Last day in Athens, First day in France.

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Yesterday evening I walked up to the Acropolis Museum which is located about two blocks from my hotel. I purposely waited to go after dark because I wanted to look through the windows to see the Parthenon lit up. Another advantage to going at 6PM is that there are no school groups and few tour groups at that time. (The museum I open until 8PM.) It was another of those "Wow!" moments when I got up to the top floor to see the (remains of) the pediments, frieze, and metopes on display. They are are placed around the interior wall of the entire floor in the same positions they held on the actual Parthenon. Some of the pieces that are in other museums around the world, notably the Elgin marbles, are displayed as plaster casts and the effect is not as jarring as you might think. It is easy to follow the story of the panels with the help of the English descriptions. I was among the last to leave the museum and would have stayed longer if I could. In fact, I decided to do just that: I went back again today! This morning I packed my suitcase and left it at the hotel, then walked to the museum again. The displays looked even better in the daylight. There are floor-to-ceiling windows that suffuse the galleries with light and, on the north side, provide an unobstructed view of the Acropolis itself. I could go on about the sublime experience of seeing the museum, but unfortunately I can't show you many photos because photography is forbidden inside. I did manage to take one picture when no one was looking last night, so I will include that here, along with a parting shot of the Parthenon at night. After I left the museum today I collected my suitcase and caught the Metro train to the airport. I flew Air France to Marseille and rented a car. I used GPS to get me to my hotel in Martigues. It is a pleasure to hear the locals speaking French, a language that is a bit less foreign to me than Hebrew, Turkish, and Greek. In truth, though, English is spoken everywhere I have been and it is a luxury for those of us lucky enough to be native speakers. More tomorrow from La Belle France!

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