salad, and a beer. The food was excellent and we truly enjoyed sitting outside and enjoying the time to relax and take it all in.
We would be remise if we did not talk about the stray dogs of Athens. As we walked up to buy our tickets and then walk up to the top of the Acropolis there were stray dogs everywhere. They were friendly and from what we could tell the locals feed and welcome the dogs. Just about everywhere we went
The Erechtheum
Another angle of the Erechtheum there were dogs just sleeping among the crowds of people oblivious to the commotion around them. Jim finally asked one of the folks taking tickets if the dogs were a problem and he said no, they are all strays and like to hang out where there are people. We even noticed one dog trying to hitch a ride on a ferry! Not sure if he made it but the ferry workers made no effort to shoo him away.
Needless to say, we did not take a taxi back. We must have walked about 10 miles and we intended to make it back safely (we did Mom!). We decided to take the metro as another taxi ride would mean a large alcohol tab back on the ship. The metro costs one Euro and was simple to figure out. Once we made it to the Piraeus station we had a 30 minute walk to the ship. However crossing the street was an adventure all by itself but we made it by taking the lead from the locals. They would walk into the crosswalk, raise their hand to the drivers, give them a nasty look, and then cross the street. We made
Temple of Hephaestus
The one temple considered to be in the best shape in Greece it back to the ship with time to spare so we relaxed on our balcony and recounted the unbelievable experience we had for the day. Later in the evening the winds were very strong and the ship was rocking pretty good. Most of the doors on the ship to the outside decks were locked because of the high winds.
Saturday we docked in Rhodes Greece, the weather was beautiful, warm and a slight breeze. Once again the ship docked very close to the Old Town of Rhodes, a medieval walled city built in the 14th century. Inside the walls are the Palace of the Grand Masters, churches, market place, and other smaller buildings. The early part of the day we spent walking around the edge of the walled city and even in the moat. The high walls made it feel like we were in a canyon. Jim said at one point he was waiting for the cow to come flying over the wall just like a Monty Python movie.
Our next stop was the Street of Kings that now has many shops offering locally made goods and food. One street over was a Turkish style bazaar where the
Hadrianâs Arch
The large columns behind Hadrian's Arch. The original arch fell down but these huge colums still stand. merchants like to coerce customers into their shops and then haggle over prices. The cruise ship staff did not recommend visiting the newer part of Rhodes as it is more modern and less interesting. Even so we decided to leave the Old City and walk towards the beach. Along the beach there are quite a few high rise hotels but there were very few people at the beach. The beach has very little sand and is mostly small rocks that have been polished by the action of the waves over time. Walking barefoot would be very difficult. We decided to head back the Old City to eat lunch and found a small cafe and each ordered a beer and gyro. As in Athens the prices were very reasonable, Jim was also happy as the local beer, Mythos, was served in half liter glasses. There are not as many stray dogs in Rhodes as we saw in Athens but there are a lot of stray cats. While sitting at lunch there were three or four cats wandering through the tables begging for food. Stray cats are accepted by the locals like dogs are in Athens.
During our walk through the
The Plaka
The area next to the Acropolis with good restaurants and shopping main part of the city earlier in the day Jim spotted an outdoor cafe that had a decent selection of beer so we decided to stop and have a Guinness and a Chimay while sitting in the sunshine to watch the tourists. The ship was scheduled to leave port at 4:30 PM so we headed back to the ship around 3 PM to get some rest. That evening we did the normal cruise stuff, eat, go to a show, drink, go to a game show, drink, and then do some gambling. Jim played some blackjack but Lisa decided to try her luck at three card poker. To say she had fun would be an understatement. She was sitting with ladies from Mexico to her left, and two gentlemen from Madrid on her right. Let’s just say while playing cards Lisa was learning Spanish from her new friends. The problem was that the two ladies from Mexico were teaching her bad words the whole table was laughing and having a good time, including the dealer (thankfully). We finally closed the casino around 1 AM and headed back to the room. The ship does not dock until 9 AM on Sunday so
The Walled City of Old City Rhodes
The view from our balcony while in port. we should be able to sleep in.
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Jim Sherman
non-member comment
SIGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wow!!! Ancient Greek architecture, ancient Roman architecture, food, beer, wine, gambling, sleep, nice weather!!! Jim and Lisa have died and gone to heaven! :) i don't claim to speak for everyone back here, but everyone back here is jealous!!!! :)