Arriving in Greece

---

When you mention to people that you are going to Greece, almost everybody has an opinion on Athens and whether it’s worth visiting. “Smoggy, dirty and crowded” are the usual adjectives people use when talking about Athens.



I can’t imagine going to Greece for the first time and NOT visiting Athens. How do you land in the city and manage to avoid going to see the Acropolis, the Temple of Zeus and see the city where so much of Western Civilization started? Sure, it’s a crowded city with its share of grime, graffiti and so forth but it also how some wonderful, magical corners and experiences to be had.



Since the Olympics were in Athens in 2004, there have been big changes to the infrastructure which is a huge boon to travelers. The main improvement has been the Metro which is clean, efficient and has direct routes from the new airport to downtown and from downtown to Piraeus which is the harbor that all the ferries leave from. We landed, got our luggage, walked over a fancy new overpass and were in the Metro station. Almost everyone in an official capacity there speaks English, so were able to quickly purchase tickets, jump on the Metro and arrive downtown.


We stayed at a small, old hotel in the Plaka area of Athens which is definitely the place to stay. It is the most charming part of Athens- winding cobblestone streets under the shadow of the Acropolis. Many cute boutiques and cafes and restaurants to stroll around. What’s amazing is that you’ll be walking around the neighborhood and suddenly come across some giant marble antiquities which are all over this place. Nobody even pays much attention to them- you can go sit on huge marble blocks which are the remains of buildings built thousands of years ago.

We went and had a wonderful dinner with the best homemade rolls we would have the entire trip sitting outside in balmy weather then came back to the hotel and crashed.

The next day we got up- had breakfast which included a basket of Greek oranges (the sweetest!) which we juiced ourselves with an electric juicer.

That morning we hiked up the hill to the Acropolis along a rough path with bright red poppies blooming, not believing we were going to end up at such a famous site. When we arrived, we joined huge crowds of tourists from all over the world but were still able to enjoy it. We then walked down the other side, saw the Temple of Zeus, walked through their large park and then back to the hotel and had some lunch at a café.

After having a little rest, we went back out, walked to Syntagma square which is the site of Parliament and saw the Changing of the Guard with the guys wearing their ridiculous uniforms. We explored the “flea market” area but found it pretty rundown and full of cheap imports so went back to the hotel and then to dinner and another charming café in the Plaka

---